ordior

ordĭor, orsus, 4 ( fut. ordibor for ordiar: non parvam rem ordibor, Att. ap. Non. 39, 22; part. perf. orditus, Sid. Ep. 2, 9; Vulg. Isa. 25, 7), v. dep., lit., to begin a web, to lay the warp; hence, also, in gen., to begin, undertake a thing:

ordiri est rei principium facere, unde et togae vocantur exordiae,

Fest. p. 185 Müll.; cf. Isid. 19, 29, 7:

telam,

Hier. in Isa. 9, 30, v. 1; Vulg. Isa. 25, 7.

I.

Lit., to begin to weave a web, to weave, spin:

araneus orditur telas,

Plin. 11, 24, 28, § 80.—So of the Fates:

Lachesis plenā orditur manu,

Sen. Apoc. 4:

(Parca) hominis vitam orditur,

Lact. 2, 10, 20.—

II.

In gen., to begin, commence, set about, undertake (class.; syn.: incipio, incoho, infit); constr. with acc., de, inf., or absol.

(α).

With acc.:

reliquas res,

Cic. Fam. 5, 12, 2:

alterius vitae quoddam initium ordimur,

id. Att. 4, 1:

reliquos,

to relate, describe, Nep. Alc. 11, 6:

querelae ab initio tantae ordiendae rei absint. Liv. praef. § 12: majorem orsa furorem,

Verg. A. 7, 386.—

(β).

With de:

paulo altius de re ordiri,

Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 47, § 105.—

(γ).

With inf.:

ea, de quā disputare ordimur,

Cic. Brut. 6, 22:

cum adulescens orsus esset in foro dicere,

id. ib. 88, 301:

cum sic orsa loqui vates,

Verg. A. 6, 125:

et orsa est Dicere Leuconoë,

Ov. M. 4, 167:

tunc sic orsa loqui,

id. ib. 4, 320.—

(δ).

Absol., to begin, commence, set out, take or have a beginning:

unde est orsa, in eodem terminetur oratio,

Cic. Marcell. 11, 33: Veneris contra sic filius orsus, thus began (to speak), Verg. A. 1, 325:

sic Juppiter orsus,

id. ib. 12, 806; so commonly with specification of the point from which:

unde ordiri rectius possumus quam a naturā?

Cic. Tusc. 5, 13, 37 init.:

a principio,

id. Phil. 2, 18, 44:

a facillimis,

id. Fin. 1, 5, 13:

a capite,

Plin. 25, 11, 83, § 132.—

(ε).

Of things or subjects, to begin, to be begun (where the verb may be taken in pass. sense):

tormina ab atrā bile orsa mortifera sunt,

Cels. 2, 8:

cum ex depressiore loco fuerint orsa fundamenta,

Col. 1, 5, 9: sed ab initio est ordiendus (Themistocles), i. e. I must begin ( his life ) at the beginning, Nep. Them. 1, 2; cf.:

ab eo nobis causa ordienda est,

Cic. Leg. 1, 7, 21.