trigeminus

trĭgĕmĭnus (collat. form, mostly poet., tergĕmĭnus ), a, um, adj. [tresgeminus], three born at a birth: fratres, three twin-brothers.

I.

Lit., Liv. 1, 24, 1; cf.:

tergeminos nasci certum est Horatiorum Curiatiorumque exemplo,

Plin. 7, 3, 3, § 33:

trigeminorum matres,

Col. 3, 8, 1:

trigemini filii,

Plaut. Mil. 3, 1, 123. — As subst.: trĭgĕmĭni, three brothers born at a birth, Liv. 1, 25, 1; Col. 2, 1, 3; 7, 6, 7; cf.:

trigemino partu,

id. 3, 10, 17:

Horatius trigemina spolia prae se gerens,

of the three twin-brothers, Liv. 1, 26, 2:

Trigemini,

the title of a comedy of Plautus, Gell. 7, 9, 7.—

II.

Transf., in gen., threefold, triple, triform, = triplex (mostly poet. ):

trigeminae victoriae triplicem triumphum egistis,

Liv. 6, 7, 4:

tripectora tergemini vis Geryonai,

Lucr. 5, 28; cf.

of the same and of Cerberus: tergeminumque virum tergeminumque canem,

Ov. Tr. 4, 7, 16;

and of Cerberus: cui tres sunt linguae tergeminumque caput,

Tib. 3, 4, 88:

canis,

Prop. 4 (5), 7, 52: tergemina Hecate (because she was also Luna and Diana; cf.

triceps and triformis),

Verg. A. 4, 511:

tergemina dextra,

i. e. of the three Graces, Stat. S. 3, 4, 83:

jus tergeminae prolis. i. e. trium liberorum,

id. ib. 4, 8, 21:

pomorum tergemina natura,

Plin. 15, 28, 34, § 114:

verba illa Ciceronis in Pisonem (cap. 1) trigemina: decepit, fefellit, induxit,

Gell. 13, 24, 22: certat tergeminis tollere honoribus, to the threefold honors, i. e. of the three highest magistracies, those of the curule ædile, the prætor, and the consul, Hor. C. 1, 1, 8:

at tibi tergeminum mugiet ille sophos,

thrice repeated, Mart. 3, 46, 8.—

III.

Porta Trigemina, a gate, in the early times of Rome, at the foot of Mount Aventine, Liv. 4, 16, 2; 35, 10, 12; Plaut. Capt. 1, 1, 22; Plin. 18, 3, 4, § 15; Front. Aquaed. 5 al.; cf. Becker, Antiq. 1, p. 157 sq.