caecum

1.

caecus (not coecus; sometimes in MSS. cēcus ), a, um, adj. [akin to skia, skotos; Sanscr. khāyā, shadow], having no light, devoid of light.

I.

Act., not seeing, blind.

A.

Lit.:

Appius, qui caecus annos multos fuit,

Cic. Tusc. 5, 38, 112:

traditum est enim Homerum caecum fuisse,

id. ib. 5, 39, 114; Lucr. 5, 839:

catuli, qui jam dispecturi sunt, caeci aeque et hi qui modo nati,

Cic. Fin. 4, 23, 64:

si facie miserabili senis, caeci, infantis,

Quint. 4, 1, 42:

caecum corpus,

the blind part of the body, the back, Sall. J. 107, 1:

perdices caecae impetu,

Plin. 10, 33, 51, § 102:

gigni,

Vell. 1, 5, 2.—

2.

Prov.:

ut si Caecus iter monstrare velit,

Hor. Ep. 1, 17, 4:

apparet id quidem etiam caeco,

even a blind man can see that, Liv. 32, 34, 3:

caecis hoc, ut aiunt, satis clarum est,

Quint. 12, 7, 9.—

B.

Trop., mentally or morally blind, blinded (freq. in prose and poetry):

o pectora caeca!

Lucr. 2, 14:

non solum ipsa Fortuna caeca est, sed eos etiam plerumque efficit caecos, quos complexa est,

Cic. Lael. 15, 54; cf.

casus,

id. Div. 2, 6, 15:

caecus atque amens tribunus,

id. Sest. 7, 17:

caecum me et praecipitem ferri,

id. Planc. 3, 6:

mater caeca crudelitate et scelere,

id. Clu. 70, 199:

cupidine,

Sall. J. 25, 7:

amentiā,

Cic. Har. Resp. 23, 48:

quem mala stultitia Caecum agit,

Hor. S. 2, 3, 44:

amatorem amicae Turpia decipiunt caecum vitia,

id. ib. 1, 3, 39:

mens,

Tac. Agr. 43.—With ad:

caecus ad has belli artes,

Liv. 21, 54, 3.—With gen.:

caecus animi,

Quint. 1, 10, 29; Gell. 12, 13, 4:

fati futuri,

ignorant of, Luc. 2, 14; cf. Claud. Rapt. Pros. 1, 138.— Subst.: Caeci, ōrum, m., the blind people, i.e. the people of Chalcedon, according to the oracle at Delphi. Tac. A. 12, 63; cf. Plin. 5, 32, 43, § 149. —

2.

Meton. of the passions themselves:

caeca honorum cupido,

Lucr. 3, 59; Ov. M. 3, 620:

ac temeraria dominatrix animi cupiditas,

Cic. Inv. 1, 2, 2; id. Pis. 24, 57:

exspectatio,

id. Agr. 2, 25, 66:

amor,

Ov. F. 2, 762:

amor sui,

Hor. C. 1, 18, 14:

festinatio,

Liv. 22, 39, 22:

furor,

Hor. Epod. 7, 13:

caeca et sopita socordia,

Quint. 1, 2, 5:

ambitio,

Sen. Ben. 7, 26, 4.—

3.

Pregn., blind, i.e. at random, vague, indiscriminate, aimless:

in hac calumniā timoris et caecae suspitionis tormento,

Cic. Fam. 6, 7, 4:

caeco quodam timore... quaerebant aliquem ducem,

id. Lig. 1, 3:

caecique in nubibus ignes Terrificant animos,

Verg. A. 4, 209:

caeca regens filo vestigia,

id. ib. 6, 30:

ne sint caecae, pater, exsecrationes tuae,

Liv. 40, 10, 1:

et caeco flentque paventque metu,

Ov. F. 2, 822:

lymphatis caeco pavore animis,

Tac. H. 1, 82:

cervus... Caeco timore proximam villam petit,

Phaedr. 2, 8, 3:

timor,

Ov. Am. 1, 4, 42.—

C.

Transf.

1.

Of plants, without buds or eyes:

rami,

Plin. 16, 30, 54, § 125; cf. caeco and oculus. —

2.

Of the large intestine:

intestinum,

the cœcum, Cels. 4, 1, 28; 4, 14, 1.—

II.

Pass., that cannot be seen, or trop., that cannot be known, invisible, concealed, hidden, secret, obscure, dark.

A.

Lit.: sunt igitur venti nimirum corpora caeca, winds are accordingly bodies, although invisible, Lucr. 1, 278; 1, 296; 1, 329;

2, 713: vallum caecum,

Caes. B. C. 1, 28; cf.: caecum vallum dicitur, in quo praeacuti pali terrae affixi herbis vel frondibus occuluntur, Paul. ex Fest. p. 44 Müll.; so,

fossae,

covered, Col. 2, 2, 9; Pall. Mai, 3. 1:

in vada caeca ferre,

Verg. A. 1, 536:

fores,

private, id. ib. 2, 453:

spiramenta,

id. G. 1, 89:

colubri,

Col. 10, 231:

ignis,

Lucr. 4, 929:

venenum,

id. 6, 822:

tabes,

Ov. M. 9, 174:

viae,

blind ways, Tib. 2, 1, 78:

insidiae armaque,

Ov. F 2, 214; cf. Sil. 5, 3:

saxa,

Verg. A. 3, 706; 5, 164:

vulnus,

a secret wound, Lucr. 4, 1116;

but also,

a wound upon the back, Verg. A. 10, 733; cf.

in the same sense, ictus,

Liv. 34, 14, 11; Sil. 9, 105 (cf.: caecum corpus, the back, I. A. supra):

caeca manus, i.e. abscondita,

Ov. M. 12, 492:

caecum domūs scelus,

Verg. A. 1, 356.—

B.

Trop.:

caecas exponere causas,

Lucr. 3, 317:

improba navigii ratio, tum caeca jacebat,

lay still concealed, id. 5, 1004; so,

venti potestas,

id. 3, 248; 3, 270: fluctus, Sisenn. ap. Non. p. 449, 10:

caeca et clandestina natura,

Lucr. 1, 779:

res caecae et ab aspectūs judicio remotae,

Cic. de Or. 2, 87, 357:

obscurum atque caecum,

id. Agr. 2, 14, 36:

fata,

Hor. C. 2, 13, 16:

sors,

id. S. 2, 3, 269:

tumultus,

secret conspiracies, Verg. G. 1, 464:

amor,

id. ib. 3, 210; cf.:

stimulos in pectore caecos Condidit,

Ov. M. 1, 726. In Plaut. once, prob. taken from the vulgar lang.: caecā die emere, upon a concealed ( pay- ) day, i.e. to purchase on credit (opp. oculata dies, i.e. for ready money): Ca. Pereo inopiā argentariā. Ba. Emito die caecā hercle olivom, id vendito oculatā die, Plaut. Ps. 1, 3, 67.—

2.

By poet. license, transf. to the hearing:

murmur,

Verg. A. 12, 591 (as we, by a similar meton., say a hollow sound; cf. on the other hand, in Gr. tuphlos ta ôta); so,

clamor,

Val. Fl. 2, 461:

mugitusterrae,

Sen. Troad. 171.—

III.

Neutr., that obstructs the sight, or trop., the perception; dark, gloomy, thick, dense, obscure.

A.

Lit.:

nox,

Cic. Mil. 19, 50; Lucr. 1, 1108; Cat. 68, 44; Ov. M. 10, 476; 11, 521:

caligo,

Lucr. 3, 305; 4, 457; Cat. 64, 908; Verg. A. 3, 203; 8, 253:

tenebrae,

Lucr. 2, 54; 2, 746; 2, 798; 3, 87; 6, 35;

3, 87: silentia, i.e. nox,

Sil. 7, 350:

latebrae,

Lucr. 1, 409:

iter,

Ov. M. 10, 456:

loca,

Prop. 1, 19, 8:

cavernae,

Ov. M. 15, 299; Sil. 7, 372:

latus,

Verg. A. 2, 19:

cubiculum si fenestram non habet, dicitur caecum,

Varr. L. L. 9, § 58 Müll.; so,

domus,

without windows, Cic. Or. 67, 224:

parietes,

Verg. A. 5, 589:

pulvis,

id. ib. 12, 444:

carcer,

id. ib. 6, 734:

sardonyches,

not transparent, opaque, Plin. 37, 6, 23, § 86:

smaragdi,

id. 37, 5, 18, § 68: acervus (of chaos), chaotic, confused, Ov M. 1, 24; Col. 4, 32, 4' chaos, Sen. Med. 741, Sil. 11, 456.—

B.

Trop., uncertain, doubtful: obscurā spe et caecā exspectatione pendere, i.e. of an uncertain consequence or result, Cic. Agr. 2, 25, 66:

quod temere fit caeco casu,

id. Div. 2, 6, 15. cursus (Fortunae), Luc. 2, 567:

eventus,

Verg. A. 6, 157:

caeci morbi, quorum causas ne medici quidem perspicere queunt,

Col. 1, 5, 6; so,

dolores,

Plin. 29, 2, 10, § 38; 29, 3, 13, § 55:

crimen,

that cannot be proved, Liv. 45, 31, 11.— Subst.: caecum, i, n., uncertainty, obscurity ( poet. ):

verum in caeco esse,

Manil. 4, 304.—

* Comp., Hor. S. 1, 2, 91.— Sup. and adv. not in. use.

2.

Caecus, i, m.; agnomen of Appius Claudius Crassus, as being blind, Cic. Brut. 14, 55; cf. Liv. 9, 29, 11; Cic. Sen. 6, 16.