alveus

Meaning

1. masculineusuallyhollow, cavity
2. especiallymasculinehollow, deep vessel, basket, trough, tray; deep cavity, excavation
   Sustinet impositōs summā cavus alveus undā: heu, quantum fātī parva tabella tulit!The vessel supports the [babies] laid there on the surface of the water: oh, what a fate the little plank bore!8 CE, Ovidius, Fasti 2.407–408
3. especiallymasculinetrough for feeding pigs
   Sed ad liēnem praecipua est, sī sūcus eius expressus in vīnō bibātur. Adeōque mīrābilem eius antipathīān contrā sōlum hoc viscerum faciunt, ut adfirment, sī ex eā alveīs factīs bibant suēs sine liēne invenīrī.But it is of special effect for the spleen, if its juice, squeezed out, is drunk in wine. So extraordinary do they make out its antipathy against this specific organ to be, that they affirm that if pigs drink from troughs made out of it, they'll be found without a spleen.77 CE – 79 CE, Plinius Maior, Naturalis Historia 24.67
4. derogatoryespeciallyhumorousmasculinedish for food
   Etiam in alveō circumlāta sunt oxycomina, unde quīdam etiam improbē ternōs pugnōs sustulērunt.Pickled olives were also brought round in a dish, from where some voraciously took three fistfuls.c. 27 CE – 66 CE, Petronius, Satyricon 66
5. especiallymasculinehold, hull
   Igitur Monam īnsulam, incolīs validam et receptāculum perfugārum, adgredī parat, navēsque fābricātur plānō alveō adversus breve et incertum.So he prepares to attack the island of Anglesey, considerable in population and a haven for deserters, and builds ships with a flat hull in view of the short and uncertain channel.c. 117 CE, Tacitus, Annales 14.29
6. especiallymasculinemetonymicallysmall ship, boat, skiff
   Inde aliās animās, quae per iuga longa sedēbant, dēturbat laxatque forōs; simul accipit alve̯ō ingentem Aenēam. Gemuit sub pondere cumba sūtilis et multam accēpit rīmōsa palūdem.Then the other souls, sitting on the long thwarts, he routs out and clears the gangways; at once he takes in the ship the giant Aeneas. The seamy boat creaks under the weight and, full of fissures, takes marshy water in.29 BCE – 19 BCE, Vergilius, Aeneis 6.411–414
7. especiallymasculinehollowed gaming board
8. especiallymasculinebeehive
9. especiallymasculinebathtub
   Praegestit animus iam vidēre prīmum lautōs iuvenēs mulieris beātae ac nōbilis familiārēs, deinde fortēs virōs ab imperātrīce in īnsidiīs atque in praesidiō balneārum collocātōs; ex quibus requīram, quem ad modum latuerint aut ubī, alveusne ille an equus Troiānus fuerit, quī tot invictōs virōs muliebre bellum gerentēs tulerit ac texerit.The soul is thrilled to now see, first, luxurious young men, acquaintances of a rich and well-known woman, and second, strong men posted by their commandress in the ambush and garrison of the baths; for which I'd ask, how did they hide and where, and whether that was a bathtub or a Trojan Horse, which carried and hid so many invincible men fighting a war for a woman.56 BCE, Cicero, Pro Caelio 67
10. especiallymasculineriverbed, river channel; canal

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

Declension

Origins

Proto-Indo-European *h₂ewlósder. Proto-Italic *aulos? Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der. Proto-Indo-European *-wósder. Proto-Italic *alwos? Latin alvus Proto-Indo-European *-éyos Proto-Italic *-ejos Proto-Italic *-eos Latin -eus Latin alveus From alvus (“the belly, paunch, bowels”) + -eus.

Related words