adjectivethird-declension two-termination adjective
bessālis
bessālis (neuter bessāle)
Classical[bɛsˈsaː.lɪs]Ecclesiastical[besˈsaː.lis]
Meaning
- two terminationcomprising two-thirds (of a thing)
- two terminationeight unciae, a unit of length, weight, and volume used by the ancient Romans.
supraque laterculis besalibus pilae struantur ita dispositae
Upon this, pillars made of bricks of eight unciae are builtc. 80 BCE – 15 BCE, Vitruvius, De Architectura 5.10.2Besalem ad scutulam sexto pervenimus anno
I arrived to an small dish of eight unciae on the sixth year86 CE – 103 CE, Martialis, Epigrammata 8.71.7 - metonymicallytwo terminationanything of little value
Curabo, longe tibi sit comula ista besalis et dominus dupunduarius
I’ll take care that your eight-unciae hairstyle and duplicitous master are of no use to youc. 27 CE – 66 CE, Petronius, 58
Declension
| form | masculine | feminine | neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | bessālis | bessālis | bessāle besāle |
| genitive | bessālis | bessālis | bessālis |
| dative | bessālī besālī | bessālī besālī | bessālī besālī |
| accusative | bessālem besālem | bessālem besālem | bessāle besāle |
| ablative | bessālī besālī | bessālī besālī | bessālī besālī |
| vocative | bessālis | bessālis | bessāle besāle |
| form | masculine | feminine | neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | bessālēs besālēs | bessālēs besālēs | bessālia besālia |
| genitive | bessālium besālium | bessālium besālium | bessālium besālium |
| dative | bessālibus besālibus | bessālibus besālibus | bessālibus besālibus |
| accusative | bessālīs bessālēs, besālēs | bessālīs bessālēs, besālēs | bessālia besālia |
| ablative | bessālibus besālibus | bessālibus besālibus | bessālibus besālibus |
| vocative | bessālēs besālēs | bessālēs besālēs | bessālia besālia |
bessālis, e, adj. bes,
I. comprising eight:
laterculus, a tile eight inches long, Vitr. 5, 10, 2; 7, 4, 2: scutula, Mart. 8, 71, 7: clausulae, Porphyr. prooem. ad Hor. Epod.— II. Meton. for any thing of small value:
comula, Petr. 58, 5.Origins
From bes (two-thirds) + -ālis (suffix that forms adjectives of relationship). Two-thirds of a Roman foot would have been 8 unciae.
Descendants
- Sicilianbisolu
- Greekβότσαλοfrom Ancient Greek βήσσαλον