adjectivefirst/second-declension adjective
blandus
blandus (feminine blanda, neuter blandum, comparative blandior, adverb blandē or blanditer)
Classical[ˈbɫan.dʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈblan.dus]
Meaning
- adjectivepleasant, agreeable
- adjectiveenticing, seductive, alluring
quid genus omne creat volucrum, nisi blanda voluptās?
What creates the whole race of birds, if not enticing pleasure? (trans. Anne and Peter Wiseman, 2011)8 CE, Ovidius, Fasti 4.99 - adjectivepersuasive
- adjectivefawning, flattering, smooth, suave
Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers
dulcia dīcēnsblandus -a -um — in IVLIANVS III: Persia, ch. 1
dulcis, quī amōrem quaeritblandus -a -um — in Metamorphoses I, ch. 5
Declension
| form | masculine | feminine | neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | blandus blandulus | blanda blandula | blandum blandulum |
| genitive | blandī blandulī | blandae blandulae | blandī blandulī |
| dative | blandō blandulō | blandae blandulae | blandō blandulō |
| accusative | blandum blandulum | blandam blandulam | blandum blandulum |
| ablative | blandō blandulō | blandā blandulā | blandō blandulō |
| vocative | blande blandule | blanda blandula | blandum blandulum |
| form | masculine | feminine | neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | blandī blandulī | blandae blandulae | blanda blandula |
| genitive | blandōrum blandulōrum | blandārum blandulārum | blandōrum blandulōrum |
| dative | blandīs blandulīs | blandīs blandulīs | blandīs blandulīs |
| accusative | blandōs blandulōs | blandās blandulās | blanda blandula |
| ablative | blandīs blandulīs | blandīs blandulīs | blandīs blandulīs |
| vocative | blandī blandulī | blandae blandulae | blanda blandula |
blandus, a, um, adj. for mlandus; akin to μείλιχος, mollis, mulier; Goth. milds; Engl. mild,
I. of a smooth tongue, flattering, fawning, caressing (class and very freq.).
I. Lit.:
blanda es parum, Plaut. Cas. 3, 3, 21: nemini credo qui large blandu'st dives pauperi, id. Aul. 2, 2, 19: ut unus omnium homo te vivat numquam quisquam blandior, Ter. Hec. 5, 4, 21: scis me minime esse blandum, Cic. Att. 12, 5, 4: unum te puto minus blandum esse quam me, id. ib. 12, 3, 1: blandum amicum a vero secernere, id. Lael. 25, 95: (Alcibiades) affabilis, blandus, temporibus callidissime inserviens, Nep. Alcib. 1, 3: an blandiores (mulieres) in publico quam in privato et alienis quam vestris estis? Liv. 34, 2, 10: tum neque subjectus solito nec blandior esto, Ov. A. A. 2, 411: canes, Verg. G. 3, 496: catulorum blanda propago, Lucr. 4, 999; Nemes. Cyneg. 215; 230: columba, Ov. Am. 2, 6, 56: tigres, Claud. IV. Cons. Hon. 604; Quint. 9, 4, 133; 11, 1, 30; 11, 3, 72 al.—b. Poet. constr.
(a). With gen.:
precum, Stat. Achill. 2, 237.—(b). With acc.:
genas vocemque, Stat. Th. 9, 155.—(g). With inf.:
blandum et auritas fidibus canoris Ducere quercus, Hor. C. 1, 12, 11; Stat. Th. 5, 456. —(d). With abl.:
chorus implorat. .doctā prece blandus ( = blande supplicans dis carmine quod poëta eum docuit. Orell. ad loc.), Hor. Ep. 2, 1, 135.—II. Trop. (mostly of things).
A. Flattering, pleasant, agreeable, enticing, alluring, charming, seductive (cf. blandior, II. B.; blanditia, II.): blandā voce vocare, Enn. ap. Cic. Div. 1, 20, 40 (Ann. v. 51 Vahl.):
ne blandā aut supplici oratione fallamur, Cic. Phil. 7, 9, 26; Lucr. 6, 1245: voces, Verg. A. 1, 670; Cat. 64, 139: preces, Tib. 3, 6, 46; Hor. C. 4, 1, 8; id. A. P. 395; Ov. M. 10, 642: querelae, Tib. 3, 4, 75: laudes, Verg. G. 3, 185: verba, Ov. M. 2, 575; 6, 360: dicta, id. ib. 3, 375; 9, 156: os, id. ib. 13, 555: pectus, Afran. ap. Non. p. 515.—So, voluptas, Lucr. 2, 966; 4, 1081; 4, 1259; 5, 179; Cic. Tusc. 4, 3, 6: amor, Lucr. 1, 20; Ov. Tr. 1, 3, 49: Veneris blandis sub armis, Prop. 4 (5), 1, 137. amaracini liquor, Lucr. 2, 847: tura, Tib. 3, 3, 2: manus, Hor. C. 3, 23, 18; cf. Ov. M. 2, 691: aquae, id. ib. 4, 344: caudae, id. ib. 14, 258 al.: otium consuetudine in dies blandius, Liv. 23, 18, 12: blandiores suci, Plin. 12, 1, 2, § 4; Suet. Tib. 27: blandissima litora, Baiae, Stat. S. 3, 5, 96; Plin. 9, 8, 9, § 32: actio, Quint. 7, 4, 27: ministerium, Cod. Th. 10, 10, 12, § 1.— With dat.: et blandae superūm mortalibus irae, Stat. Th. 10, 836: neque admittunt orationes sermonesve... jucunda dictu aut legentibus blanda, Plin. 1, prooem. § 12.— 2. Of persons:
filiolus, Quint. 6, prooem. § 8; cf.: nam et voluptates, blandissimae dominae (the most alluring mistresses), majores partes animi a virtute detorquent, Cic. Off. 2, 10, 37.—B. Persuading by caressing, persuasive:
nunc experiemur, nostrum uter sit blandior, Plaut. Cas. 2, 3, 56. —Hence, adv., in three forms, soothingly, flatteringly, courteously, etc. a. Anteclass. form blandĭter, Plaut. As. 1, 3, 69; id. Ps. 5, 2, 3; Titin. ap. Non. p. 210, 6 (also id. ib. p. 256, 15), and ap. Prisc. p. 1010 P.—
b. Class. form blandē, Plaut. Am. 1, 3, 9:
compellare hominem, id. Poen. 3, 3, 72: me adpellare, id. Truc. 1, 2, 61: adloqui, Ter. Phorm. 2, 1, 22: dicere, id. Ad. 5, 4, 24; cf.: blande, leniter, dulciter dicere, Quint. 12, 10, 71; and blande ac benedice, Plaut. As. 1, 3, 54: rogare, Cic. Rosc. Com. 16, 49: excepti hospitio ab Tullo blande ac benigne, Liv. 1, 22, 5: quaerere, Suet. Calig. 32: linguā lambere, Lucr. 5, 1066: et satiati agni ludunt blandeque coruscant, id. 2, 320: colere fructus, to treat carefully, gently, id. 5, 1368 (cf. blandimentum, II. B.): flectere cardinem sonantem, softly, carefully, Quint. Decl. 1, 13 al.—Comp.: blandius petere, Cic. de Or. 1, 24, 112: ad aurem invocabat, Cael. ap. Quint. 4, 2, 124: moderere fidem, Hor. C. 1, 24, 13 al.—Sup.: blandissime appellat hominem, Cic. Clu. 26, 72.—* c. blandum = blande:
ridere, Petr. 127, 1.Charlton Lewis's shorter dictionary for students: the same scholarship in plain, modern definitions.
blandus adj. with comp. and sup.
MAL-, of smooth tongue, flattering, fawning, caressing: homo blandior, T.: amicus: adfabilis, blandus, N.: canes, V.: adversus alqm: in publico, L.: blandus fidibus Ducere quercūs, H.: chorus doctā prece blandus, H. — Fig., flattering, pleasant, agreeable, enticing, alluring, charming, seductive: oratio: voces, V.: preces, H.: verba, O.: inlecebrae voluptatis: manus Non sumptuosā blandior hostiā, not more acceptable with a costly victim, H.: caudae, O.: otium consuetudine in dies blandius, L.: voluptates, blandissimae dominae, most seductive.
Origins
From Proto-Indo-European *mland-, a nasalised variant of *meld-, extended form of *mel-. Cognate to Sanskrit मण्ड (maṇḍa, “cream; liquor; pleasantness; adornment, embellishment”). See mollis.
Descendants
- Catalanbla
- Englishbland
- Italianblando
- Occitanbland
- Portuguesebrando
- Romanianblând
- Spanishblando
- Aromanianblãndã
- Asturianblandiu
- Asturianllandio
In English words that came into English from blandus
- blandblandus
- blandishblandior
- blandishmentblandīrī
- blandiloquenceblandus