adjectivefirst/second-declension adjective
caesius1
caesius (feminine caesia, neuter caesium)
Classical[ˈkae̯.si.ʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈt͡ʃɛː.s̬i.us]
Meaning
- adjectiveblue, gray, occasionally green
[...] ex eō quoque, sub septentriōnibus nūtriuntur gentēs, inmānibus corporibus, candidīs colōribus, dīrēctō capillō et rūfō, oculīs caesiīs [...]
From that as well, those nations who are nourished under the North Star, [are] of great bodies, shining white complexions, the quality of their hair is straight and reddish, they have blue eyes …c. 80 BCE – 15 BCE, Vitruvius, On Architecture 6.1.3.10 - adjectivederogatorysometimesblue-eyed
Sō: gnāte mī, ego pol tibi dabō illam lepidam, quam tū facile amēs, / fīliam Phānocratae nostrī. Cl.: rūfamne illam virginem, / caesiam, sparsō ōre, aduncō nāsō? nōn possum, pater. / Ch.: heia ut ēlegāns est! crēdās animum ibi esse. Sō.: aliam dabō.
Sostrata: My son, I'll give you that wonderful one, you'll love her easily, she's the daughter of our Phanocrates. Clitipho: That blue-eyed redhead / with freckles and a hooked nose? I can't, father. / Chremes: Heya, how choosy he is. Looks like he really cares. Sostrata: I'll give you another.163 BCE, Publius Terentius Afer, Heauton Timorumenos 1062 - adjectivecustomary translation of γλαυκῶπις (glaukôpis); as well as denoting the associated eye color
Nōn pudet igitur physicum id est speculātōrem vēnātōremque nātūrae ab animīs cōnsuētūdine inbūtīs petere testimōnium vēritātis? istō enim modō dīcere licēbit Iovem semper barbātum, Apollinem semper inberbem, caesiōs oculōs Minervae, caeruleōs esse Neptūnī.
So are you then as a physicist, and this means explorer and chaser of nature, not ashamed to seek witness of truth from minds imbued with custom? If you do that, you can then say that Jupiter is always bearded, that Apollo never is, that Minerva has cesious eyes, that Neptune has cerulean.45 BCE, Cicero, De natura deorum 1.83.6Tum Frontō ad Fauōrīnum: [...] Nostrīs autem ueteribus "caesia" dicta est, quae ā Graecīs γλαυκῶπις, ut Nigidius ait, "dē colōre caelī quasi caelia."
c. 177 CE, Aulus Gellius, Noctes Atticae 2.26.19.1
Declension
| form | masculine | feminine | neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | caesius | caesia | caesium |
| genitive | caesiī | caesiae | caesiī |
| dative | caesiō | caesiae | caesiō |
| accusative | caesium | caesiam | caesium |
| ablative | caesiō | caesiā | caesiō |
| vocative | caesie | caesia | caesium |
| form | masculine | feminine | neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | caesiī | caesiae | caesia |
| genitive | caesiōrum | caesiārum | caesiōrum |
| dative | caesiīs | caesiīs | caesiīs |
| accusative | caesiōs | caesiās | caesia |
| ablative | caesiīs | caesiīs | caesiīs |
| vocative | caesiī | caesiae | caesia |
caesĭus, a, um, adj. cf. caeruleus,
I. bluish gray; very rare, and only of the eyes, cat-eyed: virgo caesia, Ter Heaut. 5, 5, 18; v. Don. in h. l. and Gell. 2, 26, 19:
isto modo dicere licebit caesios oculos Minervae, caeruleos esse Neptuni, Cic. N. D. 1, 30, 83 (cf. in Gr. γλαυκῶπις?̓Αθήνη): caesia, Παλλάδιον, has she gray eyes? she is the impersonation of Pallas, * Lucr. 4, 1161: caesius, Ter Hec. 3, 4, 26 (glaucis oculis, quasi felis oculos habens et glaucos, Don.): hunc, judices, dico, rubrum, brevem, incurvum, canum, subcrispum, caesium, Auct. Her. 4, 49, 63: leo, Cat. 45, 7: sub septentrionibus nutriuntur gentes immanibus corporibus oculis caesiis, Vitr. 6, 1.—Sup. caesissimus, acc. to Varr. L. L. 8, § 76 Müll.—Comp. not in use.Charlton Lewis's shorter dictionary for students: the same scholarship in plain, modern definitions.
caesius adj.
2 SAC-, SEC-, cutting, sharp (only of the eyes): oculi Minervae; hence, cateyed, gray-eyed: virgo, T.: leo, Ct.
Origins
Literally 'cutting, piercing', from caedō (“I cut”)
Descendants
- Englishcaesious
- Englishcaesium