adjectivefirst/second-declension adjective
dēvius
dēvius (feminine dēvia, neuter dēvium)
Classical[ˈdeː.wi.ʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈdɛː.vi.us]
Meaning
- adjectiveout of the way
- adjectivedevious
- adjectiveinconstant, erroneous, inconsistent, foolish
Declension
| form | masculine | feminine | neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | dēvius | dēvia | dēvium |
| genitive | dēviī | dēviae | dēviī |
| dative | dēviō | dēviae | dēviō |
| accusative | dēvium | dēviam | dēvium |
| ablative | dēviō | dēviā | dēviō |
| vocative | dēvie | dēvia | dēvium |
| form | masculine | feminine | neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | dēviī | dēviae | dēvia |
| genitive | dēviōrum | dēviārum | dēviōrum |
| dative | dēviīs | dēviīs | dēviīs |
| accusative | dēviōs | dēviās | dēvia |
| ablative | dēviīs | dēviīs | dēviīs |
| vocative | dēviī | dēviae | dēvia |
dē-vĭus, a, um, adj. via,
I. lying off the high-road; out of the way, devious (class.; for syn. cf.: avius, invius).
I. Lit.:
iter, a by-way, Cic. Att. 4, 3, 4; 14, 10, 1 (cf. avius); Suet. Galb. 20: oppidum, Cic. Pis. 36 fin.: saltus, Liv. 41, 19: calles, id. 22, 14: rura, Ov. M. 1, 676.—Subst.: dēvia, ōrum, n., lonely, unfrequented places: per aspera ac devia, Suet. Tib. 60: in devia terrarum, Luc. 4, 161.—B. Transf., of living beings dwelling in out-of-the-way places, retired, sequestered:
Anagnini, cum essent devii, etc., Cic. Phil. 2, 41, 106: gens, Liv. 34, 20: montani, id. 34, 16: civitas, Suet. Vesp. 4: mihi devio nemus Mirari libet, wandering about in unfrequented places: Hor. Od. 3, 25, 12: uxores (i. e. capellae), id. ib. 1, 17, 6: scortum, i. e. retired, shy, id. ib. 2, 11, 21: avis (i. e. the great owl, which dwells in lonely places), Ov. H. 2, 118: equus, leaping aside, Stat. Th. 9, 804.—II. Trop., inconstant, erroneous, inconsistent, foolish:
quid potest esse tam flexibile, tam devium, quam animus ejus, qui, etc., Cic. Lael. 25, 93: vita, id. Fragm. ap. Lact. 6, 24: via, Lact. 3, 11, 4; id. 4, 30, 3: nihil quasi devium loqui, i. e. out of the way, impertinent, Plin. Ep. 5, 6, 44: noster Plato nihil ab hac secta vel paululum devius, Ap. Flor. 2, p. 352, 23: homo in omnibus consiliis praeceps et devius, Cic. Phil. 5, 13, 37; Ov. Tr. 3, 7, 30.—Poet. with gen.: devius aequi, Sil. 1, 57; cf.: pectora recti, id. 8, 318: devius promissi es, Mart. Cap. poet. 3 init.—Adv. does not occur. Charlton Lewis's shorter dictionary for students: the same scholarship in plain, modern definitions.
dēvius adj.
de + via, off the road, out of the way, devious : iter, a by-way : oppidum: calles, L.: rura, O.— Retired, sequestered : Anagnini: gens, L.: mihi devio libet, etc., wandering in byways , H.: avis, i. e. the solitary owl , O.—Plur n . as subst, by-ways , Tb.—Fig., inconstant, erroneous, inconsistent, foolish : quid tam devium, quam animus eius, qui, etc.: in consiliis.
Origins
- Proto-Indo-European*de
- Proto-Indo-European*déh₁
- Proto-Italic*dē
- Latindēvius
Latin dē- Proto-Indo-European *weyh₁- Proto-Italic *wiā Latin via Latin -us/-ius Latin dēvius From dē- (“off”) + via (“road, street, path; way, method”) + -us/-ius.