noun · femininefifth declension
faciēs
faciēs f (genitive faciēī)
Classical[ˈfa.ki.eːs]Ecclesiastical[ˈfaː.t͡ʃi.es]
№ 479 of the 1,000 commonest wordsMille Verba core vocabulary
Meaning
- usuallymake, form, shape, figure, configuration
verte omnes tete in facies
resort to every expedient (literally, “change yourself in every shape”)29 BCE – 19 BCE, Vergilius, Aeneis 12.891 - Classical Latinusuallya particular face, countenance or visage
Terra autem erat inānis et vacua, et tenebrae erant super faciem abyssī: et spīritus Deī ferēbātur super aquās.
And the earth was void and empty, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the spirit of God moved over the waters.c. 347 CE – 420 CE, Hieronymus, Vulgate Genesis.1.2 - Classical Latinfigurativelyexternal form, look, condition, appearance
in faciem + (genitive)
like, in the guise of - Classical Latinfigurativelyexternal appearance as opposed to reality; pretence, pretext
- Classical Latinfigurativelypoeticlook, sight, aspect
- beauty, loveliness
Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers
prīma pars capitis: frōns, oculī, nāsus, ōs.faciēs -ēī f — in Mille Verba, Corpus Hūmānum
pars capitis anteriorfaciēs -ēī (f) — in Evangelium secundum Matthaeum, ch. 4, 14
Declension
| form | singular | plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | faciēs | faciēs faciae |
| genitive | faciēī faciēs, faciae | faciērum faciārum |
| dative | faciēī faciae | faciēbus faciīs |
| accusative | faciem faciam | faciēs faciās |
| ablative | faciē | faciēbus faciīs |
| vocative | faciēs | faciēs faciae |
făcĭes, ēi (old form facies, rarely facii, Gell. 8, 14, 1:
I.
facie, Plaut. Mil. 4, 4, 36; dat. facie, facii, Gell. l. l.; plur. very rare; nom. and acc. facies, Vulg. Thren. 5, 12; id. Jer. 42, 12; dat. faciebus, Hier. Eph. 3, 5), f. root fa- of fari, strengthened fac-; cf. fax, facetus. I. Orig., make, form, configuration, figure, shape.
A. In gen. (= universa corporis forma; cf.: figura, species): Quidam faciem esse hominis putant os tantum et oculos et genas, quod Graeci προσωπον dicunt: quando facies sit forma omnis et modus et factura quaedam corporis totius, etc., Gell. 13, 29: Sardinia in Africo mari facie vestigii humani, Sall. H. ap. Gell. l. l.; Plaut. Poen. 5, 2, 151 sq.; cf. Non. 52, 27 sq.:
non est formosa, cujus crus laudatur aut brachium, sed illa, cujus universa facies admirationem singulis partibus abstulit, Sen. Ep. 33; cf. Lucr. 5, 1169 sq.; Hor. S. 1, 2, 87.—2. Of things: Dae. Dicito, quid insit, et qua facie, memorato onmia ... Pa. Sunt crepundia. Dae. Qua facie sunt? Plaut. Rud. 4, 4, 105 and 111:
curvata in montis faciem circumstetit unda, Verg. G. 4, 361: haec facies Trojae, cum caperetur, erat, Ov. Tr. 1, 3, 26; cf. urbium, Plin. Ep. 2, 17 fin.: antequam Vesuvius faciem loci verteret, Tac. A. 4, 67: arboris, Plin. 12, 14, 31, § 55: vehiculi, Gell. 15, 30, 3: alia illi caeli, Plin. 6, 17, 21, § 58: ossa contusa in faciem pulveris, Gell. 10, 18, 3: longa quibus facies ovis erit, Hor. S. 2, 4, 12 et saep. —3. Prov.: verte omnes tete in facies, i. e. resort to every expedient (an expression borrowed from, and alluding to, the changes of Proteus), Verg. A. 12, 891.—
B. In partic., face, visage, countenance (most freq. in class. Lat.;
syn.: os, vultus, frons, lineamenta): facies homini tantum: ceteris os aut rostra, Plin. 11, 37, 51, § 138: in facie vultuque nostro cum sint decem aut paulo plura membra, etc., id. 7, 1, 1, § 8: non quaeruntur ea, quae nobis non possumus fingere, facies, vultus, sonus, Cic. de Or. 1, 28, 127: prorsus in facie vultuque vecordia inerat, Sall. C. 15, 5: qua facie, qua statura, Cic. Phil. 2, 16, 41: uretur facies; urentur sole capilli, Tib. 1, 9, 15: cf. id. 1, 5, 43: sumit utrumque Inde habitum facies, Juv. 9, 20: peregrina, Plaut. Ps. 4, 2, 9; cf.: affers faciem novam, Cic. Fl. 29, 70: liberali (homo), Ter. Eun. 3, 2, 20: egregiā (virgo), of rare beauty, id. Phorm. 1, 2, 50: hispida, Hor. C. 4, 10, 5: cicatricosa, Quint. 4, 1, 61: adversa, id. 2, 13, 9: curvo nec faciem litore demovet, Hor. C. 4, 5, 14: de facie quidem nosti, Cic. Pis. 32, 81: recta facie loqui, i. e. boldly, Juv. 6, 401 et saep.—Poet.: cura dabit faciem, facies neglecta peribit, a beautiful face, beauty, Ov. A. A. 3, 105.— Prov.: perfricare faciem, to lay aside shame, Plin. H. N. praef. § 4; cf. Quint. 11, 3, 160.II. Trop., external form, look, condition, appearance (class.):
set qua faciest tuus sodalis, Plaut. Capt. 3, 4, 113; id. Rud. 2, 7, 7: fateantur, in Maeandrii persona esse expressam faciem civitatis, Cic. Fl. 22, 13; cf.: (C. Popilius) senatus faciem secum attulerat auctoritatemque Populi Romani, id. Phil. 8, 8, 23: una senum facies, cum voce trementia membra, etc., Juv. 10, 198: quibus rebus immutata facies urbis erat, Sall. C. 31, 1: loci, Tac. A. 4, 67: formam quidem ipsam et tamquam faciem honesti vides, Cic. Off. 1, 5, 14; Quint. 3, 6, 88; 4, 1, 42 Spald.: quarum (causarum) varia ac nova semper est facies, id. 2, 4, 28: plures eloquentiae facies, id. 12, 10, 69: (inventiunculae) facie ingenii blandiuntur, id. 8, 5, 22: nec ulla facies mali erat, Curt. 3, 11, 22: ad istam faciem est morbus qui me macerat, has that form, is of such a nature, Plaut. Cist. 1, 1, 73.—2. In partic., in Tac. for the class. species, external appearance, as opposed to reality, a pretence, pretext; publici consilii facie (= specie), Tac. H. 2, 54; id. A. 13, 28; Amm. 20, 5.—
B. Transf., poet. and in post-Aug. prose, for the class. aspectus, look, sight, aspect: quae scelerum facies? Verg. A. 6, 560:
subita, Sil. 7, 367: decora, Plin. Pan. 56, 5: memoranda, id. ib. 35, 1: foeda, id. ib. 82, 8: vineae unam faciem contexunt, id. Ep. 5, 6, 9: exceptio, quae prima facie justa videatur, at first sight, Gai. Inst. 4, 1: prima facie, Dig. 16, 1, 13; Sen. Ep. 87, 1; id. Contr. 5, 10, 15.Charlton Lewis's shorter dictionary for students: the same scholarship in plain, modern definitions.
faciēs acc. em, abl. ē, nom. and acc plur. ēs
1 FAC-, appearance, form, figure, shape, build : decora (equorum), H.: faciem mutatus et ora, V.: parentis Anchisae, shade , V.: longa quibus facies ovis erit, H.: Adparent dirae facies, apparitious , V.: verte omnīs tete in facies, i. e. try every expedient , V.— A face, visage, countenance, look : non novi hominis faciem, know by sight , T.: egregia, of rare beauty , T.: insignis facie, V.: faciem eius ignorare, S.: in facie voltuque vecordia inerat, S.: mea laudata, beauty , O.: adfers faciem novam: (nymphe) Rara facie, O.: nec faciem litore demovet, H.: rectā facie loqui, boldly , Iu.: (volucris) armata, beaked , O. — Fig., external form, look, condition, appearance, aspect : senatus faciem secum attulerat P. R.: contra belli faciem, as if there were no war , S.: publici consilii facie, pretext , Ta.: urbis, S.: maris, V.: noctis, O.: arbos faciem simillima lauro, V. — A kind, sort, class : Quae scelerum facies? V.: laborum, V.: scelerum, V.: pugnae, Ta.
Origins
From faciō + -iēs. The term faciēs is to faciō as speciēs is to speciō, literally meaning "a make, imposed form". (face): Compare typologically Czech tvář, Polish twarz (<< Proto-Slavic *tvarь, akin to *tvoriti). Note French faire bonne mine à mauvais jeu, Russian сде́лать лицо́ попро́ще (sdélatʹ licó popróšče). Also compare figūra, fōrma; Proto-Slavic *obrazъ (a deverbal from *obraziti).
Borrowings
- Englishfacies
- Frenchfaciès
- Italianfacies
- Portuguesefácies
- Spanishfacies
- Albanianfaqe
Ibero-Romance
- Portuguesefacefrom Old Galician-Portuguese façe
- Spanishhazfrom Old Spanish faz
- Spanishfazfrom Old Spanish faz
- Extremaduranhazi
- Mozarabicڢاج
- Galicianfacefrom Old Galician-Portuguese façe
Insular Romance
- Sardinianfachefrom Old Sardinian fache
- Sardinianfaccifrom Old Sardinian fache
Gallo-Romance
- Catalanfaç
- Occitanfàcia
- Old Occitanfatz
- Old Frenchface
- Old Frenchfache
Balkano-Romance
- Romanianfață
- Aromanianfatsã
Italo-Dalmatian
- Italianfaccia
- Venetanfazza
- Venetanfaça
- Venetanfasa
Italo-Romance
- Sicilianfacci
Rhaeto-Romance
- Friulianface
- Romanshfatscha
Gallo-Italic
- Emilianfâza
- Lombardfassa
- Piedmontesefassa
- Piedmontesefàssia
- Romagnolfàza