I.a warm application, warm lotion or poultice, fomentation.
I. Lit.: “calida,” Cels. 2, 17 med.: “aquae calidae,” id. 8, 10, 7: “calida, sicca,” id. 3, 11 init.; 4, 14; cf. Suet. Aug. 81: “assideat, fomenta paret,” Hor. S. 1, 1, 82: “adhibere,” Col. 6, 30, 3: “(juvant) fomenta podagrum,” Hor. Ep. 1, 2, 52: fomenta vulneribus nulla, i. e. bandages (before, ligamenta), Tac. A. 15, 55.—
B. Transf., for fomes, touch-wood, kindling-wood: se ex arboribus fomenta excidisse, Clod. ap. Serv. Verg. A. 1, 176: “fomenta ignium varia,” Amm. 20, 7, 12.—
II. Trop.
A. A lenitive, mitigation, alleviation: “haec sunt solatia, haec fomenta summorum dolorum,” Cic. Tusc. 2, 24, 59; cf.: “patentiae, fortitudinis fomentis dolor mitigari solet,” id. Fin. 2, 29, 95: “militaribus animis adhibenda fomenta, ut ferre pacem velint,” Tac. A. 1, 46: “paupertati suae fomenta conquirere,” App. M. 2, p. 124; Quint. 4, 3, 10: “ut haec ingrata ventis dividat Fomenta, vulnus nil malum levantia,” i. e. consolations, Hor. Epod. 11, 17.—
