I. In gen.
A. Lit., of any open, level land, without reference to cultivation or use, an even, flat place, a plain, field (freq. and class.; cf.: ager, planities, aequor; opp. mons, collis, silva, etc.; cf. “Doed. Syn. III. p. 8 sq.): saxum plani raptim petit aequora campi,” Lucr. 3, 1015; cf. id. 5, 950: “in camporum patentium aequoribus,” Cic. Div. 1, 42, 93: “aequor campi,” Verg. A. 7, 781; Sil. 5, 376: “aequo dare se campo,” id. 9, 56: “in aequo campi,” Liv. 5, 38, 4: “campos pedibus transire,” Lucr. 4, 460; cf. id. 5, 493: “campos et montes peragrantes,” Cic. Div. 1, 42, 94; cf. id. N. D. 2, 39, 98: “spatia frugifera atque immensa camporum,” id. ib. 2, 64, 161; Col. 1, 2, 4; Lucr. 5, 1372: “campus in prata et arva salictaque et arundineta digestus,” Col. 1, 2, 3; cf. Auct. Her. 4, 18, 25; Curt. 8, 1, 4; Lucr. 5, 782; Tib. 4, 3, 1: “virentes,” Lucr. 1, 19: “frequens herbis et fertilis ubere,” Verg. G. 2, 185: “gramineus,” id. A. 5, 287; Hor. C. 2, 5, 6: “pingues Asiae,” id. Ep. 1, 3, 5: redeunt jam gramina campis, id. C. 4, 7, 1: “herbosus,” id. ib. 3, 18, 9: “herbidus aquosusque,” Liv. 9, 2, 7: “opimus, id'. 31, 41, 7: campi frumenti ac pecoris et omnium copiā rerum opulenti,” id. 22, 3, 3: “pigri,” Hor. C. 1, 22, 17 al.— “Campus, like ager, is used in a wider or more restricted sense, as conveying a particular or more general idea: in agro publico campi duo milia jugerum immunia possidere,” Cic. Phil. 3, 9, 22: “agros Vaticanum et Pupinium, cum suis opimis atque uberibus campis conferendos,” id. Agr. 2, 35, 96: “si pinguis agros metabere campi,” Verg. G. 2, 274 and 276; Lucr. 2, 324 sq.: “certamina magna per campos instructa,” id. 2, 5: “campus terrenus,” Liv. 33, 17, 8: “dimicaturum puro ac patenti campo,” id. 24, 14, 6: “(praefecti regii) suas copias in campum Marathona deduxerunt,” Nep. Milt. 4, 2: numquam in campo (in the free, open field) sui fecit potestatem, id. Ages. 3, 6; so id. Hann. 5, 4; Ov. M. 10, 151; cf. id. ib. 13, 579: “insistere Bedriacensibus campis ac vestigia recentis victoriae lustrare oculis concupivit (Vitellius),” Tac. H. 2, 70; so, “Bebriaci Campo spolium affectare,” the battlefield, Juv. 2, 106: “campum colligere,” Veg. Mil. 3, 25.—
2. Meton., the produce of the field: “moriturque ad sibila (serpentis) campus,” Stat. Th. 5, 528.—
B. Poet. like aequor, in gen., any level surface (of the sea, a rock, etc.): “caeruleos per campos,” Plaut. Trin. 4, 1, 15: “campi natantes,” Lucr. 5, 489; 6, 405; 6, 1141: “liquentes,” Verg. A. 6, 724; 10, 214: “campus Liberioris aquae,” Ov. M. 1, 41; 1, 43: “latus aquarum,” id. ib. 1, 315; “11, 356: immotā attollitur undā Campus (i. e. saxum),” Verg. A. 5, 128.—
C. Trop.: “feratur eloquentia non semitis sed campis,” on the open field, Quint. 5, 14, 31: “(oratio) aequo congressa campo,” on a fair field, id. 5, 12, 92: “velut campum nacti expositionis,” id. 4, 2, 39.—
II. Esp.
A. As geog. designation.
1. Campi Alēii , a plain in Lycia, Cic. Tusc. 3, 26, 63.—
2. Campi Lăpĭdĕi , a stony plain near Marseilles, now La Crau, Hyg. Astr. 2, 6; Plin. 3, 4, 5, § 34; 21, 10, 31, § 57.—
3. Campi Ma-cri , a district in Gallia Cisalpina, on the river Macra, Varr. R. R. 2, prooem. § 6; Liv. 41, 18, 6; 45, 12, 11.—
5. Campi Vĕtĕres , in Lucania, Liv. 25, 16, 25.—
B. An open place in or near Rome.
4. Far more freq. Campus , a grassy plain in Rome along the Tiber, in the ninth district, orig. belonging to the Tarquinii, after whose expulsion it was consecrated to Mars (Liv. 2, 5, 2); hence fully called Campus Martĭus , a place of assembly for the Roman people at the comitia centuriata, Cic. Cat. 1, 5, 11; id. Q. Fr. 2, 2, 1; id. Rab. Perd. 4, 11; Hor. C. 3, 1, 11; Quint. 11, 1, 47 al.—Hence,
b. Meton., the comitia themselves: “curiam pro senatu, campum pro comitiis,” Cic. de Or. 3, 42, 167: “fors domina campi,” id. Pis. 2, 3: “venalis,” Luc. 1, 180; also, much resorted to by the Romans for games, exercise, and recreation, a place for military drills, etc. (cf. campicursio and campidoctor), Cic. Off. 1, 29, 104; id. Quint. 18, 59; id. Fat. 4, 8; 15, 34; id. de Or. 2, 62, 253; 2, 71, 287; Hor. C. 1, 8, 4; 1, 9, 18; 3, 7, 26; id. S. 1, 6, 126; 2, 6, 49; id. Ep. 1, 7, 59; 1, 11, 4; id. A. P. 162.—
III. Trop., a place of action, a field, a theatre, opportunity, subject for debate, etc. (cf. area) (a favorite figure of Cic.): “me ex hoc ut ita dicam campo aequitatis ad istas verborum angustias revocas,” Cic. Caecin. 29, 84: “cum sit campus, in quo exsultare possit oratio, cur eam tantas in angustias et in Stoicorum dumeta compellimus?” id. Ac. 2, 35, 112; cf. id. de Or. 3, 19, 70: “in hoc tanto tamque immenso campo cum liceat oratori vagari libere,” id. ib. 3, 31, 124: “magnus est in re publicā campus, multis apertus cursus ad laudem,” id. Phil. 14, 6, 17: “nullum vobis sors campum dedit, in quo excurrere virtus cognoscique posset,” id. Mur. 8, 18; Plin. Pan. 31, 1: honoris et gloriae campus, id. ib. 70, 8: “rhetorum campus de Marathone, Salamine, Plataeis, etc.,” Cic. Off. 1, 18, 61; Juv. 1, 19.