previous next
con-tāmĭno , āvi, ātum, 1, v. a. from stem tag, tango.
I. Orig., to bring into contact, touch.
A. In gen. (very rare): “manus quibus contaminatur,” Tert. Apol. 17; cf.: contaminare, contingere, Gloss. ap. Mai, Auct. Class. VI. p. 518 a.—
B. To bring into union, to mingle, blend together, unite. So twice in Ter. of the blending of parts of different comedies into one whole: “multas Graecas fabulas,” Ter. Heaut. prol. 17; id. And. prol. 16; cf. upon this Grauert, Analekten. p. 116 sq.—
II. To deteriorate by mingling, corrupt, contaminate, defile, stain, pollute (something by something; very freq., esp. in the trop. signif., and in Cic.; not in Quint.).
A. Lit.: “deam Syriam urinā,” Suet. Ner. 56: “lacus (connected with spurcare aquas),” Dig. 47, 11, 1: “spiritum,” Cic. Pis. 9, 20.—Of unnatural vice: “ingenuos,” Petr. 108, 3.—
B. Trop.: “gaudium aegritudine aliquā,” to mar, efface, Ter. Eun. 3, 5, 4: “se humanis vitiis (joined with se inquinare domesticis vitiis atque flagitiis),” Cic. Tusc. 1, 30, 72: “sanguinem suum lege (Canuleia),” Liv. 4, 1, 2: “gentes, i. e. by adoption into a plebeian family,” Cic. Dom. 13, 35: “ordines neglegentiā,” Suet. Vesp. 9: “veritatem aliquo mendacio,” Cic. Sull. 16, 45: “mentem omni scelere,” Liv. 40, 13, 4; cf.: “aliquem scelere,” Tac. A. 1, 35; and: “se sanguine,” Cic. Cat. 1, 12, 29: “sese maleficio,” id. Rosc. Am. 40, 116: “se ipsos ac domos suas nefanda praeda,” Liv. 29, 18, 8 al.—In part. perf.: “contaminati facinore,” Caes. B. G. 7, 43; so, “tot parricidiis,” Cic. Phil. 12, 7, 15: “multis flagitiis,” id. Clu. 35, 97: “omnibus probris,” Suet. Aug. 65; id. Vit. 4: “judicia vitio paucorum (joined with corrupta),” Cic. Div. in Caecil. 21, 70: “verbum assiduo usu,” Gell. 2, 6, 25.—Hence, contāmĭnā-tus , a, um, P. a., stained with guilt, polluted, contaminated, impure, vile, defiled: “se ut consceleratos contaminatosque ab ludis abactos esse,” Liv. 2, 37, 9; cf.: “pars civitatis, velut contaminata,” id. 4, 4, 6: “superstitio,” Cic. Clu. 68, 194 al.—So several times of incontinence, * Hor. C. 1, 37, 9: “flos aetatis,” Suet. Caes. 49: “paene omnibus membris,” id. Ner. 29.—Sup.: homo sceleribus flagitiisque contaminatissimus, Cic. Prov. Cons. 6, 14; id. Dom. 9, 23.—Subst.
1. contāmĭnāti , ōrum, m., abandoned youths, Tac. A. 15, 37.—
2. contāmĭ-nāta , ōrum, n., adulterated things: “ut anteponantur ... integra contaminatis,” Cic. Top. 18, 69.—Comp. and adv. not in use.
A Latin Dictionary. Founded on Andrews' edition of Freund's Latin dictionary. revised, enlarged, and in great part rewritten by. Charlton T. Lewis, Ph.D. and. Charles Short, LL.D. Oxford. Clarendon Press. 1879.

The National Endowment for the Humanities provided support for entering this text.

hide Dictionary Entry Lookup
Use this tool to search for dictionary entries in all lexica.
Search for in
hide References (28 total)
  • Cross-references in general dictionaries from this page (28):
    • Caesar, Gallic War, 7.43
    • Cicero, For Aulus Cluentius, 68.194
    • Cicero, Philippics, 12.7.15
    • Cicero, Divinatio against Q. Caecilius, 21.70
    • Cicero, For Sextus Roscius of Ameria, 40.116
    • Cicero, Against Catiline, 1.12.29
    • Cicero, For Aulus Cluentius, 35.97
    • Cicero, For Sulla, 16.45
    • Cicero, On his House, 13.35
    • Cicero, On his House, 9.23
    • Cicero, Against Piso, 9.20
    • Cicero, On the Consular Provinces, 6.14
    • Livy, The History of Rome, Book 4, 4.6
    • Suetonius, Divus Augustus, 65
    • Tacitus, Annales, 15.37
    • Tacitus, Annales, 1.35
    • Suetonius, Divus Julius, 49
    • Suetonius, Nero, 29
    • Suetonius, Nero, 56
    • Suetonius, Divus Vespasianus, 9
    • Suetonius, Vitellius, 4
    • Livy, The History of Rome, Book 2, 37.9
    • Livy, The History of Rome, Book 4, 1.2
    • Livy, The History of Rome, Book 29, 18.8
    • Livy, The History of Rome, Book 40, 13.4
    • Cicero, Tusculanae Disputationes, 1.30
    • Gellius, Noctes Atticae, 2.6.25
    • Cicero, Topica, 18.69
hide Display Preferences
Greek Display:
Arabic Display:
View by Default:
Browse Bar: