I.a lip.
I. Lit.: “cape cultrum ac seca digitum vel nasum vel labrum,” Plaut. Merc. 2, 2, 39: “apes, quas dixisti in labris Platonis consedisse pueri,” Cic. Div. 2, 31, 66: “vide ut discidit labrum,” Ter. Ad. 4, 2, 20: “labrum superius,” the upper lip, Caes. B. G. 5, 14: “(poculis) labra admovere,” Verg. E. 3, 43: “labra movere,” Hor. Ep. 1, 16, 60; Juv. 13, 114: “sive puer furens impressit memorem dente labris notam,” Hor. C. 1, 13, 12: “haec ego mecum Compressis agito labris,” id. S. 1, 4, 137: “labra distorquere,” Quint. 1, 11, 9: “labra male porrigere, scindere, adstringere, diducere, replicare, in latus trahere,” id. 11, 3, 81: labra labris conserere, to kiss, Cn. Matius ap. Gell. 20, 9, 2: “labra labellis ferrummare,” to kiss, Plaut. Mil. 4, 8, 25; so, “labra ad labella adjungere,” id. Ps. 5, 1, 14: “labra valgiter commovere,” Petr. 26: “viscantur labra mariti,” Juv. 6, 466.—
B. Prov.: “linere alicui labra,” to deceive one, Mart. 3, 42, 2: “non in pectore, sed in labris habere bonitatem,” Lact. 3, 16, 4: “primis or primoribus labris gustare, or attingere aliquid,” to get a slight taste of, to get only a superficial knowledge of a thing, Cic. N. D. 1, 8, 20: “quae ipsi rhetores ne primoribus quidem labris attigissent,” id. de Or. 1, 19, 87: “multos vidi qui primoribus labris gustassent genus hoc vitae,” id. Cael. 12, 28: “non a summis labris venire,” not to be lightly spoken, Sen. Ep. 10, 3: similem habent labra lactucam, a saying of M. Crassus when he saw an ass eating thistles, and which may be rendered, like lips, like lettuce; meaning, like has met its like, Hier. Ep. 7, 5.—
II. Transf.
A. An edge, margin, brim (of a vessel, a ditch, etc.): “ut ejus fossae solum tantundem pateret, quantum summa labra distarent,” Caes. B. G. 7, 72: “extra duplex vallum fossae circumdedit, interiore labro murum objecit,” Liv. 37, 37, 11: “labra doliorum,” Cato, R. R. 107, 1: “fontis,” Plin. 31, 2, 19, § 28: “lilium resupinis per ambitum labris,” id. 21, 5, 11, § 23; 17, 22, 35, § 168.— *
B. Poet., a trench, Aus. de Clar. Urb. 5, 9.—
C. Labrum Venerium, a plant growing by rivers, Plin. 25, 13, 108, § 171; “called also labrum Veneris,” Ser. Samm. 1038.