I.gen. plur. lapiderum, C. Gell. ap. Charis. p. 40 P.), m. (f.: tanto sublatae sunt augmine tunc lapides, Enn. ap. Non. 211, 9) [etym. dub.; perh. from same root with rupes; cf. Corss. Ausspr. 1, 545; not connected with λᾶας, Georg Curtius Gr. Etym. p. 542], a stone (cf.: saxum, silex, cautes, cos, calculus).
I. In gen.: “stillicidi casus lapidem cavat,” Lucr. 1, 313: “undique lapides in murum jaci coepti sunt,” Caes. B. G. 2, 6; cf. Cic. Mil. 15, 41: “pars eminus glande aut lapidibus pugnare,” Sall. J. 57, 4: “lapide percussus,” Plaut. Stich. 4, 2, 33: “lapidem habere, ut illi cerebrum excutiam,” id. Capt. 3, 4, 69; cf. Cic. de Or. 2, 47, 197: “consul ingentem vim modicorum, qui funda mitti possent, lapidum paraverat,” Liv. 38, 20, 1; Gell. 4, 14, 3 sqq.: “e lapide duro parietes construere,” Plin. 36, 22, 51, § 171: “lapis duritia marmoris,” id. 36, 22, 46, § 163: “bibulus,” sandstone, pumice-stone, Verg. G. 2, 348: “molaris,” a millstone, Quint. 2, 19, 3; cf.: “num me illue ducis, ubi lapis lapidem terit?” i. e. into the mill, Plaut. As. 1, 1, 16: Parius, Parian stone, i. e. Parian marble, Verg. A. 1, 593: “lapide candidiore diem notare,” i. e. to mark with a white stone the luckiest day, Cat. 68, 148; cf. lapillus.—
B. Trop. for dulness, stupidity, want of feeling: “ego me credidi homini docto rem mandare: is lapidi mando maximo,” Plaut. Merc. 3, 4, 47: “i, quid stas, lapis? quin accipis?” Ter. Heaut. 4, 7, 3; cf. id. ib. 5, 1, 43: “tu, inquam, mulier, quae me omnino lapidem, non hominem putas,” id. Hec. 2, 1, 17; “and with silex (q. v.): tu es lapide silice stultior,” Plaut. Poen. 1, 2, 78; cf.: “lapides mehercule omnes flere ac lamentari coëgisses,” Cic. de Or. 1, 57, 245: “lapis est ferrumque suam quicumque puellam verberat,” Tib. 1, 10, 59: “aut mare prospiciens in saxo frigida sedi, quamque lapis sedes, tam lapis ipsa fui,” Ov. H. 19, 30.—Prov.: “lapidem ferre altera manu, altera panem ostentare,” i. e. to flatter openly and injure secretly, Plaut. Aul. 2, 2, 18: “verberare lapidem,” i. e. to hurt one's self more than one's enemy, id. Curc. 1, 3, 41: “lapides loqui,” to speak hard words, id. Aul. 2, 1, 29: “ad eundem lapidem bis offendere,” to commit the same error twice, Aus. Ep. 11; so, “bis ad eundem (sc. lapidem),” Cic. Fam. 10, 20, 2.—
II. In partic.
A. A mile-stone, set up on the roads at every thousand paces, which made a Roman mile; “hence, with an ordinal numeral added to denote distance in miles: ad quartum et vicesimum lapidem a Roma,” Varr. R. R. 3, 2, 14; cf.: “effoditur ad vigesimum ab Urbe lapidem,” Plin. 33, 12, 56, § 159: “sacra videt fieri sextus ab Urbe lapis,” Ov. F. 6, 682: “intra vicesimum lapidem,” Liv. 5, 4 fin.: “duodecimum apud lapidem,” Tac. A. 3, 45: “a tertio lapide,” Flor. 2, 6 fin.: ad lapidem undecimum, Paul. ex Fest. p. 250 Müll.—Sometimes ellipt. without lapis: “ad duodecimum a Cremona,” Tac. H. 2, 24: “ad quartum,” id. ib. 2, 39: “ad octavum,” id. ib. 3, 15.—
B. The stone or stone elevation on which the prætor stood at slavesales: “in eo ipso astas lapide, ubi praeco praedicat,” Plaut. Bacch. 4, 7, 17; Col. 3, 3, 8: “praeter duos de lapide emptos tribunos,” Cic. Pis. 15, 35.—
C. Terminalis, a landmark, boundary-stone, Amm. 18, 2, 15; “called lapis alone,” Lact. 1, 20 fin.; so, “lapis sacer,” Liv. 41, 13; cf.: “non fixus in agris, qui regeret certis finibus arva, lapis,” Tib. 1, 3, 44; cf. id. 1, 1, 12.—
D. A gravestone, tombstone, Prop. 3 (4), 1, 37; Tib. 1, 3, 54; “called also ultimus,” Prop. 1, 17, 20.—
E. A precious stone, gem, jewel, pearl (mostly poet.), Cat. 69, 3: “gemmas et lapides,” Hor. C. 3, 24, 48: “clari lapides,” id. ib. 4, 13, 14; Ov. A. A. 1, 432; Sil. 12, 231; Mart. 11, 50, 4; Tac. A. 3, 53; Macr. S. 7, 13, 11.—
F. A statue: Jovem lapidem jurare, the statue of Jupiter at the Capitol, Cic. Fam. 7, 12, 2; Gell. 1, 21, 4; v. Juppiter.—*
2. Meton.: “albus,” a table of white marble, a marble table, Hor. S. 1, 6, 116.