Charlton T. Lewis, Charles Short, A Latin Dictionary

I.Abl. regul. orbe; “but orbi,” Lucr. 5, 74: “ex orbi,” Varr. R. R. 3, 5, 16; Rutil. ap. Charis. p. 112 P.: orbi terrae, in the meaning in the world, Cic. Sest. 30, 66; so, “orbi terrarum,” Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 38, § 82 Halm; id. Dom. 10, 24; id. Fragm. ap. Charis. p. 112 P.), m. etym. dub.; perh. akin to Sanscr. dhvar, bend, twist, any thing of a circular shape, a ring, round surface, disk, hoop, orbit, orb, a circle (class.; cf.: circus, circulus, gyrus, spira).

I. Lit.: “in orbem torquere,” Cic. Univ. 7: “curvare aliquid in orbem,” Ov. M. 2, 715: “certumque equitavit in orbem,” id. ib. 12, 468.—Of a ring: “et digitum justo commodus orbe teras,” fit exactly, Ov. Am. 2, 15, 6: “unionum,” roundness, Plin. 9, 35, 56, § 113.—Of a circle formed by men: “ut in orbem consisterent,” place themselves in a circle, form a circle, Caes. B. G. 5, 33: “cum illi, orbe facto, se defenderent,” id. ib. 4, 37: “orbem volventes suos increpans,” Liv. 4, 28: “in orbem pugnare,” id. 28, 22, 15: “in orbem sese stantibus equis defendere,” id. 28, 33, 15: stella (φαέθων) eundem duodecim signorum orbem annis duodecim conficit, the zodiac, Cic. N. D. 2, 20, 52: “lacteus,” the Milky Way, id. Rep. 6, 16, 16.—Of the orbit of a heavenly body: “sidera circulos suos orbesque conficiunt,” Cic. Rep. 6, 15, 15.—Of a serpent, the windings, coils: “immensis orbibus angues Incumbunt pelago,” Verg. A. 2, 204.—Of a circular surface or disk: “orbis mensae,” a round table-top, Ov. H. 17, 87; cf. Juv. 11, 122.—Also, simply orbes, a round table, Mart. 2, 43; Juv. 1, 137.—Of a quoit or discus: “ictus ab orbe,” Ov. Ib. 590.—Of the scale of a balance: “instabilis natat alterno depressior orbe,” Tib. 4, 1, 44.—Of a mirror: “addidit et nitidum sacratis crinibus orbem,” Mart. 9, 18, 5.—Of a shield: “illa (hasta) per orbem Aere cavum triplici ... Transiit,” Verg. A. 10, 783; Petr. 89.—Of a mosaic pavement of rounded pieces of marble, Juv. 11, 175.—Of a scale, one side of a balance, Tib. 4, 1, 44.—Of the millstones of an oil-mill, Cato, R. R. 22.—Of the wooden disk placed over olives in pressing them, Cato, R. R. 18.—Of the hoop or tire of a wheel: “rotarum orbes circumacti,” Plin. 8, 16, 19, § 52.—Of the wheel itself: “undaque jam tergo ferratos sustinet orbes,” Verg. G. 3, 361.—Hence, the wheel of fortune, Tib. 1, 5, 70; Ov. Tr. 5, 8, 7; id. P. 2, 3, 56.—Of the socket of the eye: “inanem luminis orbem,” Ov. M. 14, 200.—Of the eye itself: “gemino lumen ab orbe venit,” Ov. Am. 1, 8, 16: “ardentes oculorum orbes ad moenia torsit,” Verg. A. 12, 670.—Of the sun's disk or orb: “lucidus orbis,” Verg. G. 1, 459.—Of the moon's disk or orb: “quater junctis implevit cornibus orbem Luna, quater plenum tenuata retexuit orbem,” Ov. M. 7, 530.—Of the circle of the world, the world, the universe: “Juppiter arce suā totum cum spectet in orbem,” Ov. F. 1, 85: “renatus,” the new-born day, Sil. 5, 56: terrarum or terrae, the circle or orb of the earth, the world (since the ancients regarded the earth as a circular plane or disk): “permittitur infinita potestas orbis terrarum,” Cic. Agr. 2, 13, 33: “ager Campanus orbis terrae pulcherrimus,” id. ib. 2, 28, 76; id. Sest. 30, 66: “cunctus ob Italiam terrarum clauditur orbis?” Verg. A. 1, 233; cf. id. ib. 7, 224.—Also, simply orbis (so mostly poet.): “hic, ubi nunc Roma est orbis caput, arbor et herbae,” Ov. F. 5, 93: “unus,” Juv. 10, 168; 4, 148: “universus,” Vulg. Luc. 2, 1; id. Apoc. 12, 9.—Hence, a country, region, territory: “Eoo dives ab orbe redit,” the East, Ov. F. 3, 466: “Assyrius,” Juv. 2, 108: “noster,” Plin. 12, 12, 26, § 45.—A kind of fish, Plin. 32, 2, 5, § 14 Sillig; cf. Isid. Orig. 12, 6, 6.—

II. Trop., a circle.

A. Of things that return at a certain period of time, a rotation, round, circuit: “ut idem in singulos annos orbis volveretur,” Liv. 3, 10: “insigne regium in orbem per omnes iret,” in rotation, id. 3, 36: “orbis hic in re publicā est conversus,” the circle of political changes, Cic. Att. 2, 9, 1.—

B. Orbis doctrinae, an encyclopœdia: orbis ille doctrinae quam Graeci ἐγκύκλιον παιδείαν vocant, Quint. 1, 10, 1.—

C. Of speech, a rounding off, roundness, rotundity: “circuitum, et quasi orbem verborum conficere,” Cic. de Or. 3, 51, 198: “orationis,” id. Or. 71, 234: “historia non tam finitos numeros quam orbem quendam contextumque desiderat,” Quint. 9, 4, 129.—

D. A circle or cycle of thought: “sententiae Pyrrhonis in hunc orbem quem circumscripsimus, incidere non possunt,” Cic. Fin. 5, 8, 23; cf.: “circa vilem patulumque orbem,” Hor. A. P. 132.—

E. Esp.: in orbem ire, to go the rounds, go around: “quinque dierum spatio finiebatur imperium ac per omnes in orbem ibant,” in turn, Liv. 1, 17, 6; 3, 36, 3.