1. ūter, tris, m. (neutr. collat. form of plur. utria, Liv. And. ap. Non. p. 231, 31; gen. plur. utrium, Sall. J. 91, 1) [kindr. with uterus; v. Isid. Orig. 20, 6, 7], a bag or bottle made of an animal’s hide, a skin for wine, oil, water, etc., Plaut. Truc. 5, 11: unctos salire per utres, Verg. G. 2, 384; Curt. 7, 5, 10; Ov. Am. 3, 12, 29; Juv. 15, 20; Plin. 12, 7, 15, § 31; 28, 18, 73, § 240; Scrib. Comp. 84; Just. 1, 8, 13; Dig. 33, 6, 3.
Often inflated and used for crossing streams, Caes. B. C. 1, 48 Herz.; Liv. 21, 27, 5; Front. Strat. 3, 13, 6; Plin. 6, 29, 34, § 176; Amm. 30, 1, 9.
Poet.: crescentem tumidis infla sermonibus utrem, the swelling skin, i. e. the vain man, Hor. S. 2, 5, 98.
2. ŭter, tri, m., v. uterus init.
3. ŭter, ū̆tra, ū̆trum (gen. utrī̆us; dat. utri; gen. sing., scanned utrĭus, Hor. Ep. 1, 17, 15; cf. uterque; gen. and dat. fem. utrae, acc. to Charis. p. 132 P.), pron. [for cuter, in form comp. of quis; cf. Engl. who, whe-ther; cf. also Sanscr. katara, uter, and Gr. πότερος; Ionic, κότερος].
- I. Interrogatively.
- A. In direct questions.
- 1. With gen. part.; sed uter vostrorum’st celerior? Plaut. Aul. 2, 4, 42: agnūm horum uter est pinguior? id. ib. 2, 5, 1: uter nostrum popularis est? tune an ego? Cic. Rab. Perd. 4, 11: uter est insanior horum? Hor. S. 2, 3, 102: peccat uter nostrum cruce dignius? id. ib. 2, 7, 47.
- 2. With ex and abl.: uter ex his tibi sapiens videtur? Sen. Ep. 90, 14.
- 3. Neutr. and with apposit.-clause: utrum est melius? virginemne an viduam uxorem ducere? Naev. ap. Non. p. 136, 7 (Com. Rel. v. 53 Rib.): utrum igitur mavis? statimne nos vela facere, an … paululum remigare? Cic. Tusc. 4, 4, 9; id. Verr. 2, 3, 37, § 84.
With plur. verb: uter meruistis culpam? Plaut. Men. 5, 2, 29: uter eratis, tun’ an ille, major? id. ib. 5, 9, 60.
Plur., of two parties: sed utriscum rem esse mavis? Plaut. Truc. 1, 2, 51.
- B. In indirect questions.
- 1. With gen. part.: nostrum uter sit blandior, Plaut. Cas. 2, 3, 58: harum duarum condicionum utram malis vide, Ter. Heaut. 2, 3, 85: is vestrorum uter sit, cui signum datum est, Cette, Pac. ap. Non. p. 85, 4 (Trag. Rel. v. 62 Rib.): quod utri nostrum sanctius sit, jam pridem sentis Liv 40, 9, 7: utrius horum Verba probes et facta, doce, Hor. Ep. 1, 17, 15.
- 2. With ex and abl.: de praemiis quaeritur: ex duobus, uter dignior; ex pluribus, quis dignissimus, Quint. 7, 4, 21.
- 3. With de and abl. (very rare): utrum de his potius, dubitasset aliquis, quin alterum, nemo, Cic. Brut. 50, 189.
- 4. Absol.: omnibus cura viris uter esset induperator, Enn. ap. Cic. Div. 1, 48, 107 (Ann. v. 86 Vahl.): et tamen utrum malis scio, Ter. Hec. 3, 5, 15: utro frui malis, optio sit tua, Cic. Fat. 2, 3: sortirenturve, uter comitiis ejus anni praeesset, Liv. 35, 20, 3: non tantum utrum melius, sed quid sit optimum quaeritur, Quint. 3, 8, 33: dijudicari, uter populus alteri pariturus esset, Vell. 2, 90, 3: elige, utrum facias, Ov. M. 9, 548: ignorante rege uter Orestes esset, Cic. Lael. 7, 24: considerando, utra lex ad majores res pertineat, id. Inv. 2, 49, 145: dubitare visus est Sulpicius et Cotta, utrius oratio propius ad veritatem videretur accedere, id. de Or. 1, 62, 262: ita ut oculis, in utram partem fluit (flumen), judicari non possit, Caes. B. G. 1, 12: certamen consulibus inciderat, uter dedicaret aedem, Liv. 2, 27, 5: videamus uter plus scribere possit, Hor. S. 1, 4, 16.
Plur., of two parties or sets: sed utros ejus habueris libros—duo enim sunt corpora—an utrosque, nescio, Cic. Q. Fr. 2, 11, 4: quaestio sequitur ex ipsis (testibus), utri meliores viri, Quint. 5, 7, 34: nec promptum est dicere, utros peccare validius putem, id. 10, 3, 12.
Neutr. with apposit.-clause: cogitare, utrum esset Agrigentinis utilius, suisne servire anne populo Romano obtemperare, Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 33, § 73: videte utrum sit aequius, hominem dedi inimicissimis nationibus an reddi amicis, id. Font. 18, 41 (14, 31).
- 5. Repeated, which of two … the other: ut nihil jam aliud quaerere debeatis, nisi uter utri insidias fecerit, Cic. Mil. 9, 23: ut … neque dijudicari posset, uter utri virtute anteferendus videretur, Caes. B. G. 5, 44: scire de filiis tuis, uter ab utro petitus fraude et insidiis esset, Liv. 40, 55, 3: ambigitur uter utro sit prior, Hor. Ep. 2, 1, 55: si non intellegitur, uter ab utro eversus sit, Dig. 9, 2, 45.
- 6. Strengthened by ne: uterne Ad casus dubios fidet sibi certius, hic qui Pluribus assuerit mentem, etc., An qui contentus parvo? Hor. S. 2, 2, 107.
- II. Transf.
- A. Indef. rel., whichsoever of two, the one which: utram harum vis condicionem accipe, Plaut. Cas. 2, 4, 13: convenit, victi utri sint in eo proelio … focos, seque uti dederent, id. Am. 1, 1, 71: horum utro uti nolumus, altero est utendum, Cic. Sest. 42, 92: utrum enim horum dixeris, in eo culpa et crimen haerebit, id. Verr. 2, 3, 45, § 106: quotiens ille tibi optionem facturus sit, ut eligas utrum velis, factum esse necne … utrum dixeris, id contra te futurum, id. Div. in Caecil. 14, 45: utrum igitur eorum accidisset, verum oraculum fuisset, id. Div. 2, 56, 116: uter enim … penetrarit et uter … accesserit, is vincat necesse est, id. Part. Or. 36, 123: utrum placet, sumite … daret, utrum vellet subclamatum est, Liv. 21, 18, 13: utri eorum dedicatio jussu populi data esset, eum praeesse annonae, id. 2, 27, 5: utrius partis melior fortuna belli esset, ad ejus societatem inclinaturos, id. 31, 32, 5: uter aedilis fueritve Vestrum praetor, is sacer esto, Hor. S. 2, 3, 180; 2, 5, 28: utro exercitu mallet ex duobus, quos, etc., Liv. 36, 1, 9: ut ipse optet, ex duobus ab lege constitutis suppliciis utrum velit pendere, Sen. Contr. 7, 23, 6.
- B. Indef., either of the two, one or the other, one of two: uti tu ad Laelium Luciumve consulem sive quem ad uter eorum jusserit proferes, Vet. Form. ap. Gell. 16, 4, 2: omnium controversiarum, quae essent inter aratorem et decumanum, si uter velit, edicit se recuperatores daturum, Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 14, § 35: quid? si una tabula sit, duo naufragi aeque sapientes; sibine uter rapiat, an alter cedat alteri? id. Off. 2, 23, 90: si cum utro eorum actum est, cum altero agi non potest, Dig. 9, 2, 45, § 3.
- * C. Whichsoever of more than two: quorum utrum ei acciderit, Vitr. 7 praef.
Hence, adv.: ū̆trō, to which of two places, to which side or part: nescit utro potius ruat et ruere ardet utroque, Ov. M. 5, 166; Plin. 18, 19, 49, § 179; v. also utrum.
ŭtĕrus, i, m. (collat. form ŭter, Caecil. ap. Non. 188, 15; neutr. collat. form ŭtĕ-rum, i, Plaut. Aul. 4, 7, 10, acc. to Non. 229, 33; Turp. and Afran. ib.) [Sanscr. uttara, later; Gr. ὕστερος; cf. Gr. ὑστέρα, womb; Sanscr. udaram, belly; Engl. udder], the womb, matrix (syn. volva).
- I. Lit.: utero exorti dolores, Plaut. Am. 5, 1, 40: perii, mea nutrix, uterum dolet! id. Aul. 4, 7, 10; id. Truc. 1, 2, 96: quae te beluam ex utero, non hominem fudit, Cic. Fragm. ap. Serv. Verg. A. 8, 139; Plaut. Truc. 1, 2, 97; Hirt. ap. Quint. 8, 3, 54; Prop. 4, 1, 100; Hor. C. 3, 22, 2; Ov. M. 9, 280; 9, 315; 10, 495; id. F. 2, 452; Tac. A. 1, 59; Plin. 9, 6, 5, § 13.
- II. Transf.
- A. Of the cavities of the earth, from which the first creatures are represented to have come forth, Lucr. 5, 806; cf. Lact. 2, 11 init.
- B. The fruit of the womb, a fetus, child, young: feminae uterum gerentes, i. e. pregnant, Cels. 2, 10; Tac. A. 1, 59.
Of animals, Varr. R. R. 2, 2, 14; Plin. 8, 40, 62, § 151.
- C. In gen., the belly, paunch: me puero uterus erat solarium: ubi iste monebat esse, etc., Plaut. Fragm. ap. Gell. 3, 3, 5; Verg. A. 7, 499; Cels. 4, 1; Juv. 10, 309; Luc. 6, 115; 9, 773.
Of swans, Plin. 10, 47, 66, § 131.
- 2. Of inanimate things; of the Trojan horse, Verg. A. 2, 52: dolii, Col. 12, 4, 5: lato utero (navium), Tac. A. 2, 6.