Lewis & Short

aetas, ātis, f. [contr. from the anteclass. aevitas from aevum, q. v.; Prisc. 595 P.; cf. Welsh oet] (gen. plur. aetatum; but freq. also aetatium, Liv. 1, 43; 9, 17; 26, 9; cf. Oud. ad Suet. Aug. 31; Vell. 2, 89; Sen. Brev. Vit. 12, 2; Gell. 14, 1).

  1. I. The period of life, time of life, life, age (divided, acc. to Varr. ap. Censor. 14, into pueritia, from birth to the 15th year; adulescentia, from that time to the 30th; juventus, to the 45th; the age of the seniores, to the 60th; and, finally, senectus, from that time till death. Others make a different division, v. Flor. 1 prooem.; Isid. Orig. 11, 2; Gell. 10, 28; 15, 20): a primo tempore aetatis, Cic. Leg. 1, 4, 13: prima aetas, id. Off. 2, 13: ineuntis aetatis inscientia, id. ib. 1, 34; so 2, 13: flos aetatis, the bloom of life, id. Phil. 2, 2; Liv. 21; Suet. Caes. 49; so, bona aetas, Cic. Sen. 14; and poet. in the plur.: ambo florentes aetatibus, Verg. E. 7, 4: quamquam aetas senet, satis habeo tamen virium, ut te arā arceam, Pac. ap. Prisc. 1, 10; id. ap. Non. 159, 19: mala aetas, old age, Plaut. Men. 5, 2, 6; and absol.: aetas, aevitas = senectus, old age, SI MORBVS AEVITASVE VITIVM ESCIT, Fragm. of the XII. Tab. ap. Gell. 20, 1, 25: aetate (through age) non quis obtuerier, Plaut. Most. 3, 2, 154; 1, 3, 130; id. Bacch. 3, 3, 5: sed ipse morbo atque aetate confectus, Sall. J. 9: graves aetate, Liv. 7, 39.
    Sometimes also absol. = adulescentia, youth: fui ego illā aetate et feci illa omnia, Plaut. Bacch. 4, 10, 4; id. Most. 5, 2, 27: damna, dedecora aetas ipsius pertulit, Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 12: tua autem aetas (of his son), id. Off. 2, 13: (mulier) non formā, non aetate, non opibus maritum invenerit, Tac. G. 19: expers belli propter aetatem, Suet. Aug. 8: aetas consularis, the legal age for the consulship, i. e. the 43d year, Cic. Phil. 5, 17: id aetatis jam sumus, we have now reached that time of life, id. Fam. 6, 20, 3.
  2. II. Transf.
    1. A. In gen., the lifetime of man, without reference to its different stages; life, Enn. ap. Gell. 18, 2, 16: aetas acta honeste et splendide, Cic. Tusc. 3, 25: gerere, id. Fam. 4, 5 al.: tempus aetatis, id. Sen. 19: aetatem consumere in studio aliquo, id. Off. 1, 1: conterere in litibus, id. Leg. 1, 20: degere omnem in tranquillitate, id. Fin. 2, 35; cf. id. Rosc. Am. 53 al.
      In Ov. M. 12, 188, aetas = centum annos.
    2. B. A space of time, an age, generation, time: heroicae aetates, Cic. Tusc. 5, 3, 7: haec aetas, id. ib. 1, 3, 5; id. Rep. 1, 1: alia, id. Lael. 27, 101 Beier: nostrā aetate, in our times, Quint. 1, 4, 20: cum primis aetatis suae comparabatur, Nep. Iphicr. 1; Vell. 1, 16: incuriosa suorum aetas, Tac. Agr. 1: omnia fert aetas, time, Verg. E. 9, 51; so Hor. C. 4, 9, 10: crastina aetas, the morrow, Stat. Th. 3, 562.
      Of the four ages of the world (the golden age, silver age, etc.), Ov. M. 1, 89 sq.; v. aureus, argenteus, etc.
    3. C. Abstr. pro concreto, the time or period of life, for the man himself, the age, for the men living in it (mostly poet., and in prose after the Aug. per.; cf. saeculum): sibi inimicus magis quam aetati tuae, i. e. tibi, Plaut. Men. 4, 3, 1: vae aetati tuae, id. Capt. 4, 2, 105: quid nos dura refugimus Aetas? Hor. C. 1, 35, 34: impia, id. Epod. 16, 9: veniens, Ov. F. 6, 639: omnis aetas currere obviam, Liv. 27, 51: omnis sexus, omnis aetas, Tac. A. 13, 16: innoxiam liberorum aetatem miserarentur, i. e. innocentes liberos, id. H. 3, 68: sexum, aetatem, ordinem omnem, Suet. Calig. 4.
    4. D. Also of things without life, e. g. of wine, its age: bibite Falernum hoc: annorum quadraginta est. Bene, inquit, aetatem fert, it keeps well, Cic. ap. Macr. S. 2, 2, 3; Plin. 23, 1, 20, § 33; 15, 2, 3, § 7.
      So of buildings: aetates aedificiorum, Dig. 30, 58.
    5. E. Aetatem, a dverb. (ante-class.).
      1. 1. = semper, perpetuo, through the whole of life, during lifetime, continually: ut aetatem ambo nobis sint obnoxii, Plaut. As. 2, 2, 18: at tu aegrota, si lubet, per me aetatem quidem, id. Curc. 4, 3, 22: Quid, malum, me aetatem censes velle id adsimularier, Ter. Heaut. 4, 3, 38.
      2. 2. = diu, longo tempore, an age, a long time, a long while: an abiit jam a milite? Jamdudum aetatem, Ter. Eun. 4, 5, 8: quod solis vapor aetatem non posse videtur efficere, what the heat of the sun cannot perhaps effect for years, Lucr. 6, 236.
  3. F. In aetate, adverb. (ante-class.).
      1. 1. At times, sometimes, now and then, Plaut. Trin. 1, 1, 2.
      2. 2. At any time, always, ever, Plaut. Trin. 2, 4, 61.