Lewis & Short

prae-tendo, di, tum (part. praetensus, Anthol. Lat. 3, 168, 5), 3, v. a., to stretch forth or forward, to extend (syn. obtendo).

  1. I. Lit.: praetenta Tela, stretched forth, presented, Ov. M. 8, 341: propagines e vitibus altius praetentos, shooting forth, Fab. Pict. ap. Gell. 10, 15, 13: ubi visum in culice natura praetendit? set out, stationed (i. e. extendit, et posuit in anteriore oris parte), Plin. 11, 1, 2, § 2.
    1. B. Transf.
      1. 1. To spread before or in front: membrana, quae praecordia appellant, quia cordi praetenditur, Plin. 11, 37, 77, § 197; 9, 6, 5, § 15.
      2. 2. To spread, draw, hold, or place a thing before another: segeti praetendere saepem, Verg. G. 1, 270: vestem tumidis praetendit ocellis, holds before, Ov. Am. 3, 6, 79: ramum praetendit olivae, holds out, Verg. A. 8, 116: fumosque manu praetende sequaces, id. G. 4, 230: decreto sermonem, to prefix, Liv. 3, 47: quicquid castrorum Armeniis praetenditur, Tac. H. 2, 6: ut adnexa classis et pugnae parata conversā et minaci fronte praetenderetur, id. ib. 2, 14.
        1. b. Of places: praetendi, to stretch out before or in front of, to lie over against or opposite to (poet. and post-Aug.; once in Liv.): praetentaque Syrtibus arva, Verg. A. 6, 60: tenue litus praetentum, Liv. 10, 2, 5: Armeniae praetentus Iber, Val. Fl. 5, 167: gens nostris provinciis late praetenta, Tac. A. 2, 56: Baeticae latere septentrionali praetenditur Lusitania, Plin. 3, 1, 2, § 6: a tergo praetendantur Aethiopes, id. 5, 9, 9, § 48; 6, 27, 31, § 134: Dardanis laevo Triballi praetenduntur, id. 4, 1, 1, § 3: extremis legio praetenta Britannis, i. e. opposita custodiae causa, Claud. B. Get. 416.
  2. II. Trop.
    1. A. To hold out or bring forward as an excuse, to allege, pretend, simulate (syn.: causor, praetexo): hominis doctissimi nomen tuis immanibus et barbaris moribus (soles) praetendere, to allege in excuse for, Cic. Vatin. 6, 14: praetendens culpae splendida verba tuae, Ov. R. Am. 240: legem postulationi suae praetendere, Liv. 3, 45, 1: quid honestum dictu saltem seditioni praetenditur muliebri? id. 34, 3, 8: meminisse, quem titulum praetenderitis adversus Philippum, id. 37, 54, 13: decem legatorum decretum calumniae inpudentissimae, id. 39, 28, 11: vultum, et tristitiam, et dissentientem a ceteris habitum pessimis moribus praetendebant, Quint. prooem. § 15; Plin. Ep. 4, 16, 3: ignorantia praetendi non potest, Quint. 7, 1, 35: haec a se factitari praetendebat, Tac. A. 6, 18: praetendere fessam aetatem et actos labores, id. ib. 3, 59; Flor. 3, 5, 3: plebeiam facie tenus praetendens humanitatem, App. M. 10, 23, p. 250, 9.
    2. B. To put forward, hold out, allege, assert a thing: nec conjugis umquam Praetendi taedas, I never pretended to be your husband, Verg. A. 4, 338: debitum, to demand a debt, sue for payment of a debt, Dig. 2, 14, 9.