Lewis & Short

rārus, a, um, adj. [etym. dub.; cf. Sanscr. root rah-, to abandon], having wide interstices between its parts, of a loose texture, not thick or dense, thin (opp. densus; freq. and class.).

  1. I. Lit.: denseri poterunt ignes, rarique relinqui, Lucr. 1, 656; cf.: (terra) Rara sit an supra morem si densa requiras … Densa magis Cereri, rarissima quaeque Lyaeo, Verg. G. 2, 227 sq.; 1, 419: textura, Lucr. 4, 196; cf. retia, Verg. A. 4, 131; Hor. Epod. 2, 33: tunica, Ov. Am. 1, 5, 13; and: cribrum, id. M. 12, 437: rariores silvae, the thinner, clearer parts of the forest, Tac. Agr. 37: seges, Col. 2, 9, 6: corpus (opp. solidae res), Lucr. 1, 347; 2, 860; 6, 631 al.: aër, id. 2, 107; cf. in the comp., id. 6, 1024: manus, i.e. with the fingers spread apart, Quint. 11, 3, 103: raraque non fracto vestigia pulvere pendent, i.e. scarcely visible, Stat. Th. 6, 640.
  2. II. Transf.
    1. A. Of things which stand apart from each other, far apart, here and there, scattered, thin, scanty ( = disjectus; opp. densus, confertus): cum raris disjectisque ex aedificiis pabulum conquireretur, Hirt. B. G. 8, 10; cf.: vides habitari in terrā raris et angustis in locis, scattered, Cic. Rep. 6, 19, 20: apparent rari nantes, Verg. A. 1, 118: foramina, Lucr. 5, 457: bacae expanduntur rarae, Plin. 17, 10, 11, § 60: frutices in vertice, Ov. H. 10, 25: coma, id. Am. 1, 8, 111; cf. capillus. Suet. Calig. 50: racemi, Verg. E. 5, 7: umbra, id. ib. 7, 46: arbores, Nep. Milt. 5, 3: tela, Ov. M. 12, 600 et saep.
      Poet.: manat rara meas lacrima per genas, drop by drop, Hor. C. 4, 1, 34.
      1. 2. In partic., in military lang., far apart, here and there, scattered about, dispersed, straggling, single (opp. confertus). accedebat huc, ut numquam conferti, sed rari magnisque intervallis proeliarentur, Caes. B. G. 5, 16; cf.: rari in confertos illati, Liv. 23, 27: ipsi ex silvis rari propugnabant, Caes. B. G. 5, 9; 5, 17; 7, 45; 7, 80; id. B. C. 1, 27 fin.: Samnites raris ordinibus constiterant, Liv. 9, 27; Curt. 4, 14, 14: rara est acies, Verg. A. 9, 508: rarior acies, Tac. H. 3, 25; Front. Strat. 3, 10, 4: rarior acies, Curt. 4, 15, 20: ut ordines suos non magnopere servarent. rari dispersique pugnarent, Caes. B. C. 1, 44; cf. Tac. Agr. 37 fin.; Front. Strat. 1, 5, 23.
    2. B. Of any thing found in small numbers or which seldom takes place, few, rare (cf. paucus): in omni arte … ut in ipsă virtute, optimum quidque rarissimum, Cic. Fin. 2, 25, 81; cf.: rarum genus (amicorum) et quidem omnia praeclara rara, id. Lael. 21, 79: raris ac prope nullis portibus, Caes. B. G. 3, 12 fin.; cf.: etiamsi rarus ejus rei, nonnullus tamen usus, Quint. 8, 6, 30: rarus enim est animus ad ea defendenda, Sall. H. 3, 61, 7 Dietsch: Idem rarum est, non sine usu tamen, Quint. 5, 11, 42: rari domos, plurimi amicorum tecta … petivere, Tac. H. 1, 79 fin.: Oceanus raris ab orbe nostro navibus aditur, id. G. 2: aliquod solitarium aut rarum, Cic. Inv. 1, 44, 83: ut anteponantur rara vulgaribus, id. Top. 18, 69: litterae, Liv. 6, 1; cf. id. 7, 3: rara hostium apparebant arma, id. 2, 50: lites, Quint. 7, 1, 43: infelicitas, id. 11, 2, 49: quae (littera) est apud nos rarissima in clausulis, id. 12, 10, 31: quod est magis rarum, id. 9, 2, 73: ex maxime raro genere hominum, Cic. Lael. 17, 64; cf. Quint. 7, 3, 25: raris vocibus hisco, Verg. A. 3, 314: rara per ignotos errent animalia montes, id. E. 6, 40: audiet pugnas vitio parentum Rara juventus, Hor. C. 1, 2, 24.
      Rarum est, with ut: rarum est, ut, etc., Quint. 3, 10, 3; 6, 3, 38; 10, 7, 24: rarum dictu, esse aliquid, cui prosit neglegentia, Plin. 18, 16, 39, § 140.
        1. b. Mostly poet. and in post-Aug. prose for the adv. raro, seldom, rarely: nec Iliacos coetus nisi rarus adibat, Ov. M. 11, 766; cf.: rarus, qui tam procul a portu recessisset, reperiebatur, Quint. 12, prooem. § 3; so, rarus fuit, qui, etc., id. 6, 2, 3: antiquis scriptoribus rarus obtrectator, Tac. A. 4, 33; Sall. H. Fragm. 3, 22, p. 233 Gerl.: Caesar rarus egressu, Tac. A. 15, 53; cf.: leones rari in potu, Plin. 8, 16, 18, § 46: (calculus) rarus inventu, id. 28, 15, 61, § 217; cf.: helxine rara visu est, id. 21, 16, 56, § 96: Homerus alias circa picturas pigmentaque rarus, i. e. rarely speaks of them, id. 33, 7, 38, § 115
      1. 2. Poet., in partic., uncommon of its kind, scarce, rare, extraordinary, remarkable: rara puella fuit, Prop. 1, 17, 16; so, Cynthia, id. 1, 8, 42: ministra deae, id. 4 (5), 11, 52; cf.: rara quidem facie, sed rarior arte canendi, Ov. M. 14, 337: facies, id. H. 17, 93 Ruhnk.: vestis, Cat. 69, 3: avis (sc. pavo), Hor. S. 2, 2, 26: fides, id. C. 1, 35, 21: artis opus rarae, Tib. 3, 4, 37: patulis rarissima ramis, Ov. M. 7, 622: rarissima turba, id. A. A. 2, 281: rarissimi ingenii homo, Sen. Contr. 28: conjux rarissima, Stat. S. 5, 1, 11.
        Hence, adv., usually raro (class.), but sometimes rare (ante-class. and postAug.), rarenter (ante- and post-class.), or rariter (late Lat.).
    1. A. Form rārō: raro nimium dabat quod biberem, Plaut. Cist. 1, 1, 20: potavi, edi, donavi, et enim id raro, id. Bacch. 4, 10, 6: si id, quod raro fit, fieri omnino negetur, Cic. Inv. 1, 43, 80: evenire insolenter et raro (opp. vulgo), id. ib. 1, 28, 43: vinum aegrotis prodest raro, nocet saepissime, id. N. D. 3, 27, 69; id. de Or. 3, 52, 101; cf. id. Or. 24, 80: sed tamen raro habet in oratione poeticum aliquod verbum dignitatem, id. de Or. 3, 38, 153: raro antecedentem scelestum Deseruit poena, Hor. C. 3, 2, 31: admodum raro, Cic. Fat. Fragm. ap. Macr. S. 2, 12; for which we find raro admodum, Quint. 11, 1, 14; Plin. 2, 50, 51, § 135: raro umquam, Quint. 4, 1, 4; 5, 7, 22; Plin. 22, 22, 46, § 93: ita raro, Cic. Rosc. Am. 13, 37: sic raro, Hor. S. 2, 3, 1: tam raro, Ov. M. 13, 117: quam raro, Plaut. Bacch. 4, 4, 25: perquam raro, Plin. 37, 4, 15, § 55.
      Comp.: quod si rarius fiet, quam tu exspectabis, Cic. Fam. 1, 7, 1.
      Sup.: istud rarissime accidere, Col. 5, 5, 7: non affari nisi rarissime, Suet. Claud. 3.
    2. B. Form rārē (acc. to I.), far apart, thinly, sparsely, here and there: nisi rare conseritur, vanam et minutam spicam facit, Col. 2, 9, 5: tenui vimine rarius contextus saccus, id. 9, 15, 12.
      1. 2. (Acc. to II. B.) Of time, seldom, rarely: vero rare capitur (piscis), Plaut. Rud. 4, 3, 56.
    3. C. Form rārenter, seldom, rarely: dato rarenter bibere, Cato, R. R. 103; so, rarenter, Liv. And., Enn., Caecil., Nov., Trab., Pompon. ap. Non. 515, 23 sq.; 164, 25 sq.; App. Flor. 3, p. 357, 22.
    4. D. Form rārĭter (very rare): quidquid fit rariter, magis delectat, Schol. Juv. 11, 208.