Lewis & Short

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prīmus, a, um, adj. sup. [obsol. prep. pri (prei); whence also prior, priscus; cf.: privus, privo, etc., and v. pro], the first, first (properly only when three or more are referred to. The first, as opp. to the second, is prior; but primus is rarely used for prior, Cic. Sest. 19, 44 al.).

  1. I. In gen.: qui primus vulnus dicitur obligavisse, Cic. N. D. 3, 22, 57: primus sentio mala nostra: primus rescisco omnia: Primus porro obnuntio, Ter. Ad. 4, 2, 7: verum primum: verum igitur et extremum, Cic. Off. 3, 6, 27: primae litterae, id. Att. 9, 6, 5: primus inter homines nobilissimos, id. Sest. 3, 6: primi ex omnibus philosophis, id. Fin. 4, 7, 17: primus Graeciae in Thraciam introiit, Nep. Alcib. 7, 4: primus de mille fuisses, Ov. H. 17, 105: in primis, among the first, in the foremost ranks, Nep. Paus. 5, 3: in primis stetit, id. Epam. 10, 3: in primis pugnantes, Sall. C. 60, 6: leonem primus, aut in primis ferire, id. J. 6, 1: utque pedum primis infans vestigia plantis institerat (= ut primum, etc., poet.), Verg. A. 11, 573: primus post eos quos poëtae tradiderunt movisse aliqua circa rhetoricen Empedocles dicitur (= secundus or proximus ab iis), Quint. 3, 1, 8.
  2. II. In partic.
    1. A. In time or place, first, fore, foremost, the first part; sometimes to be translated, the end, extremity, etc.: in primā provinciā, at the entrance of the province, Cic. Fam. 3, 6, 2: digitus, the tip of the finger, Cat. 2, 3: dentes, the front teeth, Plin. 19, 2, 11, § 35: ranis prima lingua cohaeret, the end of the tongue, id. 11, 37, 65, § 172: primā statim nocte, at the beginning of the night, Col. 10, 190: sol, i. e. the rising sun, Verg. A. 6, 255: luna, i. e. the new moon, Plin. 2, 13, 10, § 56.
      With quisque, the first possible, the very first: primo quoque tempore, at the very first opportunity, Cic. Fam. 13, 57, 1: primo quoque die, id. Phil. 8, 11, 33: me tibi primum quidque concedente, id. Ac. 2, 16, 49: fluit voluptas et prima quaeque avolat, id. Fin. 2, 32, 106.
      Subst.: prīma, ōrum, n., the first part, the beginning: quod bellum, si prima satis prospera fuissent, Liv. 8, 3.
      Of the first principles or elements of things, Lucr. 4, 186: prima consiliorum (for prima consilia), Tac. H. 2, 11: a primo, from the beginning, at first: multum improbiores sunt quam a primo credidi, Plaut. Most. 3, 2, 139; Ter. Phorm. 4, 2, 14; 4, 3, 37: in illā pro Ctesiphonte oratione submissius a primo: deinde pressius, Cic. Or. 8, 26: suam vim retinere a primo ad extremum, id. Fin. 4, 13, 32: hoc a primo cogitavit, id. Att. 8, 11, 2; id. Phil. 2, 30, 75 Halm ad loc.: id a primo rectissime dicitur, id. Fin. 3, 9, 32 Madv. ad loc.: in primo, in front, before, in the beginning, first: equites in primo late ire jubet, in the van, Sall. J. 68, 4: qui numerus in primo viget, jacet in extremo, Cic. Or. 64, 215.
    2. B. First in rank or station, chief, principal, most excellent, eminent, distinguished, noble (cf.: princeps, primores): evocat ad se Massiliensium quindecim primos, Caes. B. C. 1, 35: sui municipii facile primus, Cic. Rosc. Am. 6, 15: homo, id. Verr. 2, 4, 17, § 37: primis urbis placuisse, Hor. Ep. 1, 20, 23: juvenum primi, Verg. A. 9, 785: est genus hominum, qui esse primos se omnium rerum volunt Nec sunt, Ter. Eun. 2, 2, 17: quia sum apud te primus, I am the first in your favor, id. ib. 1, 2, 10: primus humani generis, Sil. 17, 255: urbem Italiae primam, Petr. 116: praedium, Cato, R. R. 1: suavia prima habere, to give the first place to, think the most of, Ter. Heaut. 5, 2, 9: otium atque divitiae, quae prima mortales putant, Sall. C. 36, 4: cura, a chief part, Plin. 5, 25, 21, § 88.
      Also, most conspicuous, chief, in a bad sense: peccatores, quorum primus ego sum, Vulg. 1 Tim. 1, 15: primas partes, or primas agere, to play the first part, to occupy the first rank, Ter. Phorm. prol. 27: primas in causis agebat Hortensius, Cic. Brut. 90, 308; 47: primas dare, to give the first place, ascribe the greatest importance to a thing: actioni primas dedisse Demosthenes dicitur, cum rogaretur, quid in dicendo esset primum: huic secundas, huic tertias, Cic. de Or. 3, 56, 213: primas deferre, to transfer the first or principal part: amoris erga me tibi primas defero, i. e. I assign to you the first rank among those who love me, id. Att. 1, 17, 5: primas concedere, to yield the first place: si Allienus tibi primas in dicendo partes concesserit, id. Div. in Caecil. 15, 49: primas tenere, to play the first part, be the best, id. Brut. 95, 327: cum primis, and in primis (also written in one word, impri-mis), with or among the first, chiefly, especially, principally, particularly: homo domi suae cum primis locuples, Cic. Verr. 2, 2, 28, § 69: in primis lautus eques, Nep. Att. 13, 1: oppidum in primis Siciliae clarum, Cic. Verr. 2, 2, 35, § 86: homo in primis improbissimus, id. ib. 2, 3, 27, § 68: vir magnus in primis, id. N. D. 1, 43, 120: in primis hoc a se animadversum esse dicebat, id. de Or. 3, 5, 17: in primis nobis sermo de te fuit, id. Att. 5, 1, 3: in primis … dein, first, in the first place, Sall. J. 26, 3.
      Hence, adv., primo and primum; also, ante- and post-class. and very rare, prime and primiter (the form primo is usually limited to that which is strictly first in time; primum in enumerations of contemporary facts, things, or arguments, where the order is at the speaker’s choice; cf. Krebs, Antibarb. p. 920 sq.).
    1. A. prīmō, at first, at the beginning, first, firstly.
      1. 1. In gen.: aedes primo ruere rebamur, Plaut. Am. 5, 1, 42: neque credebam primo mihimet Sosiae, id. ib. 2, 1, 50; Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 9, § 26: primo non accredidit, Nep. Dat. 3, 4: Themistocles solus primo profectus est, id. Them. 6, 5: contemptus est primo a tyrannis, id. Thras. 2, 2; id. Ham. 2, 2.
      2. 2. With dein, deinde, inde, post, postea, mox, denique, nunc: primo Stoicorum more agamus, deinde nostro instituto vagabimur, Cic. Tusc. 3, 6, 13: primo pecuniae, dein imperii cupido crevit, Sall. C. 10, 3: primo … deinde … tum … tum, Cic. Fin. 1, 16, 50: primo … deinde, Liv. 1, 27; Curt. 3, 12, 6; 4, 16, 21; 9, 10, 11: primo abstinentiā utendum: deinde danda, etc., Cels. 5, 26, 34: primo … inde, … hinc, Liv. 30, 11, 6: haec primo paulatim crescere: post, etc., Sall. C. 10, 6: dissuadente primo Vercingetorige, post concedente, Caes. B. G. 7, 15: primo … postea … postremo, etc., Liv. 26, 39: primo … mox, id. 1, 50: primo … mox deinde, Just. 1, 3: primo negitare, denique saepius fatigatus, etc., Sall. J. 111, 2: neque illi credebam primo, nunc vero palam est, Ter. Hec. 4, 4, 91.
      3. 3. (Mostly post-Aug. for primum.) With iterum, rursus, secundo: primo … iterum, Liv. 2, 51: primo … rursus, Suet. Aug. 17: primo … secundo, Phaedr. 4, 10, 16.
    2. B. prīmum, at first, first, in the first place, in the beginning (class.).
      1. 1. In enumerations, with a foll. deinde, tum: Caesar primum suo, deinde omnium e conspectu remotis equis, Caes. B. G. 1, 25: primum … deinde … deinde, Cic. Verr. 2, 2, 58, § 143: primum … deinde … tum … postremo, id. N. D. 2, 1, 3: primum … deinde … praeterea … postremo, id. Div. 2, 56, 116: primum … tum … deinde … post … tum … deinde . … , id. Fin. 5, 23, 65; id. Font. 14, 31; cf.: primum … secundo loco … deinde … tum, id. Leg. 1, 13, 35; id. Inv. 2, 27, 79; Curt. 3, 6, 16; 8, 10, 9; Liv. 1, 28; Nep. Them. 2, 3; id. Epam. 1, 3: primum … subinde, Hor. Ep. 1, 8, 15: primum … mox, id. ib. 2, 2, 93.
      2. 2. Without other adverbs.
          1. (α) In gen.: quaerenda pecunia primum est, Hor. Ep. 1, 1, 53: te Quicumque primum Produxit, id. C. 2, 13, 2; id. S. 2, 3, 41.
          2. (β) Strengthened with omnium, first of all, Plaut. Truc. 4, 3, 13: primum omnium ego ipse vigilo, Cic. Cat. 2, 9, 19.
      3. 3. With ut, ubi, simulac, cum.
          1. (α) Ut primum, ubi primum, simul ac primum, cum primum, as soon as ever, as soon as: ut primum potestas data est augendae dignitatis tuae, etc., Cic. Fam. 10, 13, 1: ubi primum potuit, istum reliquit, id. Verr. 2, 2, 20, § 48: simul ac primum niti possunt, etc., id. N. D. 2, 48, 124: tum affuerat, cum primum dati sunt judices, id. Verr. 2, 2, 23, § 57.
          2. (β) Nunc primum, now first, now for the first time (cf.: nunc demum, now at last): post illa nunc primum audio, Quid illo sit factum, Ter. And. 5, 4, 33.
          3. (γ) With dum (also by Plaut. joined in one word, pri-mumdum), in the first place, first (anteclass.): primum dum, si falso insimulas, etc. Iterum si id verum est, etc., Plaut. Mil. 2, 3, 26: omnium primumdum haed aedes jam face occlusae sicut, id. Most. 2, 1, 53; 1, 2, 39; id. Capt. 1, 2, 57: primum dum omnium male dictitatur tibi vulgo in sermonibus, id. Trin. 1, 2, 61.
          4. (δ) With adv. or other expression of time, for the first time: hodie primum ire in ganeum, Plaut. As. 5, 2, 37: quo die primum convocati su mus, Cic. Phil. 5, 11, 30.
    3. * C. prīmē, es pecially: fabula prime proba, Naev. ap. Charis. p. 188 P.; cf. Prisc. p. 603 P.
    4. D. prīmĭter, at first, first of all (ante- and post-class.): eripis primiter dapes, Pompon. ap. Non. 154, 26; Inscr. (of the beginning of the third century of Christ) Lab. Epigr. Lat. Scop. in Egitto.