Lewis & Short

Parsing inflected forms may not always work as expected. If the following does not give the correct word, try Latin Words or Perseus.

Dīrae, ārum, f., the Furies, v. dirus, I. B. 2.

dīrus, a, um, adj. [Sanscr. root dī, to flee; Gr. δέος, δείδω, δεινός], fearful, awful (for syn. cf.: saevus, atrox, ferox, crudelis, trux, furens, furiosus, immitis).

  1. I. Orig. belonging to the lang. of augurs; of fate, ill-omened, ominous, boding, portentous: QVAE AVGVR INIVSTA, NEFASTA VITIOSA DIRA DEFIXERIT, IRRITA INFECTAQVE SVNTO, Cic. Leg. 2, 8 fin.; cf. id. Div. 1, 16: tristissima exta sine capite fuerunt, quibus nihil videtur esse dirius, id. ib. 2, 15 fin.; cf.: bubo, dirum mortalibus omen, Ov. M. 5, 550: omen, Tac. H. 3, 56; Suet. Aug. 92; id. Tib. 1, 3, 17: aves, Tac. A. 12, 43; Suet. Claud. 22: alites, Plin. 18, 1, 1, § 4: somnia, Val. Fl. 3, 59: tempus, Cic. Poët. Div. 1, 11, 18: exsecrationes, Liv. 40, 56; 28, 22; Suet. Claud. 12; cf. deprecationes, Plin. 28, 2, 4, § 19: detestatio, Hor. Epod. 5, 89: ritus sacrorum, Tac. A. 16, 8: religio loci, Verg. A. 8, 350 et saep.
    Hence, as subst.:
      1. 1. dīrae, ārum, f.
          1. (α) (sc. res), ill-boding things, portents, unlucky signs: dirarum obnuntiatio, id. ib.; Plin. 28, 2, 4, § 17; 28, 2, 5, § 26; Tac. A. 6, 24 al.; Hor. Epod. 5, 89; Müll. Etrusk. 2, p. 117.
          2. (β) As a nom. propr., Dīrae, the Furies, Verg. A. 12, 845 sq.; 4, 473; Val. Fl. 1, 804; Aur. Vict. Epit. 21 al.; called also Dirae deae, sorores, Verg. A. 7, 324 and 454.
      2. 2. dīra, ōrum, n., fearful things, ill-boding events: in dira et in vitiosa incurrimus, Cic. Div. 1, 16, 29; id. Leg. 2, 8, 21; cf.: me mihi dira precari cogis, to curse, invoke curses on, Tib. 2, 6, 17: dira passus, Vulg. Sirach, 38, 16.
  2. II. Transf., of character, dreadful, horrible, terrible, abominable, detestable (so almost exclusively poet.; a very favorite expression with the Aug. poets; in the Ciceron. per. not at all; but cf. diritas, II.): senex dirissimus, Varr. Poët. ap. Non. 100, 30: Dea, i. e. Circe, Ov. M. 14, 278: Ulixes, Verg. A. 2, 261; 762: Hannibal, Hor. C. 2, 12, 2 al.: durum, id. ib. 3, 6, 36 (also ap. Quint. 8, 2, 9): Afer, Hor. C. 4, 4, 42: Amulius, Ov. F. 4, 53: noverca, id. H. 12, 188: pellex, id. ib. 5, 60 et saep.: hydra, Hor. Ep. 2, 1, 10: serpens, Ov. M. 2, 651: victima, id. A. A. 1, 334: parens, fell, cruel, id. ib. 2, 383: soror, Stat. S. 5, 3, 84: parentes, Manil. 5, 541.
        1. b. Of inanimate and abstr. subjects: regio, Ov. Tr. 3, 3, 5: facies, id. F. 1, 553: dapes, id. ib. 6, 663: venena, Hor. Epod. 5, 61; id. S. 1, 9, 31: Asphaltites lacus, Plin. 5, 15, 15, § 71: scopulus, id. 4, 11, 18, § 51: duarum Syrtium vadoso mari diri sinus, id. 5, 4, 4, § 26 et saep.: bellum, Verg. A. 11, 217: nefas, id. ib. 4, 563: sollicitudines, Hor. Epod. 13, 10: amores, Ov. M. 10, 426: superbia, id. ib. 3, 354: quies, Tac. A. 1, 65 et saep.
          Poet., answering to the Gr. δεινός, with inf.: dira portas quassare trabs, Sil. 4, 284.
    1. B. Skilful: in complicandis negotiis, Amm. 14, 5, 8.