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.

ex-spīro (expīro), āvi, ātum, 1, v. a. and n. (mostly poet. and in post-Aug. prose; not in Cic. and Caes.). Act., to breathe out, to emit, to blow out, to exhale, give out: animam pulmonibus, Lucil. ap. Non. 38, 27: animam medios in ignes, Ov. M. 5, 106: auras, id. ib. 3, 121: flumen sanguinis de pectore, Lucr. 2, 354; cf.: flammas pectore, Verg. A. 1, 44: odorem de corpore, Lucr. 4, 124: sonos per saxa (unda), Sil. 9, 285: colorem (uniones), Plin. 9, 35, 56, § 115.

  1. B. Poet. transf.: cadavera vermes, i. e. send forth, produce, Lucr. 3, 720: silva comas tollit fructumque exspirat in umbras, i. e. spreads out into foliage, Stat. S. 5, 2, 70.
  2. C. Exspirare animam, to expire, die, Gell. 3, 15 init.
  • II. Neutr.
    1. A. To rush forth, come forth, be exhaled.
      1. 1. Lit.: per fauces montis ut Aetnae Exspirent ignes, Lucr. 6, 640: ignis foras (with exire in auras), id. 6, 886: vis fera ventorum, Ov. M. 15, 300: halitus Averni, Val. Fl. 4, 493: unguenta, evaporate, Plin. 13, 3, 4, § 20: vis, Lucil. ap. Non. 38, 30.
      2. * 2. Trop.: irae pectoris exspirantes, Cat. 64, 194.
    2. B. To breathe one’s last, to expire.
    1. I. Lit.: ut per singulos artus exspiraret, Sall. H. 1, 30 Dietsch.: atram tundit humum exspirans, Verg. A. 10, 731: ubi perire jussus exspiravero, Hor. Epod. 5, 91: inter primam curationem exspiravit, Liv. 2, 20, 9: inter verbera et vincula, id. 28, 19, 12: extremus exspirantis hiatus, Quint. 6, 2, 31; 9, 2, 73; Sen. Ep. 99, 27; Curt. 3, 5, 4; Suet. Tib. 21; id. Claud. 23; Val. Max. 4, 5, 6; Plin. 7, 36, 36, § 122.
      Pass. impers.: quoniam membranā cerebri incisā statim exspiretur, Plin. 11, 37, 67, § 178: exspiravit aper dentibus apri, Juv. 15, 162.
        1. 2. Trop., to expire, perish, come to an end, cease: si ego morerer, mecum exspiratura res publica erat, Liv. 28, 28, 11: libertate jam exspirante, Plin. Pan. 57, 4: ne res publica exspiraret, Val. Max. 3, 2, 18: criminis causa exspirat, becomes extinct, ceases, Dig. 48, 17, 1 fin.; 24, 3, 19: prior obligatio, ib. 45, 1, 58.