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.

fūmus, i, m. [Sanscr. dhū, dhumas, smoke; Zend. dun-man, vapor; Gr. θύω, to rage, sacrifice, θυμός, θῦμα, θύος, etc.; Goth. dauns, odor; Engl. dust; cf.: fūnus, fuligo],

  1. I. smoke, steam, fume: in lignis si flamma latet fumusque cinisque, Lucr. 1, 871; cf. 1, 891; 4, 56: ibi hominem ingenuum fumo excruciatum, semivivum reliquit, Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 17, § 45: castra, ut fumo atque ignibus significabatur, amplius milibus pass. VIII. in latitudinem patebant, Caes. B. G. 2. 7 fin.: tum fumi incendiorum procul videbantur, id. ib. 5, 48 fin.: significatione per castella fumo facta, id. B. C. 3, 65, 3: ater ad sidera fumus erigitur, Verg. A. 9, 239: pernas in fumo suspendito, Cato, R. R. 162, 3: fumo inveteratum vinum, Plin. 23, 1. 22, § 40; cf. Hor. C. 3, 8, 11; Col. 1, 6, 19 sq.; v. fumarium; hence, poet. transf.: fumi Massiliae, Marseilles wine mellowed in the smoke, Mart. 14, 118: in illo ganearum tuarum nidore atque fumo, Cic. Pis. 6, 13; cf.: intervenerant quidam amici, propter quos major fumus fieret, etc., Sen. Ep. 64, and Ter. Ad. 5, 3, 60: non fumum ex fulgore, sed ex fumo dare lucem Cogitat, Hor. A. P. 143.
    In double sense: Ph. Oculi dolent. Ad. Quor? Ph. Quia fumus molestus est, smoke, i. e. foolish talk, Plaut. Most. 4, 2, 10.
        1. b. Prov.
          1. (α) Semper flamma fumo est proxima: Fumo comburi nihil potest, flamma potest, i. e. the slightest approach to wrong-doing leads to vice, Plaut. Curc. 1, 1, 53.
          2. (β) Tendere de fumo, ut proverbium loquitur vetus, ad flammam, to jump out of the frying-pan into the fire, Amm. 14, 11, 12; cf.: de fumo, ut aiunt, in flammam, id. 28, 1, 26.
          3. (γ) Fumum or fumos vendere, i. e. to make empty promises, Lampr. Alex. Sev. 36; Mart. 4, 5, 7; App. Mag. p. 313, 31.
            For which also: per fumum or fumis vendere aliquid, Capitol. Anton. 11; Lampr. Heliog. 10.
  2. II. Trop., like our word smoke, as a figure of destruction: ubi omne Verterat in fumum et cinerem, had reduced to smoke and ashes, i. e. had consumed, squandered, Hor. Ep. 1, 15, 39.