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.

laevis, laevĭtas, v. 1. levis, etc.

2. lēvis (erroneously laevis), e, adj. [Gr. λεῖος, λευρός], smooth, smoothed, not rough, opp. asper (class.).

  1. I. Lit.
    1. A. In gen.: corpuscula quaedam levia, alia aspera, etc., Cic. N. D. 1, 24, 66: in locis (spectatur): leves an asperi, id. Part. Or. 10, 36: Deus levem eum (mundum) fecit et undique aequabilem, id. Univ. 6: pocula, smooth, shining, Verg. A. 5, 91: pharetrae, id. ib. 5, 558: brassica, Cato, R. R. 15, 7: levissima corpora, Lucr. 4, 659: coma pectine levis, Ov. M. 12, 409: nascunturque leves per digitos umerosque plumae, Hor. C. 2, 20, 11: levior assiduo detritis aequore conchis, Ov. M. 13, 792: inimicus pumice levis, rubbed (cf. pumicatus), Juv. 9, 95.
      Poet.: levi cum sanguine Nisus labitur infelix, slippery, Verg. A. 5, 328: levis Juventas ( = imberbis), smooth, without hair, beardless, Hor. C. 2, 11, 6; so, ora, Tib. 1, 9 (8), 31: crura, Juv. 8, 115: sponsus, id. 3, 111: caput, id. 10, 199; 2, 12; hence, also, poet. for youthful, delicate, beautiful: pectus, Verg. A. 11, 40: frons, id. E. 6, 51: umeri, id. A. 7, 815: colla, Ov. M. 10, 698.
      Also, finely dressed, spruce, effeminate: vir, Ov. A. A. 3, 437; Pers. 1, 82: argentum, smooth, not engraved or chased, Juv. 14, 62.
      In neutr. absol.: externi ne quid valeat per leve morari, smoothness, Hor. S. 2, 7, 87; so, per leve, Pers. 1, 64: per levia, Aus. Idyll. 16, 4.
    2. B. Transf., rubbed smooth, ground down, softened, soft (rare), Scrib. Comp. 228; Cels. 2, 8.
  2. II. Trop., of speech, smooth, flowing (rare but class.): oratio (opp. aspera), Cic. Or. 5 fin.; so, levis verborum concursus (opp. asper), id. de Or. 3, 43, 171: levis et aspera (vox), Quint. 11, 3, 15: levis et quadrata compositio, id. 2, 5, 9: levia ac nitida, id. 5, 12, 18: (aures) fragosis offenduntur et levibus mulcentur, id. 9, 4, 116.
    Adv. does not occur.