Lewis & Short

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laevus, a, um, adj. [cf. Gr. λαιός], left, on the left side (mostly poet.; syn.: sinister, scaevus).

  1. I. Lit.: ut idem nunc sit laevus; et e laevo sit mutua dexter, Lucr. 4, 301 (325): manus, Cic. Ac. 2, 47, 145: ab laeva manu, Plaut. Aul. 4, 3, 1: habeo equidem hercle oculum. Py. At laevom dico, Plaut. Mil. 4, 7, 24: latus, Ov. M. 12, 415: auris id. ib. 12, 336: pes, id. ib. 12, 101: umerus, id. H. 9, 62: Pontus, lying to the left, id. P. 4, 9, 119: iter, Verg. A. 5, 170: habena, Hor. Ep. 1, 15, 12: amnis, the left bank, Tac. A. 2, 8: laevā in parte mamillae, Juv. 7, 159.
    1. B. Subst.
      1. 1. laeva, ae, f.
          1. (α) (Sc. manus.) The left hand: opsecro te hanc per dexteram, perque hanc sororem laevam, Plaut. Poen. 3, 1, 9: Ilionea petit dextrā, laevāque Serestum, Verg. A. 1, 611; id. ib. 2, 552; 7, 188: cognovi clipeum laevae gestamina nostrae, Ov. M. 15, 163; id. ib. 4, 782; 8, 321: hinc factum est ut usus anulorum exemtus dexterae, in laevam relegaretur, Macr. S. 7, 13, 11; so, dextera laevaque, Juv. 6, 561; 658.
          2. (β) (Sc. pars.) The left side: laevam cuncta cohors remis ventisque petivit, Verg. A. 3, 563: laevam pete, go to the left, Ov. M. 3, 642.
            Esp. freq. adv.: laevā, on the left side, on the left: dextrā montibus, laevā Tiberi amne saeptus, on the left, Liv. 4, 32: dextrā laevāque duo maria claudunt, id. 21, 43: so, a laevā: Diana facem jacit a laeva, Enn. ap. Cic. Ac. 2, 28, 89 (Trag. Rel. v. 55 Vahl.); Vulg. Exod. 14, 22.
            So, ad laevam, in laevam, to the left, on the left: ante, et pone; ad laevam, et ad dexteram, Cic. Univ. 13: si in laevam detorserit, Plin. 28, 8, 27, § 93.
      2. 2. In neutr.: laevum, on the left (poet.): intonuit laevum, Verg. A. 2, 693; 9, 631: laevum extendere comas, Juv. 6, 495: in laevum, adverbially, to the left: fleximus in laevum cursus, Ov. Tr. 1, 10, 17: dixit in laevum conversus, Juv. 4, 120 (Jahn, in laevam).
        Plur.: laeva, ōrum, n., places lying on the left: laeva tenent Thetis et Melite, Verg. A. 5, 825: Thracen et laeva Propontidos intrat, Ov. F. 5, 257.
  2. II. Trop.
    1. A. Awkward, stupid, foolish, silly: si mens non laeva fuisset, Verg. E. 1, 16; id. A. 2, 54: o ego laevus, Qui purgor bilem sub verni temporis horam, Hor. A. P. 301.
    2. B. Of ill omen, unfavorable, inconvenient; unfortunate, unlucky, bad, pernicious: Sirius laevo contristat lumine caelum, Verg. A. 10, 275: peccatum fateor, cum te sic tempore laevo Interpellarim, Hor. S. 2, 4, 4: teque nec laevus vetat ire picus, id. C. 3, 27, 15: laevo monitu pueros producit avaros, Juv. 14, 228: omen, Val. Fl. 6, 70: ignis, i. e. a pestilence, Stat. Th. 1, 634; Claud. Idyll. 2, 92; Sil. 1, 464 Rupert; so, numina laeva (opp. dextra or propitia), unfavorable gods, hostile deities, Verg. G. 4, 7 Jahn and Forbig. ad loc.: impia Cappadocum tellus et numine laevo Visa tibi, Mart. 6, 85, 3; Sil. 14, 494; 15, 512; Arn. adv. Gent. 3, 26.
    3. C. In the language of augurs, fortunate, lucky, propitious (because the Romans, by turning their faces to the south, had the eastern signs on their left hand; v. sinister): laeva prospera existimantur, quoniam laevā parte mundi ortus est, Plin. 2, 54, 55, § 142; cf. Liv. 1, 18: omina, Phaedr. 3, 18, 12: tonitru dedit omina laevo Juppiter, Ov. F. 4, 833; cf. Verg. A. 2, 693; 9, 631 (I. B. 2 supra).
      Hence, adv.: laevē, awkwardly, wrongly (poet.), Hor. Ep. 1, 7, 52.