Lewis & Short

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stĕrĭlis, e (collat. form,

  1. I. acc. sing. fem sterilam sterilem, Fest. p. 316 Müll.; neutr. plur. sterila, Lucr. 2, 845; abl. sterile, Apic. 7, 1, § 258), adj. [Gr. στερεός, hard; στερίφη, στεῖρα, barren; Sanscr. starī, vacca sterilis], unfruitful, barren, sterile, of plants and animals (class. and very freq.; syn infecundus): steriles nascuntur avenae, Verg. E. 5, 37; so, ulvae, Ov. M. 4, 299: herba, id. Am. 3, 7, 31; Curt. 4, 1, 21: platani, Verg. G. 2, 70: agri, id. ib. 1, 84; id. A. 3, 141: tellus, Ov. M. 8, 789: palus, Hor. A. P. 65: harena, Verg. G. 1, 70: humus, Prop. 3, 2 (2, 11), 2; Curt. 7, 5, 34: solum, id. 3, 4, 3: steriles nimium crasso sunt semine, Lucr. 4, 1240; Cat. 67, 26: galli Tanagric’ ad partus sunt steriliores, Varr. R. R. 3, 9, 6: vacca, Verg. A. 6, 251: multae (mulie res), Lucr. 4, 1251: viri, i. e. eunuchs, Cat. 63, 69; Plin. 24, 10, 47, § 78; Mart. 9, 9, 8: ova, Plin. 10, 60, 80, § 166.
    1. B. Transf. (mostly poet. and in post-Aug. prose; not in Cic.).
      1. 1. Of things, causing unfruitfulness or sterility: rubigo, Hor. C. 3, 23, 6: frigus, Luc. 4, 108: hiems, Mart. 8, 68, 10: serere pampinariis sterile est, produces sterility, Plin. 17, 21, 35, § 157.
      2. 2. In gen., barren, bare, empty: manus, Plaut. Truc. 1, 2, 3: sterilis amator a datis, bare of gifts, id. ib. 2, 1, 30: amicus, Juv. 12, 97; Mart. 10, 18, 3: epistulae, Plin. Ep. 5, 2, 2: saeculum, id. ib. 5, 17, 6: civitas ad aquas, App. M. 1, p. 106 fin.: vadum, Sen. Thyest. 173: corpora sonitu (with jejuna succo), that yield no sound, Lucr. 2, 845: prospectus, without human beings, Plaut. Mil. 3, 1, 15: domus, without children, Prop. 4 (5), 11, 62: nummi, that do not bear interest, Dig. 22, 1, 7.
        With gen.: sterilis laurus baccarum, Plin. 15, 30, 39, § 130: lapides plumbi, id. 33, 7, 40, § 119.
  2. II. Trop., unproductive, unprofitable, fruitless, useless, vain: Februarius, Cic. Q. Fr. 2, 12, 2: quod monumentum, quod immo temporis punctum, aut beneficio sterile, aut vacuum laude? Plin. Pan. 56, 2: ne sit sterile et effetum (saeculum), id. Ep. 5, 17, 6: fama (with cassa), Stat. Th. 6, 70: labor, Mart. 10, 58, 8: pax, Tac. A. 1, 17: amor, i. e. unreturned, unrequited, Ov. M. 1, 496; Stat. S. 3, 4, 42: cathedrae, unprofitable, Mart. 1, 76, 14; Juv. 7, 203: litus sterili versamus aratro, id. 7, 49.
    With gen., destitute, deprived of, unacquainted with: urbes talium studiorum fuere steriles, Vell. 1, 18 fin.: non adeo virtutum sterile saeculum, Tac. H. 1, 3: heu steriles veri! Pers. 5, 75.