ālĕs, ālĭtĭs (abl. aliti, Sen. Med. 1014; gen. plur. alitum, Mart. 13, 6, and lengthened alituum, Lucr. 2, 928; 5, 801; 1039; 1078; 6, 1216; Verg. A. 8, 27; Stat. S. 1, 2, 184; Manil. 5, 370; Amm. 19, 2) [ala-ire, as comes, eques, etc., acc. to some; but cf. Corss. Ausspr. II. p. 209], adj. and subst. (poet. and post-Aug. prose).
I Adj., winged : angues, Pac. ap. Cic. Inv. 1, 19; cf. Mos. Cic. Rep. 3, 9: ales avis, Cic. N. D. 2, 44 (as transl. of the Gr. αἰόλος ὄρνις, Arat. Phaen. 275): equus, i. e. Pegasus , Ov. Am. 3, 12, 24: deus, Mercury , id. M. 2, 714; so also Stat. Th. 4, 605: currus, Sen. Med. 1024: fama, Claud. I. Cons. Stil. 2, 408.—And with a trope common in all languages, quick , fleet , rapid , swift : rutili tris ignis et alitis Austri, Verg. A. 8, 430: passus, Ov. M. 10, 587: harundo, the swift arrow , Prud. Psych. 323.—
II Subst. com. gen. , a fowl , a bird (only of large birds, while volucris includes also insects that fly).
A Com. gen. : pennis delata, Lucr. 6, 822: exterrita pennis, id. 5, 506: argentea, i. e. the raven before its metamorphosis , Ov. M. 2, 536: superba, the peacock , Mart. 14, 67; 9, 56: longaeva, the phoenix , Claud. 35, 83: famelica, the pigeon-hawk , Plin. 10, 10, 12, § 28.—On the contr., masc. : Phoebeïus, the raven , Ov. M. 2, 544: albus, the swan , Hor. C. 2, 20, 10: cristatus, the cock , Ov. F. 1, 455 al. —
B Fem. , as referring to a female bird: Daulias ales = philomela, Ov. H. 15, 154: exterrita = columba, Verg. A. 5, 505. But ales, i.e. aquila, as the bird of Jove, is sometimes masc. : fulvus Jovis ales, the eagle , id. ib. 12, 247; called also: minister fulminis, Hor. C. 4, 4, 1: flammiger, Stat. Th. 8, 675. —Also fem. : aetheriā lapsa plagā Jovis ales, Verg. A. 1, 394: regia ales, Ov. M. 4, 362: ales digna Jove, Manil. 1, 443.—
C For a deity as winged , masc. : Cyllenius ales, i.e. Mercury , Claud. 33, 77; or even for men: aureus ales, Perseus , Stat. Th. 1, 544.—
D Ales canorus, a swan , for a poet , Hor. C. 2, 20, 15. —Also absol. ales: Maeonii carminis ales, of the singer of a Maeonian (Homeric) song, Hor. C. 1, 6, 2 Jahn. (In Ov. M. 5, 298, if ales erant is read, ales is collect.; cf. Schneid. Gr. 2, 240; but the sing. seems to be more in accordance with the preceding hominem putat locutum, she supposing that she heard a man, but it was a bird, and Merkel here reads Ales erat. ）—
E In the lang. of augury, alites are birds that gave omens by their flight , as the buteo, sanqualis, aquila, etc. (but oscines, by their voice, as the corvus, cornix, and noctua), Fest. p. 193 (cf. id. p. 3); Cic. N. D. 2, 64, 160: tum huc, tum illuc volent alites: tum a dextrā, tum a sinistrā parte canant oscines, id. Div. 1, 53, 120; cf. Manut. ad Cic. Fam. 6, 6, p. 394; Plin. 10, 19, 22, § 43; Arn. adv. G. 7, 59.—Hence, poet.: ales, augury , omen , sign : cum bonā nubit alite, Cat. 61, 20: malā soluta navis exit alite, Hor. Epod. 10, 1: secundā alite, id. ib. 16, 23.