brĕvis, e, adj. (abl. breve, Varr. R. R. 2, 3, 2; comp. abl. breviore, Ov. Am. 2, 17, 22) [cf. βραχύς, Fest. p. 26], short, little, of small extent, in space and time (opp. longus; in space, in good class. prose, diff. from parvus, which designates that which fills a small space in length, breadth, and thickness; while brevis is used only of length in its different directions of breadth, height, or depth; and even of a circle, as merely a line, and without reference to the space enclosed, v. infra. In poets and postAug. prose brevis sometimes = parvus).
I Lit., in space.
A In distance, extent, short , little , small , narrow (opp. latus), Cic. Ac. 2 ( Luc. ), 29, 92: brevior via, Nep. Eum. 8, 5; Tib. 1, 10, 4: via brevis, Verg. E. 9, 23; Ov. M. 5, 253; Juv. 14, 223: cursus brevissimus, Verg. A. 3, 507: brevius iter, Ov. P. 1, 4, 32: cursu brevissimus Almo, id. M. 14, 329: quid mihi, quod lato non separor aequore, prodest? Num minus haec nobis tam brevis obstat aqua? so narrow a stream , id. H. 18, 174; cf. also brevis unda, opp. latum mare, id. ib. 19, 141 and 142: non Asiam brevioris aquae disterminat usquam fluctus ab Europā, Luc. 9, 957 (strictioris, Schol.); cf. id. 9, 317: brevissima terra, Plin. Ep. 10, 69, 2: in Euboico scopulus brevis emicat altō Gurgite, a small , narrow rock , Ov. M. 9, 226: brevibus Gyaris, Juv. 1, 73: scis In breve te cogi (sc. libellum), that you are closely rolled together , Hor. Ep. 1, 20, 8: quo brevius valent, the nearer , the more powerful are they in conflict , Tac. A. 6, 35.—
2 Trop. of the journey of life: quid est, quod in hoc tam exiguo vitae curriculo et tam brevi tantis nos in laboribus exerceamus? Cic. Arch. 11, 28; cf.: vitae brevis cursus, gloriae sempiternus, id. Sest. 21, 47: tum brevior dirae mortis aperta via est, Tib. 1, 10, 4.—And poet. of the thread of life: fila vitae breviora, Ov. Tr. 5, 10, 46. —
B In height, short , small , low (opp. altus and sometimes longus); of the human figure: sed sedebat judex L. Aurifex, brevior ipse quam testis, Cic. de Or. 2, 60, 245: ut statura breves in digitos eriguntur, Quint. 2, 3, 8: forma, Ov. M. 5, 457: (puella) longa brevisque, id. Am. 2, 4, 36: brevis corpore, Suet. Galb. 3; id. Vit. Hor.—Of a maiden changed to a boy: et incomptis brevior mensura capillis, Ov. M. 9, 789.— Of other things: ut pleraque Alpium ab Italiā sicut breviora, ita arrectiora sunt, lower , Liv. 21, 35, 11: brevior ilex, Sen. Herc. Oet. 1641: mus, little , Ov. F. 2, 574. —
C In depth, small , little , shallow (opp. profundus): puteus, Juv. 3, 226: vada, Verg. A. 5, 221; Sen. Agam. 570.—Hence, subst.: brĕvia , ium, n., as in Gr. τὰ βραχέα, shallow places , shallows , shoals : tris Eurus ab alto In brevia et syrtis urget, Verg. A. 1, 111 (brevia vadosa dicit, per quae vadi pedibus potest, Serv.); Luc. 9, 338: neque discerni poterant incerta ab solidis, brevia a profundis, Tac. A. 1, 70: brevia litorum, id. ib. 6, 33 fin. —Perh. also in sing.: breve, Tac. A. 14, 29 Draeg. ad loc. (Ritter, brevia; al. breve litus).—
2 Trop.: brevia, in quibus volutatur, incerta, ancipitia, difficulties , Sen. Ep. 22, 7.—
D Of the line of a circle: ubi circulus (i.e. arcticus) axem Ultimus extremum spatioque brevissimus ambit, makes the shortest path , Ov. M. 2, 517; cf. of similar orbits, of stars: absides breviores, Plin. 2, 15, 13, § 63.—Of the circular course of a horse on the track: discit gyro breviore flecti, Sen. Hippol. 314. —
II Transf., of time.
A Lit. (the usu. signif. of the word), short , brief , small , little.
1 In gen.: quanto, nox, fuisti longior hac proxumā, Tanto brevior dies ut fiat faciam, Plaut. Am. 1, 3, 51: breve spatium'st perferundi quae minitas mihi, id. Capt. 3, 5, 85: brevis hora, Lucr. 4, 179; so Ov. M. 4, 696: Pa. Brevin' an longinquo sermone? Mi. Tribus verbis, Plaut. Mil. 4, 2, 30: occasio, Ter. Eun. 605; Phaedr. 5, 8, 5: brevis hic est fructus homulleis, short is this enjoyment for little men , Lucr. 3, 927; cf.: MORS. PERFECIT. TVA. VT. TIBE. ESSENT. OMNIA. BREVIA. HONOS. FAMA. VIRTVSQVE. GLORIA. ATQVE. INGENIVM., Inscr. Orell. 558: omnia brevia tolerabilia esse debent, Cic. Lael. 27, 104; id. Fin. 1, 12, 40; 2, 29, 94; id. Tusc. 1, 39, 94; Sen. Ira, 3, 43, 5: quoniam vita brevis est, memoriam nostri quam maxime longam efficere, Sall. C. 1, 3; so, vitae summa brevis spem nos vetat incohare longam, Hor. C. 1, 4, 15; cf. id. ib. 1, 11, 6: aut omnia breviora aliquanto fuere, aut Saguntum principio anni captum, occupied a shorter time , Liv. 21, 15, 5: brevissimum tempus, id. 5, 6, 7: detrimentum, Quint. 11, 1, 10: arbitrium mortis, Tac. A. 15, 60: breves populi Romani amores, id. ib. 2, 41: tempus, Suet. Ner. 20 al.: nobis quom semel occidit brevis lux, nox est perpetua una dormienda, Cat. 5, 5: fructus, Lucr. 3, 914: aevum, Hor. C. 2, 16, 17; id. S. 2, 6, 97; id. Ep. 2, 1, 144; Plin. Pan. 78, 2: anni, Hor. C. 4, 13, 22: ver, Ov. M. 1, 118; 10, 85: flores rosae, quickly withering , short-lived , Hor. C. 2, 3, 13: lilium, id. ib. 1, 36, 16: cena, frugal , id. Ep. 1, 14, 35: mensa, id. A. P. 198: dominus, living but a short time , id. C. 2, 14, 24: stultitia, id. ib. 4, 12, 27: ira furor brevis est, id. Ep. 1, 2, 62: actio brevis atque concisa, Quint. 6, 4, 2: somnus, Sen. Troad. 441: nec gratius quicquam decore nec brevius, nothing is more acceptable , but nothing more perishable , fading , than beauty , Suet. Dom. 18: domus, Sen. Hippol. 762: fortuna, Sil. 4, 734.—
2 Esp.
a Comp. brevius, with subj. clause , shorter , i.e. easier , more convenient : brevius visum urbana crimina incipi, quorum obvii testes erant, Tac. A. 13, 43: modo ne existimes brevius esse ab urbe mitti, Trag. ap. Plin. Ep. 10, 40 (49), 3.—
b In brevi spatio, brevi spatio, in brevi tempore, brevi tempore, and absol. brevi or in brevi, in a short time , shortly (before or after) (brevi tempore and brevi are class.; the latter, as in Gr. ἐν βραχεῖ, to be considered as neuter, without supplying tempore): inque brevi spatio mutantur saecla animantum, Lucr. 2, 77; so Ter. Heaut. 955; Suet. Claud. 12; id. Ner. 30; cf.: in multo breviore temporis spatio, id. Aug. 22: multa brevi spatio simulacra geruntur, Lucr. 4, 160; Sall. J. 87, 3: spatio brevi, Hor. C. 1, 11, 6: res publica per vos brevi tempore jus suum recuperabit, Cic. Fam. 12, 2, 3; 5, 21, 2; id. Tusc. 2, 2, 5; Caes. B. G. 1, 40, 11; Nep. Milt. 2, 1; id. Them. 1, 4; Suet. Caes. 3: sic ille affectus, brevi postea est mortuus, soon after , Cic. Verr. 2, 5, 54, § 142 (Zumpt; acc. to MSS. perbrevi).—So brevi post = paulo post: brevi post Marcellus Romam venit, Liv. 33, 37, 9; 24, 3, 14: brevi deinde, id. 24, 4, 9: (Britanni) tantum usu cotidiano et exercitatione efficiunt, uti in declivi ac praecipiti loco incitatos equos sustinere et brevi ( in a short time , i.e. with great rapidity ) moderari ac flectere consuerint, Caes. B. G. 4, 33 fin. Herz. and Held.: fama tanti facinoris per omnem Africam brevi divolgatur, Sall. J. 13, 1; Nep. Them. 4, 4: mirantur tam brevi rem Romanam crevisse, Liv. 1, 9, 9: brevi omnia subegit, Suet. Caes. 34; so id. Aug. 17; 65; id. Vesp. 5; id. Gram. 3; Gell. 1, 15, 18: scire in brevi, Afran. ap. Charis. p. 186 P.; Flor. 1, 1, 15.—
c Brevi, a short time , a little while : cunctatusque brevi, contortam viribus hastam in Persea misit, Ov. M. 5, 32; cf.: illa brevi spatio silet, id. ib. 7, 307; so, * breve, Cat. 61, 187.—
d Ad breve, for a short time , Suet. Tib. 68; cf.: ad breve quoddam tempus, Cic. Cat. 1, 13, 31.—
B Transf. to things done or taking place in a short time; so most freq.
1 Of discourse, short , brief , concise (most freq. in Cic. and Quint.): narratio, Cic. Inv. 1, 20, 28; id. de Or. 3, 50, 196: laudatio; comprehensio et ambitus ille verborum erat apud illum contractus et brevis, id. Brut. 44, 162; cf. id. de Or. 2, 80, 326: nunc venio ad illa tua brevia: et primum illud, quo nihil potest esse brevius: bonum omne laudabile, etc., id. Fin. 4, 18, 48: quam falsa re! quam brevia responsu! id. Clu. 59, 164: urbanitas est virtus quaedam in breve dictum coacta, Dom. Mars. ap. Quint. 6, 3, 104: Homerus brevem eloquentiam Menelao dedit, Quint. 12, 10, 64 (brevis = οὐ πολύμυθος, Hom. Il. 3, 214): breviores commentarii, Quint. 3, 8, 58: annotatio, id. 10, 7, 31: brevia illa atque concisa, id. 10, 7, 10; so, sententiae, id. 10, 1, 60: causae, id. 6, 1, 8: docendi compendia, id. 1, 1, 24: comprehensiones, id. 12, 2, 19: quod ut brevissimo pateat exemplo, id. 3, 6, 10: commendatio, requiring few words , i.e. moderate , Plin. 11, 42, 97, § 240.— Meton. of a speaker or orator, brief : multos imitatio brevitatis decipit, ut cum se breves putent esse, longissimi sint, Cic. Inv. 1, 20, 38: brevior in scribendo, id. Att. 5, 6, 2: brevis esse laboro, Obscurus fio, Hor. A. P. 25: in eloquendo brevis, Quint. 10, 1, 63: densus et brevis et semper instans sibi Thucydides, id. 10, 1, 73.
XVIII —Hence, brĕvī , adv., briefly , in few words (freq. and class.): brevi pro breviter M. Tullius de Orat. ad Quintum fratrem (1, 8, 34): ac ne plura quidem quae sunt innumerabilia consecter, comprehendam brevi, Charis. p. 176 P.: id percurram brevi, Cic. Caecin. 32, 94: aliquid explicare, id. Planc. 40, 95 Wund.: circumscribere et definire, id. Sest. 45, 97; so id. ib. 5, 12 Orell. N. cr.; id. Fin. 1, 17, 55: complecti, id. de Or. 1, 42, 190: exponere, id. ib. 1, 46, 203: reprehendere, id. Inv. 1, 9, 12: reddere, id. Leg. 2, 14, 34: respondere, id. Fam. 3, 8, 1: perscribere, id. ib. 4, 5, 1; so Auct. Her. 4, 26, 35; 35, 47 al.; cf.: in brevi, Quint. 9, 4, 32.—So once in epistolary style: breve facere, to be short or brief : quid scribam? breve faciam, Cic. Att. 11, 7, 6; cf.: longum est ea dicere, sed hoc breve dicam, id. Sest. 5, 12.—Once, in breve cogere (diff. from I. A.), to comprise in few words , bring into a small compass : in breve coactae causae, Liv. 39, 47, 5; cf.: in breve coactio causae, Gai. Inst. 4, 15.— In late Lat. subst.: brĕvis , is, m. (sc. liber—acc. to another reading, brĕve , is, n.), a short catalogue , summary , = breviarium: brevis nominum, Vop. Aur. 36; so id. Bonos. 15; Lampr. Alex. Sev. 21; Hier. Ep. 5, n. 2 al.—
2 Of a short syllable; rarely as adj.: Syllaba longa brevi subjecta vocatur iambus, Hor. A. P. 251: a brevis, gre brevis, faciet tamen longam priorem, Quint. 9, 4, 86 et saep.—More freq. subst.: brĕvis , is, f. (sc. syllaba): dactylus, qui est e longā et duabus brevibus, Cic. Or. 64, 217 sq.: in fine pro longā accipi brevem, Quint. 9, 4, 93; 9, 4, 86: plurimum habent celeritatis breves, id. 9, 4, 91.— Hence also once of a syllable long by position, but pronounced short: indoctus dicimus brevi primā litterā, insanus productā: inhumanus brevi, infelix longā, Cic. Or. 48, 159 Meyer N. cr.; cf. Gell. 2, 17 sqq., and Schütz Lex. Cic. s. v. brevis.—
C For parvus, exiguus, little , small : exigua pars brevisque, Lucr. 5, 591: Canidia brevibus implicata viperis, Hor. Epod. 5, 15: Alecto brevibus torquata colubris, Ov. H. 2, 119: brevi latere ac pede longo est, Hor. S. 1, 2, 93; cf. just before: breve quod caput, ardua cervix, v. 89, and brevis alvus, Verg. G. 3, 80 (on the other hand, Nemes. 244: parvae alvi): mus, Ov. F. 2, 574: forma (sc. pueri in stellionem mutati), id. M. 5, 457.— So, lapathi herba, Hor. S. 2, 4, 29 (brevis = parva, non excrescens in altum, Schol. Cruqu.): folia breviora, id. Ep. 1, 19, 26 (minor corona, Schol. Cruqu.): census, id. C. 2, 15, 13: pondus, id. S. 2, 2, 37: impensa, Ov. H. 7, 188 Ruhnk.: sigillum, id. M. 6, 86: insulae, Pall. 1, 28, 1; cf. Juv. 1, 73: vasculum, Pall. Apr. 8, 4: offulae, id. 1, 29, 4: pantheris in candido breves macularum oculi, Plin. 8, 17, 23, § 62.—With nom. abstr. : breve in exiguo marmore nomen ero, Prop. 2, 1, 72; Sen. Oedip. 935.—So, pondus, Hor. S. 2, 2, 37 al.
XXI —Hence, brĕ-vĭter , adv., shortly , briefly , etc.
1 Of space (acc. to I.) (rare): seu libeat, curvo brevius convertere gyro, shorter , i. e. in a smaller circle , Tib. 4, 1, 94: parvo brevius quam totus, a little less than the whole , Plin. 2, 67, 67, § 168: Sarmatae, omisso arcu, quo brevius valent, contis gladiisque ruerent, Tac. A. 6, 35.—Far more freq. in prose and poetry,
2 (Acc. to II. A. b. and c.) Of time, in a short time.
a In gen.: iratum breviter vites, inimicum diu, Publ. Syr. v. 249 Rib.: sapiens, cum breviter et strictim colore atque vultu motus est, Gell. 19, 1, 20.—
b Esp.
α In expression, briefly , in brief , in few words , concisely , summarily : sed breviter paucis praestat comprendere multa, Lucr. 6, 1082: multa breviter et commode dicta (sc. ἀποφθέγματα; cf. Cic. Off. 1, 29, 104) memoriae mandabam, Cic. Lael. 1, 1: rem totam breviter cognoscite, id. Verr. 2, 2, 69, § 169; 2, 3, 27, § 67; so id. de Or. 2, 83, 340: summatim breviterque describere, id. Or. 15, 50: breviter tangere, id. Off. 3, 2, 8 Beier N. cr. : breviter et modice disserere, Sall. J. 111, 1: adicere aliquid, Quint. 9, 3, 100; cf. also Verg. A. 2, 11; 4, 632; 6, 321; Ov. M. 2, 783: omnia soli Forsan Pacuvio breviter dabit (i.e. paucis testamenti verbis, quibus heres ex asse scribetur), Juv. 12, 125 Web. (cf. id. 1, 68: beatum exiguis tabulis).— Comp. , Cic. Fin. 4, 10, 26; Quint. 8, prooem. § 1; 8, 6, 61; 9, 2, 16; 10, 1, 49; 11, 1, 5 al.— Sup. , Cic. N. D. 2, 1, 3; id. Div. 1, 32, 70; Quint. 1, 10, 1; 4, 2, 113 al.—
β Of syllables: quibus in verbis eae primae litterae sunt quae in sapiente atque felice, producte dicitur, in ceteris omnibus breviter, Cic. Or. 48, 159.