cōnor, ātus, 1,
I v. dep., to undertake, endeavor, attempt, try, venture, presume , etc. (freq. and class.; syn. molior, Ter. Heaut. 240; opp. facere, Cic. Rosc. Am. 19, 54; opp. perficere, id. Or. 30, 105); constr. with acc., inf. , rarely with abl. of the gerund., or absol.
α With acc. (mostly of indef. objects): quicquam fallaciae, Ter. And. 197: istuc, id. ib. 270: idem, Caes. B. G. 1, 3: opus magnum et arduum, Cic. Or. 10, 33: id quod conantur, id. Cat. 2, 9, 19: multa, id. Or. 30, 105; id. Fin. 1, 16, 82: tantum scelus, id. Fragm. ap. Quint. 5, 13, 30; cf.: tantam rem, Liv. 42, 59, 8: muita stulte, Nep. Hann. 8, 3; Quint. 2, 4, 10: plurima frustra, Verg. A. 9, 398.—
β With inf. (freq.): hoc dicere, Cic. Quint. 20, 62: aliquid facere, id. Rosc. Am. 19, 54: me labefactare, id. Div. in Caecil. 14, 44: poëtas attingere, id. de Or. 2, 14, 61: versus pangere, Lucr. 1, 26: pueris absinthia dare, id. 1, 936; 4, 12 al.: facere id quod constituerant, Caes. B. G. 1, 5: invito transire, id. ib. 1, 8: tela mittere, Cat. 116, 3; Hor. C. 1, 6, 9; id. Ep. 1, 1, 19.—*
γ With abl. gerundii: ne frustra dehortando impedire conemini, that you attempt not vainly to dissuade , Nep. Att. 21, 6.—
δ With si : saepius noctu, si perrumpere possent, conati, Caes. B. G. 1, 8, 4. —
ε Absol. : dum moliuntur (mulieres), dum conantur, annus est, Ter. Heaut. 240: conari manibus pedibus noctisque et dies, id. And. 676: conantibus, priusquam id effici posset, adesse Romanos nuntiatur, Caes. B. G. 6, 4: qui prius cogitare quam conari consuesset, before he proceeded to the undertaking , Nep. Dat. 7, 1: ego obviam conabar tibi, Ter. Phorm. 52: audax ad conandum, Liv. 45, 23, 15.—
b Hence, subst.: cōnāta , ōrum, n., in pass . signif., an undertaking, attempt, venture, hazard (class.), Att. ap. Non. p. 202, 14; Plaut. Merc. 1, 1, 39; Lucr. 5, 386; Caes. B. G. 1, 3; Nep. Dion, 8, 5; Liv. 21, 50, 9; 42, 11, 3; Quint. 8, 3, 69; Suet. Galb. 17; Ov. M. 10, 420; 14, 755 sq.; Juv. 13, 210; Vell. 2, 35, 5 et saep.