con-verto (-vorto), ti, sum, 3, v. a. and n.
I Act., to turn or whirl round, to wheel about, to cause to turn, to turn back, reverse; and with the designation of the terminus in quem, to turn or direct somewhere, to direct to or towards, to move or turn to , etc. (very freq. in all perr. and species of composition).
A Lit.
1 In gen.
a With a simple acc.: caelos omnes, Lucr. 2, 1097; cf.: in infimo orbe luna convertitur, Cic. Rep. 6, 17, 17; id. Ac. 2, 39, 123; cf.: minore sonitu quam putaram, orbis hic in re publicā est conversus, id. Att. 2, 9, 1: manum, Quint. 11, 3, 100: reddita inclusarum ex speluncā boum vox Herculem convertit, Liv. 1, 7, 7: ter se convertit, Ov. M. 7, 189: crines calamistro, i. e. to curl , Petr. 102, 15 et saep.—
b With the designation of the terminus in quem.
α By in : equos frenis in hostes, Lucr. 5, 1317: naves in eam partem, Caes. B. G. 3, 15: ferrum in me, Verg. A. 9, 427: omnium ora atque oculos in aliquem, Cic. Cat. 4, 1, 1 (cf. under B. 1.): iter in provinciam, Caes. B. G. 7, 56: se in Phrygiam, Nep. Ages. 3, 2 et saep.—Medial: in fugam nemo convortitur, Plaut. Am. 1, 1, 83 Fleck.—
β By ad : ad hunc se confestim a Pulfione omnis multitudo convertit, Caes. B. G. 5, 44, 10: eam materiam ad hostem, id. ib. 3, 29: colla ad freta, Ov. M. 15, 516: tum bis ad occasum, bis se convertit ad ortum, id. ib. 14, 386: nos ad judicem, Quint. 11, 3, 157 et saep.—*
γ By contra : tigna contra vim atque impetum fluminis, Caes. B. G. 4, 17, 5.—
δ By sub : cursum sub terras, Lucr. 5, 654.—
ε By the dat.: majus lumen in diem nobis luna, Lucr. 5, 706.—Medial: Zephyro convertitur ales Itque super Libyen, Luc. 9, 689.—
ζ By local adv.: aspectum facile quo vellent, Cic. N. D. 2, 57, 142.—
η By the acc. alone: se domum, Ter. Ad. 286.—
2 In partic.
a Milit. t. t.: convertere signa, aciem, etc., to wheel about, change the direction of a march : conversa signa in hostes inferre, Caes. B. G. 2, 26: Romani conversa signa bipartito intulerunt, id. ib. 1, 25: reliquos sese convertere cogunt, to retreat , id. B. C. 1, 46: cum conversis signis retro in urbem rediretur, Liv. 8, 11, 4; cf.: convertunt inde signa, id. 3, 54, 10 Drak. ad loc. (where Weissenb. ex conj., convellunt): aciem, id. 42, 57, 12; so, aciem in fugam, Caes. B. G. 1, 52. —
b Rhet. t. t., of words, to transpose, interchange : non modo mutare quaedam verba, sed extendere, corripere, convertere, dividere cogitur (poësis), Quint. 10, 1, 29.—
B Trop.
1 In gen.: ut ab eo quod agitur avertat animos, ut saepe in hilaritatem risumve convertat, Cic. Or. 40, 138; so, risum in judicem, id. de Or. 2, 60, 245: omnem orationem transduxi et converti in increpandam Caepionis fugam, id. ib. 2, 48, 199: rationem in fraudem malitiamque, to employ , id. N. D. 3, 31, 78; cf. id. Rosc. Am. 39, 114 and 115: beneficium in injuriam, Sen. Ben. 2, 13, 1 et saep.: animos imperitorum ad deorum cultum a vitae pravitate, Cic. N. D. 1, 27, 77; cf. Liv. 24, 4, 4 and 9: qui eas copias, quas diu simulatione rei publicae comparabant, subito ad patriae periculum converterunt, Brut. ap. Cic. Fam. 11, 13, a, 5 fin. : facultatem dicendi ad hominum perniciem, Quint. 2, 20, 2 et saep.: ingenium et studium ad causas agendas, Tac. Or. 14 et saep.: se aliquando ad timorem, numquam ad sanitatem, Cic. Sull. 5, 17; id. Fam. 3, 10, 10: se ad philosophos, id. Fin. 5, 3, 7; cf. id. Q. Fr. 3, 5, 5 et saep.: quocumque te animo et cogitatione converteris, Cic. de Or. 1, 2, 6: aculeum testimonii sui, id. Fl. 34, 86: argumentum, Gell. 5, 10, 3.—Of turning to the political support of any one: tota civitas se ad eos convertisse videretur, Nep. Att. 8, 1; cf. Cic. Rep. 6, 12, 12; Sen. Clem. 1, 4, 3; cf.: fama hujus rei convertit ad Masinissam Numidas, Liv. 29, 30, 7.— Pass . in mid. sense: cuncta ad victoris opes conversa, Tac. H. 3, 44.—In eccl. Lat., to convert to Christianity, etc.: aliquem ad fidem Christi, Hier. in Philem. 5, 10 sq.—Esp. freq. of turning or arresting the attention: illud intellego, omnium ora in me convorsa esse, Sall. J. 85, 5: converterat Cn. Pompeii persona totum in se terrarum orbem, Vell. 2, 31, 1: proximas (provincias) in se, Suet. Vesp. 4 al.: nihil opus est, ad continendas custodias plures commilitones converti, Traj. ap. Plin. Ep. 10, 20 (31), 1: omnium oculos ad se, Nep. Alcib. 3, 5.—And with inanimate things as subjects: cum aliqua iis ampla et honesta res objecta totos ad se convertit et rapit, Cic. Off. 2, 10, 37.—Since the Aug. per. also freq. with a simple acc.: sive elephas albus volgi converteret ora, Hor. Ep. 2, 1, 196; Suet. Calig. 35; cf. Liv. 26, 29, 2: animos, id. 29, 26, 5: homines quaqua iret, Suet. Tit. 5.—
2 Pregn., to change the nature of a thing; i. e. to change, alter, transform, turn .
α With a simple acc.: omnes Res ita convortant formas mutentque colores, Lucr. 2, 1005; cf. id. 1, 678: omnia, id. 4, 441: tellus induit ignotas hominum conversa figuras, Ov. M. 1, 88: humanam vicem (venena), Hor. Epod. 5, 88: rem, Cic. Att. 8, 13, 2: rem publicam, to bring into disorder , id. Fl. 38, 94: hunc ordinem, Quint. 7, 2, 15: animum avaritiā, Sall. J. 29, 1: vitae viam, Hor. Ep. 1, 17, 26: studia, id. A. P. 166 et saep.: conversi animum vultumque, Tac. H. 1, 85: castra castris, to change camp with camp (i. e. to establish new camps by constantly removing), Caes. B. C. 1, 81.— In gram.: casus conversi, = casus obliqui, the cases which undergo a change of form , Cic. N. D. 2, 25, 64.—
β With ad : nisi si id putas, non posse jam ad salutem convorti hoc malum, Ter. And. 672: poena omnis oculorum ad caecitatem mentis est conversa, Cic. Dom. 40, 105: mater magna, cujus ludi violati, polluti, paene ad caedem et ad funus civitatis conversi sunt, id. Har. Resp. 11, 24: quod ad perniciem suam fuerat cogitatum, id ad salutem convertit, Nep. Dat. 6, 8.—
γ With in : si antequam tumor discutiatur in suppurationem convertitur, Col. 6, 17, 6: jam ego me convortam in hirudinem, Plaut. Ep. 2, 2, 4: deum sese in hominem, Ter. Eun. 588: Hecubam in canem, Cic. Tusc. 3, 26, 63: terras in freti formam, Ov. M. 11, 209: deum (sc. Jovem) in pretium (i. e. aurum), Hor. C. 3, 16, 8: vim morbi in quartanam, Cic. Fam. 16, 11, 1 et saep.: crimen in laudem, id. Fl. 29, 70: amicitiae se in graves inimicitias, id. Lael. 21, 78; Quint. 12, 1, 2 et saep.—
b Of written works, to translate : converti ex Atticis duorum eloquentissimorum nobilissimas orationes ... nec converti ut interpres, sed ut orator, etc., Cic. Opt. Gen. 5, 14: orationes e Graeco, id. ib. 6, 18: aliqua de Graecis, id. Fin. 1, 2, 6: librum in Latinum, id. Off. 2, 24, 87; id. Tusc. 3, 14, 29; cf. id. Fin. 1, 2, 5; id. N. D. 2, 41, 104.—
II Neutr., to return (rare).
A Lit.: inde (imago) retro rursum redit et convertit eodem, Lucr. 4, 334 (Lachm. conj. convertitur): clam cum paucis ad pedites convortit, Sall. J. 101, 6: in regnum suum, id. ib. 20, 4: convortit Varro, Sil. 9, 645: ad me, Gell. 1, 26, 3.—
B Trop.
1 To return, turn : in amicitiam atque in gratiam, Plaut. Stich. 3, 1, 18: ad sapientiora, Tac. A. 3, 55.—
2 To change, turn : hoc vitium huic uni in bonum convertebat, Cic. Brut. 38, 141; id. de Or. 3, 29, 114; id. Fat. 7, 14; cf. id. ib. 9, 17: regium imperium in superbiam dominationemque, Sall. C. 6, 7 Kritz: ne ista vobis mansuetudo et misericordia ... in miseriam convortet, id. ib. 52, 27: ad aliquem, of political support, Cic. Planc. 20, 50; Tac. A. 12, 18.