dē-bello, āvi, ātum, 1, v. n. and a. (not ante-Aug.; esp. freq. in Livy).
I Neutr., to bring a war to an end, to finish a war . So rare in the act. form: Aulius cum Ferentanis uno secundo proelio debellavit, Liv. 9, 16; cf. id. Epit. 33; id. 44, 39 fin. ; 35, 35. But exceedingly common as an impersonal: debellari eo die cum Samnitibus potuisse, Liv. 8, 36; cf. id. 4, 58: ne absente se debellaretur, id. 41, 18: proelioque uno debellatum est, id. 2, 26; 31, 48 fin. Drak.; cf. id. 7, 28: debellatum est (erat, etc.), id. 2, 31; 3, 70; 9, 4 al.: debellatum foret, id. 23, 13; Tac. Agr. 26; id. H. 3, 19; Flor. 3, 5, 11 al.: debellatum iri, Liv. 29, 14; and in the part. perf. absol. debellato, after the war is ended (freq. in Livy): eum quasi debellato triumphare, Liv. 26, 21; so id. 29, 32; 30, 8 al.—
II Act. (poet. and postAug.). *
A With a homogeneous object, to fight out : rixa super mero debellata, Hor. Od. 1, 18, 8.—
B With heterog. object, to conquer completely, to vanquish, subdue : parcere subjectis et debellare superbos, Verg. A. 6, 853; gentem, id. ib. 5, 731: hostem clamore, Tac. Agr. 34: Darium, Plin. 6, 13, 16, § 41: Gallias, Suet. Ner. 43: Illyricum, id. Tib. 17: Indiam, * Ov. M. 4, 605; Vulg. Isa. 7, 1; 63, 10.—
2 Trop.: olim fugissemus ex Asia, si nos fabulae debellare potuissent, Curt. 9, 2, 15: debellat eos (fungos) et aceti natura, Plin. 22, 23, 47, § 99.