mĕtŭo, ŭi, ūtum (cf.: nimis ante metutum, Lucr. 5, 1140), 3, v. a. and n. [metus], to fear, be afraid of a person or thing; to hesitate, not to venture, not to wish (syn.: vereor, formido, timeo); with inf., with ne, to fear lest; with ui or ne non, to fear that not; also of inanimate things, with acc., to fear, revere, reverence one; as a v. n., to fear, be afraid, be in fear, be apprehensive, esp. as the effect of the idea of threatening evil (whereas timere usually denotes the effect of some external cause of terror); to dread, apprehend; with an indirect interrogation: non metuo quin, for non dubito quin, I doubt not but; to be anxious about any one; with dat. (class.).
I Act. : quem metuont oderunt, Enn. ap. Cic. Off. 2, 7, 23 (Trag. v. 403 Vahl.): deos et amo et metuo, Plaut. Poen. 1, 2, 73: male ego metuo milvos, id. ib. 5, 5, 13: metuebant (senem) servi, verebantur liberi, Cic. Sen. 11, 37: tu, qui crimen ais te metuisse, id. Verr. 2, 5, 30, § 78: nec pol istae metuunt Deos, Ter. Hec. 772: absentem patrem, id. Phorm. 118: nec metuit quemquam, id. Ad. 85.—With ab : quid a nobis metuit? Plaut. Capt. 2, 1, 12: a me insidias, Cic. Fam. 5, 6, 2: supplicia a vobis metuere debent, to fear from you , id. Rosc. Am. 3, 8: a quo (Ajace) sibi non injuriā summum periculum metuebat, Auct. Her. 2, 19, 29: a quo domino sibi metuebat graves cruciatus, Aug. Lib. Arbitr. 1, 4, 9; Gregor. M. Homil. 1, 14, 2; Aug. cont. Acad. 2, 8.—With ex : si periculum ex illis metuit, Sall. C. 52, 16.—With de : de lanificio neminem metuo, una aetate quae sit, i. e. no one's competition in spinning , Plaut. Merc. 3, 1, 22.—Of inanim. subjects: quae res cotidie videntur, minus metuunt furem, Varr. R. R. 1, 22.—
β With inf.: metuont credere omnes, Plaut. Ps. 1, 3, 70: ut tentare spem certaminis metuunt, Liv. 32, 31: nil metuunt jurare, Cat. 64, 146: reddere soldum, not to wish, be averse to , Hor. S. 2, 5, 65: praebere, id. Ep. 1, 18, 1.—Of nonpersonal subjects: illum aget pennā metuente solvi Fama superstes, Hor. C. 2, 2, 7. —
γ With ne : nimis metuebam male, ne abiisses, Plaut. Ps. 4, 1, 8: male metuo ne ... morbus aggravescat, Ter. Hec. 337: fratrem, ne intus sit (Gr. construction), id. Eun. 610.—
δ With ut : ornamenta, quae locavi, metuo, ut possim recipere, Plaut. Curc. 4, 1, 3: metuo ut hodie possim emolirier, id. Bacch. 4, 5, 2: metuo ut substet hospes, Ter. And. 914: ut sis vitalis, Hor. S. 2, 1, 61.—
ε With ne non : metuo ne non sit surda, Plaut. Cas. 3, 3, 12; id. Pers. 4, 6, 4: metuis ne non, quom velis, convincas esse illum tuom? Ter. Heaut. 1017.—
ζ With quin : non metuo meae quin uxori latae suppetiae sient, Plaut. Am. 5, 1, 54.—
η With object-clause, to await with fear, anxiety; to be in apprehension, concerned about : metuo, patres quot fuerint, Plaut. Truc. 4, 3, 35: metui, quid futurum denique esset, I dreaded, awaited with fear , Ter. Heaut. 569: metuo quid agam. Sy. Metuis? quasi non ea potestas sit tua, etc., id. ib. 720: metuo qualem tu me esse hominem existumes, id. Eun. 758.—
θ Pass. with dat.: jam maturis metuendus Juppiter uvis, Verg. G. 2, 419. —
ι Absol. : se e contempto metuendum fecit, Sall. H. 1, 48, 3.—
B (Eccl. Lat.) Of religious fear, to revere, dread, hold in reverence : Deum, Vulg. Lev. 25, 43: Dominum Deum nostrum, id. Jer. 5, 24: sanctuarium meum, id. Lev. 19, 30.—
II Neutr., to fear, be afraid, be apprehensive , etc.
α With de : neque tam de suā vitā, quam de me metuit, fears not so much for his own life as for me , Cic. Att. 10, 4, 6.—
β With ab : metuens ab Hannibale, afraid of Hannibal , Liv. 23, 36.—
γ With pro : metuere pro aliquo, Petr. 123.—
δ With dat., to be anxious about or for a person or thing: metuens pueris, Plaut. Am. 5, 1, 60: inopi metuens formica senectae, Verg. G. 1, 186: tum decuit metuisse tuis, id. A. 10, 94.
XVI —Hence, mĕtŭens , entis, P. a., fearing, afraid of any thing; anxious for any person or thing; with gen. or absol. (mostly poet. and in post-Aug. prose): contentus parvo metuensque futuri, Hor. S. 2, 2, 110: metuens virgae, Juv. 7, 210.— Comp. : quo non metuentius ullum Numinis ingenium, Ov. F. 6, 259: Nero metuentior in posterum, Tac. A. 13, 25.