mĭser, ĕra, ĕrum, adj. [prob. Sanscr. root mi-; cf. minuo; akin to Gr. μῖσος; Lat. maestus, maereo],
I wretched, unfortunate, miserable, pitiable, lamentable , etc. (cf.: infelix, calamitosus).
1 Of persons: nihil est tam miserabile, quam ex beato miser, Cic. Part. Or. 17, 57: homo miser, et infortunatus, Plaut. Bacch. 5, 1, 20: miser atque infelix, Cic. Quint. 30, 94: urgeris multis miser undique curis, Lucr. 3, 1051: o multo miserior Dolabella, quam ille, quem tu miserrimum esse voluisti, Cic. Phil. 11, 4, 8: miser, infelix, aerumnosus, id. Par. 2, 1, 16: miserrimum habere aliquem, to torment , id. Fam. 14, 7, 1: miserrimus Fui fugitando, have exhausted myself with running, am completely tired out , Ter. Eun. 846.—With gen.: miseros ambitionis, Plin. Pan. 58, 5.—
2 Of things, afflicting, sad, wretched, melancholy : miserā ambitione laborare, Hor. S. 1, 4, 26: misera orbitas, Cic. Fin. 5, 28, 84: misera et calamitosa res, id. Rosc. Am. 28, 77.—
3 Sick, ill, indisposed , etc.: quo morbo misera sum, suffer , Plaut. Truc. 2, 6, 39: homini misero non invideo medicinam, Petr. 129; cf.: quid illam miseram animi excrucias? Plaut. Mil. 4, 2, 76: homo animo suo miser, id. Truc. 2, 7, 36: miserum esse ex animo, to be wretched in mind, sick at heart , id. Ep. 4, 1, 1.—
4 Violent, excessive, extravagant : amor, Verg. A. 5, 655: cultus miser, with regard to dress , Hor. S. 2, 2, 66.—
5 Bad, vile, poor, worthless : carmen, Verg. E. 3, 27: remedium, Cels. 5, 26, 34.—With gen.: morum, Stat. Th. 4, 403: hominem perditum miserumque, Ter. Eun. 418.—
6 As an exclamation, inserted in the midst of a sentence: ossa atque pellis sum, misera, macritudine, Plaut. Capt. 1, 2, 32: miserum! (parenthetically) i. e. what a misfortune! how sad! tum pendere poenas Cecropidae jussi (miserum!) septena quotannis Corpora, Verg. A. 6, 21.—As subst.: mĭsĕrum , i, n., a wretched thing, wretchedness : bonum valetudo, miserum morbus, Cic. Fin. 5, 28, 84 MSS. dub. (Madv. and B. and K. miser).—Hence, adv., in two forms.
1 mĭsĕrē , wretchedly, miserably; desperately, vehemently, excessively, urgently (class.): est misere scriptum, Pseudole! Ps. O miserrime, Plaut. Ps. 1, 1, 72: vivere, Cic. Fin. 3, 15, 501: misere amare, Plaut. Mil. 4, 6, 32: deperire, id. Cist. 1, 2, 12: invidere, Ter. Eun. 412: orare aliquid, id. Heaut. 365: discedere quaerens, Hor. S. 1, 9, 8; cf.: misere cupis abire, id. ib. 1, 9, 14: ut miserius a vobis recipiatur quam ab illo capta est, Liv. 34, 24, 2: misere miser, Plaut. Cist. 4, 2, 21: misere male, id. Bacch. 4, 9, 10.—
2 mĭsĕrĭter , wretchedly, lamentably, sadly (ante-class.; poet.): corrumpi, Laber. ap. Non. 517, 2: alloqui, Cat. 63, 49; Enn. ap. Prisc. p. 1010 P. (Vahl. Enn. p. 180, n. 40).