purgo, āvi, ātum, 1, v. a. [contr. for purigo, from purum ago], to make clean or pure, to clean, cleanse, purify (class.).
I Lit.: oleam a foliis et stercore purgato, Cato R. R. 65, 1: cum falcibus purgarunt locum, cleared the place , freed it from bushes , etc., Cic. Tusc. 5, 23, 65; Liv. 24, 19: arva longis ligonibus, Ov. P. 1, 8, 59: domum muribus, Phaedr. 1, 22, 3: fossas, Plin. 18, 26, 64, § 236: proprios leniter ungues cultello, Hor. Ep. 1, 7, 51: cana labra, i. e. to clear or free from beard , Mart. 9, 28, 5: pisces, Ter. Ad. 376: segetes, Plin. 18, 26, 65, § 241.— Absol. : levi sarculo purgare, Plin. 18, 26, 65, § 241.—Mid.: purgor in amni, wash , Sil. 8, 125.—
2 In partic., in medic. lang., to cleanse by stool , vomiting , etc., to purge : quid scammoneae radix ad purgandum possit, Cic. Div. 1, 10, 16; Cato R. R. 157, 3: si is, qui saepe purgatus est, subito habet alvum suppressam, Cels. 2, 12: qui purgor bilem sub verni temporis horam, Hor. A. P. 302: se helleboro, Val. Max. 8, 7, 5 fin. : se per inferna aut vomitione, Plin. 25, 5, 21, § 51.—
B Transf.
1 To make even by clearing away , to level , Inscr. Murat. 582 fin. ; cf.: purgare viam proprie dicitur ad libramentum proprium redigere, sublato eo quod supra eam esset, Dig. 43, 11, 1, § 1.—
2 To clear away , remove : rudera, Suet. Vesp. 8: vermes clavo aëneo, Pall. 4, 10, 4: lapides, id. 3, 6: sordes, Claud. in Eutr. 1, 383; cf.: scindit se nubes et in aethera purgat apertum, melts away , Verg. A. 1, 587.—
b In partic., in medicine, to remove or expel by purging , rinsing , etc., to heal , cure : purgatum te illius morbi, Hor. S. 2, 3, 27: pituitas, Plin. 20, 17, 73, § 188: fastidium lauri folio, id. 8, 27, 41, § 101: suppurationes, id. 23, 1, 16, § 24: tarditatem aurium, id. 23, 2, 28, § 59: succus purgat cicatrices et nubeculas (oculorum), id. 27, 12, 85, § 109.—
II Trop., to cleanse , purify (syn. lustro).
A In gen.: pectora, Lucr. 6, 24: urbem, Cic. Cat. 1, 5, 10: amplissimos ordines contaminatos veteri neglegentiā purgavit, Suet. Vesp. 9: rationes, to clear up , settle , pay , id. Calig. 29.—
B To clear away , remove : metum doloris, Quint. 12, 2, 3.—
C In partic.
1 To clear from accusation , to excuse , exculpate , justify (syn. excuso): ut me purgarem tibi, Plaut. Am. 3, 2, 28: QVIBVS DE REBVS VOS PVRGAVISTIS ... QVOMQVE DE EIEIS REBVS SENATVEI PVRGATI ESTIS, S. C. de Tiburt. lin. 3 and 12 (ap. Grut. 499, 12): quod te mihi de Sempronio purgas, accipio excusationem, Cic. Fam. 12, 25, 3: cui se purgat, id. Or. 29, 230: ego me tibi purgo, id. Fam. 15, 17, 1; so, Caesarem de interitu Marcelli, id. Att. 13, 10, 3: si quis tibi se purgare volet, quod, etc., Q. Cic. Petit. Cons. 9, 35: si parum vobis essem purgatus, Cic. Phil. 14, 6, 17: velle Pompeium se Caesari purgatum, ne, etc., Caes. B. C. 1, 8; cf. id. B. G. 1, 28: ea pars epistulae tuae, per quam te ac mores tuos mihi purgatos ac probatos esse voluisti, Cic. Att. 1, 17, 7; Ter. Hec. 254: accedebant blanditiae virorum factum purgantium cupiditate atque amore, Liv. 1, 9 fin. : factum, Ov. P. 3, 2, 24: facinus, Curt. 7, 5, 39; 5, 12, 8: crimina, to disprove , Cic. Clu. 1, 3; Liv. 38, 48, 14; cf. probra, Tac. A. 4, 42: adulescentem crimine civilis belli, to acquit , id. ib. 3, 17: innocentiam suam, to vindicate , Liv. 9, 26: suspicionem, to remove , id. 28, 43: ea, quae ipsis obicerentur, to refute , id. 8, 23: purget miles, quod vicerit hostem, Sil. 7, 510: aliquem alicujus rei, Liv. 37, 28: se adversus alicujus criminationes purgare, Suet. Caes. 55: illi lacrimantes nunc purgare se, Curt. 5, 10, 11.—With acc. and inf.: laborare regem, ut purganti se nihil hostile dixisse aut fecisse, fides habeatur, Liv. 42, 14: qui purgarent nec accitos ab eo Bastarnas nec auctore eo quidquam facere, id. 41, 19.—
2 To cleanse or purge from a crime or sin with religious rites , to make expiation or atonement for , to expiate , purify , atone for , lustrate , = expiare, lustrare (poet. and in post-Aug. prose): di patrii, purgamus agros, purgamus agrestes, Tib. 2, 1, 17: populos, Ov. F. 4, 640: myrtea verbena Romanos Sabinosque, Plin. 15, 29, 36, § 119: pontifices purgantes moenia, Luc. 1, 593: domus purgantur lustranturque, Plin. 25, 9, 59, § 105. —With the crime or act as an object: nefas, Ov. M. 13, 952: crimen gladio, Luc. 8, 518; Vulg. Ecclus. 47, 13.
XIII —Hence, purgā-tus , a, um, P. a.
A Cleansed , purified , pure (poet.): auris, Hor. Ep. 1, 1, 7: somnia pituitā purgatissima, Pers. 2, 57: purgatioris auri vena, Mart. Cap. 1, § 7 (cf. Plaut. Mil. 3, 1, 179).—
B Excused , exculpated : ita fiducia quam argumentis purgatiores dimittuntur, Sall. Fragm. ap. Non. 310, 22, and ap. Don. Ter. Phorm. 206.—
C Pure , freed from sin (eccl. Lat.): vota purgatiora, Aug. Civ. Dei, 6, 2: purgatissima ecclesia, id. Doctr. Christ. 2, 16: pietas, id. Ver. Rel. 1. —Hence, adv.: purgātē , purely : enucleate dicitur purgate, exquisite, Non. 60, 5.