quincunx

A New Latin Dictionary by Charlton T. Lewis Ph.D. and Charles Short, LL. D.

quincunx . uncis, m. [quinque-uncia], five twelfths of a whole (of an as, a jugerum, a pound, a sextarius, etc.).

I Lit.: si de quincunce remota est Uncia, quid superat? from five twelfths of an as, Hor. A. P. 327; so five twelfths of a jugerum, Col. 5, 1, 11; of a pound , id. 12, 28, 1; of a sextarius, five cyathi. Mart. 1, 28, 2; 2, 1, 9: quincunces et sex cyathos bessemque bibamus, id. 11, 36, 7.—Of five twelfths of an inheritance , Plin. Ep. 7, 11, 1.— Of interest, five per cent ., Pers. 5, 149.— In apposition with usura: quincunces usuras spopondit, Dig. 46, 3, 102; Inscr. Giorn. Arcad. 28, p. 356.—

II Transf., trees planted in the form of a quincunx (i.e. ⁙, the five spots on dice); also, trees planted in oblique lines , thus: ⁙ quid illo quincunce speciosius, qui in quamcumque partem spectaveris, rectus est? Quint. 8, 3, 9 Spald.: in quincuncem serere, Varr. R. R. 1, 7, 2; cf.: directi in quincuncem ordines, Cic. Sen. 17, 59: in quincuncem disposita, Col. 3, 13, 4; 3, 15, 1: obliquis ordinibus in quincuncem dispositis, Caes. B. G. 7, 73.

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