rārus, a, um, adj. [etym. dub.; cf. Sanscr. root rah-, to abandon], having wide interstices between its parts, of a loose texture, not thick or dense, thin (opp. densus; freq. and class.).
I Lit.: denseri poterunt ignes, rarique relinqui, Lucr. 1, 656; cf.: (terra) Rara sit an supra morem si densa requiras ... Densa magis Cereri, rarissima quaeque Lyaeo, Verg. G. 2, 227 sq.; 1, 419: textura, Lucr. 4, 196; cf. retia, Verg. A. 4, 131; Hor. Epod. 2, 33: tunica, Ov. Am. 1, 5, 13; and: cribrum, id. M. 12, 437: rariores silvae, the thinner , clearer parts of the forest , Tac. Agr. 37: seges, Col. 2, 9, 6: corpus (opp. solidae res), Lucr. 1, 347; 2, 860; 6, 631 al.: aër, id. 2, 107; cf. in the comp. , id. 6, 1024: manus, i.e. with the fingers spread apart , Quint. 11, 3, 103: raraque non fracto vestigia pulvere pendent, i.e. scarcely visible , Stat. Th. 6, 640.—
II Transf.
A Of things which stand apart from each other, far apart , here and there , scattered , thin , scanty ( = disjectus; opp. densus, confertus): cum raris disjectisque ex aedificiis pabulum conquireretur, Hirt. B. G. 8, 10; cf.: vides habitari in terrā raris et angustis in locis, scattered , Cic. Rep. 6, 19, 20: apparent rari nantes, Verg. A. 1, 118: foramina, Lucr. 5, 457: bacae expanduntur rarae, Plin. 17, 10, 11, § 60: frutices in vertice, Ov. H. 10, 25: coma, id. Am. 1, 8, 111; cf. capillus. Suet. Calig. 50: racemi, Verg. E. 5, 7: umbra, id. ib. 7, 46: arbores, Nep. Milt. 5, 3: tela, Ov. M. 12, 600 et saep. — Poet.: manat rara meas lacrima per genas, drop by drop , Hor. C. 4, 1, 34. —
2 In partic., in military lang., far apart , here and there , scattered about , dispersed , straggling , single (opp. confertus). accedebat huc, ut numquam conferti, sed rari magnisque intervallis proeliarentur, Caes. B. G. 5, 16; cf.: rari in confertos illati, Liv. 23, 27: ipsi ex silvis rari propugnabant, Caes. B. G. 5, 9; 5, 17; 7, 45; 7, 80; id. B. C. 1, 27 fin. : Samnites raris ordinibus constiterant, Liv. 9, 27; Curt. 4, 14, 14: rara est acies, Verg. A. 9, 508: rarior acies, Tac. H. 3, 25; Front. Strat. 3, 10, 4: rarior acies, Curt. 4, 15, 20: ut ordines suos non magnopere servarent, rari dispersique pugnarent, Caes. B. C. 1, 44; cf. Tac. Agr. 37 fin. ; Front. Strat. 1, 5, 23.—
B Of any thing found in small numbers or which seldom takes place, few , rare (cf. paucus): in omni arte ... ut in ipsă virtute, optimum quidque rarissimum, Cic. Fin. 2, 25, 81; cf.: rarum genus (amicorum) et quidem omnia praeclara rara, id. Lael. 21, 79: raris ac prope nullis portibus, Caes. B. G. 3, 12 fin. ; cf.: etiamsi rarus ejus rei, nonnullus tamen usus, Quint. 8, 6, 30: rarus enim est animus ad ea defendenda, Sall. H. 3, 61, 7 Dietsch: Idem rarum est, non sine usu tamen, Quint. 5, 11, 42: rari domos, plurimi amicorum tecta ... petivere, Tac. H. 1, 79 fin. : Oceanus raris ab orbe nostro navibus aditur, id. G. 2: aliquod solitarium aut rarum, Cic. Inv. 1, 44, 83: ut anteponantur rara vulgaribus, id. Top. 18, 69: litterae, Liv. 6, 1; cf. id. 7, 3: rara hostium apparebant arma, id. 2, 50: lites, Quint. 7, 1, 43: infelicitas, id. 11, 2, 49: quae (littera) est apud nos rarissima in clausulis, id. 12, 10, 31: quod est magis rarum, id. 9, 2, 73: ex maxime raro genere hominum, Cic. Lael. 17, 64; cf. Quint. 7, 3, 25: raris vocibus hisco, Verg. A. 3, 314: rara per ignotos errent animalia montes, id. E. 6, 40: audiet pugnas vitio parentum Rara juventus, Hor. C. 1, 2, 24. —Rarum est, with ut : rarum est, ut, etc., Quint. 3, 10, 3; 6, 3, 38; 10, 7, 24: rarum dictu, esse aliquid, cui prosit neglegentia, Plin. 18, 16, 39, § 140.—
b Mostly poet. and in post-Aug. prose for the adv. raro, seldom , rarely : nec Iliacos coetus nisi rarus adibat, Ov. M. 11, 766; cf.: rarus, qui tam procul a portu recessisset, reperiebatur, Quint. 12, prooem. § 3; so, rarus fuit, qui, etc., id. 6, 2, 3: antiquis scriptoribus rarus obtrectator, Tac. A. 4, 33; Sall. H. Fragm. 3, 22, p. 233 Gerl.: Caesar rarus egressu, Tac. A. 15, 53; cf.: leones rari in potu, Plin. 8, 16, 18, § 46: (calculus) rarus inventu, id. 28, 15, 61, § 217; cf.: helxine rara visu est, id. 21, 16, 56, § 96: Homerus alias circa picturas pigmentaque rarus, i. e. rarely speaks of them , id. 33, 7, 38, § 115—
2 Poet., in partic., uncommon of its kind , scarce , rare , extraordinary , remarkable : rara puella fuit, Prop. 1, 17, 16; so, Cynthia, id. 1, 8, 42: ministra deae, id. 4 (5), 11, 52; cf.: rara quidem facie, sed rarior arte canendi, Ov. M. 14, 337: facies, id. H. 17, 93 Ruhnk.: vestis, Cat. 69, 3: avis (sc. pavo), Hor. S. 2, 2, 26: fides, id. C. 1, 35, 21: artis opus rarae, Tib. 3, 4, 37: patulis rarissima ramis, Ov. M. 7, 622: rarissima turba, id. A. A. 2, 281: rarissimi ingenii homo, Sen. Contr. 28: conjux rarissima, Stat. S. 5, 1, 11.— Hence, adv., usually raro (class.), but sometimes rare (ante - class. and postAug.), rarenter (ante- and post - class.), or rariter (late Lat.).
A Form rārō : raro nimium dabat quod biberem, Plaut. Cist. 1, 1, 20: potavi, edi, donavi, et enim id raro, id. Bacch. 4, 10, 6: si id, quod raro fit, fieri omnino negetur, Cic. Inv. 1, 43, 80: evenire insolenter et raro (opp. vulgo), id. ib. 1, 28, 43: vinum aegrotis prodest raro, nocet saepissime, id. N. D. 3, 27, 69; id. de Or. 3, 52, 101; cf. id. Or. 24, 80: sed tamen raro habet in oratione poeticum aliquod verbum dignitatem, id. de Or. 3, 38, 153: raro antecedentem scelestum Deseruit poena, Hor. C. 3, 2, 31: admodum raro, Cic. Fat. Fragm. ap. Macr. S. 2, 12; for which we find raro admodum, Quint. 11, 1, 14; Plin. 2, 50, 51, § 135: raro umquam, Quint. 4, 1, 4; 5, 7, 22; Plin. 22, 22, 46, § 93: ita raro, Cic. Rosc. Am. 13, 37: sic raro, Hor. S. 2, 3, 1: tam raro, Ov. M. 13, 117: quam raro, Plaut. Bacch. 4, 4, 25: perquam raro, Plin. 37, 4, 15, § 55.— Comp. : quod si rarius fiet, quam tu exspectabis, Cic. Fam. 1, 7, 1.— Sup. : istud rarissime accidere, Col. 5, 5, 7: non affari nisi rarissime, Suet. Claud. 3.—
B Form rārē (acc. to I.), far apart , thinly , sparsely , here and there : nisi rare conseritur, vanam et minutam spicam facit, Col. 2, 9, 5: tenui vimine rarius contextus saccus, id. 9, 15, 12.—
2 (Acc. to II. B.) Of time, seldom , rarely : vero rare capitur (piscis), Plaut. Rud. 4, 3, 56.—
C Form rārenter , seldom , rarely : dato rarenter bibere, Cato R. R. 103; so, rarenter, Liv. And., Enn., Caecil., Nov., Trab., Pompon. ap. Non. 515, 23 sq.; 164, 25 sq.; Ap. Flor. 3, p. 357, 22. —
D Form rārĭter (very rare): quidquid fit rariter, magis delectat, Schol. Juv. 11, 208.