sĕnex, sĕnis (nom. and acc. of the
I neutr. plur. in the posit. and of the neutr. sing. in the comp. do not occur; orig. gen. sĕnicis, Plaut. Fragm. ap. Prisc. p. 724 P.), adj. [Sanscr. sana-s, old; Gr. ἕνος, ἕνη, old; cf.: senium, senesco, senatus, senilis, senectus, Seneca] ( comp. senior), old , aged , advanced in years; and subst., an aged person , an old man , old woman (from the latter half of the fortieth year onward; v. infra the passages from Gell. 10, 28, 1, and from Liv. 30, 30; cf.: annosus, longaevus, vetulus).
a Adj. : (paterfamilias) vendat boves vetulos, plostrum vetus, ferramenta vetera, servum senem, etc., Cato R. R. 2, 7: hic est vetus, vietus, veternosus senex, Ter. Eun. 688: nam vere pusus tu, tua amica senex, Papin. ap. Varr. L. L. 7, § 28 Müll.: turpe senex miles, turpe senilis amor, Ov. Am. 1, 9, 4: cervi, id. A. A. 3, 78: latrans, Phaedr. 5, 10, 7: porci, Juv. 6, 159: cygni, Mart. 5, 37, 1: mulli, id. 10, 30, 24: Bacchus (i. e. vinum), id. 13, 23; cf. of the same, auctumni, id. 3, 58, 7: Damascena (pruna), id. 5, 18, 3 et saep.: admodum senex, Cic. Sen. 4, 10: nemo est tam senex qui se annum non putet posse vivere, id. ib. 7, 24: nomen Nostra tuum senibus loqueretur pagina seclis, in later ages , Verg. Cir. 40.— Comp. : grandior seniorque, Lucr. 3, 955: Cato, quo erat nemo fere senior temporibus illis, Cic. Lael. 1, 5: quae vis senior est quam, etc., id. Leg. 2, 4, 9: corpora seniora, Cels. 5, 28, 4: anni, Ov. M. 15, 470: dens, Mart. 9, 58, 11: cadus, id. 9, 94, 2.—Rarely with aetate: Sophocles, aetate jam senior, Val. Max. 4, 3, 2 ext. : nobis adulescentibus seniores in agendo facti praecipere solebant, ne, etc., Quint. 5, 6, 6: senior ut ita dicam, quam illa aetas ferebat, oratio, more mature , Cic. Brut. 43, 160.—
b Subst.: ut tum ad senem senex de senectute, sic, etc., Cic. Lael. 1, 5: quos ait Caccilius comicos stultos senes, etc. ... ut petulantia magis est adulescentium quam senum ... sic ista senilis stultitia senum levium est ... Appius et caecus et senex, etc. ... senem, in quo est adulescentis aliquid, probo, etc., id. Sen. 11, 36 sq.: senem in patriam revertentem, unde puer profectus sum (the words of Hannibal, who was not yet fifty years of age), Liv. 30, 30: mixta senum ac juvenum densentur funera, Hor. C. 1, 28, 19; cf.: haec recinunt juvenes dictata senesque, id. Ep. 1, 1, 55: aeque neglectum pueris senibusque nocebit, id. ib. 1, 1, 26: ter aevo functus senex, i. e. Nestor , id. C. 2, 9, 14: tun' capite cano amas, senex nequissime? Plaut. Merc. 2, 2, 34: quo senex nequior nullus vivit, id. Cas. 5, 1, 10: te sene omnium senem neminem esse ignaviorem, id. ib. 2, 3, 28 et saep.— Fem. : hanc tot mala ferre senem, this old woman , Tib. 1, 6, 82; Val. Fl. 1, 349; Stat. Th. 5, 149.— Comp. , an elder , elderly person; sometimes (esp. in the poets) also for senex, an aged person : facilius sanescit puer vel adulescens quam senior, Cels. 5, 26, 6: si quis Forte coheredum senior male tussiet, Hor. S. 2, 5, 107: vix ea fatus erat senior (i. e. Anchises), Verg. A. 2, 692; so, = senex, Ov. M. 1, 645; 2, 702; 11, 646; 12, 182; 12, 540; id. F. 4, 515; Stat. S. 1, 3, 94; id. Achill. 2, 383 al.: (Servius Tullius) seniores a junioribus divisit, Cic. Rep. 2, 22, 39; cf. of the same: C. Tubero in Historiarum primo scripsit, Servium Tullium ... eos (milites) ab anno septimo decimo ad annum quadragesimum sextum juniores, supraque eum annum seniores appellasse, Gell. 10, 28, 1: centuriae juniorum seniorumque, Liv. 1, 43.—Poet.: centuriae seniorum simply, for seniores, Hor. A. P. 341: curae fuit consulibus et senioribus Patrum, ut, etc., Liv. 2, 30: consulares ac seniores (opp. juniores Patrum), id. 3, 41: omnium seniorum, matrum familiae, virginum precibus et fletu excitati, Caes. B. C. 2, 4: sapienter, ut senior, suaserat, Flor. 1, 16, 10: juniores a senioribus consilium petiverunt, id. 2, 6, 26: haec ... laeti audiere juvenes, ingrata senioribus erant, Curt. 8, 1, 27: hinc inter juniores senesque orta contentio est, id. 8, 1, 31.—In eccl. Lat., an elder in the synagogue or church , Vulg. Ezech. 7, 26; id. 2 Johan. 1.