tĕnor, ōris, m. [teneo, II. B.], a holding on, holding fast; hence, an uninterrupted course, career, tenor (mostly post-Aug.; cf.: cursus, ordo).
I In gen.: hasta fugit servatque cruenta tenorem, keeps its course , Verg. A. 10, 340: (aulaea) placido educta tenore Tota patent, by a steady motion , Ov. M. 3, 113: hic tibi versandus tenor est, id. A. A. 2, 729: interrumpere tenorem rerum, Liv. 41, 15, 7: pugnae, id. 8, 38, 11: tenorem pugnae servabant, id. 30, 18: tenor vitae, Ov. H. 17, 14; Liv. 40, 12, 7: fati, Ov. H. 7, 112: eundem tenorem servare, Col. Arb. 2, 2: unus tenor algoris aestūsve, Plin. 14, 2, 4, § 27: eodem tenore duo insequentes consulatus gessi, Liv. 7, 40, 9; cf.: eodem consiliorum tenore, id. 22, 15, 1: uno et perpetuo tenore juris semper usurpato, numquam intermisso, id. 35, 16; austeritatis (in smaragdis), Plin. 37, 5, 18, § 67: tenorem in narrationibus servant, connection , Quint. 10, 7, 6: cum quantum, quale interrogantes gravi, comparantes acuto tenore concludunt, i. e. tone , accent , id. 1, 5, 26; cf. in plur.: adhuc difficilior observatio est per tenores vel accentus, id. 1, 5, 22; cf. § 26: vel heroos gressu truncare tenores, i. e. mingle pentameters with heroic verses , Stat. S. 5, 3, 99.—
B Adverb.: uno tenore, in one course or direction , uninterruptedly , uniformly : isque (stilus medius) uno tenore, ut aiunt, in dicendo fluit, * Cic. Or. 6, 21: brevis profecto res est, si uno tenore peragitur, Liv. 5, 5, 7: uno tenore fidem colere, id. 22, 37, 10: tenore uno in mediam aciem illati, id. 22, 47, 6; cf.: hi mores eaque caritas patriae per omnes ordines velut tenore uno pertinebat, id. 23, 49, 3: so, uno velut tenore, id. 2, 42, 8.—
II In partic., in the later jurid. lang., the connection , contents , sense , tenor of a law: pro tenore legis Aquiliae, Dig. 9, 2, 56: pro tenore S C Claudiani, Paul. Sent. 2, 21, 18: auctorum verba emendare tenore sententiae perseverante, non est prohibitum, Dig. 42, 1, 46.