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{{Lewis
|lshtext=<b>littĕra</b>: (less correctly lītĕra), ae, f. [[lino]], q. v.,<br /><b>I</b> a [[letter]], a written [[sign]] or [[mark]] signifying a [[sound]].<br /><b>I</b> Lit.: [[cubitum]] [[hercle]] longis litteris signabo jam [[usquequaque]], si [[quis]], etc., Plaut. Rud. 5, 2, 7: [[quid]] hae locuntur litterae? id. Bacch. 4, 7, 3; cf.: [[quid]] istae narrant? Tox. Perconctare ex ipsis; ipsae [[tibi]] narrabunt, id. Pers. 4, 3, 29: sus rostro si [[humi]] A litteram impresserit, Cic. Div. 1, 13, 23: priscarum litterarum notae, id. ib. 2, 41, 85: maximis litteris [[incisum]], id. Verr. 2, 2, 63, § 154 fin.: [[lenis]] [[appellatio]] litterarum, id. Brut. 74, 159: [[suavis]] [[appellatio]] litterarum, Quint. 11, 3, 35: quae si nostris litteris scribantur, id. 12, 10, 28 litterarum ordine, in alphabetical [[order]], Plin. 37, 9, 54, § 138: verba primis litteris notare, Prob. de Not. Signif. 1 Huschke: digerere in litteram, to [[arrange]] alphabetically, Sen. Ep. 68, 18: scire litteras, to be [[able]] to [[read]] and [[write]], Plaut. Truc. 4, 2, 23; Vitr. 1, 1, 14: nescire litteras, not to be [[able]] to [[read]] and [[write]], id. Clem. 2, 1, 2; Suet. Ner. 10: scribere aureis litteris, Gai. Inst. 2, 77: [[scientia]] litterarum, the [[art]] of [[writing]], Dig. 29, 2, 93: facere litteram or litteras, to [[write]], Plaut. As. 4, 1, 22; Cic. Ac. 2, 2, 6.—In the [[language]] of [[comedy]]: [[homo]] trium litterarum, i. e. [[fur]], a [[thief]], Plaut. Aul. 2, 4, 46: litteram ex se longam facere, i. e. to [[make]] an I by [[hanging]] perpendicularly, to [[hang]] one's [[self]]: [[neque]] [[quicquam]] meliust mihi, ut [[opinor]], [[quam]] ex me ut faciam litteram longam, [[meum]] [[laqueo]] [[collum]] [[quando]] obstrinxero, id. ib. 1, 1, 37: [[littera]] [[salutaris]], i. e. A. ([[absolvo]]) and [[tristis]], i. e. C. ([[condemno]]), [[which]] were [[put]] on the voting-tablets, Cic. Mil. 6, 15.—<br /><b>II</b> Transf.<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>A</b> Sing.<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>1</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; A [[word]], a [[line]]: ad me litteram [[numquam]] misit, Cic. Fam. 2, 17, 6: ad litteram, [[word]] for [[word]], [[literally]]: locum ad litteram subjeci, Quint. 9, 1, 15.—<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>2</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; A [[handwriting]]: Alexidis manum amabam, [[quod]] tam [[prope]] accedebat ad similitudinem tuae litterae, Cic. Att. 7, 2, 3; cf.: arguit ipsorum quos [[littera]], Juv. 13, 138 (v. also [[infra]] B. 1. fin.).—<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>B</b> Usually plur.<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>1</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Littĕrae, ārum, f., a [[letter]], [[epistle]]: litteras resignare, to [[unseal]] or [[open]] a [[letter]], Plaut. Trin. 3, 3, 65: ut litterarum ego harum sermonem [[audio]], id. Ps. 1, 1, 97; Cic. Att. 1, 13, 1: [[dare]] alicui litteras ad aliquem, id. Cat. 3, 4, 9: litteras mittere, id. Att. 5, 21, 2: reddere alicui, id. ib. 5, 21, 4: accipere, id. ib. 5, 21, 7: remittere, id. ib. 11, 16, 4: nullas iis [[praeterquam]] ad te et ad Brutum dedi litteras, id. Fam. 3, 7, 1: queri [[apud]] aliquem per litteras, id. Att. 5, 21, 13: invitare aliquem perlitteras id. ib. 13, 2, 2: civitatum animos litteris temptare, Caes. B. C. 1, 40, 1: litterae missae, a [[letter]] sent by a [[person]]: litterae allatae, a [[letter]] [[received]]: [[hence]], [[liber]] litterarum missarum et allatarum, a [[letter]]-[[book]]: L. M. (i. e. litterae missae) ... L. A. (i. e. litterae allatae), etc., Cic. Font. 4, 8; id. Verr. 2, 3, 71, § 167.—In poets also [[sometimes]] in sing.: [[quam]] legis a rapta Briseide [[littera]] venit, Ov. H. 3, 1; 5, 2; id. M. 9, 515; Tib. 3, 2, 27; Mart. 10, 73 al.—<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>2</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; A [[writing]], [[document]], [[paper]]: litterae publicae, Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 63, § 140; 2, 4, 16, § 35; esp. a written [[acknowledgment]]: [[littera]] poscetur, Ov. A. A. 1, 428.—<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>3</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; An [[account]]-[[book]]: [[ratio]] [[omnis]] et litterae, Cic. Quint. 11, 37; id. Verr. 2, 4, 12, § 27.—<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>4</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; An [[edict]], [[ordinance]]: praetoris litterae, Cic. Verr. 2, 5, 22, § 56: litteras revocavit, [[letter]] of [[appointment]], [[commission]], Suet. Vesp. 8. —<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>5</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Written monuments, records, [[literature]]: abest [[historia]] litteris nostris, is [[wanting]] in [[our]] [[literature]], Cic. Leg. 1, 2, 5: Graecae de [[philosophia]] litterae, philosophical [[literature]], id. Div. 2, 2, 5: [[genus]] hoc scriptionis [[nondum]] [[satis]] Latinis litteris illustratae, id. Brut. 64, 228; id. Tusc. 1, 1, 1; id. Fin. 1, 2, 4: Graecis litteris studere, id. Brut. 20, 78: [[damnum]] Hortensii interitu [[Latinae]] litterae fecerunt, id. ib. 33, 125: nullam artem litteris [[sine]] interprete et [[sine]] [[aliqua]] exercitatione percipi posse, [[merely]] from books, id. Fam. 7, 19: [[quod]] litteris exstet, [[Pherecydes]] [[primum]] dixit animos hominum esse sempiternos, id. Tusc. 1, 16, 38: parvae et rarae per [[eadem]] tempora litterae fuere, Liv. 6, 1, 2; 7, 3, 6: Etruscae, id. 9, 36, 3: paucissimos [[adhuc]] eloquentes litterae Romanae tulerunt, Quint. 10, 1, 123: [[amor]] litterarum, id. prooem. 6.—<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>6</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; History, inasmuch as it is [[derived]] from written monuments: cupidissimus litterarum fuit, Nep. Cat. 3, 1; id. Pelop. 1: parvae et rarae per [[eadem]] tempora litterae fuere, Liv. 6, 1.—<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>7</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Literary [[labor]], [[composition]]: [[omnis]] [[varietas]] litterarum mearum, Cic. Fam. 15, 4, 12: non [[nihil]] temporis tribuit litteris, Nep. Hann. 13, 2.—<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>8</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; An [[inscription]], Ov. M. 11, 706.—<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<b>9</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Learning, the sciences, [[liberal]] [[education]], [[scholarship]], letters: [[sit]] mihi [[orator]] [[tinctus]] litteris: audierit aliquid, legerit, Cic. de Or. 2, 20, 85: erant in eo plurimae litterae, id. Brut. 76, 265: [[homo]] communium litterarum, et politioris humanitatis non [[expers]], id. de Or. 2, 7, 28: [[homo]] [[sine]] ingenio, [[sine]] litteris, id. Verr. 2, 4, 44, § 98: fuit in [[illo]] [[ingenium]], [[ratio]], [[memoria]], litterae, [[cura]], [[cogitatio]], [[diligentia]], id. Phil. 2, 45, 116: mihi [[nihil]] libri, [[nihil]] litterae, [[nihil]] [[doctrina]] prodest, id. Att. 9, 10, 2: litterarum [[scientia]], id. Brut. 42, 153: litterarum coguitio, id. de Or. 3, 32, 127: nescire litteras, to be [[without]] a [[liberal]] [[education]], id. Brut. 74, 259: altiores litterae, [[magic]], Plin. 14, 4, 5, § 51.—Comically of the [[art]] of [[love]]: Litteras didicisti; [[quando]] scis, [[sine]] alios discere, Plaut. Truc. 4, 2, 22.
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{{Gaffiot
|gf=<b>littĕra</b>,⁶ æ, f., caractère d’écriture, lettre : A litteram [[humi]] imprimere Cic. Div. 1, 23, marquer sur le [[sol]] la lettre A ; [[salutaris]], [[tristis]] [[littera]] Cic. Mil. 15, la lettre salutaire (A. [[absolvo]]), fâcheuse (C. [[condemno]]) ; litteris minutis argenteis [[nomen]] [[inscriptum]] Cic. Verr. 2, 5, 93, nom inscrit en petites lettres d’argent : litteris parcere Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 27, économiser l’écriture [le papier] ; Græcis litteris [[uti]] Cæs. G. 1, 29, 1 ; 6, 14, 3, employer l’alphabet grec ; cum litteram scripsisset nullam Cic. Arch. 18, sans avoir écrit un mot ; si unam litteram Græcam scisset Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 127, s’il avait su un seul mot de grec ; [[trium]] litterarum [[homo]] Pl. Aul. 325, l’homme aux trois lettres [[fur]], voleur] || manière de former les lettres, écriture de qqn : ad similitudinem tuæ litteræ [[prope]] accedebat Cic. Att. 7, 2, 3, il se rapprochait beaucoup de ton écriture || [poét., au lieu du pl.] lettre, épître : Ov. M. 9, 515, etc. ; Tib. 3, 2, 27.
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