multitudo
Έγ', ὦ ταλαίπωρ', αὐτὸς ὧν χρείᾳ πάρει. Τὰ πολλὰ γάρ τοι ῥήματ' ἢ τέρψαντά τι, ἢ δυσχεράναντ', ἢ κατοικτίσαντά πως, παρέσχε φωνὴν τοῖς ἀφωνήτοις τινά –> Wretched brother, tell him what you need. A multitude of words can be pleasurable, burdensome, or they can arouse pity somehow — they give a kind of voice to the voiceless.
Latin > English (Lewis & Short)
multĭtūdo: ĭnis, f. multus,
I a great number, multitude (class.; cf.: copia, vis, magnitudo).
I In gen.: nationes, quae numero hominum ac multitudine ipsā poterant in provincias nostras redundare, Cic. Prov. Cons. 12, 31: navium, Nep. Hann. 10, 4: argenti facti, Varr. ap. Non. 465, 27: sacrificiorum, Cic. de Or. 3, 19, 71.—
II In partic.
A Of people, a great number, a crowd, multitude: tanta multitudo lapides ac tela coniciebat, ut, etc., Caes. B. G. 2, 6; Nep. Milt. 3, 5; id. Arist. 1, 3: multitudine domum circumdare, Nep. Hann. 12, 4: multitudine civium factiones valuere, Sall. C. 51, 40: prima lux mediocrem multitudinem ante moenia ostendit, Liv. 7, 12, 3.—In plur., multitudes: partim exquirebant duces multitudinum, Sall. C. 50, 1.—
2 Of the common people, the crowd, the multitude (cf. turba): ex errore imperitae multitudinis, Cic. Off. 1, 19, 65: sed multitudinem haec maxime allicit, id. Fin. 1, 7, 25: multitudinis judicium, id. Tusc. 2, 26, 63; id. Clu. 29, 59; id. Sest. 58, 124: credula, Just. 2, 8, 9.—
B In gram.: numerus multitudinis, or simply multitudo, the plural number, the plural: quod alia vocabula singularia sint solum ut cicer, alia multitudinis solum ut scalae ... multitudinis vocabula sunt, etc., Varr. L. L. 9, § 63 Müll.: cur mel et vinum, atque id genus cetera numerum multitudinis capiunt, lacte non capiat, Gell. 19, 8, 13.—In plur., Varr. L. L. 9, § 65 Müll.
Latin > French (Gaffiot 2016)
multĭtūdō,⁶ inis, f. (multus), multitude, grand nombre : Cic. Verr. 2, 5, 87 ; Prov. 31 ; de Or. 3, 71
