cārĭtas — Lewis & Short
cārĭtas, ātis, f.carus.
I Prop., dearness, costliness, high price, etc. (opp. vilitas):
annonae,Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 18, § 47; 2, 3, 92, § 215; id. Off. 3, 12, 50; Liv. 44, 7, 10; Suet. Ner. 45:
rei frumentariae (opp. vilitas annonae),Cic. Imp. Pomp. 15, 44:
nummorum,id. Att. 9, 9, 4:
olei,Plin. 18, 28, 68, § 273:
vini,Suet. Aug. 42.—Also absol. caritas (sc. annonae), high prices, Cato, R. R. 3:
ut tum vendas cum caritas est,Varr. R. R. 1, 69:
cum alter annus in vilitate, alter in summā caritate fuerit,Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 93, § 216; id. Off. 2, 17, 58.—
II Trop., regard, esteem, affection, love (cf. amor, I.; in good prose;
syn.: benevolentia, favor, studium): cum deorum tum parentum patriaeque cultus eorumque hominum, qui aut sapientiā aut opibus excellunt, ad caritatem referri solet: conjuges autem et liberi, et fratres et alii, quos usus familiaritasque conjunxit, quamquam etiam caritate ipsā, tamen amore maxime continentur,Cic. Part. Or. 25, 88; hence, opp. amor, as esteem to personal affection:
si id videare, quod sit utile ipsis, defendere... haec res amorem magis conciliat, illa virtutis defensio caritatem,id. de Or. 2, 51, 206; cf. Treb. ap. id. Fam. 12, 16, 2; Liv. 24, 4, 8:
ut qui pacem belli amore turbaverant, bellum pacis caritate deponerent,Tac. H. 2, 37: amor pa/qos, caritas h)=qos, Quint. 6, 2, 12:
caritas, quae est inter natos et parentes,Cic. Lael. 8, 27;
Quint. prooem. § 6: liberalitate qui utuntur benevolentiam sibi conciliant et caritatem,id. Fin. 1, 16, 52; id. Lael. 27, 102; Quint. 11, 1, 72:
ingenita erga patriam caritas,Liv. 1, 34, 5:
retinere caritatem in aliquem,Cic. Lael. 19, 70:
sanguine et caritate propior,Tac. A. 6, 46:
caritatem paraverat loco auctoritatis,id. Agr. 16 fin.— The subjoined gen. is usu. objective:
patriae et suorum,Cic. Off. 3, 27, 100; id. Sest. 24, 53; Nep. Alcib. 5, 1:
rei publicae,Cic. Phil. 12, 8, 20; Liv. 2, 2, 5:
domini,id. 1, 51, 8:
Syracusanorum,id. 25, 28, 7:
Hieronis,id. 24, 5, 1:
liberum,id. 8, 7, 18:
filiae,Tac. A. 12, 4:
ipsius soli,Liv. 2, 1, 5:
sedium suarum,id. 5, 42, 2; Quint. 6, 2, 14.—But sometimes also subjective, love entertained by one:
hominum, deorum,Cic. N. D. 1, 44, 122; id. de Or. 2, 58, 237:
civium,id. Phil. 1, 12, 29; Liv. 24, 4, 8 (with amor);
or, more rarely, of the cause or ground of the love: caritas illius necessitudinis,Cic. Sest. 3, 6:
benevolentiae,id. Lael. 9, 32.—In plur. of the different species of affection:
omnes omnium caritates patria una complexa est,Cic. Off. 1, 17, 57; id. Fin. 3, 22, 73:
liberum,App. M. 5, p. 171.—
B In late Lat., meton., caritates = cari, the loved persons, Amm. 18, 8, 14; 24, 1, 9.