LOGOI

The corpus record — Latin

decet

decet

to add grace; be right

Generated live from the audited Latin corpus — every figure on this page is a database query, not prose from memory.

Where it lives

Densest 12 of 191 attested works shown, by occurrences per 10,000 attested tokens.

What it meant

1. decet — de Vaan

decet 'to add grace; be right' [v. II; pf. decuii; only in 3s. and 3p.] (Naev.+) Derivatives: decus, -oris [n,] 'high esteem, dignity' (PI-+), decor [m.] 'beauty' (Naev.+), decorare 'to embellish, honour' (Naev.+), decorus handsome, decent' (P1.+), condecorare 'to embellish' (P1.+); dignus 'appropriate, worthy' (P1.+), dignare 'to consider worthy* (PaO), dignitas 'dignity, excellence' (P1.+); dedecus, -oris … — [de Vaan, s.v. decet, p. 178]

2. dĕcet — Lewis & Short

dĕcet, cuit, 2,

I v. impers. [Sanscr. dacas, fame; Gr. doke/w, to seem, think; Lat. decus, dignus]. It is seemly, comely, becoming,; it beseems, behooves, is fitting, suitable, proper (for syn. v. debeo init.): decere quasi aptum esse consentaneumque tempori et personae, Cic. Or. 22, 74; cf. also nunc quid aptum sit, hoc est, quid maxime deceat in oratione videamus, id. de Or. 3, 55, 210 (very freq. and class.; not in Caes.).—Constr., with nom. or inf. of the thing, and with acc.; less freq. with dat. of the pers.; sometimes absol.
a With nom. rei
(a) and acc. pers.: Ph. Quin me aspice et contempla, ut haec (sc. vestis) me decet. Sc. Virtute formae id evenit, te ut deceat, quicquid habeas, Plaut. Most. 1, 3, 16 sq.; cf.: quem decet muliebris ornatus, quem incessus psaltriae, Cic. Clod. fragm. 5, p. 105 ed. Beier: te toga picta decet, Prop. 4, 4, 53 al.; Hor. Ep. 1, 18, 30; Quint. 8, 5, 28; and nec habitus triumphalis feminas deceat, id. 11, 1, 3; cf.: omnis Aristippum color decuit, Hor. Ep. 1, 17, 23: intonsus crinis deum, Tib. 1, 4, 38; cf.: neglecta decet multas coma, Ov. A. A. 3, 153; id. F. 2, 106 et saep.: id maxime quemque decet, quod est cujusque maxime suum, Cic. Off. 1, 31, 113: quod omnes et semper et ubique decet, Quint. 11, 1, 14: non si quid Pholoen satis, Et te, Chlori, decet, Hor. Od. 3, 15, 8 et saep.: qui flexus deceat miserationem, Quint. 1, 11, 12: civitatem quis deceat status, Hor. Od. 3, 29, 25 et saep.—In plur.: quem tenues decuere togae nitidique capilli, Hor. Ep. 1, 14, 32: te non citharae decent, id. Od. 3, 15, 14: alba decent Cererem: vestes Cerealibus albas Sumite, Ov. F. 4, 619; id. M. 1, 457 et saep.: nec velle experiri, quam se aliena deceant, Cic. Off. 1, 31, 113; Quint. 6, 1, 25: illa quoque diversa bonum virum decent, id. 11, 1, 42 et saep.: duo verba uni apposita ne versum quidem decuerint, id. 8, 6, 43.—
(b) Without acc. pers.: nihil est difficilius quam quid deceat videre, Cic. Or. 21, 70; cf.: quid deceat et quid aptum sit personis, id. Off. 1, 34 fin.: casus singularis magis decuit, Quint. 8, 3, 20; id. 11, 3, 161 et saep.: idem fere in omni genere causarum et proderit et decebit, id. 11, 1, 14; cf. id. 9, 4, 21.—In plur.: ubi lepos, joci, risus, vinum, ebrietas decent, Plaut. Ps. prol. 20: cum magna pars est exhausta orationis, pene omnia decent, Quint. 11, 3, 147; 150; id. 11, 1, 48 et saep. —
(g) With dat.: istuc facinus nostro generi non decet, Plaut. Am. 2, 2, 188: certa est ratio quae deceat philosopho, Apul. Flor. 3, p. 355, 13; Plaut. Pers. 2, 2, 34; cf. infra. —
b With inf.
(a) and acc. pers.: non te mihi irasci decet, Plaut. Am. 1, 3, 24: hanc maculam nos decet effugere, Ter. Ad. 5, 8, 31: oratorem irasci minime decet, Cic. Tusc. 4, 25; Quint. 12, 6, 3; Ov. M. 3, 265; so freq. with inf. pass.: specimen naturae capi debet ex optima quaque natura, Cic. Tusc. 1, 14, 32: mortalin' decuit violari vulnere divum? Verg. A. 12, 797; Ter. And. prol. 16. —
(b) Without acc.: injusta ab justis impetrare non decet, Plaut. Am. prol. 35: exemplis grandioribus decuit uti, Cic. Div. 1, 20; Ov. M. 8, 27: nunc decet caput impedire myrto: nunc et in umbrosis Fauno decet immolare lucis, Hor. Od. 1, 4, 9 sq.; id. Ep. 1, 17, 2; Pers. 3, 27.—
(g) With dat.: decet tantae majestati eas servare leges, quibus, etc., Dig. 32, 1, 23: ita uti liberali esse ingenio decet, Ter. Hec. 1, 2, 89: prima certe pensari decet populo utrum, etc., Liv. 34, 58, 8.
c Absol.
(a) with acc. pers.: ita ut vos decet, Plaut. Most. 3, 2, 40; cf.: facis, ut te decet, Ter. Andr. 2, 5, 10; id. Heaut. 5, 5, 10: ita uti fortes decet milites, id. Eun. 4, 7, 44; cf.: id. Andr. 2, 6, 14: illum decet, Quint. 9, 4, 15 et saep.—
(b) Without case: eia haud sic decet, Ter. Eun. 5, 9, 35; cf. id. Hec. 2, 2, 10: fecisti ut decuerat, id. ib. 4, 4, 66: minus severe quam decuit, Cic. Phil. 6, 1: velata parte oris, quia sic decebat, it was becoming, Tac. A. 13, 45: nihil aliter ac deceat, id. Att. 6, 3, 8: perge; decet, Verg. A. 12, 153 et saep.—
(g) With dat.: ita nobis decet, Ter. Ad. 5, 8, 5; id. Heaut. 5, 2, 12: locum editiorem quam victoribus decebat, Sall. H. 1, 98 (Serv. Verg. A. 8, 127.)— Hence, dĕcens, entis, P. a. (freq. in Hor., Ov., and post-Aug. prose, esp. Quint.; not in Verg.; in Cic. once adverbially, and cf. decentia), seemly, becoming, decent, proper, fit: amictus, Ov. Pont. 2, 5, 52; cf.: decentior amictus, Quint. 11, 3, 156; and sinus (togae) decentissimus, id. 11, 3, 140: ornatus, id. 2, 15, 21: motus, Hor. Od. 4, 13, 17; Quint. 1, 10, 26; cf.: corporis decens et accommodatus orationi motus, id. 11, 3, 29; and allevatio atque contractio humerorum, id. 11, 3, 83: decentissimum sponsalium genus, Sen. Ben. 1, 9 et saep.: quid verum atque decens, Hor. Ep. 1, 1, 11: decentius erit servare pudorem, Quint. 11, 1, 78; cf. 8, 6, 6.—
2 Esp. of corporeal fitness and symmetry, regularly, symmetrically, handsomely shaped; well-formed; noble: forma, Ov. Am. 3, 1, 9; cf.: habitus decentior quam sublimior, Tac. Agr. 44: facies, Ov. Tr. 3, 7, 33: malae, Hor. Od. 3, 27, 53: Venus, id. ib. 1, 18, 6; cf.: Cynthia, Prop. 4, 8, 52 (5, 8, 52 M.): Gratiae, Hor. Od. 1, 4, 6: (Paullus) et nobilis et decens, id. ib. 4, 1, 13: pulcher et decens toto corpore, Suct. Dom. 18; cf. Juv. 6, 161: sumptis decentior armis Minerva, Ov. H. 5, 35; Quint. 8, 3, 10 et saep.—Adv.: decenter (acc. to no. 1), becomingly, decently, properly, fitly: fictis nominibus decenter uti, Plin. Ep. 6, 21, 5; cf.: fieri, Quint. 11, 1, 79: singula quaeque locum teneant sortita decenter, Hor. A. P. 92; cf.: maesta, Ov. Am. 2, 5, 44.—Comp.: Hor. Ep. 2, 2, 216; Quint. 9, 1, 21 al.—Sup., a false reading for diligentissime, Cic. Caes. 26, 74.

3. decet — Walde–Hofmann

decet (nur 3. Pers. Sg. u. PL), -uz,.-gre „einen zieren, kleiden* (aiqm vestis, crepidula Plaut., ornätus Cic. usw.; sek. [Alat. Arch.] m. Dat. nach convenit, Schmalz* 411); „sich für jd. schicken, geziemen* (seit Naev., rom. [dödeegre „sich nicht schicken“ seit Cic.]), decus, -öris n. ,Zierde, Schmuck, Würde" (= mir. dech, vgl. ai. dasas-ydti, s. unten; seit Plaut., ebenso dédecus „Schande, Schmach"; decoräre … — [Walde–Hofmann, s.v. decet, p. 362]

In the wild

6 of 943 attestations shown.

Where it came from

  • de Vaan, Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Brill 2008) Treated in de Vaan, Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Brill 2008) s.v. decet (scan p. 178; entry #416). Root candidates: *dekri-.
  • Ernout-Meillet, Dictionnaire etymologique de la langue latine Treated in Ernout-Meillet, Dictionnaire etymologique de la langue latine s.v. decet (scan p. 190; entry #2951).
  • Walde-Hofmann, Lateinisches etymologisches Worterbuch Treated in Walde-Hofmann, Lateinisches etymologisches Worterbuch s.v. decet (scan pp. 362-363; entry #884). Root candidates: *dek-, *daéas-, *des-.

Downloads

Word record (JSON)·Concordance (CSV)·Frequencies (CSV)·Cite (BibTeX)

CC BY 4.0 with receipt attribution — every file carries its license line. What is exportable

Latin text and lemmatization derived from the Perseus Digital Library (canonical-latinLit), CC BY-SA 4.0. Lewis & Short (public domain) via Perseus. This derived data is shared under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 license.