1. dē-gĕner — Lewis & Short
dē-gĕner, is (adj.genus,
abl. degeneri, Tac. A. 12, 19),I that departs from its race or kind, degenerate, not genuine (mostly poet. and in post-Aug. prose; esp. freq. in Plin. and Tac.; not in Quint. and Suet.).
I Lit.:
Neoptolemum,Verg. A. 2, 549; cf.
proles,Luc. 8, 693; Tac. A. 12, 62:
dignitate formae haud degener,id. ib. 12, 51:
hi (Galli) jam degeneres sunt, mixti, et Gallograeci vere, quod appellantur,Liv. 38, 17, 9; 38, 49, 4:
canum degeneres,Plin. 11, 50, 111, § 265:
aquila,id. 10, 3, 3, § 8:
herbae,id. 17, 5, 3, § 33:
adamantes,id. 37, 4, 15, § 58.—
(b) With gen.:
patrii non degener oris,Ov. Pont. 3, 5, 7; so,
sanguinis,Stat. Th. 9, 619:
patriae artis,Ov. M. 11, 314:
altae virtutis patrum,Sil. 10, 68; Plin. 5, 8, 8, § 44.—
II Transf., mentally or morally degenerate, ignoble, base:
Muttinem sibi modum facere, degenerem Afrum!Liv. 25, 40, 12:
Artabanum materna origine Arsacidem, cetera degenerem,Tac. A. 6, 42; cf.:
vitā non degener,id. ib. 4, 61:
non degener ad pericula,id. ib. 1, 40:
degeneres animos timor arguit,Verg. A. 4, 13:
animi,Luc. 6, 417:
metus,id. 3, 149:
questus,Val. Fl. 1, 164:
preces,Tac. A. 12, 36 fin.:
projectus,id. H. 3, 65 fin.:
insidiae,id. A. 11, 19 et saep.—Of language:
bilingues, paulatim a domestico externo sermone degeneres,Curt. 7, 5, 29.—Poet.:
toga (for togati),Luc. 1, 365.—With abl. ( = indignus):
degener haud Gracchis consul,Sil. 4, 5, 17:
tantoduce,Ambros. de Jacob. 2, 11, 45.