dē-signo — Lewis & Short
dē-signo or dissigno (the latter form preferred by Brambach in sense II. B. 2. infra; so Keller, ad
Hor. Ep. 1, 5, 16; cf. Roby, L. G. 2, p. 384), āvi, ātum, 1,I v. a., to mark out, trace out (freq. in the Aug. per.); to describe, designate, define (for syn. cf.: nomino, appello; voco, dico; facio, coöpto, evoco, prodo, declaro, renuntio, seligo).
I Lit.:
Aeneas urbem designat aratro,Verg. A. 5, 755; cf.:
moenia fossā,id. ib. 7, 157:
moenia sulco,Ov. F. 4, 825; and:
oppidum sulco,Tac. A. 12, 24.— With dat.:
finis templo Jovis,Liv. 1, 10; cf.:
locum circo,id. 1, 35:—vulnere frontem, to mark, Stat. Th. 6, 782; cf.:
nubila ingenti gyro,id. ib. 1, 311.—*
B Transf., to delineate, design, depict, represent, sc. by embroidering, weaving, etc.:
Europen,Ov. M. 6, 103.—Far more freq.,
II Trop.
A In gen., to point out, mark, denote by speech; to designate, describe, represent:
haec ab hominibus callidis animadversa ac notata, verbis designata,Cic. de Or. 1, 23, 109; cf.:
affectus velut primis lineis designare,Quint. 4, 2, 120; and:
aliquem aliqua oratione,Caes. B. G. 1, 18:
notat et designat oculis ad caedem unumquemque nostrum,Cic. Cat. 1, 1, 2; cf.:
aliquem digito,Ov. Am. 3, 1, 19; 3, 6, 77:
decumam ex praeda,Liv. 5, 25:
aliquem nota ignaviae,id. 24, 16:
turpitudinem aliquam,Cic. de Or. 2, 58, 236:
quem (mundum) alio loco ipse designarit deum,id. N. D. 1, 13, 33:
multa, quae nimiam luxuriam et victoriae fiduciam designarent,Caes. B. C. 3, 96.—
B In partic.
1 In a bad sense, to contrive, devise, perpetrate (syn.:
exsequi, patrare, perpetrare—very rare): quae designata sint et facta nequitia,Plaut. Most. 2, 1, 66; cf.: Illa, quae antehac facta sunt, Omitto;
modo quid designavit!Ter. Ad. 1, 2, 7 Donat.—In a good sense:
quid non ebrietas designat,effect, do, accomplish, Hor. Ep. 1, 5, 16 Orell.—
2 With access. idea of arrangement, to dispose, regulate, arrange, appoint, ordain, nominate, elect, choose:
constituere et designare aliquid,Cic. Div. 1, 38, 82:
Anaxagoras primus omnium rerum descriptionem et modum mentis infinitae vi ac ratione designari et confici voluit,to be designed and executed, id. N. D. 1, 11; cf. id. ib. 3, 35.—Esp., to appoint to a public office:
aliquem praetorem,Suet. Cal. 18:
Mamertinum Consulem,Amm. 21, 12, 25:
ut ii decemviratum habeant, quos plebs designaverit: oblitus est, nullos ab plebe designari,Cic. Agr. 2, 10 fin.:
Catilina in proximum annum consulatum petebat, sperans si designatus foret, etc.,Sall. C. 26.—Hence,
b Polit. t. t.: dēsig-nātus, elect; applied to a person elected to an office, but who has not yet entered upon it:
consul,Cic. Fam. 11, 6; Vell. 2, 58, and the superscriptions of letters in Cic. Fam. 11, 4-8:
tribunus plebis,id. Agr. 2, 5, 11; id. Att. 3, 13; Sall. J. 27, 2:
quaestor,Vell. 2, 111, 3 et saep.—Also, said of the office itself:
Pompeio consulatus designatus est,Gell. 14, 7, 1.—
(b) Transf., expected; of a child not yet born:
designatus civis,Cic. Clu. 11, 32.