dē-spĭcĭo — Lewis & Short
dē-spĭcĭo, exi, ectum, 3 (
I inf. perf. despexe, Plaut. Mil. 2, 6, 72), v. n. and a.
I To look down upon any thing (for syn. cf.: contemno, sperno, aspernor).
A Lit. (mestly poet.).
(a) Neutr.: ad te per impluvium tuum, Plaut. Mil. 2, 6, 72; 2, 3, 16:
de vertice montis in valles,Ov. M. 11, 504:
a summo caelo in aequora,id. A. A. 2, 87:
medios in agros,id. M. 1, 601:
in vias,Hor. Od. 3, 7, 30 al.—Absol.:
vultus suspicientis et despicientis,Plin. 35, 8, 34, § 56.—Pass. impers.:
colles, qua despici poterat,Caes. B. G. 7, 36, 2; Liv. 44, 6; Amm. 19, 5.—
(b) Act.:
si quis Pacuviano invehens curru multas et varias gentis et urbis despicere et oculis conlustrare possit,Cic. Rep. 3, 9, 14:
Juppiter aethere summo Despiciens mare velivolum terrasque jacentis, etc.,Verg. A. 1, 224 (v. Conington ad loc.); cf. Ov. M. 2, 178; id. F. 4, 569:
e tumulis subjectam urbem,Sil. 12, 488:
culmine cuncta,Luc. 5, 251:
cavā montis convalle,Verg. G. 2, 187 (Forb. ad loc.):
quos (populos) despicit Arctos,Luc. 1, 458.—(Acc. to Lachm. ad Lucr. vol. 2, p. 236, despicio with acc. always has the trop. force, to despise; and in all these passages should be read dispicere; and so Rib. in Verg., Munro ad Lucr. 4, 418; cf. dispicio.)—
B Trop. as v. act., to look down upon, to despise, disdain (class. and very freq. —syn.:
contemnere, spernere): ut omnes despiciat, ut hominem prae se neminem putet,Cic. Rosc. Am. 46 fin.; cf. id. Fin. 3, 18 fin.; id. Rep. 1, 17:
divitias (with contemnere honores),id. Lael. 23:
suos,Caes. B. C. 3, 59, 3;
ipsos,id. B. G. 1, 13, 5:
legionem propter paucitatem,id. ib. 3, 2, 3; cf.
copias,id. B. C. 3, 23; 87:
paucitatem militum,id. ib. 3, 111; id. B. G. 6, 39 fin.:
ullum laborem aut munus,to disdain, decline, shun, id. B. C. 3, 8 fin. et saep.:
dum despicis omnes,Verg. E. 8, 32; Ov. M. 9, 438 et saep.—In part. perf.:
homines despecti et contempti,Cic. Sest. 40, 87; cf.:
huic despecto saluti fuit,Nep. Thras. 2, 2 (corresp. with contemptus and contemnentibus).—Partic. with the gen.:
despiciens sui,Cic. de Or. 2, 89 extr.; and poet.:
despectus taedae,Sil. 8, 54.—*
II To look away, not to regard, not to attend:
simul atque ille despexerit,Cic. Rosc. Am. 8, 22.— Hence, P. a., dēspectus, a, um, contemptible, despicable:
natura ejus,Tac. A. 13, 47: Euphrates, ingens modo, inde tenuis rivus, despectus emoritur, Mela, 3, 8, 5.—Comp.: improbos despectiores facere, Boëth. Cons. Phil. 3, pros. 4, p. 47 Obbar.