vădum — Lewis & Short
vădum, i, n. (
I masc. collat form, vă-dus, i, Varr. ap. Serv. Verg. A. 1, 111; Sall. H. 1, 68 Dietsch) [cf. the root BA, bai/nw, whence, also, vado; hence, that through which one can go], a shallow place in water, a shallow, shoal, ford.
I Lit.
1 Sing.:
Rhodanus nonnullis locis vado transitur,Caes. B. G. 1, 6; 5, 58; 7, 55:
vadum in flumine efficere,id. B. C. 1, 61:
vadum fluminis temptare, si transire possent,id. ib. 1, 83:
exercitum vado transducere,id. ib. 3, 37:
vado flumen penetrare,Tac. A. 2, 68:
vado superari amnis non poterat,Liv. 38, 13, 9; 38, 18, 7:
piscis qui vivit in vado,Cels. 2, 18:
amnis incerto vado,Tac. A. 12, 33.—
2 Piur., so esp. of a shallow place where a river is crossed, a ford:
ibi vadis repertis partem suarum copiarum transducere conati sunt,Caes. B. G. 2, 9; 1, 8; 3, 13; Liv. 26, 45, 8; 31, 1, 5; Tac. A. 2, 23; id. H. 4, 27; Lucr. 1, 200; Ov. M. 1, 370; 3, 19.—Also of shallows, as dangerous in navigation: mystica ad dextram vada Praetervecti, Att. ap. Varr. L. L. 7, 19 Müll. (Trag. Rel. v. 687 Rib.):
brevia,Verg. A. 5, 221:
caeca,id. ib. 1, 536:
dura saxis Lilybeia caecis,id. ib. 3, 706; cf.:
Nessus, scitus vadorum,Ov. M. 9, 108.—
B Transf.
1 A body of water, a sea, stream, etc. (poet.):
longā sulcant vada salsa carinā,Verg. A. 5, 158; 7, 198; Cat. 64, 58:
si tamen Non tangenda rates transiliunt vada,Hor. C. 1, 3, 24; Ov. P. 4, 9, 2; Sen. Hippol. 181 al.—
2 The bottom of a body of water, the depths (poet. and in post-Aug. prose):
saxa Vadis levata,Hor. Epod. 16, 26; Plin. 3, praef. §
4: ostrea capta solido vado,id. 32, 6, 21, § 59:
sedit limoso pressa carina vado,Ov. F. 4, 300.—
3 The bottom of a well, Phaedr. 4, 9, 12; Plin. 31, 3, 23, § 39.—
II Trop.
A Of shallow water, as a place of safety to the swimmer:
haec propemodum jam esse in vado salutis res videtur,i. e. in safety, Plaut. Aul. 4, 10, 73:
at in vado'st: jam facile enabit,id. Rud. 1, 2, 81:
omnis res est jam in vado,Ter. And. 5, 2, 4.—
B Of shallows, as dangerous to the mariner:
emersisse jam e vadis et scopulos praetervecta videtur oratio mea,Cic. Cael. 21, 51: cera vadum tentet, rasis infusa tabellis, explore the way, i. e. make a first attempt, Ov. A. A. 1, 437.