seize beforehand

prae-cĭpĭo, cēpi, ceptum, 3, v. a. [capio], to take or seize beforehand, to get or receive in advance (class., esp. in the trop. sense; syn.: anticipo, praeoccupo).

Lit.

In gen., Lucr. 6, 1050:

nisi aquam praecepimus ante,

id. 6, 804:

a publicanis pecuniam insequentis anni mutuam praeceperat,

Caes. B. C. 3, 31:

aliquantum viae,

to get the start somewhat, Liv. 36, 19:

longius spatium fugā,

id. 22, 41 fin.:

iter,

id. 3, 46:

Piraeeum quinqueremibus,

to preoccupy, id. 32, 16, 5: mons a Lusitanis praeceptus, Sall. Fragm. ap. Gell. 10, 26, 3:

si lac praeceperit aestus,

i. e. have previously dried up, Verg. E. 3, 98.—

In partic., in jurid. lang, to receive (esp. an inheritance or bequest) in advance, Plin. Ep. 5, 7, 4:

si heres centum praecipere jussus sit,

Dig. 30, 122; so ib. 36, 1, 63:

quantitatem dotis,

ib. 17, 2, 81:

dotem,

ib. 10, 2, 46:

per praeceptionem hoc modo legamus: Lucius Titius hominem Stichum praecipito,

Gai. Inst. 2, 216. —

Trop.

In gen., to take or obtain in advance, to anticipate:

aliquantum ad fugam temporis Syphax et Hasdrubal praeceperunt,

gained some advantage in time, Liv. 30, 8 fin.:

tempus,

id. 1, 7:

celeres neu praecipe Parcas,

do not hasten in advance of, do not anticipate, Stat. Th. 8, 328; so,

veneno fata praecepit,

Flor. 3, 9, 4: praecipio gaudia suppliciorum vestrorum, I rejoice in advance, Anton. ap. Cic. Phil. 13, 20, 45; Hirt. B. G. 8, 51; cf. Liv. 45, 1, 1:

jam animo victoriam praecipiebant,

figured to themselves beforehand, Caes. B. C. 3, 87 fin.; Liv. 10, 26:

spe jam praecipit hostem,

Verg. A. 11, 491: praecipere cogitatione futura, to conjecture or imagine beforehand, Cic. Off. 1, 23, 81:

omnia,

Verg. A. 6, 105; cf.:

haec usu ventura opinione praeceperat,

had already suspected, Caes. B. G. 7, 9:

sed alterum mihi est certius, nec praecipiam tamen,

Cic. Att. 10, 1, 2.—

In partic., to give rules or precepts to any one, to advise, admonish, warn, inform, instruct, teach; to enjoin, direct, bid, order, etc. (syn.:

mando, impero, doceo): vilici officia, quae dominus praecepit,

Cato, R. R. 142:

Philocomasio id praecipiendum est, ut sciat,

Plaut. Mil. 2, 2, 92:

quoi numquam unam rem me licet semel praecipere,

id. As. 2, 4, 15:

quae ego tibi praecipio, ea facito,

id. Trin. 2, 2, 17:

docui, monui, bene praecepi semper quae potui omnia,

Ter. Ad. 5, 9, 6:

quicquid praecipies, esto brevis,

Hor. A. P. 335:

de eloquentiā,

Cic. de Or. 2, 11, 48:

de agriculturā,

Plin. 18, 24, 56, § 201:

alicui aliquid praecipere,

Cic. Mur. 2, 4: glossemata nobis, Asin. Gall. ap. Suet. Gram. 22:

numerumque modumque carinis Praecipiant,

Verg. A. 11, 329:

cantus lugubres,

Hor. C. 1, 24, 2:

artem nandi,

Ov. Tr. 2, 486:

humanitatem,

Plin. Ep. 1, 10, 2, etc.:

mitem animum et mores modicis erroribus aequos Praecipit,

enjoins, recommends, Juv. 14, 16.—With inf.:

justitia praecipit, parcere omnibus,

Cic. Rep. 3, 12, 21; so,

paeoniam praecipiunt eruere noctu,

Plin. 25, 4, 10, § 29:

codicillos aperiri testator praecepit,

Dig. 31, 1, 89.—With ut:

illud potius praecipiendum fuit, ut, etc.,

Cic. Lael. 16, 60:

recte etiam praecipi potest in amicitiis, ne, etc.,

id. ib. 20, 75:

consulentibus Pythia praecepit, ut, etc.,

Nep. Milt. 1, 3.—With subj. alone:

praecipit atque interdicit, omnes unum peterent Indutiomarum,

Caes. B. G. 5, 58:

his praecepit, omnes mortales pecuniā aggrediantur,

Sall. J. 28, 1.—With acc. and inf.:

etiam scelere convictos nonnisi ad opus damnari praeceperat,

Suet. Ner. 31:

D. Claudius edicto praecepit,

decreed, commanded, Dig. 48, 10, 15. —As subst.: praecĭpĭens, entis, m., a teacher, Cic. Rep. 1, 46, 70:

jam prope consummata fuerit praecipientis opera,

Quint. 2, 6, 6:

in numero praecipientium,

id. 2, 3, 5.—Hence, praeceptum, i, n. (acc. to II. B.), a maxim, rule, precept; an order, direction, command, bidding; an injunction, etc. (class.):

quo praecepto ab iis diligentissime observato,

Caes. B. G. 5, 35:

sine praecepto ullius suā sponte struebatur acies,

Liv. 9, 31:

transvectae praecepto ducis alae,

Tac. Agr. 37:

hoc praeceptum patet latius,

Cic. Tusc. 2, 24, 58; cf.:

hoc praeceptum officii diligenter tenendum est,

id. Off. 2, 14, 51.—In plur.:

tuis monitig praeceptisque,

Cic. Fam. 5, 13, 3:

in quam (partem) praecepta nobis danda sunt,

id. Inv. 2, 17, 53; 2, 34, 105:

abundare praeceptis philosophiae,

id. Off. 1, 1, 1:

dare praecepta dicendi,

id. Brut. 76, 273; cf.

studiosis dicendi praecepta tradere,

id. Or. 41, 141:

deūm praecepta secuti,

orders, commands, Verg. G. 4, 448:

sine vi non ulla dabit (Nereus) praecepta,

id. ib. 4, 398.

prae-occŭpo, āvi, ātum, 1, v. a. (class., but not in Cic., since praecepit is the true read., Cic. Phil. 10, 1, 2).

To seize upon, to take possession of or occupy beforehand, to preoccupy.

Lit.:

hic ne intrare posset saltum, Datames praeoccupare studuit,

Nep. Dat. 7, 2:

Macedoniam,

id. Eum. 2, 4:

loca opportuna,

Liv. 44, 3; 35, 28; 42, 47:

iter,

Caes. B. C. 3, 13:

Asiam,

Vell. 2, 69, 2; cf.:

praeoccupatum sese legatione ab Cn. Pompeio,

Caes. B. C. 2, 17.—

To take, catch, detect, seize in an act:

si praeoccupatus fuerit homo in delicto,

Vulg. Gal. 6, 1.—

Trop.:

animos timor praeoccupaverat,

Caes. B. G. 6, 41, 3:

hilaritas praeoccupaverat mentes,

Petr. 113:

praeoccupati beneficio animi,

i. e. won over beforehand, Liv. 6, 20, 10:

aures,

id. 38, 10.—

To anticipate, prevent:

ne alter alterum praeoccuparet,

Nep. Dion, 4, 1.—With obj.clause (like the simpler occupare):

legem de multarum aestimatione ipsi praeoccupaverunt ferre,

hastened to bring the bill sooner before the people, Liv. 4, 30, 3.

occŭpo, āvi, ātum, 1 (occupassis for occupaveris, Plaut. Most. 5, 1, 48:

occupassit for occupaverit,

id. As. 4, 2, 9), v. a. [obcapio; lit., to lay hold of; hence], to take possession of, seize, occupy any thing (esp. a place; class.; cf.: expugno, obsideo).

Lit.:

totam Italiam suis praesidiis obsidere atque occupare cogitat,

Cic. Agr. 2, 28, 75:

locum,

id. Fin. 3, 20, 67:

possessiones,

id. Phil. 13, 5, 12:

urbes,

Liv. 33, 31:

montem,

Tac. A. 4, 47:

portum,

Hor. C. 1, 14, 2:

aditum,

to go in, enter, Verg. A. 6, 424:

regnum,

Cic. Lael. 12, 40:

tyrannidem,

id. Off. 3, 23, 90:

familiam optimam occupavit,

has got hold of, has got into, Plaut. Trin. 5, 2, 11:

occupando adquirere aliquid,

Gai. Inst. 2, 66 sqq.; cf. id. ib. 2, 215:

vindemia occupabit sementem,

shall reach to, Vulg. Lev. 26, 5.— Poet.:

aliquem amplexu,

to clasp in one's arms, to embrace, Ov. F. 3, 509.—

Transf.

To occupy, i. e. to take up, fill with any thing:

atrā nube polum,

Hor. C. 3, 29, 44:

urbem (sc. aedificiis),

Liv. 5, 55:

caementis Tyrrhenum mare,

Hor. C. 3, 24, 3.—

To fall upon, attack one with any thing (syn. invado):

Latagum saxo... Occupat os faciemque adversam,

Verg. A. 10, 699:

aliquem gladio,

id. ib. 9, 770:

aliquem morsu,

Ov. M. 3, 48:

canes ense,

Prop. 4, 4, 82 (5, 4, 84):

ne occupet te pluvia,

Vulg. 3 Reg. 18. 44: caligo, id. Job, 3, 5.— Poet., in a friendly sense, to surprise:

Volteium Philippus Vilia vendentem Occupat,

Hor. Ep. 1, 7, 64.—

To get the start of, to be beforehand with, to anticipate, to do a thing first, to outstrip:

occupat egressas quamlibet ante rates,

Ov. Tr. 1, 10, 6:

volo, tu prior ut occupes adire,

that you should present yourself the first, Plaut. Ps. 4, 1, 15:

praeloqui,

id. Rud. 1, 4, 18:

bellum facere,

to begin the war first, Liv. 1, 14:

rapere oscula,

Hor. C. 2, 12, 28.—

Trop.

To seize, take possession of, fill, invade, engross:

tantus timor omnem exercitum occupavit,

Caes. B. G. 1, 39:

tremor occupat artus,

Ov. M. 3, 40:

sopor occupat artus,

Verg. G. 4, 190:

animos magnitudine rei,

Cic. Font. 5, 20:

pallor ora,

Verg. A. 4, 499.—

To take up, occupy, employ: haec causa primos menses occupabit, Cael. ap. Cic. Fam. 8, 10, 3:

cum in mentem venit tres et sexaginta annos aeque multa volumina occupasse mihi,

Liv. 31, 1, 3:

in funambulo Animum,

Ter. Hec. prol. 1, 4:

contio, quae homines occupatos occupat,

Plaut. Men. 2, 1, 7:

tanta superstitio mentis Siculorum occupavit,

Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 51, § 113: pecuniam, to put out or lay out money:

pecuniam adulescentulo grandi fenore occupavisti,

have loaned it at a high rate, id. Fl. 21, 51:

pecunias apud populos,

id. Verr. 2, 1, 36, § 91:

pecuniam animalibus,

to lay out, invest in cattle, Col. 1, 8, 13:

pecuniam in pecore,

id. 11, 1:

argentum,

Plaut. Ep. 2, 2, 13.— Pass.:

ante occupatur animus ab iracundiā,

Cic. Q. Fr. 1, 1, 13, § 38; Liv. 22, 15, 6.—Hence, oc-cŭpātus, a, um, P. a., taken up, occupied, employed, busy, engaged (class.):

ut si occupati profuimus aliquid civibus nostris, prosimus etiam otiosi,

Cic. Tusc. 1, 3, 5:

in eo, ut,

Nep. Alc. 8, 1:

tempora,

Cic. Planc. 27, 66:

qui in patriā delendā occupati et sunt et fuerunt,

id. Off. 1, 17, 57:

hostibus opere occupatis,

Liv. 21, 45, 2: Nep. Hann. 7, 1.—Hence, married, occupatae (opp. to vacuae), Quint. Decl. 376.— Comp.: comitiorum dilationes occupatiorem me habebant, Cael. ap. Cic. Fam. 8, 4, 3.— Sup.:

non dubito, quin occupatissimus fueris,

very much occupied, Cic. Att. 12, 38, 1; Plin. Ep. 9, 21, 2.