to smooth the brow

frons (also anciently fruns; plur. frundes, Enn. Ann. 266 Vahl.; cf. Charis. p. 105 P.—Also in nom. fros or frus, Varr. ib.; Enn. v in the foll.; cf. Prisc. p. 554 P.; and FRONDIS, acc. to Serv. Verg. G. 2, 372), dis, f. [etym. dub.], a leafy branch, green bough, foliage.

Lit. (class.; in sing. and plur.; syn. folium).

Sing.: populea frus, Enn. ap. Aus. Technop. (Edyll. 5) 158 sq. (id. Ann. v. 562 Vahl.):

ilignea, quernea,

Cato, R. R. 37, 2:

in nemoribus, ubi virgulta et frons multa,

Varr. R. R. 2, 5, 11:

bobus praestabit vilicus frondem,

Col. 11, 3, 101: alta frons decidit, Varr. ap. Non. 486, 13:

ne caules allii in frondem luxurient,

Plin. 19, 6, 34, § 113:

perenni frunde corona,

Lucr. 1, 119:

nigrae feraci frondis in Algido,

Hor. C. 4, 4, 58:

sine fronde,

Ov. Tr. 3, 10, 75:

immaturam destringere,

Quint. 12, 6, 2.—

Plur.: russescunt frundes, Enn. ap. Charis. p. 105 P. (Ann. v. 266 Vahl.):

deserta via et inculta atque interclusa jam frondibus et virgultis relinquatur,

Cic. Cael. 18, 42:

viminibus salices fecundi, frondibus ulmi,

Verg. G. 2, 446:

frondibus teneris non adhibendam esse falcem,

Quint. 2, 4, 11:

bovemque Disjunctum curas et strictis frondibus exples,

Hor. Ep. 1, 14, 28; id. C. 3, 18, 14.—

Poet. transf., a garland made of leafy boughs, a garland of leaves, leafy chaplet: donec Alterutrum velox victoria fronde coronet, Hor. Ep. 1, 18, 64; so in sing., id. C. 4, 2, 36; id. Ep. 2, 1, 110:

nos delubra deum festa velamus fronde,

Verg. A. 2, 249; 5, 661; Ov. M. 1, 449; 565; id. A. A. 1, 108.—In plur., Ov. F. 1, 711; 3, 482.

frons, frontis, f. ( masc., Cato ap. Gell. 15, 9, 5; and ap. Fest. s. v. recto, p. 286, b, Müll.; Plaut. Mil. 2, 2, 46 Ritschl, N. cr.; id. ap. Non. 205, 4; Caecil. ap. Gell. 15, 9, 3; Vitr. 10, 17) [cf. Sanscr. brhū; Gr. ophrus; Germ. Braue; Engl. brow; v. Curt. Gr. Etym. p. 296], the forehead, brow, front (syn.: vultus, os, facies).

Lit.:

frons et aliis (animalibus), sed homini tantum tristitiae, hilaritatis, clementiae, severitatis index: in adsensu ejus supercilia homini et pariter et alterna mobilia,

Plin. 11, 37, 51, § 138:

tanta erat gravitas in oculo, tanta contractio frontis, ut illo supercilio res publica, tamquam Atlante caelum, niti videretur,

Cic. Sest. 8, 19: frontem contrahere, to contract or knit the brows, id. Clu. 26, 72; Hor. S. 2, 2, 125;

for which, adducere,

Sen. Ben. 1, 1:

attrahere,

id. ib. 6, 7: remittere frontem, to smooth the brow, i. e. to cheer up, Plin. Ep. 2, 5, 5;

for which: exporge frontem,

Ter. Ad. 5, 3, 53; cf.:

primum ego te porrectiore fronte volo mecum loqui,

Plaut. Cas. 2, 4, 3:

explicare,

Hor. C. 3, 29, 16;

solvere,

Mart. 14, 183: ut frontem ferias, smitest thy forehead (as a sign of vexation), Cic. Att. 1, 1, 1; cf.:

nulla perturbatio animi, nulla corporis, frons non percussa, non femur,

id. Brut. 80, 278:

femur, pectus, frontem caedere,

Quint. 2, 12, 10:

frontem sudario tergere,

id. 6, 3, 60;

for which: siccare frontem sudario,

id. 11, 3, 148:

capillos a fronte retroagere,

id. ib. 160:

mediam ferro gemina inter tempora frontem Dividit,

Verg. A. 9, 750:

quorundam capita per medium frontis et verticis mucrone distincta, in utrumque humerum pendebant,

Amm. 31, 7, 14:

insignem tenui fronte Lycorida (a small forehead was regarded as a beauty by the ancients),

Hor. C. 1, 33, 5; cf. id. Ep. 1, 7, 26; Petr. 126; Mart. 4, 42, 9; Arn. 2, 72.—Of the forehead of animals:

est bos cervi figura: cujus a media fronte, etc.,

Caes. B. G. 6, 26, 1:

tauri torva fronte,

Plin. 8, 45, 70, § 181:

equi,

Ov. Tr. 5, 9, 30:

ovis,

id. F. 4, 102:

cui (haedo) frons turgida cornibus Primis,

Hor. C. 3, 13, 4:

(vitulus) Fronte curvatos imitatus ignes lunae,

id. ib. 4, 2, 57.—In plur., Lucr. 5, 1034. —

The brow as a mirror of the feelings:

non solum ex oratione, sed etiam ex vultu et oculis et fronte, ut aiunt, meum erga te amorem perspicere potuisses,

Cic. Att. 14, 13, B, 1; cf. Q. Cic. Petit. Cons. 11, 44; and:

homines fronte et oratione magis, quam ipso beneficio reque capiuntur,

expression of countenance, id. ib. 12, 46:

si verum tum, cum verissima fronte, dixerunt, nunc mentiuntur,

Cic. Rab. Post. 12, 35:

haec ipsa fero equidem fronte et vultu bellissime, sed angor intimis sensibus,

id. Att. 5, 10, 3: frons, oculi, vultus persaepe mentiuntur;

oratio vero saepissime,

id. Q. F. 1, 1, 5, § 15; cf.:

oculi, supercilia, frons, vultus denique totus, qui sermo quidam tacitus mentis est, hic in fraudem homines impulit,

id. Pis. 1, 1; id. Fam. 1, 9, 17:

fronte occultare sententiam,

id. Lael. 18, 65:

tranquilla et serena,

id. Tusc. 3, 15, 31; cf.:

reliquiae pristinae frontis,

id. Fam. 9, 10, 2:

laeta,

Verg. A. 6, 862:

sollicita,

Hor. C. 3, 29, 16:

tristis,

Tib. 2, 3, 33:

gravis,

Plin. Pan. 41, 3:

humana, lenis, placida,

Sen. Ben. 2, 13:

inverecunda,

Quint. 2, 4, 16:

proterva,

Hor. C. 2, 5, 16:

urbana (i. e. impudens),

id. Ep. 1, 9, 11:

impudens, proterva, Aug. Op. imperf. c. Jul. 6, 21: impudentissima,

id. ib. 26; cf.:

impudentia frontis,

Hier. adv. Rufin. 1, 7:

fronte inverecunda nummos captare,

Val. Max. 8, 2, 2.—In plur.:

si populo grata est tabella, quae frontes aperit hominum, mentes tegat,

Cic. Planc. 6, 16.—

Prov.:

frons occipitio prior est,

i. e. better work before the master's face than behind his back, Cato, R. R. 4; Plin. 18, 5, 6, § 31.—

Transf

The forepart of any thing, the front, façade, van (opp. tergum and latus):

copias ante frontem castrorum struit,

Caes. B. C. 3, 37, 1:

aedium,

Vitr. 3, 2:

parietum,

id. 2, 8:

januae,

Ov. F. 1, 135:

scena,

Verg. G. 3, 24:

(navium),

id. A. 5, 158:

pontis,

Hirt. B. G. 8, 9, 4:

collis ex utraque parte lateris dejectus habebat, et in frontem leniter fastigatus, etc.,

Caes. B. G. 2, 8; 7, 23: intervallum justum arborum quadrageni pedes in terga frontemque, in latera viceni, Plin. 17, 23, 35, § 202; cf. Quint. 1, 10, 43:

octo cohortes in fronte constituit,

Sall. C. 59, 2:

quatuor legionum aquilae per frontem,

Tac. H. 2, 89:

una fronte contra hostem castra muniunt,

only in front, Caes. B. C. 1, 80, 2 Herz.:

aequa fronte ad pugnam procedebat,

Liv. 36, 44, 1:

nec tamen aequari frontes poterant, cum extenuando infirmam mediam aciem haberent,

id. 5, 38, 2:

recta fronte concurrere hosti (opp. in dextrum cornu),

Curt. 4, 13 med.; cf.:

directa fronte pugnandum est,

Quint. 5, 13, 11:

veritus ne simul in frontem simul et latera suorum pugnaretur,

Tac. Agr. 35:

transisse aestuaria pulchrum ac decorum in frontem (i. e. fronti),

for the front, the van, id. ib. 33: dextra fronte prima legio incessit, on the right front, i. e. on the right wing, id. H. 2, 24 fin.:

laeva,

Claud. in Ruf. 2, 174; cf.:

frons laevi cornu haec erat,

Curt. 4, 13 fin. — Poet. transf., of clouds:

ut non tam concurrere nubes Frontibus adversis possint quam de latere ire,

Lucr. 6, 117;

of a precipice: Fronte sub adversa scopulis pendentibus antrum,

Verg. A. 1, 166.—Esp. freq.: a fronte, in front, before (opp. a tergo and a latere):

a tergo, a fronte, a lateribus tenebitur, si in Galliam venerit,

Cic. Phil. 3, 13, 32:

a fronte atque ab utroque latere cratibus ac pluteis protegebat,

Caes. B. C. 1, 25 fin.:

totis fere a fronte et ab sinistra parte nudatis castris,

id. B. G. 2, 23, 4. —

The outer end of a book-roll or volume, Tib. 3, 1, 13; Ov. Tr. 1, 1, 11.—

The circumference of a wheel, Vitr. 10, 4.—

In measuring land = latitudo, the breadth:

mille pedes in fronte, trecentos cippus in agrum Hic dabat,

Hor. S. 1, 8, 12; Inscr. Orell. 4558; 4560.—

Trop.

The outside, exterior, external quality, appearance (cf. species and facies;

mostly post-Aug.): Pompeius Scauro studet: sed utrum fronte an mente, dubitatur,

Cic. Att. 4, 15, 7:

plus habet in recessu, quam fronte promittat,

Quint. 1, 4, 2; 11, 1, 61; cf.:

frons causae non satis honesta,

id. 4, 1, 42 Spald.:

decipit Frons prima multos,

the first appearance, Phaedr. 4, 2, 6; cf.:

dura primā fronte quaestio,

Quint. 7, 1, 56:

ex prima statim fronte dijudicare imprudentium est,

id. 12, 7, 8.—

The character or feelings expressed by the brow.

Poet. in partic., shame:

exclamet perisse Frontem de rebus,

Pers. 5, 104 (for which:

clament periisse pudorem,

Hor. Ep. 2, 1, 80).—

Impudence, boldness (late Lat.; cf.

os),

Aug. Civ. D. 3, 30.