(verb) : dif-fĕro, distŭli, dīlātum, differre (
* Inf. differrier, Lucr. 1, 1088. In tmesi: disque tulissent,Plaut. Trin. 4, 1, 14), and n.
* Act., to carry different ways; to spread abroad, scatter, disperse, separate (cf.: reicere, proferre, procrastinare, producere, ampliare, prorogare—class.).
* Lit.: scintillas agere ac late differre favillam,Lucr. 2, 675; cf.: favillam longe (ventus),id. 6, 692: nubila (vis venti),id. 1, 273; Verg. G. 3, 197: ignem (ventus),Caes. B. C. 2, 14, 2: casae venti magnitudine ignem distulerunt,id. B. G. 5, 43, 2: majorem partem classis (vis Africi),Vell. 2, 79, 2: rudentes fractosque remos (Eurus),Hor. Epod. 10, 6 et saep.; cf. Plaut. Trin. 4, 1, 14: nos cum scapha tempestas dextrovorsum Differt ab illis,id. Rud. 2, 3, 39; cf. Lucr. 1, 1088: cytisum, to plant apart, in separate rows = disserere, digerere, Varr. R. R. 1, 43; Col. 11, 3, 30 sq.; 38; 42 al.; cf.: ulmos in versum,Verg. G. 4, 144: ut formicae frustillatim (te) differant,Plaut. Curc. 4, 4, 20; cf.: insepulta membra (lupi),Hor. Epod. 5, 99; and: Mettum in diversa (quadrigae),Verg. A. 8, 643.
* Neut., to differ, be different (esp. freq. since the Ciceron. period—cf.: discrepare, distare, interesse): qui re consentientes vocabulis differebant,Cic. Fin. 4, 2 fin.; cf.: naturis differunt, voluntate autem similes sunt,id. de Or. 2, 23: verbo differre, re esse unum, id. Caecin. 21, 59: distare aliquid aut ex aliqua parte differre,id. ib. 14: nihil aut non fere multum differre,id. Brut. 40 fin.: paulum differre,id. Agr. 2, 31, 85 et saep.: nec quicquam differre, utrumne ... an, etc.,Hor. S. 2, 3, 251; cf.: quid enim differt, barathrone Dones quicquid habes, an? etc.,id. ib. 166.
* To distract, disquiet, disturb a person (only ante-class.): vorsor in amoris rota miser, Exanimor, feror, differor, distrahor, diripior, Plaut. Cist. 2, 1, 5: differor clamore,id. Ep. 1, 2, 15: cupidine ejus,id. Poen. 1, 1, 28; cf.: amore istius,id. Mil. 4, 4, 27: laetitia,id. Truc. 4, 1, 3: doloribus,Ter. Ad. 3, 4, 40.—Less freq. act.: aliquem dictis,to confound,Plaut. Ps. 1, 3, 125; cf. Ter. And. 2, 4, 5 Ruhnk.
* To spread abroad, publish, divulge; with a personal object, to cry down, to defame (mostly anteclass. and post-Aug.; not in Cic., Caes., or Sall.).
* With acc. rei: cum de me ista foris sermonibus differs, Lucil. ap. Non. 284, 16; cf.: rumores famam differant licebit nosque carpant,Varr. ib. 18: commissam libertatem populo Rom. sermonibus,Liv. 34, 49: promissum jus anulorum fama distulit,Suet. Caes. 33.—With acc. and inf.: ne mi hanc famam differant, Me dedidisse, etc.,Plaut. Trin. 3, 2, 63; Ter. Heaut. prol. 16; Nep. Dion. 10; Val. Fl. 1, 753.—With quasi and dependent clause: rumore ab obtrectatoribus dilato, quasi eundem mox et discruciatum necasset,Suet. Aug. 14 et saep.—Pass. impers.: quo pertinuit differri etiam per externos, tamquam veneno interceptus esset,Tac. A. 3, 12; cf. id. ib. 4, 25.
* With reference to time, to defer, put off, protract, delay any thing; with a personal object also to put off, amuse with promises, get rid of (class. and very freq.).
* With acc. rei: cetera praesenti sermoni reserventur: hoc tamen non queo differre, etc.,Cic. Q. Fr. 2, 8: differre quotidie ac procrastinare rem,id. Rosc. Am. 9 fin.: saepe vadimonia,id. Quint. 5 fin.: iter in praesentia,Caes. B. C. 3, 85, 4: pleraque (with omittere in praesens tempus),Hor. A. P. 44: distulit ira sitim,Ov. M. 6, 366 et saep.: differri jam hora non potest,Cic. Phil. 6, 7, 19: tempus,id. ib. 8, 8; id. Prov. Cons. 11 fin.; Liv. 3, 46; Ov. M. 1, 724 al.: diem de die,Liv. 25, 25 et saep.—With inf.: quaerere distuli,Hor. Od. 4, 4, 21; so Liv. 42, 2 (but not Suet. Caes. 81, where agere belongs to proposuerat, cf. id. Aug. 72; id. Calig. 49).—With quin: nihil dilaturi, quin periculum summae rerum facerent,Liv. 6, 22 fin.; so Suet. Caes. 4; with in and acc.: reliqua in crastinum,Cic. Rep. 2, 44 fin.: in posterum diem,id. Deiot. 7, 21; cf. Caes. B. C. 1, 65 fin.: in posterum,Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 32; Caes. B. G. 7, 11, 5: in aliud tempus,Cic. Brut. 87; Caes. B. C. 1, 86, 2: in adventum tuum,Cic. Fam. 2, 3 fin.: diem edicti in a. d. IV. Kal. Dec.,id. Phil. 3, 8, 20: curandi tempus in annum,Hor. Ep. 1, 2, 39 et saep. —Poet.: tropaea in pueros suos,to reserve for,Prop. 4, 6, 82.—Rarely with ad: aliquid ad crudelitatis tempus,Cic. Vat. 11 fin.; cf. the foll.
* With acc. pers.: sin autem differs me in tempus aliud,Cic. Fam. 5, 12, 10; Liv. 26, 51; 41, 8: differri non posse adeo concitatos animos,id. 7, 14: dilatus per frustrationem,id. 25, 25; cf.: aliquem variis frustrationibus,Just. 9, 6 fin.: Campanos,Liv. 26, 33: aliquem petentem,Suet. Vesp. 23 Ern.: caros amicos (opp. properare),Mart. 13, 55 et saep.— Poet.: vivacem anum, to preserve alive, i. e. to postpone her death, Ov. M. 13, 519; cf.: decimum dilatus in annum (belli) Hector erat,id. ib. 12, 76: aliquem in spem impetrandi tandem honoris,Liv. 39, 32: aliquem in septimum diem,Suet. Tib. 32; id. Caes. 82 Oud.; id. Aug. 44 fin. et saep.— Rarely with ad: legati ad novos magistratus dilati,Liv. 41, 8: aliquem ad finem muneris,Suet. Vit. 12: quas (legationes) par tim dato responso ex itinere dimisit, partim distulit Tarraconem,Liv. 26, 51.—Once with post: aliquid post bellum differre,Liv. 4, 6, 4.
* Absol. Prov.: differ; habent parvae commoda magna morae,Ov. F. 3, 394.
* With ab: ita ut pauxillum differat a cavillulis,Plaut. Truc. 3, 2, 18: quidnam esset illud, quo ipsi (poëtae) differrent ab oratoribus,Cic. Or. 19, 66; id. Off. 1, 27 fin.: quid hoc ab illo differt?id. Caecin. 14: non multum ab hostili expugnatione,id. de Imp. Pomp. 5 fin.: multum a Gallica consuetudine,Caes. B. G. 5, 14; cf. ib. 6, 21; 6, 28, 5: hoc fere ab reliquis differunt, quod, etc.,id. ib. 6, 18, 3 et saep.
* With inter (esp. impers.): si nihil inter deum et deum differt,Cic. N. D. 1, 29, 80; id. Off. 1, 28, 99; id. Fin. 4, 25, 70: nequid inter privatum et magistratum differat,id. Rep. 1, 43: ut non multum differat inter summos et mediocres viros,id. Off. 2, 8, 30: multa sunt alia, quae inter locum et locum plurimum differunt (for which, shortly before, inter locorum naturas quantum intersit), id. Fat. 4: haec cogitatione inter se differunt, re quidem copulata sunt,id. Tusc. 4, 11: inter se aliqua re, id. Opt. gen. 2, 6; id. N. D. 1, 7, 16; Caes. B. G. 1, 1, 2; 6, 11, 1; Quint. 12, 10, 22; 34; 67 et saep.: quae quidem inter se plurimum differunt,id. 5, 14, 27.
* Rarely with cum: occasio cum tempore hoc differt,Cic. Inv. 1, 27: hoc genus causae cum superiore hoc differt, quod, etc.,id. ib. 2, 30, 92 Orell. N. cr.—(ε) Likewise rarely, differre in aliqua re, Lucr. 3, 314; Nep. Ages. 7 fin.—(ζ) Rarely, and only poet. or in post-Aug. prose, with dat.: quod pede certo Differt sermoni sermo merus,Hor. S. 1, 4, 48: tragico differre colori,id. A. P. 236; Quint. 2, 21, 10; Plin. 9, 35, 54, § 107; cf. id. 9, 8, 7, § 23.—Hence, diffĕ-rens, entis, P. a., different, superior: differentius nomen,a more excellent name,Vulg. Heb. 1, 4; in Quintilian subst. n. (opp. proprium), a difference, Quint. 5, 10, 55; 58; 6, 3, 66; 7, 3, 3; 25 sq.—*Adv.: diffĕren-ter, differently, Sol. 1.

s. TLL