LAT

Lewis Short

ĭnĭtĭum (noun N) : ineo
* A going in, en trance.
* A beginning, commencement (syn.: principium, exordium).
* Lit.: bonis initiis orsus tribunatus, tristes exitus habuit consulatus,id. Brut. 34, 128: initio accusationis,id. de Or. 1, 26, 121: initium capere,Caes. B. G. 1, 1: dicendi initium sumere,Cic. Leg. 2, 1, 1: facere initium confligendi,id. Phil. 14, 14, 36: caedis initium ab aliquo facere,id. ib. 5, 7, 20: male ponere initia,id. Att. 10, 18, 2: ducere ab aliqua re,id. ib. 9, 9, 2: ab initio res quem ad modum facta sint, exponemus,Cic. Rosc. Am. 5, 14: ab ultimo initio repetere, Auct. Her. 1, 9, 14: seditionem ab altiore initio repetam,Tac. H. 2, 27: quia initio caedis orto difficilis modus,id. ib. 1, 39.— Pleon.: querellae ab initio tantae ordiendae rei absint, Liv. praef. § 12; cf.: prima initia incohare,id. 3, 54, 9: primum initium certaminis,id. 6, 12, 10. — The abl. sing. is used adverbially, in the beginning, at first: quemadmodum senatus initio censuit,Cic. Fam. 1, 7, 4: redeo ad illud quod initio scripsi,id. ib. 1, 7, 5; Nep. Thras. 1, 5; id. Tim. 3, 1; id. Alc. 5, 3; Curt. 3, 8, 17 al.; cf. Zumpt, Gram. § 475.
* Secret sacred rites, sacred mysteries, to which only the initiated were admitted: initia vocantur potissimum ea, quae Cereri fiunt sacra,Varr. R. R. 3, 1, 5: initia Cereris,Liv. 31, 47, 2; cf. 39, 8, 5: nihil melius illis mysteriis, quibus ex agresti immanique vita exculti ad humanitatem et mitigati sumus, initiaque ut appellantur, ita re vera principia vitae cognovimus,Cic. Leg. 2, 14, 36; Just. 2, 6: initia Samothracum,Curt. 8, 1, 12: initiis pacis, foedus cum feritur,Varr. R. R. 2, 4, 9.
* Constituent parts, elements: inde est indagatio nata initiorum, et tamquam seminum, unde essent omnia orta, generata, concreta,Cic. Tusc. 5, 24, 69: illa initia, et, ut e Graeco vertam, elementa dicuntur ( = στοιχεῖα), id. Ac. 1, 7, 26; so of death: Augustus in sua resolutus initia,Vell. 2, 123, 3.
* First principles, elements cf a science: illa initia mathematicorum, quibus non concessis digitum progredi non possunt,Cic. Ac. 2, 36, 116.
* Beginning, origin: quomodo initium nobis rerum omnium ortus noster adferat, sic exitum mors, etc.,Cic. Tusc. 1, 38, 91: natus obscurissimis initiis,Vell. 2, 761; cf.: pauca ab initio causisque talium facinorum non absurda, which relate to the origin, etc., Tac. H. 4, 48.
* Auspices, because with them everything was begun; hence, the beginning of a reign: novis initiis et ominibus opus est,i. e. of a new king,Curt. 5, 9, 4.
* Things (musical instruments) used in celebrating these mysteries: Typanum, tubam, Cybele, tua, mater, initia,Cat. 63, 9.
Charlton T. Lewis, Charles Short, A Latin Dictionary

TLL

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Thesaurus Linguae Latinae
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