I.perf. subj.: defexit, an old formula in Liv. 1, 24 fin., see below, no. III. fin. In the pass., besides the regular form deficior, ante- and postclass., once in Verg., Propert., and Livy, like fīo, eri: defit, Enn. ap. Cic. Tusc. 3, 19; Plaut. Mil. 4, 6, 46; Ter. Eun. 2, 2, 12; Lucr. 2, 1142; Verg. E. 2, 22; Prop. 1, 1, 34: “deflunt,” Gell. 20, 8, 5: “defiat,” Plaut. Men. 1, 4, 3; id. Rud. 4, 4, 63: “defiet,” Liv. 9, 11: “defieri,” Ter. Hec. 5, 2, 2; cf. conficio init.), v. a. and n. facio, orig., to loosen, set free, remove from; but it passed over at a very early period into the middle sense, to loosen from one's self, to remove one's self, to break loose from; and then gradually assumed the character of a new verb. act., with the meaning to leave, desert, depart from something, or absol., to depart, cease, fail. (For syn. cf.: desum, absum, descisco, negligo.)
I. Act. in the middle sense, to remove one's self, separate one's self, to withdraw (cf. the Greek ἀφιστάναι).—Hence, to forsake, desert, abandon, revolt.
A. Lit.: “ab amicitia P. R.,” Caes. B. G. 5, 3, 3; 7, 39, 3: “ab Aeduis,” id. ib. 2, 14, 3: “ab rege,” Sall. J. 56, 3; cf. ib. 66: “(consules) a senatu, a republica, a bonis omnibus defecerant,” Cic. Planc. 35; cf.: “a republica,” id. Cat. 11, 28; id. Fam. 12, 10; id. Sull. 12, 35: “ab imperio ac nomine nostro,” Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 31 et saep.: “a patribus ad plebem,” to go over, Liv. 6, 20: “ad se,” Sall. J. 61; cf.: “ad Poenos,” Liv. 22, 61.—Absol.: “civitates quae defecerant,” Caes. B. G. 3, 17, 2; 5, 25, 4; 7, 10 al.—
B. Trop.: “si a virtute defeceris,” forsake, Cic. Lael. 11, 37: “si utilitas ab amicitia defecerit,” id. Fin. 2, 24, 79: “ut a me ipse deficerem,” id. Fam. 2, 16.—Hence,
II. As a verb. act., to leave a person or thing, to desert, to fail, forsake, be wanting to (of things; “very rarely of personal subjects): quem jam sanguis viresque deficiunt,” Caes. B. G. 7, 50 fin.; so, “vires,” id. B. C. 3, 99 fin.; Cic. de Or. 1, 45, 199: “me Leontina civitas,” Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 46, § 110; id. ib. 2, 5, 28 fin.; Hor. S. 2, 1, 13 et saep.: “res eos jam pridem, fides deficere nuper coepit,” Cic. Cat. 2, 5, 10: “me dies, vox, latera deficiant, si, etc.,” Cic. Verr. 2, 2, 21 (imitated word for word, Plin. Ep. 3, 9, 9); cf.: “ne te de republica disserentem deficiat oratio,” Cic. Rep. 1, 23; and: “tempus te citius quam oratio deficeret,” id. Rosc. Am. 32: “animus si te non deficit aequus,” Hor. Ep. 1, 11, 30: “somnus sollicitas domus,” Tib. 3, 4, 20: genitor Phaethontis orbem, i. e. is eclipsed (cf. III. B. infra), Ov. M. 2, 382.—Poet. with a subject-clause: nec me deficiet nautas rogitare citatos, i. e. I will not cease, etc. Prop. 1, 8, 23 Kuin.—
b. Pass.: “cum aquilifer jam viribus deficeretur,” Caes. B. C. 3, 64, 3; cf.: “mulier a menstruis defecta,” Cels. 2, 8 fin.: “mulier abundat audacia, consilio et ratione deficitur,” Cic. Clu. 65, 184: “aqua ciboque defecti,” Quint. 3, 8, 23; Plin. Ep. 2, 17, 25: “sanguine defecti artus,” Ov. M. 5, 96 et saep.: “si qui dotem promisit defectus sit facultatibus,” i. e. unable to pay, Dig. 23, 3, 33; cf.: “te defecta nomina,” ib. 22, 1, 11 fin.—
III. Middle or neuter, to run out, be wanting, fail, cease, disappear.
A. Middle (mostly ante-class. and poet.).
(α).
With dat.: mihi fortuna magis nunc defit, quam genus, Enn. ap. Cic. Tusc. 3, 19; Ter. Hec. 5, 2, 2: “lac mihi non aestate novum, non frigore defit,” Verg. E. 2, 22.—
(β).
Absol.: “neque opsonium defiat neque supersit,” Plaut. Men. 1, 4, 3; “so opp. superesse,” Ter. Ph. 1, 3, 10: “ut defiat dies,” Plaut. Rud. 4, 4, 63: id. Mil. 4, 6, 46: “numquamne causa defiet, cur? etc.,” Liv. 9, 11.—Trop.: “defectis (sc. animo) defensoribus,” disheartened, Caes. B. C. 3, 40, 3: “sed non usque eo defectum Germanicum,” weakened, Tac. A. 2, 70; cf. in the foll. no. B. β.—
B. Neuter.
(α).
With dat. (so rarely; mostly poet.): “cum non solum vires, sed etiam tela nostris deficerent,” Caes. B. G. 3, 5, 1; “so perh.: vires nostris,” id. B. C. 2, 41, 7 (al. nostros); Sil. 8, 661 Oud. N. cr.; cf. id. 10, 10, 193; and Stat. Ach. 1, 445.—
(β).
Absol. (freq. in all periods and kinds of composition): “non frumentum deficere poterat,” Caes. B. C. 2, 37 fin.; cf.: “fructus ex arboribus,” id. ib. 3, 58 fin.: “ejus generis copia,” id. B. G. 6, 16 fin.: “tempus anni ad bellum gerendum,” id. ib. 4, 20, 2: “vereor, ne mihi crimina non suppeterent, ne oratio deesset, ne vox viresque deficerent,” Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 11: “nisi memoria forte defecerit,” id. Fin. 2, 14, 44; id. Rep. 1, 3: “non deficiente crumena,” Hor. Ep. 1, 4, 11 et saep.; Juv. 11, 38: “quod plena luna defecisset,” was eclipsed, Cic. Rep. 1, 15; cf.: “solem lunae oppositum solere deficere,” id. ib. 1, 16 al.; also simply to set: “qua venit exoriens, qua deficit,” Prop. 4, 4, 27: lunā deficiente, waning (opp. crescente), Gell. 20, 8, 5; of fire and light, to go out, expire, become extinct: “ignis,” Verg. G. 352: “lumen,” Petr. 111, 4: “progenies Caesarum in Nerone deficit,” becomes extinct, dies out, Suet. Galb. 1; cf. Plin. Pan. 39, 6; Just. 7, 2, 4; Sen. Suas. 2, 22; “but deficit ignis,” does not extend, Verg. A. 2, 505: “in hac voce defecit,” he departed, expired, Suet. Aug. 99; Quint. 6 prooem. § 11: deficit omne quod nascitur, comes to an end, Quint. 5, 10, 79; cf.: “mundum deficere,” id. ib.: “deficit vita,” Plaut. Asin. 3, 3, 19; “quod multi Gallicis tot bellis defecerant,” had been lost, Caes. B. C. 3, 2 fin.: “ultima jam passi comites bello Deficiunt,” grow faint, Ov. M. 14, 483: “deficit Matho,” fails, becomes bankrupt, Juv. 7, 129: “debitores,” Dig. 49, 14, 3, § 8: “munimenta defecerant,” yielded, surrendered, Curt. 4, 4, 19.—Trop.: “ne negotio desisteret neu animo deficeret,” nor be disheartened, Caes. B. C. 3, 112 fin.; so, “animo,” id. B. G. 7, 30; id. B. C. 1, 19; 2, 43; Cic. Rosc. Am. 4, 10; “for which, ne deficiant (apes) animum,” Varr. R. R. 3, 16, 34; and in a like sense absol.: “ne una plaga accepta patres conscripti conciderent, ne deficerent,” Cic. Att. 1, 16, 9; so Caes. B. C. 2, 31 fin.; Sall. J. 51, 4: “deficit ars,” Ov. M. 11, 537: illis legibus populus Romanus prior non deficiet: si prior defexit publico consilio dolo malo, tu illo die, Juppiter, etc., to depart from, violate the conditions of a treaty, an old formula used in taking an oath, Liv. 1, 24 fin.: “pugnando deficere,” i. e. to be deficient, wanting, Caes. B. C. 2, 6, 3; cf. poet. with foll. inf.: “suppeditare Materies,” Lucr. 1, 1039; Sil. 3, 112; Tib. 4, 1, 191.— Hence, dēfectus , a, um, P. a. (acc. to no. III.), weak, weakened, worn out, enfeebled (not ante-Aug.): “quod sibi defectis illa tulisset opem,” Ov. F. 3, 674: “defectus annis et desertus viribus,” Phaedr. 1, 21, 3; cf.: “defectissimus annis et viribus,” Col. 1 prooem. § 12:“ senio (arbor),” id. 5, 6, 37: “laboribus,” Val. Fl. 2, 285: “vadit incerto pede, jam viribus defecta,” Sen. Hippol. 374: “defectae senectutis homine,” Dig. 7, 1, 12, § 3: “in tumidis et globosis (speculis) omnia defectiora (corresp. with paria and auctiora),” smaller, App. Mag. p. 283.—Plur. subst.: dēfecti , ōrum, m.: “sidera obscura attributa defectis,” the weak, Plin. 2, 8, 6, § 28.
