bōs, bŏvis (prob. orig. form of nom. bŏ-vis, like bovare for boare, Petr. 62, 13; cf. Varr L. L. 8, § 74 Müll., where, acc. to Cod. B., the read. should be: nunc in consuetudine aliter dicere pro Jovis Juppiter, pro Bovis Bos, pro Strus Strues.
Hence, gen. plur. bŏvĕrum, Cato, R. R. 62 Schneid. N. cr.; cf. Varr. L. L. l. l.: alios dicere Boum greges, alios Boverum; v. Juppiter, nux, rex, sus, and Schneid. Gr. 2, p. 171.
Regular gen. boum very freq.; uncontracted form bovum, Cic. Rep. 2, 9, 16 Halm; Cod. Sang. Colum. 6, 17, 6; 6, 37, 11, and Cod. Reg. ib. 6, 38, 4; cf. Prisc. p. 773 P.
Dat. plur. contr. bōbus, Hor. C. 3, 6, 43; id. C. S. 49; id. Epod. 2, 3; Cic. N. D. 2, 63, 159, twice; cf. Prisc. p. 773 sq. P.; but more freq. and class. būbus, even Cato, R. R. 6, 3; 54, 1; 54, 60; 54, 70; 54, 73; once bŭbŭs, Aus. Epigr. 62, 2; cf. on the other hand, Serv. ad Verg. E. 8, 86.
Exs. of the uncontracted form bovibus are entirely. wanting; v. Neue, Formenl. 1, 280 sqq.; 1, 289), comm.; generally masc. in prose (hence, femina bos, Varr. R. R. 2, 1, 17; Liv. 25, 12, 13; 27, 37, 11; Col. 6, 24, 3; Plin. 8, 46, 71, § 186; Tac. G. 40) [from the root bo-, prop. the roaring, kindr. with Gr. βοῦς, βῶς; Sanscr. gō, gu].
- I. An ox, a bull, a cow; described by Plin. 8, 45, 70, § 176 sq.; Cato, R. R. 70 sq.; Varr. R. R. 1, 20, 1; 2, 1, 12 sq.; 2, 5, 7.
In gen.: quia boves bini hic sunt in crumenā, i. e. the price of them, Plaut. Pers. 2, 5, 16: Olympiae per stadium ingressus esse Milo dicitur, cum umeris sustineret bovem, Cic. Sen. 10, 33: consimili ratione venit bubus quoque saepe Pestilitas, Lucr. 6, 1131: quae cura boum, qui cultus habendo Sit pecori, Verg. G. 1, 3: bos est enectus arando, Hor. Ep. 1, 7, 87; Verg. G. 3, 50 sq.; Col. lib. 6; Pall. Mart. 11, 1 sq.
In fem.: actae boves, Liv. 1, 7, 6: bove eximiā captā de grege, id. 1, 7, 12; Ov. M. 8, 873; so, torva, Verg. G. 3, 52: cruda, Hor. Epod. 8, 6: intactae, id. ib. 9, 22: formosa, Ov. M. 1, 612: incustoditae, id. ib. 2, 684: vidisti si quas Boves, id. ib. 2, 700: forda, fecunda, id. F. 4, 630 and 631 al.
Prov.: bovi clitellas imponere, to put a pack-saddle upon an ox, i. e. to assign one a duty for which he is not qualified, old Poët. ap. Cic. Att. 5, 15, 3 (in the form non nostrum onus: bos clitellas (sc. portabat), Quint. 5, 11, 21 Spald.); cf.: optat ephippia bos, piger optat arare caballus, Hor. Ep. 1, 14, 43; and Amm. 16, 5, 10.
Humorously, for a whip cut from neat’s leather, a raw hide: ubi vivos homines mortui incursant boves, Plaut. As. 1, 1, 20: bos Lucas, the elephant; v. Lucani, D.
- II. A kind of sea-fish of the genus of the turbot, Plin. 9, 24, 40, § 78; Ov. Hal. 94; cf. Plin. 32, 11, 54, § 152.