Lewis & Short

Parsing inflected forms may not always work as expected. If the following does not give the correct word, try Latin Words or Perseus.

ē-lĭgo, lēgi, lectum, 3, v. a. [lĕgo], to pick out, choose, elect (class.; esp. in the trop. sense; cf.: coöpto, designo, deligo, seligo): pedes e capite et e collo pullorum, Varr. R. R. 3, 9, 14: uvam ad edendum (with legere), id. ib. 1, 54, 2: herbas, to pluck up, to weed out, id. ib. 1, 47; Col. 4, 5; cf. trop., Cic. Tusc. 3, 34, 83 and 84: ex malis minima, Cic. Off. 3, 1, 3: ut de tribus Antoniis eligas quem velis, id. Phil. 10, 2, 5: a multis commodissimum quodque, id. Inv. 2, 2, 5: ut in comparando difficile ad eligendum sit, quid maxime velis, id. Rep. 1, 35 fin. et saep.
Absol., to choose correctly, make a proper selection: haud semper errat fama; aliquando et elegit, Tac. Agr. 9 fin.
Hence, ēlectus, a, um, P. a.

  1. I. In gen., picked, selected; select, choice, excellent: par columbarum, Petr. 85, 6: viri electissimi civitatis, Cic. Quint. 2: pugiles, Suet. Calig. 18: quisque, id. ib. 49: electissima verba, Cic. Fin. 3, 7 fin. Madv. N. cr.; Auct. Her. 4, 26, 36; cf.: electius verbum, id. ib.; scripta, Cat. 36, 6: res, Petr. 36, 4 et saep.
    In the neutr. subst.: ēlecta, ōrum, selections, Plin. Ep. 3, 5, 17.
    Adv.: ēlecte choicely, Cic. Inv. 1, 30, 49.
    Comp., Gell. 18, 7, 2.
  2. II. In eccl. Lat., chosen of God, elected to be saved, Vulg. Col. 3, 12 et saep.