To stretch or retch out: to sil as a bladder is filled: to stuffe out: so to sil that it strouteth. Vt ipsæ solæ ventres distendant suos. Plau. That their bellyes shal strout againe and be stiffe as a taber. Brachia nexa distendere. Ouid. Distendere hostium copias. Li. That they might slay % armie of the enimies. Alij legunt distinere. Rictum distendere. Quint. To gape wide. Distendere. Vit. To fil or stusse. Dulci distendunt nectare cellas. Virg. Distendere curas hominum. Liu. To make men more careful or feareful.

Greately occupied: busied: troubled: let: withholden. vt, Distentus & opera & animo. Cic. Lette and troubled both with businesse and vnquietnesse of minde. Distentissimus. pen. cor. pro occupatissimo, dixit Cic. Greately occupied or busted.

To let with diuers businesses: to withholde or put backe: to stoppe or stay. Negotijs & occupationibus distineri. Cic. To be greatly busied and occupied. Pax per eum distinetur. Cice. Distinere pacem. Liu. To let that peace bee not made. Occupari & distineri. Cic. To be occupied and let.

I. Lit.: dispennite hominem divorsum et distennite, Plaut. Mil. 5, 14; cf.: Tityos novem Jugeribus distentus erat, Ov. M. 4, 458: brachia, id. ib. 4, 491: corpus temonibus, Col. 6, 19 fin.: aciem, Caes. B. C. 3, 92, 2; cf.: copias hostium, Liv. 2, 23: hostes, id. 34, 29: sagum, Suet. Oth. 2: in currus distentum illigat Mettum, Liv. 1, 28; so, utramque manum in latus, Quint. 11, 3, 114: pontem in agros, Lue. 4, 140.—Pass. in mid. force: haec per octoginta sex milia distenduntur, extend, Mart. Cap. 6, 661.—

B. Meton.

1. (Effectus pro causa.) To swell out, distend, i. e. to fill, e. g. with food: ventres, Plaut. Cas. 4, 1, 19: ubera cytiso, Verg. E. 9, 31; cf.: ubera lacte, id. ib. 4, 21; and transf.: capellas lacte, id. ib. 7, 3: ducem (i. e. bovem) denso pingui, id. G. 3, 124: cellas nectare, id. A. 1, 433; cf.: horrea plena spicis, Tib. 2, 5, 84.—

2. (Causa pro effectu.) To torture by distention: tormento aliquem, Suet. Tib. 62; cf. Vulg. Heb. 11, 35.—

II. Trop.: velut in duo pariter bella curas hominum, to divide, Liv. 27, 40; cf.: curam vilicae, Col. 12, 46, 1: sedulitatem vilici, id. 1, 6, 8: animos, to distract, perplex, Liv. 9, 12 fin.; Vulg. Eccl. 3, 10.— Hence, distentus, a, um, P. a. (acc. to I. B. 1.), distended, i. e. filled up, full: ubera, Hor. Epod. 2, 46; cf.: distentum cruribus uber, Ov. M. 13, 826: distentius uber, Hor. S. 1, 1, 110: distentus ac madens, stuffed full, Suet. Claud. 33; cf. Plin. Pan. 49, 6.

I. To keep asunder, to separate, divide.

A. Lit.: tigna binis utrimque fibulis ab extrema parte distinebantur, Caes. B. G. 4, 17, 7; Vitr. 3, 3: mare, quod late terrarum distinet oras, Lucr. 5, 203; 5, 690: duo freta Isthmos, Ov. H. 8, 69 Heins.; cf. id. ib. 12, 104; Luc. 4, 675: quem Notus spatio longius annuo Dulci distinet a domo, Hor. C. 4, 5, 12.—

B. Trop., to divide mentally; to distract, perplex: distineor et divellor dolore, Cic. Planc. 33, 79: duae factiones senatum distinebant, Liv. 9, 16, 6; cf. id. 5, 20, 4; Tac. H. 1, 32: unanimos, Liv. 7, 21: ancipiti bello distinere regem, id. 44, 20. —Esp. freq.,

II. In gen., to hold off, keep back, keep asunder, hinder, detain, prevent; to occupy, engage, employ, divert: legiones a praesidio interclusas maximum flumen distinebat, Caes. B. G. 7, 59, 5: manus hostium, id. ib. 2, 5, 2: manum, id. ib. 3, 11, 4; id. B. C. 3, 52, 1: copias Caesaris, id. ib. 3, 44, 2: Volscos, Liv. 4, 59: Parthos Hyrcano bello, Tac. A. 14, 25: Britannicum militem hoste et mari, id. H. 2, 32 et saep.: in multitudine judiciorum et novis legibus distineri, Cic. Fam. 7, 2 fin.; cf. id. ib. 12, 30, 2; id. Att. 2, 23: distineri litibus, Nep. Att. 9, 4: ad omnia tuenda multifariam distineri, Liv. 21, 8: quominus strueret crimina distineri, Tac. A. 11, 12.—

B. Transf., of inanimate objects: pacem, to hinder, prevent, Cic. Phil. 12, 12, 28; Liv. 2, 15 fin.: victoriam, Caes. B. G. 7, 37, 3: rem, Liv. 37, 12.—Hence, distentus, a, um, P. a., engaged, busied, occupied: tot tantisque negotiis, Cic. Rosc. Am. 8, 22; id. Q. Fr. 3, 8, 3; Plin. Ep. 6, 18, 1 al.: te distentissimum esse qua de Buthrotiis, qua de Bruto, Cic. Att. 15, 18: circa summa scelera, Tac. A. 16, 8 fin.—Of abstract subjects: mens divina, Cic. N. D. 3, 39 fin.: tempus distentum impeditumque maximis officiis, Plin. Ep. 3, 5, 7.—Comp. and adv. seem not to occur.