[1390.] The ablative of price or value is thus used chiefly with verbs or verbal expressions of bargaining, buying or selling, hiring or letting, costing, being cheap or dear. Also with aestimō, of a definite price, and sometimes magnō, permagnō ([1273]).
[1391.] The ablatives thus used, are (a.) those of general substantives of value and price, such as pretium, (b.) numerical designations of money, or (c.) neuter adjectives of quantity, magnō, permagnō, quam plūrimō, parvō, minimō, nihilō, nōnnihilō: as, magnō decumās vēndidī, V. 3, 40, I sold the tithes at a high figure. For tantī and quantī, plūris and minōris, see [1274].
[1392.] The ablative is also used with dignus and indignus: as,
dignī maiōrum locō, Agr. 2, 1, well worthy of the high standing of their ancestors. nūlla vōx est audīta populī Rōmānī maiestāte indigna, 7, 17, 3, not a word was heard out of keeping with the grandeur of Rome. See also dignor in the dictionary. Similarly in Plautus with condignē, decōrus, decet, aequē, aequos. For the genitive with dignus, see [1269]; for the accusative with dignus and a form of sum, 1144.
[The Ablative of the Amount of Difference.]
[1393.] The instrumental ablative is used to denote the amount of difference.
This ablative is used with any words whatever of comparative or of superlative meaning: as, ūnō diē longiōrem mēnsem faciunt aut bīduō, V. 2, 129, they make the month longer by a day, or even by two days. ubī̆ adbibit plūs paulō, T. Hau. 220, when he has drunk a drop too much. nummō dīvitior, Pl. Ps. 1323, a penny richer. bīduō post, 1, 47, 1, two days after. multīs ante diēbus, 7, 9, 4, many days before. paucīs ante diēbus, C. 3, 3, a few days ago. nimiō praestat, Pl. B. 396, ‘t is ever so much better. multō mālim, Br. 184, I would much rather. multō maxima pars, C. 4, 17, the largest part by far.
[1394.] In expressions of time, the accusative is sometimes used with post, less frequently with ante, as prepositions, instead of the ablative of difference: as, post paucōs diēs, L. 21, 51, 2, post diēs paucōs, L. 37, 13, 6, paucōs post diēs, L. 33, 39, 2, after a few days. paucōs ante diēs, L. 39, 28, 4, diēs ante paucōs, L. 31, 24, 5, a few days before. With this prepositional construction, ordinals are common: as, post diem tertium, 4, 9, 1, after the third day, according to the Roman way of reckoning, i.e. the next day but one.
[1395.] (1.) When the time before or after which anything occurs is denoted by a substantive, the substantive is put in the accusative with ante or post: as,