sit Ennius sānē, ut est certē, perfectior, Br. 76, grant, for aught I care, that Ennius is a more finished poet, as indeed he is. utī erat rēs, Metellum esse ratī, S. I. 69, 1, supposing that it was Metellus, as in fact it was. This use begins in the classical period. It is found particularly with quamvīs, 1905; with sī, see [2017].
[1944.] ut, as, like, sometimes shows that a noun used predicatively is not literally applicable, but expresses an imputed quality or character: as,
Cicerō ea quae nunc ūsū veniunt cecinit ut vātēs, N. 25, 16, 4, Cicero foretold what is now actually occurring, like a bard inspired. canem et faelem ut deōs colunt, Leg. 1, 32, they bow the knee to dog and cat as gods. quod mē sīcut alterum parentem dīligit, Fam. 5, 8, 4, because he loves me like a second father. rēgiae virginēs, ut tōnstrīculae, tondēbant barbam patris, TD. 5, 58, the princesses used to shave their father, just like common barber-girls. In an untrue or a merely figurative comparison tamquam ([1908]) or quasi is used.
[1945.] In old Latin, prae is combined with ut: praeut, compared with how: as, parum etiam, praeut futūrumst, praedicās, Pl. Am. 374, you say too little still compared with how ’twill be. praeut is sometimes followed by a relative clause: as, lūdum iocumque dīcet fuisse illum alterum, praeut huius rabiēs quae dabit, T. Eu. 300, he’ll say the other was but sport and play, compared with what this youth will in his frenzy do.
[1946.] In Plautus sīcut, with the indicative, has once or twice the meaning of since: as, quīn tū illam iubē abs tē abīre quō lubet: sīcut soror eius hūc gemina vēnit Ephesum, MG. 974, why, bid her go away from you wherever she may choose, since her twin sister here to Ephesus is come.
WITH THE SUBJUNCTIVE.
utī or ut.
NEGATIVE ut nē, nē, or ut nōn.
[1947.] The subjunctive with ut is: (A.) That of action desired ([1540]), in clauses of purpose; in these the negative is nē, or sometimes ut nē, and and that not, nēve or neu, rarely neque or nec. ut nē, though used at all periods (not by Caesar, Sallust, or Livy), is chiefly found in older Latin; afterwards nē alone took its place ([1706]). ut nōn is used when the negative belongs to a single word. (B.) That of action conceivable ([1554]), in clauses of result; in these the negative is ut nōn, ut nēmō, ut nūllus, &c.; or with emphasis on the negative, nēmō ut, nūllus ut, nihil ut; also vix ut, paene ut, prope ut.
[1948.] Final and consecutive clauses with ut are of two classes: I. Complementary clauses, that is, such as are an essential complement of certain specific verbs or expressions; such clauses have the value of a substantive, and may represent a subject, an object, or any oblique case. II. Pure final or consecutive clauses, in which the purpose or result of any action may be expressed, and which are not essential to complete the sense of a verb.