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The Digest of Justinian

§4.2.5.pr

Definition of Fear as Apprehension of Greater Harm

Ulpian quotes the jurist Labeo to define "fear" in a legal sense, limiting it to the apprehension of a greater evil rather than just any general apprehension.

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[ULPIANUS libro undecimo ad edictum.]

[ULPIAN, On the Edict, book 11]

§4.2.5.pr

​Metum accipiendum1 Labeo dicit non quemlibet timorem, sed maioris malitatis.2

​Labeo says that fear is to be understood not as any apprehension whatsoever, but as that of a greater evil.

Syntax notes2 items
  1. 4.2.5.praccipiendum

    A gerundive forming a passive periphrastic infinitive with esse omitted (accipiendum esse), expressing obligation or necessity. It serves as the predicate in the accusative-with-infinitive (AcI) construction governed by the main verb dicit, with the accusative metum as its subject.

  2. 4.2.5.prmaioris malitatis

    A genitive of quality, or a genitive modifying an implied noun timorem. The word malitas (wickedness, badness) here functions in a legal sense to denote a "greater evil" or "serious harm".

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-07-12)urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:4.2.5.pr