locus classicus

[ loh-koos klahs-si-koos; English loh-kuhs klas-i-kuhs ]

noun,plural lo·ci clas·si·ci

[loh-kee klahs-si-kee; English loh-sahy klas-uh-sahy, loh-kahy klas-i-kahy]. /ˈloʊ ki ˈklɑs sɪˌki; English ˈloʊ saɪ ˈklæs əˌsaɪ, ˈloʊ kaɪ ˈklæs ɪˌkaɪ/. Latin.

classical source: a passage commonly cited to illustrate or explain a subject or word.

Words Nearby locus classicus

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use locus classicus in a sentence

Frey is what happens when you make individual suffering, publically borne, the locus classicus of all literary culture.
Have We Given Up on Fiction? | Tom Shone | March 17, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
A single glance at the locus classicus might have made this error impossible.
Natural Law in the Spiritual World | Henry Drummond
A single glance at the locus classicus, might have made this error impossible.
Eternal Life | Henry Drummond
The following sections of this book are the locus classicus for these popular superstitions.
The Religious Experience of the Roman People | W. Warde Fowler
The expression “wisdom,” as it is employed in the locus classicus, Prov.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 2 | Various

The locus classicus for this is generally taken to be Mme. de Maintenon's well-known letter about her brother's housekeeping.
A History of the French Novel, Vol. 1 | George Saintsbury

British Dictionary definitions for locus classicus

locus classicus

/ (ˈklæsɪkəs) /

nounplural loci classici (ˈklæsɪˌsaɪ)

an authoritative and often quoted passage from a standard work

Origin of locus classicus

Latin: classical place

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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