De Abusu linguae Graecae

"Do you come asymbolum without contribution, anointed and washed from the baths?"

Where Donatus relates that this word was invented and compounded among the parasites. And "to come asymbolum" is the opposite of what is read in the Andria: "He gave the symbolam, he dined." For I say that credit should be clearly denied to the copies which write symbolum here as well. And it is certainly no wonder if those who dared to lay hands on Terence to corrupt this word did not spare his expositor. This much is certain: he does not understand that word (in whichever way it is read) as a ring, since he opposes one passage to the other. For otherwise, it would have to be said that asymbolum is understood by him in turn as one who had not given a ring. Now, indeed, another argument seems to be able to be drawn from his words. For if what he says is true—that asymbolos is a word invented by parasites (just as a little later he says "dubious dinner" is a parasitic word)—it is consistent with reason that it should be judged to have been formed from the word symbolē, which pertains to the same matter but is hateful to the ears of parasites (inasmuch as it signifies properly and specifically the money that is contributed to a dinner, whereas otherwise by its own nature it simply signifies a contribution), not