LINGVA
LATINA

A Companion to
Familia Romana

Second Edition

Based on Hans Ørberg’s Latine Disco, with Vocabulary and Grammar

LINGVA
LATINA

A Companion to
Familia Romana

Second Edition

based on Hans Ørberg’s Latine Disco, with Vocabulary and Grammar

Jeanne Marie Neumann

Davidson College

Focus  an imprint of
Hackett Publishing Company, Inc.
Indianapolis/Cambridge

Dedication

Jon et Conor, filiis iucundissimis medullitusque amatis.

A Focus book

Focus an imprint of
Hackett Publishing Company

Copyright © 2016 by Hackett Publishing Company, Inc.

All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America

19 18 17 16                   1 2 3 4 5 6 7

For further information, please address

Hackett Publishing Company, Inc.

P.O. Box 44937

Indianapolis, Indiana 46244-0937

www.hackettpublishing.com

Cover design by Brian Rak
Interior design by Elizabeth L. Wilson
Composition by Integrated Composition Systems, Inc.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Neumann, Jeanne Marie, author. | Oerberg, Hans H. (Hans Henning),
1920–2010. Latine disco. | Oerberg, Hans H. (Hans Henning), 1920–2010.
Lingua Latina per se illustrata. Pars I, Familia Romana.

Title: Lingua latina : a companion to Familia romana : based on Hans Oerberg’s

Latine disco, with vocabulary and grammar / Jeanne Marie Neumann.

Description: Second edition. | Indianapolis; Cambridge : Hackett Publishing Company, Inc., 2016. | “A Focus book.”

Identifiers: LCCN 2016002499 | ISBN 9781585108091 (pbk.)

Subjects: LCSH: Latin language—Grammar. | Latin language—Textbooks.

Classification: LCC PA2087.5 .N48 2016 | DDC 478.2421—dc23

LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2016002499

PRC ISBN: 978-1-58510-876-3

Titles of Related Interest Available from Hackett Publishing

Jeanne Marie Neumann, Lingua Latina: A Companion to Roma Aeterna.

Hans H. Ørberg, Lingua Latina: Pars I: Familia Romana.

Hans H. Ørberg, Lingua Latina: Pars II: Roma Aeterna.

Contents

The page numbers in curly braces {} correspond to the print edition of this title.

Preface

For the Instructor

Familia Romana: Suggestions for the Classroom

LINGUA LATINA as a Two-Semester Course

To the Student

I. Imperium Rōmānum

II. Familia Rōmāna

III. Puer Improbus

IV. Dominus et Servī

V. Vīlla et Hortus

VI. Via Latīna

VII. Puella et Rosa

VIII. Taberna Rōmāna

IX. Pāstor et Ovēs

X. Bēstiae et Hominēs

XI. Corpus Hūmānum

XII. Mīles Rōmānus

XIII. Annus et Mēnsēs

XIV. Novus Diēs

XV. Magister et Discipulī

XVI. Tempestās

XVII. Numerī Difficiles

XVIII. Litterae Latīnae

XIX. Marītus et Uxor

XX. Parentēs

XXI. Pugna Discipulōrum

XXII. Cave Canem

XXIII. Epistula Magistrī

XXIV. Puer Aegrōtus

XXV. Thēseus et Mīnōtaurus

XXVI. Daedalus et Icarus

XXVII. Rēs Rūsticae

XXVIII. Pericula Maris

XXIX. Nāvigāre Necesse Est

XXX. Convīvium

XXXI. Inter Pōcula

XXXII. Classis Rōmāna

XXXIII. Exercitus Rōmānus

XXXIV. De Arte Poēticā

XXXV. Ars Grammatica

Grammatica Latina

Vocabulary by Chapter

Latin–English Vocabulary

Grammatical Terms

Index

Titles of Related Interest Available from Hackett Publishing

{vii} Preface

Ørberg’s LINGUA LATINA PER SE ILLUSTRATA series, conceived as a completely acquisition-based approach to learning Latin, offers an unparalleled resource for Latin learning, enabling the motivated student to acquire skill in reading Latin by reading Latin. LINGUA LATINA guides readers through an expanding world of Latin syntax while they enjoy a delightful story of a Roman family of the early imperial period. The reading mirrors “real” Latin in the way it unfolds the periodic structure and idiomatic features of the language, introducing early critical features: students meet the relative pronoun in Cap. 3, the passive voice in Cap. 6; by the time they get the full verbal paradigm of the present tense in Caps. 15–17, they have mastered the concept and workings of active and passive voice. Length of readings, number of vocabulary words and complexity of sentence structure increase as the chapters build on each other, all in support of a narrative that engages students from middle school through college (and beyond).

LINGUA LATINA PER SE ILLUSTRATA offers a smooth and efficient path to acquisition of the language and immerses the student from the first in a true experience of Latin. Instead of reading discrete, even random, sentences chosen to illustrate the grammatical principles under consideration, LINGUA LATINA offers considerable practice in both grammar and a rich vocabulary in an engaging context of well-written Latin. The impetus of this book, therefore, arose not from any flaw in Ørberg’s method, but rather from the differing needs of students and classrooms.

Different students learn differently; learning environments also differ: Alii aliis viis Romam perveniunt. At my own institution, students signing up for Latin commit to a two-term introductory experience, followed by a term of reading ancient texts. Reading Familia Romana in a two-semester course in introductory Latin, meeting three times a week for two 13- or 14-week semesters, becomes a Herculean task. LINGUA LATINA, however, and its results proved too good to abandon. There seems to me no better guide than LINGUA LATINA for students who want to learn Latin through Latin. Students clamored for us to keep the text, but make it suit their needs. We use the Companion to strike a balance between a purely inductive method and the study of {viii} grammatical rules and paradigms. But it can also serve as an ancillary guide for the natural (inductive) method of language acquisition. LINGUA LATINA can be used to teach students Latin as early as age eight, yet the story engages adult readers as well. Although introductory language courses at the college level do not always have the same luxury of gradual acquisition, the Ørberg text can be highly effective for university students. This book, therefore, is designed for different audiences: university students, instructors of home-scholars, and independent learners whose learning style appreciates such a guide: it is for all students of Ørberg’s LINGUA LATINA PER SE ILLUSTRATA (LLPSI) who want a touchstone to assess their understanding of the text and the language.

Home-schooling parents and instructors of students learning outside of the traditional classroom, especially those with little or no Latin training, can use this book as a companion to LINGUA LATINA for their own preparation. The instructor will be the best judge of where and when it is a useful guide. For the most part, students should gradually learn the whole of Latin grammar by working out grammatical rules from their own observation as they begin to read actual Latin in the text, while their instructors can feel more confident in their grasp of the material and can use the added examples from Familia Romana to review and reinforce concepts or answer questions their charges present. The goal is to confirm the Latin and the structures that are learned in the inductive method, facilitating the process of language acquisition.

As is clear from the very useful listserve for LLPSI (https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/llpsi), instructors at elementary and high schools lead their charges through the text at the pace appropriate to their students and the learning environment. Explanations of morphology and syntax appear according to their introduction in the course of the chapter: Section I, II, or III, making the Companion practical regardless of the pace of an individual course.

How does this book fit into the LINGUA LATĪNA series? What does it replace? This book replaces the Latine Disco, the Grammatica Latina, and the Latin–English Vocabulary. It does not replace the Exercitia.

What are the primary features of this book? The book provides a running grammatical commentary on the narrative of LINGUA LATINA. It differs from the Latine Disco in scope and aim. Latine Disco provides clear and concise information that students need in order to acquire an understanding of Latin at their own pace. This book builds from Ørberg’s original Latine Disco; the presentation and formatting have been altered and more explication and examples are offered. To the degree possible, the commentary corresponds to the reading sections within each chapter, enabling students to view just the grammar for each section. Important and challenging structures are illustrated with several examples from the story. As the grammatical concepts build, they are collected and reviewed in periodic recensiones, facilitating an overview of the language and enabling students to know where to look for the places in {ix} the story where, e.g., they learned about accusative and infinitive construction. Beginning with Res Grammaticae Novae, a synopsis, in categories, of the material covered in the chapter, further facilitates an overview. The end of each chapter presents vocabulary divided by parts of speech; a full vocabulary can be found at the back of the book. In addition, vocabulary review is enhanced by an appendix listing the vocabulary according to chapter but without meanings; students can quiz themselves on their grasp of vocabulary outside the context of the story. Since Ørberg’s own mastery of the language shows through in his ability to write lucid, idiomatic Latin, student attention, where appropriate, is directed to points of style that highlight the way the language works syntactically or idiomatically. Finally, this edition includes a grammatical index.

Changes to the Second Edition

In addition to some revisions to the text, this edition includes a section on cultural context tied to the narrative content of the chapter.

Jeanne M. Neumann
Davidson College

Acknowledgments

Editio Princeps:

Amicis qui me librum hunc scribentem adiuverunt maximas gratias et ago et habeo, praecipue Jarrett Welsh, Keyne Cheshire, Megan Drinkwater, Michael Johnson, Kevin Muse, Gina Soter. Discipulis apud Collegium Davidsoniense linguam Latinam discentibus gratias quoque ago, praecipue William E. Begley et India Watkins. Nam illi et menda typographica notaverunt et consilium quo liber melior et clarior fieret praebuerunt.

Editio Altera:

In hac editione paranda multi et collegae et discipuli mihi adiumento erant. Multum Jarret Welsh, Keyne Cheshire, William Begley, India Watkins, Darian Totten debeo. Patrick Owen menda typographica benigne notavit et locos minus perspicuos monstravit.

{xi} For the Instructor

Teaching Latin via the method Winston Churchill was subjected to (My Early Life: 1874–1904, p. 10–11) is pretty easy. Take this paradigm. Memorize it. Spit it back. Repeat. Teaching via LLPSI offers more of a challenge and infinitely more rewards for the instructor and (more importantly) for the students. The instructor’s approach to LLPSI will vary according to the age of the students and, critically, the amount of time that one can devote to the project. At the college level (for the approach at Davidson, see below), the pace is brisk, the course an invigorating challenge. But Familia Romana does not have to be digested in a two-term course and taking more time allows the instructor to engage in more activities with the text.

No matter the time frame, the active use of Latin with students lies at the foundation of the successful implementation of LLPSI. Using Latin actively in the classroom can be a challenging experience for those of us who have learned Latin as a passive language. Before guiding others through the text, the instructor can learn a great deal about talking about Latin in Latin by becoming familiar with the GRAMMATICA LATINA sections at the end of each chapter and by studying the selections from Dōnātus’s Ars Minor in the final chapter of Familia Romana.

Familia Romana: Suggestions for the Classroom

1. Read Latin aloud.

2. Use questions (in Latin, in English) to determine if students are understanding the text.

3. Encourage students to respond in Latin to questions: Pensum C.

Lingua Latina as a Two-Semester Course

What follows is a brief explanation of how we have adapted Familia Romana to our introductory sequence at Davidson College. The constraints of two semesters propel the course forward quickly, with usually two class days devoted to each chapter. This pace makes “catch-up” cramming difficult, if not {xii} impossible. Therefore, the relative weight of each facet of evaluation reflects the philosophy of the course:

DAILY USE OF A LANGUAGE IS THE ONLY WAY TO MASTERY.

Daily work carries the greatest weight in the course (i.e., quizzes, homework, tests, and class preparation and participation), while the final exam accounts for a much smaller portion of the grade. Students should expect to spend one hour each day working on Latin skills: that means seven hours a week of work outside of class. We encourage students to break up this work into small, frequent encounters with the Latin throughout their day: 20 minutes three times a day is far more effective than an hour once a day.

The pace of the course and presentation of the material both complicate and energize the instructor’s presentation. The text can be used as a basis for asking questions in Latin. When students answer in Latin, they strengthen their grasp of the vocabulary and the syntax, and their ability to stay in the target language. Longer, more difficult sentences can be paraphrased in Latin to facilitate understanding or broken down into smaller components. While the bulk of our classes are conducted in English, moving back and forth frequently between the two languages will help the students’ Latin get strong enough to read the ever lengthening stories and ever more complex sentences.

There follow two different sets of instructions for a course that aims to read Familia Romana in two terms of three meetings a week. These are offered as examples of the approaches of two instructors at Davidson and represent the general guidelines offered to students. The approaches are quite different: the first has the students read the chapter before any instruction, either verbal or from the Companion, while the second introduces all major grammatical concepts before the students read the text.

There are many roads to Rome and other ways of using the Companion as a pedagogical aid. We offer our experience as examples. The LINGUA LATINA pages at Hackett Publishing provide a wealth of further materials, including flash cards and audio files. Instructors will find a large circle of support and ideas at the Google Groups (https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/llpsi).

One Approach

Assignment for Day One (the first of two class days spent on a given chapter):

• Study the marginalia in Familia Romana (marginalia: the material written in the margins of the LINGUA LATINA text).

• Read the entire chapter in Latin; each chapter is divided into three sections, marked by Roman numerals in the inside margins of the text. In Cap. II, for example, Section II begins with the words, “Estne Medus filius Iulii?” (p. 14). Each new section practices a different grammatical principle.

{xiii} • Try not to translate each sentence into English but to understand the sentences in Latin (a challenge which grows easier with time). If you find a sentence hard, re-read it. Mark it with a pencil check mark in the margin and return to it after reading the whole assignment (and after you have had a break).

• Study the Grammatica Latina at the end of each chapter in Familia Romana. Pay attention to the phrasing of the grammatical explanations: this section of the book will teach you how to talk about Latin grammar in Latin.

• Only then, after reading the chapter, the marginalia, and the GRAMMATICA LATINA, review the pages in the Companion.

• If you cannot grasp the meaning of a vocabulary word from context, look it up in the Latin-English vocabulary at the end of the chapter or the back of this book. Vocabulary words recur frequently. If you need to look up a word more than once, or find the next day you cannot remember what it means, memorize the word by making a flash card. Carry the flash cards around with you and review frequently. (There are also web-based flash card systems you can use.) DO NOT WRITE ENGLISH IN YOUR BOOK! Your eye will go to the familiar language, inhibiting your ability to read the Latin.

• Complete homework as assigned.

After the second day:

• Re-read the entire chapter, paying close attention to the forms and grammatical principles, and making sure you have a firm understanding of both the grammar and meaning of the chapter. At this reading, it should be much easier not to translate in your head from Latin to English.

• Review the marginalia and the vocabulary. In the margins of each chapter of Familia Romana is a list of new vocabulary. Make sure you understand those words out of context. If you don’t remember, find the word in the text before looking it up.

• Complete homework as assigned.

• Look ahead briefly to discover the emphasis of the next chapter.

A Second Approach

Day 1:

• Introduce the chapter (vocabulary and all major grammatical concepts) before students see anything.

• Homework: read Companion and Familia Romana narrative; study for quiz.

{xiv} Day 2:

• Quiz on new vocabulary.

• Questions about the reading? (Have them marked by line number with notes.)

• Warm-up with Pensum A.

• “Conversational” Latin: Ask questions about the reading and their lives. Have students illustrate a scene or act it out. Have them pantomime verbs. Follow with other activities in Latin.

• Homework: carefully chosen Exercitia.

Both approaches are intense, but students enjoy and profit from the course.

{xv} To the Student

You will learn far more Latin more quickly, and in a more interesting way, if you first work with the book and the readings and the (very important) marginalia (that is, the words and images in the columns next to the reading), then refer to this book to help you organize what it is you have encountered. By this method, the book helps you confirm what you have already learned.

The value of the marginalia and the images in the Familia Romana text cannot be overemphasized! The marginalia mark out new things you will learn, and help you to understand the Latin quickly and visually. The illustrations will be valuable clues to what the Latin itself is saying.

Try not to translate into English as you read. Instead, keep images in your mind and work as much as you can in Latin. Only by increasing your stamina for reading and thinking within the Latin language will you gain proficiency in understanding. Do not write English in your book! Do not write out translations of the text as you read: make yourself confront the text anew each time you read it. Only then will you become familiar with the language.

A note on translations: You will find that translations accompany only a few of the illustrative sentences in this book. These translations demonstrate how a particular construction works in the English language in order to help you understand how Latin works, not to encourage translation into English. Remember, the goal is Latin!

The more actively you engage, the more you will learn. Quiz yourself by going back into earlier chapters and randomly picking a word. Do you know what that word means without reading it in context? If not, reread the surrounding sentences and see whether context prods your memory. If not, look the word up. Do you recognize its case (if appropriate)? Could you reconstruct the nominative from that case? If the word is a verb, recount to yourself all you know about it (the amount you will know will depend on how far into the course you have proceeded). Try to write short synopses of the reading in Latin. Read out loud. Send a classmate a text or email in Latin! The more you engage different senses, the faster you will learn and the more you will retain.

{xvi} Before you start

Orthography

Latin was written (orthography) as it sounded. Therefore, the spelling of Latin changed with natural variations of pronunciation that occurred over time and place. So, for example, Cicero would have written equos for “the horse,” while Caesar Augustus would have written ecus; we find this same word in our Latin texts as equus because editors of Latin texts generally adopt the spelling of the first century AD, when variations in orthography had leveled out. We still find variation in the treatment of the semi-vowels u/v and i/j, however (on these semi-vowels, see below under pronunciation).

Latin Pronunciation

Latin was spoken through many countries over many hundreds of years. When you think how much pronunciation varies in different regions of our own country during our own time, the very thought of how to “correctly” pronounce Latin becomes daunting. We actually know quite a bit about how upper-class educated Romans living in Rome during a relatively short time span spoke Latin because Roman writers themselves have given us various hints. This pronunciation is called the “Restored Pronunciation.” Even though the Restored Pronunciation may be the way Horace recited his Odes, for example, or Vergil his Aeneid, we should not feel constrained to try to duplicate it. In our own language, English, we don’t feel we need to research how Shakespeare might have spoken in order to read Hamlet. Elizabethan actors might be amazed at our renditions, but we aren’t talking to them. Our goal is to be faithful to the principles of the language and to be understood by others. But—you may object that we can’t really appreciate the beauty of a Latin poem unless we hear it as the Romans did. If that were true, we would need more than sounds to appreciate Latin literature—we would need the full spectrum of cultural values that comprise aesthetic appreciation.

The other traditional method of pronunciation is called the “Ecclesiastical Pronunciation.” If you listen to Latin liturgical hymns, you will hear the subtle differences: caelum (sky, heaven), for example, is pronounced “kai-lum” in the restored pronunciation but “che-lum” in the ecclesiastical pronunciation. Ecclesiastical Latin retains the mellifluous beauty of Italian. An audio recording of Caps. I–XXXI of Familia Romana is available from Hackett Publishing Co. in the Restored Pronunciation; an audio recording of the whole of Familia Romana is available from the same publisher in Ecclesiastical Pronunciation.

So, how to pronounce Latin? If we are faithful to a few principles, we can read with confidence and feeling, and understand and be understood by others. In order to utter Latin well, we must understand the quantities of vowels and syllables, know where to put the accent and how to enunciate. Thus, while the guide below will suggest pronunciations that mirror some of the things we {xvii} know about ancient pronunciation, if you pay attention to quantities, accent, and enunciation, you will be understood whether you pronounce c hard (i.e., like “k”) as the Romans did or soft, as Ecclesiastical Latin.

But first, let’s look at the alphabet.

The Alphabet

The Latin alphabet can be most simply divided into vowels and consonants. That broad division has subdivisions as well. The Latin alphabet has twenty-three letters; it lacks the English w; y and z were Greek imports, as were ch, ph, th.

Vowels

• Latin has both single vowels and diphthongs (two vowels that form one sound).

• Vowels can be either “long” or “short.” A long vowel is pronounced for twice the length of time. Compare the “a” in “father” and the first vowel in “aha.” We hold the “a” sound twice as long in “father.” Long vowels in this book are marked by a bar over the vowel called a “macron” (i.e., ā, ē, ī, ō, ū). The Latin vowels are:

• a

short: a as the first a in “aha”: amat

long: ā as in “father”: ālā, pānis

• e

short: e as in “let”: et, bene

long: ē as in “prey”: mē

• i

short: i as in “fit”: in, nimis[1]

long: ī as ee in “feet”: hīc, līberī

• o

short: o as in “hot”: post, modo

long: ō as in bone: pōnō

• u

short: u as in “full”: num, sumus

long: ū as in “fool”: ūna, tū

• y (represents the Greek upsilon)

short: y as French u in “lune”: Syria

long: ȳ as French u in “pur”: Lȳdia

{xviii} • Diphthongs, being two vowels together, take twice as long to pronounce as single short vowels and so are considered long. They are:

• ae as ie in “die”: Graecia, laetus, paene

• oe as oi in “boil”: foedus, poena

• au as ou in “loud”: aut, nauta

• eu as e+u combined into one syllable (ĕhoo): Eurōpa, heu, heus, neu, seu. (But the endings -us, -um, -unt form separate syllables after e: de|us, me|us, e|um, e|unt, aure|us.)

• ui in cui, huic, cuius, huius as u+i combined into one syllable

Semi-vowels (glides)

Latin has two letters called “glides,” which represent either a vowel or a consonant sound depending on the letters around them. These letters are represented in our book as i and u/v:

• i: The father of our family is Iulius, the same as the English Julius. The “j” and “i” of his name represent the same letter in Latin, which was always represented by i by the Romans. Sound: Before a consonant, i represents the vowel sound “i” and before a vowel, the consonant sound “y.”

• u/v: The word for slave shows you the other glide in Latin. The word for slave is servus, in the plural, it’s servi. The v and u are actually the same letter and work the same way as “i” and “j.” In some Latin texts, you will find servus written as seruus; this text distinguishes u and v. Sound: Before a consonant, u represents the vowel sound “u” and before a vowel, the consonant sound “w.”

Consonants

Most consonants are the same as, or very similar to, English.

• b as in English: bibit, ab

• bs and bt as ps and pt: absunt, obtulit, urbs

• c is always hard as in “cat” (= k, without aspiration): canis, centum, circus, nec

ch, as k with aspiration: pulcher

• d as in English: dē, dedit, ad

• f as in English: forum, flūmen

• g as in English: “get” (never as in “gem”): gallus, gemma, agit

• gn as ngn in “willingness”: signum, pugna, magnus

• h as in English (tending to disappear): hīc, homō, nihil

• l as in English: lūna, gladius, male, vel

{xix} • m as in English: mē, domus, tam

In the unstressed endings -am, -em, -um, it tended to disappear.

• n as in English: nōn, ūnus; before c, g, q as in “ink”: incola, longus, quīnque

• Before s, it tended to disappear: mēnsa, īnsula

• p as in English (without aspiration): pēs, populus, prope

• ph as English p with aspiration: amphitheātrum (see above under ch)

• qu as English qu in “quick”: quis, aqua, equus

• r rolled or trilled: rēs, ōra, arbor, cūr

• s as in English “gas” (never voiced as in “has”): sē, rōsa, is

• t as in English (without aspiration): tē, ita, et

• t is always hard (not like t in nation)

• th as English t with aspiration: amphitheātrum (see above under ch)

• v as English w: vōs, vīvus

• x as in English (= ks): ex, saxum

• z as English z in “zone”: zōna

Thus, very generally, the sound of Latin consonants can be compared to those of English:

• Like English: d, f, l, m, and n (initial and medial)[2], p, qu, z

• Like English + variations (see above): bs, bt, gn

• Always a hard sound: c, g, s, t, x

• Softer than English: h, final m, n

• Different: r (trilled) v (like w)

Now we return to our guidelines for pronunciation of quantities, accentuation, and enunciation. In Cap. XVIII, your text gives you an excellent lesson in the concepts below, in Latin.

1. Syllables:

a. A word has as many syllables as it has vowels and/or diphthongs:

i. Est, nōn, sunt

ii. Rō ma, Nī lus, quo que

iii. Flu vi us, op pi dum, īn su la

iv. Brun di si um, Hi spā ni a[3]

b. Note that in the examples above:

i. A consonant goes with the following vowel: Rō ma

ii. Two consonants are divided: op pi dum

{xx} c. Some consonants stay together:

~ ch, ph, th, qu

~ l or r preceded by b, d, g, p, t, c, and f

2. Vowel quantity:

a. A long vowel takes twice the time to pronounce as a short vowel.

3. Syllable quantity:

a. A syllable is either:

i. open (ends in a vowel)

ii. closed (ends in a consonant)

b. Long/Heavy syllables:

i. Closed syllables

ii. Open syllables with long vowel/diphthong

c. Short/Light syllables:

i. Open syllables with a short vowel

4. Accent:

a. The last three syllables of a Latin word determine accent.

b. These syllables are called:

i. ultima (for syllaba ultima: the last syllable)

ii. penult (for syllaba paene ultima: almost the last syllable)

iii. antepenult (for ante paene ultimam syllabam: “before the almost the last”)

c. The accent, or stress, of a Latin word depends on the length of the second to last, or penultimate, syllable.

d. The penult (penultimate) syllable is accented when long/heavy (closed or has long vowel or diphthong).

e. Otherwise, the accent moves to the antepenult.

f. Examples:

Rṓma in Itáliā est. Itália in Eurṓpā est. Grǽcia in Eurṓpā est. Itália et Grǽcia in Eurṓpā sunt. Hispā́nia et Itália et Grǽcia in Eurṓpā sunt.

5. Enunciation: this last principle sounds easy, but most people who feel nervous about saying a word correctly try to say it as fast as possible. Some tips:

Speak slowly and say what you see.

Doubled consonants (two consonants in a row) are both pronounced.

Long vowels take twice the time to pronounce as short vowels.

{xxi} Parts of Speech with Examples

[The chapter in brackets gives the first introduction of the part of speech.]
Noun (substantive) [Cap. I]:

1. names a person, place or thing

2. properties:

a. gender: masculine, feminine, or neuter (neither masculine or feminine)

b. number: singular or plural

c. case: different endings depending on the role of the word in the sentence

Exempla Latīna:

Rōma

fluvius

oppidum

Adjective [Cap. 1]:

1. qualifies a noun

2. sometimes stands on its own as a substantive

3. has (like nouns) gender, number, and case

4. has (unlike nouns) all three genders (can stand in agreement with any noun)

5. matches (agrees) with its noun in gender, number, and case

Exempla Latīna:

magnus (fluvius)

parva (īnsula)

parvum (oppidum)

Pronoun [Cap. II]:

1. points to, or stands for, a noun without naming it, e.g., “he,” “whom,” “they”

2. has (like nouns) gender, number, and case

Exempla Latīna:

quis

cuius

quae

quid

Verb [Cap. I]:

1. shows action, state of being

2. properties:

a. person: 1st (I/we), 2nd (you), 3rd (he, she, it/they)

b. number: singular, plural

c. tense: time frame of the verb:

{xxii} i. present (continuing action in the present)[4]

ii. imperfect (continuing action in the past)

iii. future (projected action)

iv. perfect (completed action)

v. pluperfect (action completed before another completed action)

vi. future perfect (action to be completed before a projected action)

d. voice:

i. active (subject is the agent of the verb)

ii. passive (subject is the recipient of the action of the verb)

e. mood: expresses the speaker’s attitude to the verb

i. indicative (states a fact, asks a question)

ii. infinitive (the unbounded, “to” form of the verb)[5]

iii. imperative (gives a command)

iv. subjunctive (various uses)

Exempla Latīna:

est, sunt

pulsat [Cap. III]

cantat [Cap. III]

Participle [Cap. XIV]:

1. is a verbal adjective: it shares qualities of verbs and adjectives

2. like a verb, a participle has

a. tense (present, past, future)

b. voice (active, passive)

3. like an adjective, a participle has

a. gender

b. number

c. case

Exempla Latīna:

dormiēns (puer)

canentem (gallum)

stantem (servum)

Adverb [Cap. I]:

1. qualifies a

a. verb

b. adjective

c. another adverb

{xxiii} Exempla Latīna:

bene

nōn

ubi (interrogative adverb)

num (interrogative adverb)

Preposition [Cap. I]:

1. determines the relationship between two nouns

Exempla Latīna:

in (Italiā)

sine (rōsīs) [Cap. V]

cum (Aemiliā) [Cap. V]

Conjunction [Cap. I]:

1. joins words, phrases, or clauses

Exempla Latīna:

sed

et

Interjection: An exclamation for emphasis [Cap. XXII]:

Exemplum Latīnum:

heus!

Syntactic Terms

[Examples are underlined]

Subject: the focus of the sentence. To find the subject, ask “who” with the verb.

Julia is singing. Who is singing? Julia (subject)

Exempla Latīna:

Rōma in Italiā est.

Iūlia cantat [Cap. III].

Predicate: the verb and its modifier(s). To find the verb in a sentence, look for the word that denotes an action or state of being.

• Rōma in Italiā est: est is the verb/predicate (state of being)

• Iūlia cantat: cantat is the action (action)

Predicate nominative: a noun used with a copulative (linking) verb to restate the subject.

• Corsica īnsula est.

• Tūsculum oppidum Rōmānum est.

Predicate adjective: an adjective used with a copulative (linking) verb to qualify the subject.

• Fluvius magnus est.

• Oppidum parvum est.

Transitive verb: a verb which is completed by a direct object.

{xxiv} Exempla Latīna:

Mārcus nōn videt Quīntum [Cap. III].

Mārcus puellam pulsat [Cap. III].

Intransitive verb: a verb that is not completed by a direct object (which is in the accusative case) or that stands alone (e.g., “I stand,” “I sit”). In both examples below, the dative case completes the verb, which is intransitive.

Exempla Latīna:

Pater dormit [Cap. III].

Pater venit [Cap. III].

Direct object: a word in the accusative case that receives the action of the verb.

Exempla Latīna:

Mārcus nōn videt Quīntum [Cap. III].

Mārcus puellam pulsat [Cap. III].

Indirect object: a word in the dative case that tells “to or for whom” the action of the verb is performed.

Exempla Latīna:

Pater fīliō suō magnum mālum dat [Cap. VII].

Dominus servīs māla et pira dat [Cap. VII].

Notā Bene:[6] Some verbs which are transitive in English are intransitive in Latin.

____________

1. The sound as in fit, hit does not occur in the modern Romance languages, suggesting that short i had more of an ee sound, but held for a shorter time.

2. I.e., beginning a word (initial) and in the middle of a word (medial).

3. If a combination of letters could be used to begin a word (like the sp in hi spa ni a), those letters are kept together and go with the following vowel.

4. The present shows continuing action in the present (I am walking), simple present (I walk), emphatic present (I do walk).

5. The infinitive, like the supine (not included here), is a verbal noun.

6. Notā Bene means “note well” or “take note—this is important!”

{1} I. Imperium Rōmānum

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Getting Started: The Roman Empire

2. Using This Book

a. Pay Attention to Endings

b. Be Aware of Latin’s Flexible Word Order

c. Concentrate on Meaning and Context

d. Be Patient: Keep Reading

e. Answers Often Explain Questions

f. Look to Context for Word Meaning

3. Morphology

a. Nouns: Singular/Plural

b. Antonyms

c. Adjectives and Substantives

d. Interrogatives: num, quid

e. Numbers: mīlle

4. Points of Style: Latin Concision

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Getting Started: The Roman Empire

In the first chapter, we take you 2,000 years back into the past, to the time when the Roman Empire was at the height of its power, extending from the Atlantic Ocean to the Caspian Sea and from Scotland to the Sahara. We give you a few geographical facts as background for the sketches from life in ancient Rome that follow.

On the map of the Roman Empire facing the first page of the text, you will find all the geographical names occurring in the chapter. After locating the names Rōma, Italia, Eurōpa, Graecia, etc., you will understand what is said about the situation of the city of Rōma in the first sentence: Rōma in Italiā est, and about Italia and Graecia in the next two: Italia in Eurōpā est. Graecia in Eurōpā est. This is said once more in a single sentence: Italia et Graecia in Eurōpā sunt. The meaning of et should be quite clear, but can you tell why it {2} is now sunt instead of est? If not, look in the margin and read the next two sentences as well. Have you discovered when to use est and when sunt? If so, you have learned the first rule of grammar: a singular subject is joined with a singular verb and a plural subject with a plural verb.

If you read LINGUA LATINA, heeding the following suggestions, you’ll learn Latin well and easily.

1. Pay Attention to Endings (e.g., -a, -ā)

Did you also notice the slight difference between Italia and Italiā, and what little word produces the long -ā? This difference is pointed out and explained in the first marginal note:

Italia

in Italiā

2. Be Aware of Latin’s Flexible Word Order (e.g., est, sunt)

Another thing worth noticing: here est and sunt come at the end of the sentence, but you will see that it is not always so; Rōma est in Italiā is also correct. The word order is less rigid in Latin than in English.

3. Concentrate on Meaning and Context (e.g., the negation nōn)

Is it really possible, you may ask, to understand everything by just reading the text? It certainly is, provided that you concentrate on the meaning and content of what you are reading. It is sufficient to know where Aegyptus is, to understand the statements Aegyptus in Eurōpā nōn est, Aegyptus in Āfricā est (l.5). There can be no doubt about the meaning of nōn (a so-called negation).

4. Be Patient: Keep Reading (e.g., quoque and sed)

Often a sentence is understood only when seen together with other sentences. In the sentence Hispānia quoque in Eurōpā est (ll.2–3), you will not understand quoque until you read in context: Italia et Graecia in Eurōpā sunt. Hispānia quoque in Eurōpā est. (The two preceding sentences might have been Italia in Eurōpā est or Graecia quoque in Eurōpā est.) If you are still in doubt, just go on reading till the word recurs: Syria nōn est in Eurōpā, sed in Asiā. Arabia quoque in Asiā est (l.7). Now you will certainly understand quoque—and in the meantime, you have learned the word sed almost without noticing it.

5. Answers Often Explain Questions (e.g., -ne…? and ubi…?)

In the next paragraph, a number of questions are asked, and each question is followed by an answer. It is often necessary to read the answer before you can {3} be quite sure of the meaning of the question. The first question is Estne Gallia in Eurōpā? The particle -ne attached to est marks the sentence as a question (our question mark [?] was unknown to the ancient Romans). The answer is Gallia in Eurōpā est. The next question, Estne Rōma in Galliā? is answered in the negative: Rōma in Galliā nōn est. (Latin has no single word for “yes” or “no.” The sentence—or part of it—must be repeated with or without nōn.)

In the question Ubi est Rōma? the word ubi is intelligible only when you get the answer: Rōma est in Italiā.

6. Look to Context for Word Meaning

After the short survey of the location of the principal Roman provinces, you are told about various localities: Rhēnus and Nīlus, Corsica and Sardinia, Tūsculum and Brundisium. You will find these names on the map, and the text will tell you what they represent. If you are still in doubt about the meaning of the words fluvius, īnsula, and oppidum, turn back to the picture heading the chapter.

Nouns: Singular/Plural

Note that these words occur in two different forms: Nīlus alone is called fluvius, but Nīlus and Rhēnus together are called fluviī. In similar circumstances, you will notice the use of the forms īnsula and īnsulae, as well as oppidum and oppida. In the section GRAMMATICA LATINA in LINGUA LATINA you will learn that the forms fluvius, īnsula, and oppidum are called singulāris, while fluviī, īnsulae, and oppida are called plūrālis—in English singular and plural.

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Antonyms [↔]

As you read on, you will see that Nīlus is referred to not only as fluvius, but also as fluvius magnus, unlike Tiberis, which is described as fluvius parvus. In the same way, Sicilia is referred to as īnsula magna as opposed to Melita (the modern Malta), which is called īnsula parva. In the margin, magnus and parvus are represented as opposites (sign [↔], “the opposite of”); this will help you to understand the meaning of the words, but note that the endings change: fluvius magnus, but fluviī magnī. A further example: Brundisium is called oppidum magnum and Tūsculum, oppidum parvum, and when the same words occur in the plural, they are called fluviī magnī, īnsulae magnae, and oppida magna.

{4} Adjectives and Substantives

A word that shows this variation between the endings -us, -a, -um in the singular and -ī, -ae, -a in the plural is called an adjective (Latin adiectīvum, “added word”) because it is added to a noun (substantive), which it qualifies. Other nouns occurring in this chapter are:

prōvincia

littera

imperium

vocābulum

numerus

Adjectives occurring in this chapter are:

magnus, -a, -um

Rōmānus, -a, -um

parvus, -a, -um

Latīnus, -a, -um

Graecus, -a, -um

prīmus, -a, -um

Plural adjectives found in this chapter are:

multī, -ae, -a

paucī, -ae, -a

Note: The endings of the adjectives depend on the nouns that they qualify; so it is prōvincia magna but imperium magnum.

More Interrogatives: num, quid

The question Num Crēta oppidum est? (l.49) must, of course, be answered in the negative: Crēta oppidum nōn est. Num is an interrogative (i.e., asking) particle, like -ne, but a question beginning with num implies a negative answer. The next question is Quid est Crēta? Here, again, only the answer, Crēta īnsula est, makes the meaning of the question quite plain.

Compare:

Estne Crēta oppidum?

Is Crete a town? (I really don’t know, so I’m asking.)

Num Crēta oppidum est?

Crete isn’t a town, is it? (I suspect Crete is not a town and expect you to answer “no.”)

Remember the other interrogatives in this chapter:

Quid est Crēta?

What is Crete?

Ubi est Crēta?

Where is Crete?

More about Endings

We have seen that, after in, the final vowel is -ā and not -a. Remember that the macron over the ā means the vowel is long (see pronunciation guide). We now see that in also makes -um change to -ō:

in imperiō Rōmānō (l.58) in capitulō prīmō (l.73)

in vocābulō (l.72)

You will learn more about these forms in -ā and -ō in Cap. V.

{5} Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Mīlle

Mīlle, the word for “a thousand,” is an indeclinable adjective; indeclinable means its endings never change. So:

mīlle numerī

mīlle vocābula

mīlle litterae

Points of Style: Latin Concision

Latin is a concise language. It can often express in a few words what requires several words in other languages. One of the reasons is that Latin has fewer particles (small, uninflected words) than most modern languages; Latin also has nothing corresponding to the English articles “a” and “the,” as in “a river,” “the river,” etc.

Recēnsiō (Review)

Remember:

1. Pay attention to endings.

2. Be aware of Latin’s flexible word order.

3. Concentrate on meaning and context.

4. Be patient: keep reading.

5. Answers often explain questions.

6. Look to context for word meaning.

Important terms:

• Enclitic: word that is appended to another word (-ne, -que)

• Particle: small uninflected word

• Indeclinable: word whose endings do not change (mīlle)

Studia Rōmāna

The map in the beginning of this chapter shows the Roman Empire (Imperium Rōmānum) at its height in the second century AD, the time in which our narrative takes place. This is the time of the Pax Rōmāna, the Roman peace (which lasted from the end of the first century BC through the second century AD, from the time of the emperor Augustus through Marcus Aurelius). Rome had begun almost a millennium before our story, in 753 BC, as a hamlet on the hills around the swamp that would eventually become the Roman Forum. It began as a tiny kingdom (753–510 BC), then a republic run by the aristocracy (510–27 BC), and finally an empire which lasted in the west until the fifth century AD and in the east—in Constantinople—until the fifteenth century.

{6} In addition to learning the words for town (oppidum) and island (īnsula), you learn the word for river (fluvius) and the names of a few (Nīlus, Rhēnus, Dānuvius, Tiberis). Rivers are very important—for drinking water, for agriculture, for travel, for transport of goods, and as territorial boundaries. So important were rivers that river gods are often shown holding a cornucopia (cornū cōpiae, the horn of plenty), emphasizing their gift to agricultural fertility. Latin poets sometimes identify a group living in an area with the river that supplies them water: “the chilly brook Digentia that the folk of Mandela drink” (Quīntus Horātius Flaccus, 65–8 BC, Epist. 1.18.105); “those who drink the Tiber and the Fabaris” (Vergil, 70–19 BC, Aen. 7.715). The Romans helped along natural resources with the building of aqueducts. Appius Claudius Crassus directed that the first one, the Aqua Appia, be built in the fourth century BC (he is also to be credited with the construction of the Via Appia, the major roadway that led from Rome; see Cap. VI). By the time of our narrative, there were ten.[1] Aqueducts fed fountains throughout a town lucky enough to be connected to an aqueduct. The structure of the house (see Cap. V) helped with water collection: rain water could come in through an opening in the roof of the ātrium, fall into a pool and be collected in a cistern for later use.

The image of the tablet inscribed with numerals (numerī) and letters (litterae) that heads Section III in your text represents an important vehicle for writing. It is called a tabella (Cap. XXI) and consists of a wooden board with a raised border, with wax (cēra) in the middle. The pointed stick you see to the right of the tabella is called a stilus. It had a pointed end (for writing on the wax) and a broad, tapered surface on the other with which one could smooth out the wax (hence erasing the writing). There were different varieties of these tablets, including ones small enough to be held in the hand (called pugillārēs from pugnus, “fist”). In the margins on page 107 (Cap. XIV), you can see a tablet that folded and tied closed (just like pugillārēs), as well as a stilus and a rēgula (ruler). In Cap. II, there is a picture of an ancient book (liber antīquus) in the form of a scroll, as well as a pāgina, a written page (and the page itself!). You will learn more about writing in Cap. XVIII.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina (Nouns)[2]

capitulum, -ī

chapter

exemplum, -ī

example, model

fluvius, -ī

river

grammatica, -ae

grammar

{7} imperium, -ī

command, empire

īnsula, -ae

island

littera, -ae

letter

numerus, -ī

number

ōceanus, -ī

ocean

oppidum, -ī

town

pēnsum, -ī

task

prōvincia, -ae

province

syllaba, -ae

syllable

vocābulum, -ī

word

Verba (Verbs)

est

he/she/it is

sunt

they are

Adiectīva (Adjectives)

Graecus, -a, -um

Greek

Latīnus, -a, -um

Latin

magnus, -a, -um

big, large, great

multī, -ae, -a (pl.)

many, a great many

parvus, -a, -um

little, small

paucī, -ae, -a (pl.)

few, a few

plūrālis (numerus)

plural (plūrālis and singulāris are adjectives of the 3rd declension; you will learn about these in Cap. XII)

prīmus, -a, -um

first

Rōmānus, -a, -um

Roman, of Rome

secundus, -a, -um

second, favorable

singulāris (numerus)

singular

tertius, -a, -um

third

Numerī (Numbers)

ūnus

one, only

duo

two

trēs

three

sex

six

mīlle

one thousand

Adverbia (Adverbs)

nōn

not

Praepositiōnēs (Prepositions)

in (prp. + abl.)

in, on, at

(prp. + acc.)

into, to, against

Coniūnctiōnēs (Conjunctions)

et

and, also

sed

but

quoque

also, too

{8} Vocābula Interrogātīva (Interrogative words)

-ne?

enclitic added to the emphatic word at the beginning of a question the answer to which may be either “yes” or “no.” It can be used in both direct and indirect questions (Cap. XIX).

num?

if, whether; expects a “no” answer

quid? n. (see quis)

what, anything; adv. why

ubi? interrog. adv.

where

____________

1. Frontinus (first century BC) 1.4: Nunc autem in urbem īnfluunt aqua Appia, Aniō Vetus, Mārcia, Tepula, Iūlia, Virgō, Alsietīna quae eadem vocatur Augusta, Claudia, Aniō Novus. The Aqua Alexandrina was completed in the early third century AD.

2. Ignore for now the letters that come after each vocabulary entry; they are there for your later reference and their significance will be clear in the next chapter.

{9} II. Familia Rōmāna

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Gender: Masculine, Feminine, Neuter

2. Nouns:

a. Ending in -us

b. Ending in -a

c. Ending in -um

d. Ending in -er

e. Genitive

3. Adjectives:

a. cēterī, ae, a

b. Possessive

c. Numbers

4. Pronouns: quis, quae, quid

5. Adverbs: Interrogative quot

6. Conjunctions

7. Ecce

8. Points of Style: Enumerations

The Roman Family

We now introduce you to the people whose daily lives we will follow in the rest of the text. The picture shows them dressed in their best clothes, except for the four who are relegated to the margin—clearly, they are not on the same level as the rest of the family. Be sure to remember their names, for you will soon become so well acquainted with these persons that you will almost feel like a friend visiting a real Roman family 2,000 years ago. And the remarkable thing about it is that you can understand their language! You will find more about the Roman family in the STUDIA RŌMĀNA section at the end of the chapter.

{10} Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Gender: Masculine, Feminine, Neuter

Note that the names of these people end in either -us (masculine) or -a (feminine); none of them end in -um (neuter). You will see that the ending -us is characteristic of male persons:

Iūlius

Dāvus

Mārcus

Mēdus

Quīntus

and -a of female persons:

Aemilia

Syra

Iūlia

Dēlia

This principle also applies to nouns that denote persons. Nouns referring to males generally end in -us:

fīlius

servus

dominus

A smaller number of masculine nouns end in -r instead of -us:

vir

puer

Nouns denoting females end mostly in -a:

fēmina

domina

puella

ancilla

fīlia

No persons are denoted by words ending in -um.

Latin groups nouns by gender, not “sex.” The word gender comes from the Latin genus, which means group or category. The three genders, or categories, are:

neuter (Latin neutrum, “neither,” i.e., neither masculine nor feminine)

oppidum

imperium

vocābulum

masculine (Latin masculīnum, from mas, “male”)

fluvius

titulus

numerus

liber

feminine (Latin fēminīnum, from fēmina)

īnsula

prōvincia

littera

familia

Genders (in Latin)

masculine (m.): -us, -er, -ir

feminine (f.): -a

neuter (n.): -um

{11} Nouns: Genitive Case (cāsus genetīvus)

The word familia refers to the whole household, including all the slaves, servī and ancillae, who belong to the head of the family as his property. Iūlius is the father, pater, of Mārcus, Quīntus, and Iūlia, and the master, dominus, of Mēdus, Dāvus, Syra, Dēlia, etc. To express these relationships, we need the genitive (Latin genetīvus), a form of the noun ending in:

Singular: -ī (m./n.) and -ae (f.)

Iūlius est pater Mārcī et Quīntī et Iūliae.

Titulus capitulī secundī est “Familia Rōmāna.” (ll.87–88)

Plural: -ōrum (m./n.) and -ārum (f.)

Iūlius est dominus multōrum servōrum et multārum ancillārum.

In Graeciā et in Italiā magnus numerus oppidōrum est. (l.56)

To express the idea of the genitive, English uses the word “of” or an apostrophe: māter Iūliae = “Julia’s mother” or “the mother of Julia.”

genitive: “of,” “-’s”

m./n.   f.

sing.      -ī          -ae

pl.    -ōrum  -ārum

In addition to the category of gender, nouns fall into categories according to their endings. These categories are called declensions (dēclīnātiōnēs), according to the ending of the genitive. Nouns whose genitive ends in -ae belong to the 1st declension; those whose genitive ends in -ī belong to the 2nd declension.

Conjunctions: Coniūnctiōnēs

Particles like et and sed are called conjunctions (Latin coniūnctiōnēs, from con-iungere, “join together”) because they join words and sentences.

Instead of et, you often find the conjunction -que attached after the second word. -que is called an enclitic because it “leans on” (from the Greek ἐγκλίνω) the word in front of it and cannot stand on its own. The mark “-” in front of it signals an enclitic. Both et and -que mean “and”:

Dēlia Mēdusque = Dēlia et Mēdus. (l.9)

fīliī fīliaeque = fīliī et fīliae. (l.22)

Conjunctions

sed

…-que = et…

{12} Interrogatives: Quis, Quae, Quid

Among the new words in Cap. II are the interrogative words quis and quae, which are used to ask questions about persons (English “who”):

Quis est Mārcus?

masculine quis (plural quī)

Quae est Iūlia?

feminine quae (plural quae)[1]

In Cap. I, you met the neuter interrogative quid (English “what”):

Quid est Creta?

neuter singular.

The genitive of the interrogative for all genders is cuius (English “whose”):

Cuius servus est Dāvus? Dāvus servus Iūliī est. (l.35)

m.

f.

n.

nom.

quis?

quae?

quid?

gen.

cuius?

Quot

Most words in Latin change endings; for example, fīlius (one son) and fīliī (more than one son). Some words, however, never change form. They are called indeclinable: they always look the same. Quot (“how many”) is an indeclinable interrogative adverb that asks questions about number:

Quot līberī sunt in familiā? In familiā Iūliī sunt trēs līberī.

Quot fīliī et quot fīliae? Duo fīliī et ūna fīlia.

Quot servī…?…centum servī. (ll.37–39)

quot? 1, 2, 3…

Numerī

Like mīlle (Cap. I) and most numerals, centum (100, l.39) is invariable: it does not change its ending (or “decline,” the usual term for a change of a noun or adjective’s ending). The numbers one (ūnus), two (duo), and three (trēs), however, do decline, they change endings:

• ūnus has the familiar endings -us, -a, -um

• the feminine of duo is duae (duae fīliae) and the neuter duo

• the neuter of trēs is tria (tria oppida); trēs refers to both masculine and feminine nouns.

m.

f.

n.

ūnus

ūna

ūnum

duo

duae

duo

trēs

trēs

tria

{13} Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Genitive (continued)

The number can also be indicated by the noun numerus combined with the genitive plural:

Numerus līberōrum est trēs. (ll.43–44)

Numerus servōrum est centum. (l.43)

As centum must be said to be a magnus numerus, the following sentences are easily understood:

Numerus servōrum est magnus.

In familiā magnus numerus servōrum est.

It appears that magnus numerus servōrum is equivalent to multī servī. In the same way, parvus numerus līberōrum has the same meaning as paucī līberī. You will also find the expressions magnus numerus oppidōrum and fluviōrum meaning multa oppida and multī fluviī.

magnus numerus…ōrum = multī…ī/multa…a

magnus numerus…ārum = multae…ae

Adjective: Cēterī, -ae, -a

The Romans knew only the northern part of the continent of Africa, where there is only one big river, the Nile:

In Āfricā ūnus fluvius magnus est: Nīlus. (l.58)

It goes on:

Cēterī fluviī Āfricae parvī sunt. (l.59)

The adjective cēterī, -ae, -a, “the others,” recurs several times; thus, the enumeration of the first three of the thirty-five capitula is concluded with cētera:

In Linguā Latinā sunt multae pāginae et multa capitula: capitulum prīmum, secundum, tertium, cētera. (l.86)

The sentence might have read et cētera, the Latin expression which gives us the abbreviation “etc.”

cēterī, -ae, -a

Points of Style: Enumerations

The following rules apply to enumerations in Latin:

1. et put between all items: Mārcus et Quīntus et Iūlia

2. no conjunction used at all: Mārcus, Quīntus, Iūlia

{14} 3. -que added to the last item: Mārcus, Quīntus Iūliaque

That is:

1. a et b et c

2. a, b, c

3. a, b, c-que

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Adjectives: Possessive

The conversation at the end of the chapter (ll.65–79) shows that instead of the genitive, the adjectives meus, -a, -um and tuus, -a, -um are used to refer to what belongs to the person speaking or the person spoken to (like English “my” and “your”).

The adjective always has the same gender (m., f., or n.), number (sing. or pl.), and case (e.g., nominative, genitive) as the noun it modifies. So, Julius says, “Dēlia est ancilla mea” (l.71). Mea is an adjective agreeing with ancilla, so it is feminine nominative singular.

meus, -a, -um

tuus, -a, -um

Ecce

On page 16, you come across the word ecce (illustrated with an arrow in the margin). It is used when you point to or call attention to something; in this case, it is pointing to the two books.

Nouns Ending in -er: puer, puerī, liber, librī

Notice the form of an ancient book: a scroll with the text written in columns. The Latin word for such a scroll is liber. Liber, like puer (also in this chapter), ends in -er instead of in -us. Notice that some nouns (like puer) keep an e throughout, while others (like liber) have e only in the nominative (and vocative, the form used when directly addressing someone).[2] The plural of liber is librī, while the plural of puer is puerī. These nouns are always masculine.

Notā Bene: Look to the genitive to determine what happens to the e:

puer, puerī

(there will be an e throughout)

liber, librī

(the e is found only in the nominative)

nominative

genitive

liber

librī

puer

puerī

{15} Recēnsiō: Grammatical Terms

Decline: Nouns, adjectives, and pronouns change endings, depending on their use in the sentence; that is, they are said to decline.

Declensions: Nouns, adjectives, and pronouns are grouped according to their characteristic vowel into families, called declensions. The vowel -a characterizes the first declension (e.g., puella, domina), while -o/u marks the second declension (e.g., servus, imperium).

Enclitic: An enclitic is a word that cannot stand on its own; it attaches itself to the word it follows.

Gender: Nouns, adjectives, and pronouns fall into three categories called genders: masculine, feminine, and neuter.

Indeclinable: A word is called indeclinable if it never changes endings.

Studia Rōmāna

One of the first things you will notice about the pictures of the Roman family is their clothing. Clothing was an important marker of status in the ancient world. The basic unit of clothing for everyone was the tunic (tunica, Cap. XIV). The tunic was worn in various lengths and was usually belted at the waist. For men, it reached the knees or mid-calf. Soldiers wore them above the knee. Julius is shown wearing a toga (Cap. XIV) over his tunic. The toga was made of white wool and was expensive. It was a highly symbolic garment for special occasions that marked a man as a Roman citizen. A man who was running for office would send his toga to the cleaner to have it whitened. A shining white toga is called toga candida, and a man running for office was a candidātus: our “candidate.” The right arm is left unencumbered, but the left arm is impeded by the way the toga is worn (which you can see clearly in the image of Cornelius in the margin on p. 15).

Both Marcus and Quintus wear a toga with a purple stripe (the toga praetexta, or bordered toga), the normal ceremonial dress of free-born male children (and also of magistrates!) until around the age of fifteen or sixteen, when they assumed the toga virīlis (the toga of manhood, from vir) like their father. Young girls also wore the toga praetexta when they were dressed formally, although Julia is shown here with a plain toga over her long tunic.

Over her tunic, Aemilia wears the palla, a long, wide, and cloak-like garment. The tunic of both girls and adult women reached to the foot. Over her tunic but under the palla, Aemilia is probably wearing a stola, a long, sleeveless garment that signifies her status as a mātrōna, a married woman.

Clothing was made of wool at home by the māterfamilias and her ancillae. In Livy, (59 BC–AD 17) we find Lucretia, a paragon of Roman womanhood, in the atrium spinning wool with her ancillae by lamplight).[3] Suetonius’s (c. AD 75–160) biography of the emperor Augustus tells us that the women in {16} his household learned to spin and weave, despite the family’s great wealth and power (Aug. 64). The republican period epitaph of a woman named Claudia records, among her accomplishments as the māterfamilias, “She looked after the house; she did the wool-working” (domum servāvit. Lānam fēcit).

Children also wore protective amulets around their necks. Boys wore the bulla (which was round) and girls the lūnula (“little moon” and moon shaped). When boys assumed the toga virīlis, they dedicated the bulla to the household gods known as the Larēs. Before their marriage, girls also dedicated the toga praetexta, their toys, and the lūnula to the Larēs. The Larēs represented the spirits of deified dead ancestors; you will learn more about them in Cap. IV.

Footwear included soleae (sandals) and calceī (shoes); soleae covered only part of the foot, and were worn indoors and at meals, while the calceus (Cap. XIV, p. 106) covered the whole foot and was a sturdier shoe.

We see the slaves, both men and women, wearing short, belted tunics.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st declension

ancilla, -ae

female slave, servant

domina, -ae

mistress

familia, -ae

domestic staff, family

fēmina, -ae

woman

fīlia, -ae

daughter

pāgina, -ae

page

puella, -ae

girl

2nd declension

dominus, -ī

master

fēminīnum, -ī (genus)

feminine

fīlius, -ī

son

genetīvus, -ī (cāsus)

genitive

liber, -brī

book

līberī, -ōrum

children

masculīnum, -ī (genus)

masculine

neutrum (genus)

neuter

puer, -erī

boy

servus, -ī

slave, servant

titulus, -ī

title

vir, -ī

man, husband

3rd declension (you will learn more about these nouns in Cap. IX)

māter (f.)

mother

pater (m.)

father

{17} Adiectīva

1st/2nd declension (-us, -a, -um)

antīquus, -a, -um

old, ancient, former

centum (invariable)

a hundred

cēterī, -ae, -a (pl.)

the other(s), the rest

duo, duae, duo

two

meus, -a, -um

my, mine

novus, -a, -um

new

tuus, -a, -um

your, yours

3rd declension (you will learn more about these adjectives in Cap. XII)

trēs, tria

three

Prōnōmina

quis? quae? quid?

who, what

quī? (m. pl.)

what, which

cuius? (gen. sing.)

whose

Adverbia

quot? (indecl.)

how many, (as many) as

Coniūnctiōnēs

-que

and enclitic added to the second word of a pair of words in order to link them together

____________

1. Latin, in fact, tended to use quis for both masculine and feminine nominative singular.

2. Vocative, Cap. IV.

3. Ab urbe conditā, 1.57. Lūcrētiam…nocte sērā dēditam lānae inter lūcūbrantēs ancillās in mediō aedium sedentem inveniunt.

{18} III. Puer Improbus

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. The Latin Verb

b. Transitive/Intransitive

c. Implied Subject

2. Nouns Subject/Object

3. Pronouns

a. Personal Pronouns: Accusative Case

b. Relative and Interrogative Pronouns

4. Adverbs: Interrogatives cūr, quia

5. Conjunctions: Negatives

6. Points of Style: Writing Relative Sentences

Sibling Quarrel

Now that you have been introduced to the family, you are going to watch some of their doings. We begin with the children—they are portrayed here as being much the same in ancient times as they are today. So, we are not surprised to learn that Julius and Aemilia’s children cannot always get on together. Here, little Julia is the first to suffer, because her singing annoys her big brother. Peace is not restored until Mother and Father step in.

The chapter is divided up into three scenes (scaena prīma, secunda, tertia).

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

The Latin Verb

Several of the new words in this chapter are verbs. A verb (Latin verbum) is a word that expresses an action or a state: that someone does something or that something exists or takes place. The first Latin verb you come across is cantat in the opening sentence: Iūlia cantat. Other verbs are pulsat, plōrat, rīdet, videt, vocat, venit, etc. They all end in -t—like est, which is also a verb—and mostly come at the end of the sentence.

{19} Verbs

-at

cantat, pulsat, plōrat

-et

rīdet, videt, respondet

-it

venit, audit, dormit

Like nouns, verbs are grouped into categories, called conjugations (coniugātiōnēs); verbs in the 1st conjugation have stems ending in -ā, in the 2nd in -ē, in the 4th in -ī. In Cap. IV you will learn some verbs from the 3rd conjugation, which also have a 3rd person singular ending in -it; in that conjugation, some verbs have a stem ending in -ĭ and others ending in a consonant.

Nouns: Subject/Object

The first of the two words in the sentence Iūlia cantat denotes the person who performs the action. Other sentences of the same kind are:

Iūlia plōrat. (l.9)

Aemilia venit. (l.21)

Mārcus rīdet. (l.10)

Pater dormit. (l.37)

But it is not always as simple as this. Take, for instance, the sentence that is illustrated by the little drawing in the margin: Mārcus Iūliam pulsat (l.8). Here, we are told not only who performs the action, but also at whom the action is aimed. The same pattern is seen in the following sentences, also illustrated by pictures:

Quīntus Mārcum videt. (l.11)

Mārcus Quīntum pulsat. (l.14)

Quīntus Mārcum pulsat. (l.13)

Iūlia Aemiliam vocat. (l.19)

Subject: The person who performs the action is called the subject of the verb. The subject has the ending -us, -a (or -um for neuter nouns); these forms are called nominative (Latin nōminātīvus).

Object: The person toward whom (or the object toward which) the action is directed, the object, takes the ending -um or -am. The forms -um and -am are called accusative (Latin accūsātīvus).

In other words: Iūlia is changed to Iūliam when we are told that Marcus hits her, just as Mārcus becomes Mārcum when he is the victim. In similar circumstances, puella changes to puellam, and puer to puerum, and qualifying adjectives get the same ending:

Mārcus parvam puellam pulsat. (l.59)

Iūlius puerum improbum verberat. (l.64)

subject

object

verb

Mārcus

Iūliam

pulsat

m.

f.

nominative:

-us

-a

accusative:

-um

-am

{20} Both the nominative (subject) and the accusative (object) are called cases: cāsus nōminātīvus and cāsus accūsātīvus.

Verbs: Transitive/Intransitive

Verbs like pulsat, videt, vocat, which can be used with an object in the accusative, are called transitive. Verbs without an object—e.g., plōrat, dormit—are intransitive verbs.

Iūlia plōrat (intransitive: no object) et Aemiliam vocat (transitive: accusative object). (l.9)

Mārcus nōn videt Quīntum (transitive). (l.11)

In the following sentence, the first verb (pulsat) is transitive and the second (ridet) intransitive:

Mārcus puellam pulsat—et rīdet! (l.12)

Notā Bene: You need to pay attention to whether a word is transitive in Latin—which will not always be the same as its English equivalent!

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Personal Pronouns: Accusative Case

Instead of accusative nouns in -am and -um, you sometimes find the words eam and eum, e.g.:

Iūlia plōrat quia Mārcus eam pulsat. (ll.27–28)

Cūr Iūlius Quīntum nōn audit? Iūlius eum nōn audit, quia dormit. (ll.42–43)

On page 20, you will notice the marginal note “eam: Iūliam” means that here, eam stands for Iūliam.

A word of this kind, which takes the place of a name or noun, is called a pronoun (Latin prōnōmen, from prō “instead of” and nōmen “name” or “noun”).

Corresponding to eum (him) and eam (her), the pronoun mē is used when a person is speaking about himself or herself, and tē is used about the person spoken to (in English, “me” and “you”):

Aemilia: “Quis mē vocat?”

Quīntus: “Iūlia tē vocat.” (ll.24–25)

m.

f.

acc.

eum

eam

mē

tē

{21} Implied Subject

In English, we use the pronouns “he” and “she”: Where is Julius? Why doesn’t he come? But in Latin, these pronouns are not needed. When the context shows who the subject is, it need not be repeated (or replaced by a pronoun):

“Ubi est Iūlius? Cūr nōn venit?” (ll.35–36)

Similarly:

Iūlius eum nōn audit, quia dormit. (l.43)

“Cūr māter Mārcum verberat?” “Mārcum verberat, quia puer improbus est.” (ll.58–59)

Adverbs: Interrogatives cūr and quia

The interrogative adverb cūr (“why?”) is used to ask about the cause (Latin causa). A question introduced by cūr calls for an answer with the causal conjunction quia (“because”):

Cūr Iūlia plōrat? Iūlia plōrat, quia Mārcus eam pulsat. (ll.26–28)

Cūr Mārcus Iūliam pulsat? Quia Iūlia cantat. (ll.30–31)

question: cūr…?

answer: …quia…

Conjunctions: Negative

The conjunctions et and sed are not usually combined with a negation; instead of et nōn and sed nōn, the conjunction neque (ne-que) is used, i.e., -que attached to the original negation nē (= nōn):

Iūlius dormit neque Quīntum audit.

In English, “and not”

Iūlius venit, neque Aemilia eum videt.

In English, “but not”

ne-que = et nōn (sed nōn)

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Pronouns: Relative and Interrogative

In the sentence Puer quī parvam puellam pulsat improbus est (l.63), quī refers to puer and is called a relative pronoun. The relative pronoun connects (“relates”) a subordinate clause to a main clause. The relative pronoun refers to a word in the main clause called an antecedent. The pronoun will agree with its antecedent in gender and number, but its case will be determined by the subordinate clause. In the preceding example, quī is masculine singular to agree with its antecedent puer and nominative because it is the subject of pulsat in its own clause.

{22} More examples:

Puer quī rīdet est Mārcus. (l.70)

Puella quae plōrat est Jūlia. (l.71)

As a relative pronoun quem is used in the masculine and quam in the feminine when it represents the verb’s object in its own clause:

Puer quem Aemilia verberat est Mārcus. (ll.75–76)

Puella quam Mārcus pulsat est Iūlia. (ll.72–73)

The examples show that quī and quem (m.) refer to a masculine noun, and quae and quam (f.) to a feminine noun.

In Cap. IV (l.75) you will meet quod, which refers to a neuter noun:

baculum, quod in mēnsā est

At the end of the chapter (p. 23), you find sentences with both the interrogative and the relative pronoun, e.g.:[1]

Quis est puer quī rīdet?

Who (interrogative) is the boy who (relative) is laughing? (l.69)

In the feminine, the two pronouns are identical:

Quae est puella quae

Who (interrogative) is the girl who

plōrat?

(relative) is crying? (l.70)

The interrogative pronoun quis is quem in the accusative:

Quem vocat Quīntus? Quīntus Iūlium vocat. (l.77)

Points of Style: Writing Relative Sentences

Consider these sentences

• (from Cap. II) Iūlius est vir Rōmānus. Iūlius est pater Mārcī. These two independent sentences have equal value. Their common lexical link is Iūlius. Substituting the relative for one Iūlius, we can make two different complex sentences:

Iūlius, quī est vir Rōmānus, est pater Mārcī.

Iūlius, quī est pater Mārcī, est vir Rōmānus.

In the first sentence, Julius’s being a Roman man is made subordinate to his being the father of Marcus, while in the second, his being Marcus’s father is the subordinate, or dependent, idea.

• (from Cap. III) Iūlius eum audit. Iam nōn dormit pater. (l.48)

Pater, quī eum audit, iam nōn dormit.

Father, who hears him, is no longer sleeping.

Iūlius, quī iam nōn dormit, eum audit.

Julius, who is no longer sleeping, hears him.

{23}    Since pater and Iūlius both refer to the same person, we can substitute a relative pronoun for one of the occurrences. The meaning of the sentence changes a bit, depending on how the clauses are combined. The first one suggests (as did the original two independent clauses) that Julius is no longer sleeping because he hears Marcus wailing and that wakes him up. The second implies that he hears Marcus because he is no longer sleeping.

relative pronoun: connects a clause

puer quī…

puella quae…

m.

f.

n.

nom.

quī

quae

quod

acc.

quem

quam

quod

interrogative pronoun: asks a question

nom.

quis

acc.

Quem

Recēnsiō: Qu- words

quis? quae? quid?

who, what? (interrogative pronoun)

quī, quae

who (interrogative pronoun, plural)

quia

because (conjunction)

quot

how many? (interrogative adverb)

New Grammatical Terms

Case: The ending of a noun or adjective changes depending on the word’s function; each of these alterations is called a “case” (Latin cāsus).

Subject: The person (or thing) that performs the action of the verb is called the subject, represented in Latin by the nominative case.

Object: The person (or thing) that completes the meaning of the verb is called the direct object, represented in Latin by the accusative case.

Conjugation: The ending of a verb’s stem (-ā, -ē, -ī, -ĭ, or consonant) determines the group (conjugation) to which it belongs.

Transitive: A verb is transitive if an accusative direct object completes its meaning.

Intransitive: A verb is intransitive if its meaning is complete without an accusative direct object.

Implied Subject: If the subject is not directly stated, but needs to be supplied from the ending of the verb, it is called an implied subject.

Pronoun: A pronoun takes the place of a noun.

Lexical Entry: The way a word is presented in a lexicon (dictionary), for {24} example mamma, -ae, f. The vocabulary entry for verbs and some other words will change in the first part of this book as you learn more morphology (forms of words). For now, verbs are listed as 3rd person singular. Cap. X adds the present infinitive. The actual lexical entry for verbs begins with the 1st person singular, which you will first meet in Cap. XV.

Studia Rōmāna

In the second scene, we see Julius sleeping on a lectus, a Roman bed. While it looks pretty uncomfortable, such sleeping couches were common in the ancient world (other images on pp. 74, 78, 187). By our standards, Roman furniture could be sparse. The three most common pieces were the table (mēnsa), chair (sella), and couch (lectus). Storage places in the form of cupboards (armārium) and chests (arca) were also important. Containers for books (scrolls) went by various names: the capsa (also in diminutive form: capsula) was a cylinder that can often be seen at the foot of a statue of one who wants to mark himself as learned. The scrīnium was a portable chest for holding books and papers. The cista (also in diminutive form: cistula) was a woven basket used for holding various things, including books; a particular usage for the cista was to hold the sacred implements at a religious festival. Oil lamps (lucernae) were ubiquitous. They could be carried in the hand and placed on a lamp-stand (lychnūchus, λυχνοῦχος).

Furniture—especially tables, of which the Romans were particularly fond—could be a sign of wealth. The beginning of Cap. IV (p. 26) shows Julius sitting at a table that rests on ornately carved legs. Pliny the Elder (first century AD) writes about the Roman mania for tables (mēnsārum insānia) made of citrus (cedar) wood (arbor cītrī, Historia Nātūrālis, 13.29); elsewhere, he writes of table legs being made of ivory (12.3). You will see at the end of our story that Julius can afford to adorn his dining room with expensive linens for the dining couches (Cap. XXX). Romans sometimes brought their own napkin (mappa) or hand towel (mantēle) to dinner parties. Catullus (first century BC) complained in the first century BC that someone stole a napkin from him while dining out, which was both expensive and a gift from a friend (Poem 12). The complaint continues to the time period of our narrative. Martial (first century AD) writes about a recent diner, “No one had brought his napkin (mappa) since thefts were feared: Hermogenes stole the cloth (mantēle) from the table” (Book 12.28: attulerat mappam nēmō, dum fūrta timentur: / mantēle ā mēnsā surpuit Hermogenes).

Julius sits on a low stool (p. 22: scamnum), but the Romans had a variety of chairs (sellae)—including the high-backed chairs that we see in Cap. XIV (p. 110).

{25} In the third scene, as father punishes his son, the sound is represented by tuxtax (ll.64, 65), a word meant to imitate the sound of being beaten. Corporal punishment for children was common. Some other colorful Latin expressions:

• bombax: an exclamation of surprise

• babae: an exclamation of joy and amazement

In the next chapter, you’ll meet some other Latin exclamations:

• fū: an exclamation of dislike or aversion

• st: “shhhhh…”

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

mamma, -ae

mommy

persōna, -ae

character, person

scaena, -ae

scene, stage

2nd

accūsātīvus, -ī (cāsus)

accusative

nōminātīvus, -ī (cāsus)

nominative

verbum, -ī

word, verb

Verba

-at (1)

cantat

sing

interrogat

ask, question

plōrat

cry

pulsat

strike, hit, knock (at)

verberat

beat, flog

vocat

call, invite

-et (2)

respondet

answer

rīdet

laugh, make fun of

videt

see

-it (4)

audit

hear, listen

dormit

sleep

venit

come

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us, -a, -um)

improbus, -a, -um

bad, wicked

īrātus, -a, -um

angry

laetus, -a, -um

glad, happy

probus, -a, -um

good, honest, proper

{26} Prōnōmina

eam

her

eum

him

mē

me

quae (f.)

who, which, she who

quam (acc. sing. f.)

whom, which, she whom

quem (acc. sing. m.)

whom, which, he whom

quī (m.)

who, which, he who

tē

you

Adverbia

cūr?

why?

iam

now, already

hīc

here

Coniūnctiōnēs

neque

and not, but not, nor, neither

quia

because

Alia (Cētera)

ō!

oh!

____________

1. See the explanation (p. xv) of when—and why—sentences will be translated

{27} IV. Dominus et Servī

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Conjugations: coniugātiōnēs

b. Mood:

i. modus indicātīvus

ii. modus imperātīvus

2. Nouns: Vocative Case: cāsus vocātīvus

3. Adjectives

a. Numbers: numerī

b. Possessives: eius/suus, meus/tuus

4. Pronouns: Nominative, Genitive Case

We now leave the children for a while and turn to the grown-ups. There is a worried look on Julius’s face; it turns out that a sum of money is missing. Who is the thief? The problem is not solved until the end of the chapter, of course—and by then, the culprit has already decamped! Later (in Caps. VI and VIII), you will find out where he is hiding and what he does with the money. But right now, you must set to work to discover who the thief is.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Verbs: Conjugations

The stem of a Latin verb ends in one of the long vowels -ā, -ē, -ī, or in a consonant. The verbs are therefore divided into four classes, called conjugations (coniugātiōnēs):

1st conjugation: ā-verbs, with stems ending in -ā: vocā-, cantā-, pulsā-.

2nd conjugation: ē-verbs, with stems ending in -ē: tacē-, vidē-, habē-.

3rd conjugation: consonant-verbs, with stems ending in a consonant: pōn-, sūm-, discēd-.

4th conjugation: ī-verbs, with stems ending in -ī: venī-, audī-, dormī-.

{28} To these stems the different verbal endings are added (a vertical stroke [|] is here used to mark the division between stem and ending).

When -t is added:

• the last vowel of the stem becomes short: voca|t, vide|t, veni|t

• in the consonant-verbs a short -i- is inserted before the -t: pōn|it, sūm|it, discēd|it.

Conjugations

ā-stems

vocā-

ē-stems

vidē-

consonant-stems

pōn-

ī-stems

venī-

This verbal form is called the indicative (Latin indicātīvus, “stating,” “indicating”). The indicative makes a statement or asks a question.

Verbs: Moods: Modī

So far all of our reading has consisted of sentences that make statements or ask questions. In this chapter, you learn how to give commands. These different forms of the verb are called moods (modus). As you saw in the previous section, statements and questions fall into the category of the indicative mood (modus indicātīvus). Commands in Latin are expressed by the imperative mood (modus imperātīvus).

Imperative: Modus Imperātīvus

The form of the verb used to give orders is called the imperative (Latin imperātīvus, from imperat, “he, she, it orders”). When giving an order to one person, the Latin imperative consists of the shortest form of the verb called the stem, without any ending, e.g., vocā! tacē! venī!, or a short -e is added when the stem ends in a consonant, as in pōne! (the stem is pōn-). Examples:

Dāvum vocā! (l.24)

Tacē, serve! (l.37)

Venī! (l.27)

Sacculum tuum in mēnsā pōne! (l.60)

Imperative

vocā! vidē! venī! pōne!

In the following examples, the first verb is an imperative (gives an order), the second, indicative (makes a statement or asks a question).

{29} vocā: call!

voca|t

he, she, it calls

vidē: see!

vide|t

he, she, it sees

pōn|e: put!

pōn|it

he, she, it puts

audī: listen!

audi|t

he, she, it listens

Pronouns: Genitive (cāsus genetīvus)

The genitive of is (which you will learn in Section II) is eius (cf. English “his, her”):

In sacculō eius (: Iūliī) est pecūnia. (l.1)

Possessives: meus, -a, -um/tuus, -a, -um

The adjectives meus, -a, -um (my), tuus, -a, -um (yours) and suus, -a, -um (his own, her own, its own) are called possessive adjectives. The possessive adjective serves to replace the genitive (for all three genders: masculine, feminine, and neuter).

Possessives: eius/suus

English has one set of possessives for the 3rd person: his, her, its. Latin has two:

the genitive pronoun

eius

the possessive adjective

suus, -a, -um

Compare the following two sentences:

Dāvus sacculum eius sūmit.

Davus takes his (someone else’s) bag.

Dāvus sacculum suum sūmit.

Davus takes his own bag. (l.74)

Both eius and suus, -a, -um mean his, her, its, but they are not interchangeable. To understand the difference, compare the two examples (ll.61–62):

Dāvus sacculum suum in mēnsā pōnit.

Iam sacculus eius in mēnsā est.

In the first sentence—Dāvus sacculum suum in mēnsā pōnit—the subject is Davus and the money also belongs to Davus; therefore “his” (or “his own”) is expressed by the adjective suum. When the “his” (or “hers” or “its”) refers back to the subject of the sentence, Latin uses the possessive adjective suus, -a, -um. In English, the word “own” is sometimes added to make the meaning plain: “his/her own.”

In the second sentence—Iam sacculus eius in mēnsā est—the subject is sacculus, and “his” is expressed by the genitive of the pronoun: eius.

Look at another example:

Iūlius pecūniam suam sūmit.

Julius takes his (own) money.

{30} Note that “his own” is feminine, because it modifies pecūniam, even though it is translated “his” and refers to Julius. An adjective always has the same gender, number, and case as the noun it modifies.

In other words, when:

• referring to something that belongs to the grammatical subject of the sentence, the adjective suus, -a, -um is used: Iūlius servum suum vocat.

• referring to something that does not belong to the grammatical subject of the clause, the pronoun eius is used: Servus eius abest.

Recēnsiō: Possessive Adjectives and Possessive Pronouns

Compare the following examples:

Ubi est sacculus tuus?

Where is your bag? (l.58)

Ecce sacculus meus.

Here is my bag. (l.59)

Sūme sacculum tuum.

Take your bag. (l.73)

Dāvus sacculum eius sūmit.

Davus takes his (someone else’s) bag.

Dāvus sacculum suum sūmit.

Davus takes his own bag. (l.74)

Nouns: Vocative in -e

When one person uses another’s name as a form of address, he or she uses the vocative case, the case of “calling” (Latin vocātīvus, from vocat). We have already seen the characters in our story addressing each other in Cap. III:

Mamma! (l.60)

Mater! Mārcus Quīntum pulsat. (ll.16–17)

Fū, puer! (l.45)

St, puerī! (l.39)

Pater! Pa-ter! (l.41)

In each of these cases, the vocative has the same form as the nominative.

In the vocative of the 2nd declension, however, nouns that end in –us have a different form. When a 2nd declension nominative ends in -us, the vocative ends in -e. Medus calls Davus, crying, “Dāve!” (l.25), and when Davus greets his master, he says, “Salvē, domine!” and Julius answers, “Salvē, serve!” (ll.34–35).

Dāvus (nom.)

→

Dāve (voc.)

dominus (nom.)

→

domine (voc.)

servus (nom.)

→

serve (voc.)

{31} Numbers (numerī): 1–10

Of the following cardinal numbers, only one, two, and three decline (see Cap. II); the rest are indeclinable adjectives:

1. ūnus: I

2. duo: II

3. trēs: III

4. quattuor: IV

5. quīnque: V

6. sex: VI

7. septem: VII

8. octō: VIII

9. novem: IX

10. decem: X

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Pronouns: Nominative

In the second of the two clauses, Mēdus discēdit, quia is pecūniam dominī habet (ll.76–77), the nominative Mēdus is replaced by the pronoun is, which is the nominative corresponding to the accusative eum (English “he” and “him”). In English, the pronoun is always used. In Latin, the nominative of this pronoun:

• is used only when it carries a certain emphasis (here, Medus is contrasted with Davus)

• is omitted when the subject is not emphasized (“implied subject,” Cap. II)

Mēdus nōn respondet, quia abest (next section, l.85).

In English, we must mark emphasis by inflection (voice) or underlining (for example) the stressed word:

Medus does not answer because he is not there.

Mēdus nōn respondet, quia abest.

Medus leaves because he has the master’s money.

Mēdus discēdit, quia is pecūniam dominī habet.

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

The final reading in this chapter offers further practice of the material introduced in the first two readings. Notice in particular the emphasis of is:

Dāvus bonus servus est. Is nōn habet pecūniam meam. (ll.81–82)

Mēdus nōn venit, quia is habet pecūniam tuam. (ll.92–93)

Iūlius īrātus est—is nōn rīdet! (l.94)

Recēnsiō: Grammatical Terms

Stem: the form of the verb without its endings

Conjugation: one of the four groups of verbs: Coniugātiō

Mood: the name given to the category of expression of the verb (e.g., makes a statement; gives an order): Modus

{32} Indicative: the mood of the verb that asks a question or makes a statement: Indicātīvus

Imperative: the mood of the verb that gives an order: Imperātīvus

Nominative: the case of the subject: Nōminātīvus

Accusative: the case of the direct object: Accūsātīvus

Genitive: the case of possession: Genetīvus

Vocative: the case of calling, or address: Vocātīvus

Studia Rōmāna

The familia consists of the master (dominus), his wife (domina), their children (līberī, the “free people”), and the slaves (servī and ancillae). The familia had a shared religious cult: the lar familiāris (or plural: larēs familiārēs) whose shrine was called a larārium (located usually in the ātrium, but sometimes also found in the kitchen or peristyle—an inner courtyard lined with rows of columns). Larēs are depicted as male dancers, mid-dance (as can be seen from their billowing tunics), carrying a drinking horn or a bowl. They often flank an image of a man with his toga over his head (the garb of someone acting in a priestly function and preparing to perform a sacrifice); this image represents the genius (spirit) of the dominus of the home. There is also often a snake depicted below the larēs and the dominus. The larēs belonged to and protected the place, and thus united all who lived in that place. In addition to the larēs for the homestead (the larēs familiārēs), there were also larēs for the crossroads in the neighborhood (the gods of the crossroads, honored at the festival of the Compitālia) and of the town in general (larēs pūblicī)—that is, of nearly every place that was marked as a specific location (as are the home, the crossroads, etc.).

The other important domestic gods were Vesta (the goddess of the hearth) and the Penātēs. The Penātēs were also guardians of the household, with dominion over the household goods, including food. Unlike the Larēs, they were associated with the paterfamiliās instead of the whole familia.

Slavery was an accepted fact of life in the ancient world. As Rome expanded from a series of huts on the Palatine Hill to a massive empire through warfare, prisoners of war became slaves. The children of those slaves (called vernae) increased the number. The master had complete control of his slaves’ lives. Marriage between slaves was not recognized under Roman law, but they could be given permission to enter into a contubernium. Their children belonged to the master and were called vernae (home-bred slaves). When a master manumitted (“sent from his hand”; freed) a slave, that slave became a freedman, or lībertus/līberta. Although no longer part of the familia, the lībertus now belongs among his former master’s dependents or clients (clientēs) and still has obligations to his former master. A slave could earn a small amount of money, a pecūlium, for his services; he might eventually save enough to buy his freedom.

{33} The slaves in our story have names that suggest their origin. Syra might have come from Asia Minor (Syria and the area around Assyria). Varrō (first-century BC polymath, in dē Linguā Latīnā, 8.21) tells us that masters often choose the names of their new slaves either from the name of the person who sold the slave or the region in which the slave was purchased (or he might give the new slave whatever name appealed to him). Dēlia is a Greek name (was she bought at Delos, a center of slave trade?), as is Dāvus, whose name was popular in Roman comedy. In Cap. XVI, you will learn that Medus is also Greek. There were different types of slaves; the slaves in our story are house-slaves, but Julius owns other slaves who worked in the fields and the mines. There were highly educated slaves who could teach children (and their masters), and act as secretaries and scribes. There were skilled chefs (who were highly prized—and very expensive). One of Aemilia’s ancillae would have acted as her hairdresser, ōrnātrīx. There were pedisequī and pedisequae, slaves who were in constant attendance on their masters (the name means someone who follows one’s footsteps). A Roman involved in public affairs would have walked through the forum with his nōmenclātor, a slave whose job it was to tell his master the names of those they encountered in Rome.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

mēnsa, -ae

table

pecūnia, -ae

money

2nd

baculum, -ī

stick

indicātīvus, -ī (modus)

indicative

imperātīvus, -ī (modus)

imperative

nummus, -ī

coin

sacculus, -ī

purse

vocātīvus, -ī (cāsus)

vocative

Verba

-ā (1)

accūsat

accuse

imperat (+ dat.)

command, order, rule

numerat

count

salūtat

greet

-ē (2)

habet

have, hold, consider

pāret (+ dat.)

obey

tacet

be silent

{34} consonant (3)

discēdit

go away, depart

pōnit

place, put, lay down

sūmit

take

irregular

abest

be absent

adest

be present

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us, -a, -um)

bonus, -a, -um

good

decem

ten

novem

nine

nūllus, -a, -um

no, none

octō

eight

quattuor

four

quīnque

five

septem

seven

suus, -a, -um

his, her, their (own)

vacuus, -a, -um

empty

Prōnōmina

eius

his (gen. sing. of is, ea, id)

is, ea, id

he, she, it, that

quī, quae, quod

who, which, that

Adverbia

rūrsus

again, back

tantum

so much, only

Alia

salvē

hello, good morning (sing.)

{35} V. Vīlla et Hortus

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Indicative and Imperative Plural

b. rīdet/rīdent

c. agit/agunt

2. Nouns

a. Accusative Case (plural)

b. Case Uses: Prepositions with the Ablative

3. Adjectives in -er

4. Pronouns: is, ea, id

5. Prepositions

The Roman Villa

We have made the acquaintance of what is evidently a prosperous Roman family, to judge from the splendid villa in which they live. The plan on page 33 and the pictures of various parts of the house will give you an impression of the layout of this typical Roman villa. Characteristic features are the atrium, with its opening in the roof and pool for rainwater, and the peristyle, the inner courtyard lined with rows of columns.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Accusative Case (Plural)

In Cap. III, you learned the accusative singular in -um and -am; we now learn the accusative plural ending in -ōs and -ās. The plural fīliī becomes fīliōs when it is the object of the verb: Iūlius duōs fīliōs habet; similarly, fīliae changes to fīliās. E.g.:

is multōs servōs habet (l.6)

ea multās ancillās habet (ll.7–8)

{36} The accusative of masculine and feminine nouns always ends:

• in -m in the singular and

• in -s in the plural

Neuter nouns have the same ending in the accusative as in the nominative (sing. -um, pl. -a):

In vīllā sunt duo ōstia. (nominative, l.25)

Vīlla duo ōstia et multās fenestrās habet. (accusative, l.26) accusative sing. and pl.

m.

f.

n.

sing.

-um

-am

-um

pl.

-ōs

-ās

-a

Prepositions with the Ablative Case

Prepositions (Latin praepositiōnēs, “placed in front”) link a noun (or pronoun) to another word in the sentence. A preposition takes an object (either in the ablative, as here, or in the accusative); the preposition plus its object is called a prepositional phrase.

Since the first chapter, you have been using the preposition in:

Rōma in Italiā est. (Cap. I, l.1)

Germānia in imperiō Rōmānō nōn est. (Cap. I, ll.58–59)

Quot servī sunt in familiā tuā? (Cap. II, l.74)

In sacculō meō (Cap. IV, l.15)

In this chapter, you learn more prepositions. Like in, the prepositions ab, cum, ex, and sine cause the following nouns to take the ending -ō (m./n.) or -ā (f.) and in the plural -īs:

in ātriō

cum līberīs

ex hortō

sine rosīs

ab Aemiliā

The forms in -ō, -ā, and -īs are called ablative (Latin cāsus ablātīvus).

ab, cum, ex, in, sine + -ō, -ā, -īs

ablative

m./n.

f.

sing.

-ō

-ā

pl.

-īs

-īs

{37} Adjectives in -er

You learned in Cap. II that not all masculine nouns end in -us; some, like puer and liber, end in -er. Not all adjectives end in -us, -a, -um. Some, like pulcher, pulchra, pulchrum, end in -er:

Syra nōn est fēmina pulchra, neque pulcher est nāsus eius. (l.17)

cum rosīs pulchrīs (l.61)

Rosae pulchrae sunt. (l.63)

Notā Bene: pulcher, pulchra, pulchrum, like liber, librī, has an e only in the nominative singular. Like nouns ending in –er, the stem of an adjective ending in –er can be determined from the genitive singular; the feminine singular will also tell you if the adjective keeps the e: pulchra.

Pronoun is, ea, id

New forms of the pronoun is (masculine) are now introduced: feminine ea, neuter id; plural iī (= eī), eae, ea.

Notā Bene:

• In the accusative and ablative, pronoun is, ea, id shows the same endings as the noun it represents; remembering the accusatives eum and eam, you will identify forms like eō, eā (abl. sing.), eōs, eās (acc. pl.) and iīs (= eīs, abl. pl.).

• The genitive plural is eōrum, eārum (thus, for dominus servōrum, you find dominus eōrum).

• The genitive singular has a special form eius, which is the same for all three genders: you have already had sacculus eius (: Iūliī), now you find nāsus eius (: Syrae). (These genitives correspond to the English possessive pronouns “his/her/its/their”).

{38} Verbs: Indicative Plural

Lastly, you learn the 3rd person plural form of verbs:

Indicative: when the subject is in the plural (e.g., puerī), or is more than one person (e.g., Mārcus et Quīntus), the verb ends in -nt (cf. est and sunt):

Mārcus et Quīntus Iūliam vocant.

Puerī rīdent.

Multī servī in ūnō cubiculō dormiunt. (l.40)

Notā Bene: In the consonant-verbs (3rd conjugation), a short vowel is inserted before the plural endings of the indicative:

• -u- before the indicative ending -nt:
Puerī discēdunt. (ll.75–76)

• Even in 4th conjugation verbs (ī) -u-is inserted before -nt:
Puerī veniunt.

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Verbs: Imperative Plural

Imperative: when two or more people are ordered to do something, the plural form of the imperative ending in -te is used:

Mārce et Quīnte! Iūliam vocāte! (l.51)

Audīte! (l.67)

Tacēte, puerī! (l.72)

Notā Bene: As in the indicative, in the imperative plural of the consonant-verbs (3rd conjugation), a short vowel is inserted before the ending:

• -i- before the imperative ending –te
Discēdite, puerī! (cf. l.73)

Imperative and Indicative

{39} Verbs

rīdet/rīdent

Julia’s remark, “puerī mē rīdent” (l.70), shows that rīdet, which is usually an intransitive verb, can take an object in the sense “laugh at”: Puerī Iūliam rīdent.

rīdet alone

Puerī rīdent.

The boys are laughing.

rīdet + acc.

Puerī me rīdent.

The boys are laughing at me.

agit/agunt

The consonant-verb agit, agunt denotes action in general: Quid agit Mārcus? Quid agunt puerī? (English “do”). The imperative of this verb is often put before another imperative to emphasize the command, somewhat like our English “Come on!” or “Get going!” e.g., Age! venī, serve! Agite! venīte, servī!

age! agite! + imp.

Recēnsiō: Prepositions with the Ablative

in

Iūlius in magnā vīllā habitat. (l.1)

Vīlla Iūliī in magnō hortō est. (l.12)

In hortīs sunt rosae et līlia. (l.13)

ex

Discēdite ex peristȳlō. (l.73)

Puerī aquam sūmunt ex impluviō. (l.83)

ab

Puerī Iūliam audiunt, neque iī ab Aemiliā discēdunt. (l.56)

Iūlia plōrat et cum ūnā rosā ab iīs discēdit. (l.71)

cum

Iūlius in vīllā suā habitat cum magnā familiā. (l.9)

Pater et māter habitant cum Mārcō et Quīntō et Iūliā. (ll.9–10)

In Italiā sunt multae vīllae cum magnīs hortīs. (ll.12–13)

sine

Aemilia sine virō suō Iūliō in vīllā est. (ll.44–45)

In oppidō Tūsculō est sine Aemīliā. (ll.45–46)

Puella sine rosīs pulchra nōn est. (ll.63–64)

Studia Rōmāna

In this chapter, you learn the features of a Roman country house, called a vīlla. You will notice on the diagram on page 33 how many of the rooms are called cubicula, or bedchambers. Archaeologists assign the word “cubiculum” to small {40} rooms in general. We often are not sure what the rooms were used for; therefore, every room you see marked as a cubiculum is not necessarily a bedroom.

The entranceway to a Roman house was called the vestibulum. The visitor would pass through this area into the ātrium. The ātrium usually had an opening in the roof called a compluvium, through which rainwater could fall into the impluvium—a small pool—below. The ātrium is the most public space in the house and it was here that visitors would be welcomed. Tall doors often flanked the room, two on each side, enclosing small rooms and the third set (in the photograph on p. 33, this third set has curtains rather than doors) leading to the ālae, or “wings” (the same word is used for birds’ wings, as you will learn in Cap. X); these are open alcoves. At the far end of the ātrium, opposite the entrance and across the impluvium, is the tablīnum, or record-room, of the house (the word tablīnum is related to tabula, the word you met in Cap. I that can mean both “writings” as well as “writing tablet”). In some houses—as it appears from the illustration in your book—the tablīnum had a large opening onto the peristȳlum and/or hortus.

Just as the word peristȳlum comes from Greek (meaning “surrounded by columns”), the peristyle was a Greek architectural feature before it was a Roman one. Originally, the Roman house consisted of the ātrium and the rooms surrounding it with the garden (hortus) in back. The covered walkway created by the colonnade in the peristyle provided shade. At the far end of the peristyle in the diagram, you can see a dining room, called trīclīnium in Latin. You will read about the trīclīnium and dinner parties in Caps. XXX–XXXI.

Where was the kitchen (culīna, Cap. XXX)? Originally, cooking was done in the ātrium with portable braziers. Not every house seems to have had a permanent kitchen. But where we do find kitchens, they are off the peristyle and are simple affairs.

Your text tells you that Vīlla duo ōstia et multās fenestrās habet (l.26). Our evidence for windows is slight, but Pliny the Younger (Gāius Plīnius Caecilius Secundus), a Roman who lived a little before our narrative (around AD 62–113), includes several mentions of windows in his description of his seaside villa. While Roman houses in towns had either a private façade broken only by the door or an attached shop front (as you will see in Cap. VIII), they did not have windows looking out onto the street. It is most likely that windows were more common in the private parts of houses and when they provided a view. Rooms often had their own internal “view” in the guise of elaborate wall paintings. These ranged from original artworks by skilled craftsmen to less expensive scenes produced by workshops. Mosaics often covered the floor; these, like wall paintings, also ranged from the simple to the exquisite, like the Alexander mosaic in the House of the Faun in Pompeii.

There are other words for “house” besides vīlla. A casa is a small country cottage; a house is also called a domus (Cap. XIX) or, as a building, aedificium (Cap. XXV).

{41} Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

aqua, -ae

water

fenestra, -ae

window

rosa, -ae

rose

vīlla, -ae

country house, villa

2nd

ablātīvus, -ī (cāsus)

ablative

ātrium, -ī

main room, hall

cubiculum, -ī

bedroom

hortus, -ī

garden

impluvium, -ī

water basin in the atrium for collecting rainwater

līlium, -ī

lily

nāsus, -ī

nose

ōstium, -ī

door, entrance

peristȳlum, -i

peristyle

Verba

-ā (1)

amat/amant

love

dēlectat/dēlectant

delight, please

habitat/habitant

dwell, live

consonant (3)

agit/agunt

drive, do, perform

carpit/carpunt

gather, pick, crop

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

foedus, -a, -um

ugly, hideous

pulcher, -chra, -chrum

beautiful, fine

sōlus, -a, -um

alone, lonely

Prōnōmina

is, ea, id

he, she, it

Adverbia

etiam

also, even, yet

Praepositiōnēs

ab (prp. + abl.)

from, by

cum (prp. + abl.)

with

ex (prp. + abl.)

out of, by

sine (prp. + abl.)

without

{42} VI. Via Latīna

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. it/eunt

b. Passive Voice

2. Nouns

a. Case Uses

i. Accusative: Prepositions with the Accusative Case

ii. Ablative:

1. Preposition ab/ā + Ablative

2. Ablative of Agent and Means/Instrument

b. Constructions of Place

3. Correlatives: tam/quam

Roman Roads

Road communications were highly developed in the ancient Roman world. The different parts of the Roman Empire were connected by an excellent network of highways. These roads were primarily military, although they were also important to the economy. Not surprisingly, the Romans constructed a good number of roads in Italy during the time of their expansion from the fourth century BC onward. Vitruvius, an engineer and architect who lived at the time of the emperor Augustus, wrote a book called dē Architectūrā; he tells us about the careful construction of roads: how the ground is prepared and graded so that water drains properly, the levels beginning with the earth and ending with large paving stones. Wheel-ruts are still visible on many streets in Pompeii.

On the map on page 40 of LINGUA LATĪNA, you see the most important Roman roads in Italy, among them the famous Via Appia, running southward from Rome and continuing all the way to Brundisium. The Via Appia is the oldest paved Roman road; it was built at the end of the fourth century BC from Rome to Capua (see the map). By the middle of the third century BC, it reached all the way to the coastal town of Brundisium.

{43} Running almost parallel to the Via Appia is the Via Latina, built in the third century BC, which passes the town of Tusculum mentioned in the first chapter. Julius’s villa stands in the neighborhood of this town, so that anyone going from there to Rome must follow the Via Latina. Therefore, it is not surprising to find Medus walking along this road. You will soon discover what it is that attracts him to the city.

Tusculum lies about 15 miles southeast of Rome, as you can see on the map. Its location—in the countryside but still an easy journey to Rome—made it an attractive place for prominent Romans to have villas. The Greek geographer Strabo (62 BC–AD 24) tells us that Tusculum can be seen from Rome. In the first century BC, Cicero had a home here, about which he speaks often and fondly in his letters, and where he wrote some of his philosophical works, including Tūsculānae Disputātiōnēs, or “The Discussions at Tusculum.” Julius’s estate, as you will learn in Cap. XXVII, lies to the southwest of Tusculum near Lake Albanus, an area that was as fertile as it was lovely (amoenus).

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Prepositions with the Accusative Case

In Cap. V, you met some common prepositions that take the ablative (see Recēnsiō at the end of Cap. V). Most other prepositions take the accusative, e.g.:

ad

ad vīllam

to the country house (l.19)

ante

ante lectīcam

in front of the litter chair (l.33)

apud

apud eum = cum eō[1]

with him (l.37)

circum

Circum Rōmam est mūrus antīquus.

Around Rome is an ancient wall. (ll.14–15)

inter

inter Rōmam et Capuam

between Rome and Capua (ll.3–4)

per

per portam

through the gate (l.76)

post

post lectīcam

behind the litter chair (l.33)

prope

prope Rōmam

near Rome (l.8)

Prepositions ad and ab/ā (continued)

Ad indicates motion to a place—it is the opposite of ab (followed by the ablative), which indicates motion away from a place.

The corresponding interrogative adverbs are quō and unde:

Quō it Iūlius? Ad vīllam it.

Unde venit? Ab oppidō.

{44} quō?

ad + acc.

unde?

ab + abl.

Instead of ab, we often find the shortened form ā before a consonant, but never before a vowel or h-:

ā vīllā

ab ancillā

ā dominō

ab oppidō

ab + vowel and h-

ā/ab + cons. (except h-)

Verbs: it/eunt

The verb “to go” belongs to the 4th conjugation, but is irregular, as you can see from the difference between audiunt (they hear) and eunt (they go). An irregular verb is one whose endings don’t follow the standard pattern of the four conjugations; the verb “is” (est/sunt) is also irregular.

Iūlius ab oppidō ad vīllam suam it.

Julius goes from the town to his country house. (l.20)

Dominus et servī ab oppidō ad vīllam eunt.

The master and slaves are going from the town to the country house. (ll.20–21)

Quō it Iūlius? (l.35)

Ad vīllam it. (l.35)

Iūlius et Cornēlius ad vīllās suās eunt. (l.57)

Correlatives: Tam/Quam

Quam is an interrogative adverb:

Quam longa est via Flāminia?

How long is the via Flaminia? (ll.11–12)

Tam answers the question posed in quam; together, they are called correlatives. Correlatives are adverbs or adjectives (Cap. VIII) that respond to each other. As you will see in Cap. VII, in Latin, pairs of correlatives often resemble tam/quam in that one starts with “t” and the other with “qu,” and the rest of the word is the same. Tam…quam is best translated into English as “as…as”:

Quam longa est via Flāminia?

Via Latīna nōn tam longa est quam via Appia.

The Via Latina is not as long as the Via Appia. (ll.10–11)

Tiberis fluvius nōn tam longus est quam fluvius Padus. (l.13)

Circum oppidum Tūsculum mūrus nōn tam longus est quam circum Rōmam. (ll.16–17)

{45} Saccī quōs Syrus et Lēander portant magnī sunt, sed saccus quem Syrus portat nōn tam magnus est quam saccus Lēandri. (ll.27–29)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Nouns: Constructions of Place with Names of Cities and Towns

I. Accusative (place to which) and Ablative (place from which or separation)

Motion to or from a town mentioned by name is expressed by the name of the town in the accusative or ablative, respectively, without a preposition. In Latin, therefore, we speak of traveling Rōmā—Brundisium (from Rome to Brundisium), or, if going in the opposite direction, Brundisiō—Rōmam (from Brundisium to Rome).

The accusative shows the place toward which one moves:

Rōmam it.

He is going to Rome. (l.50)

Cornēlius nōn Rōmam, sed Tūsculum it. (ll.54–55)

It is the fundamental function of the ablative (with or without a preposition) to denote “place from which.” In this function, it is called ablative of separation (ablātīvus means “taking away”):

Tūsculō venit.

He is coming from Tusculum. (l.49)

Is nōn Tūsculō, sed Rōmā venit. (ll.53–54)

Otherwise, prepositions are used:

Iūlius ab oppidō ad vīllam suam it. (l.20)

Dominus et servī ab oppidō ad vīllam eunt. (ll.20–21)

II. Locative Case (place in which)

To indicate where something or somebody is, the preposition in followed by the ablative is most often used:

in Italiā

in oppidō

in hortō

The following examples show, however, that in is no more used with names of towns than ad and ab:

Cornēlius Tūsculī habitat. (l.59)

Mēdus Rōmae est. (l.47)

Instead of “in,” the name takes the ending -ī or -ae according to whether the nominative ends in -um/-us or -a. This form is called locative (Latin locātīvus, from locus, “place”):

{46} Ubi habitat Cornēlius? Is Tūsculī habitat.

Where does Cornelius live? He lives in Tusculum. (ll.58–59)

Rōmam it, quia Lydia Rōmae habitat.

He is going to Rome because Lydia lives in Rome. (ll.77–78)

Locative -ī, -ae

quō? Tūsculum Rōmam

unde? Tūsculō Rōmā

ubi? Tūsculī Rōmae

Verbs: Passive Voice (vōx passīva)

All the verbs you have been using so far are in the active voice (the subject does the acting), e.g.:

Dāvus et Ursus portant Iūlium.

Syrus saccum portat. (l.25)

We can express the same idea differently using the passive voice (the subject receives the action):

Iūlius ab Ursō et Dāvō portātur. (l.62)

Saccus ā Syrō portātur.

Saccī ā Syrō portantur.

Puerī ā puellā videntur.

Active Voice:

• Subject does the acting

• endings -t, -nt

Passive Voice:

• Subject acted upon

• endings -tur, -ntur

• The person or thing performing the action goes into the ablative (see next section)

In addition to the examples in the text and GRAMMATICA LATINA in LINGUA LATĪNA, consider the following sentences from earlier chapters changed into the passive:

• 1st conjugation

Puer parvam puellam pulsat (Cap. II, l.29) → Parva puella ā puerō pulsātur.

• 2nd conjugation

Quīntus Mārcum videt (Cap. II, l.11) → Mārcus ā Quīntō vidētur.

{47} • 3rd conjugation

Dāvus sacculum in mēnsā pōnit (Cap. IV, l.61) → Sacculus ā Dāvō in mēnsā pōnitur.

• 4th conjugation

Puerī Iūliam audiunt (Cap. V, l.56) → Iūlia ā puerīs audītur.

active

passive

1.

voca|t

vocā|tur

voca|nt

voca|ntur

2.

vide|t

vidē|tur

vide|nt

vide|ntur

3.

pōn|it

pōn|itur

pōn|unt

pōn|untur

4.

audi|t

audī|tur

audi|unt

audi|untur

Ablative Case (Agent and Means/Instrument)

Consider the following sentence:

Mārcus Iūliam pulsat.

Marcus hits Julia.

If we make that sentence passive, we get:

Iūlia pulsātur ā Mārcō.

Julia is hit by Marcus.

In the second sentence, Marcus is no longer the grammatical subject, but he is still the actor, or agent, of the verb. In the passive voice, the name of the person by whom the action is performed, the agent, is in the ablative preceded by ab or ā (ā Mārcō). This construction is called the ablative of personal agent, that is, when the agent is a person, not a thing or an animal:

Iūlius ab Ursō et Dāvō portātur.

Julius is (being) carried by Ursus and Davus. (l.62)

Saccī quī ā Syrō et Lēandrō portantur magnī sunt.

The bags which are being carried by Syrus and Leander are big. (ll.65–66)

Dominus ā servō malō timētur. (ll.73–74)

Verba Mēdī ā Lydiā laetā audiuntur. (l.95)

When the action is performed by something other than a person—an animal or an inanimate object—the source of the action is expressed by the simple ablative without the preposition ab/ā. The simple ablative here indicates means or cause. This construction, called the ablative of means (also ablative of instrument—Latin ablātīvus īnstrūmentī) is very common both in passive and active sentences: e.g.,

{48} Cornēlius equō vehitur.

Cornelius is being transported by a horse. (or, more idiomatically, “he is riding a horse”) (ll.68–69)

Iūlius lectīcā vehitur.

Julius is being carried in a litter chair. (l.69)

Lȳdia verbīs Mēdī dēlectātur.

Lydia is delighted by Medus’s words. (l.91)

Dominus servum baculō verberat.

Servī saccōs umerīs portant.

Mēdus viā Latīnā Rōmam ambulat.

Sometimes, the agent/means is left unexpressed, e.g.:

Dominī vehuntur.

Masters are carried (or “travel”). (l.70)

In the sentence Mēdus Lydiam amat et ab eā amātur (ll.78–79), both active and passive are used.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

amīca, -ae

female friend

lectīca, -ae

litter, sedan

porta, -ae

gate

via, -ae

road, way, street

2nd

āctīvum, -ī (verbum)

active

amīcus, -ī

friend

equus, -ī

horse

inimīcus, -ī

(personal) enemy

locātīvus (cāsus)

locative

mūrus, -ī

wall

passīvum (verbum)

passive

saccus, -ī

sack

umerus, -ī

shoulder

3rd (you will learn about this family of nouns later)

praepositiō (f.)

preposition

Verba

-ā (1)

ambulat, ambulant

walk

intrat, intrant

enter

portat, portant

carry

-ē (2)

timet, timent

fear, be afraid (of)

{49} consonant (3)

vehit, vehunt

carry, convey, ride, sail, travel

Irregular

it/eunt

go

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

duodecim

twelve

fessus, -a, -um

tired, weary

longus, -a, -um

long

malus, -a, -um

bad, wicked, evil

Adverbia

ante

in front of, before

autem

but, however

itaque

therefore

nam

for

procul

far (often combines with preposition ab)

quam

how, as, than

tam

so, as

Praepositiōnēs

ā (prp. + abl.)

from, of, since, by

ad (prp. + acc.)

to, toward, by, at, till

ante (prp. + acc.)

in front of, before

apud (prp. + acc.)

beside, near, by

circum (prp. + acc.)

around

inter (prp. + acc.)

between, among, during

per (prp. + acc.)

through, by, during

post (prp. + acc.)

behind, after, later

procul ab (+ abl.)

far from

prope (prp. + acc.)

near, nearly

Vocābula Interrogātīva

quam?

how?

quō?

where (to)?

unde?

from where? whence?

____________

1. Apud most closely resembles French chez; it means in the presence of, at, near, as well as with.

{50} VII. Puella et Rosa

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Imperative of esse

b. salvē/salvēte

c. Compound Verbs

2. Nouns: Case Uses

a. Accusative Case: Prepositions

b. Genitive with plēnus

c. Dative Case

i. Dative Case is, ea, id

ii. Dative Case: Interrogative and Relative Pronoun

iii. Dative with Compound Verbs

d. Ablative: Preposition ex/ē + the Ablative Case

3. Pronouns

a. Reflexive Pronoun

b. Demonstrative Pronouns: hic, haec, hoc

4. Adverbs: Interrogative num and nōnne

5. Point of Style: et…et/neque…neque/nōn sōlum…sed etiam

Julius Returns, with Gifts

Syra comforts a weeping Julia, who is concerned about the appearance of her nose. When Julius comes back from town, he usually brings something with him for the family, so in this chapter, you find out what is in the two sacks that Syrus and Leander have been carrying.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Reflexive Pronoun

The examples Puella sē in speculō videt et sē interrogat (ll.8–9) show that the pronoun sē (acc.) is used when referring to the subject in the same sentence; sē is called the reflexive pronoun (English “himself/herself/themselves”). Reflexive means it “bends back” toward the subject.

{51} Puella sē in speculō videt et sē interrogat.

The girl sees herself in the mirror and asks herself. (ll.8–9)

Puella Syram in speculō videt et eam interrogat.

The girl sees Syra in the mirror and asks her (Syra).

Iūlia Syram post sē in speculō videt, i.e. post Iūliam. (l.15)

When to use what:

When the pronoun refers back to the subject of the sentence:

• use the reflexive sē (acc.): himself/herself/themselves

When the pronoun refers to a person or thing other than the subject of the sentence:

• use the personal pronoun eum/eam/eōs/eās: him/her/them

Recēnsiō: sē vs. suus, -a, -um

Sē is a pronoun and takes the place of a noun that refers back to the (3rd person) subject of the sentence.

Iūlia Syram post sē in speculō videt. (l.15) = Iūlia Syram post Iūliam in speculō videt.

Suus, -a, -um is a possessive adjective and modifies a noun that belongs to the (3rd person) subject of the sentence.

Aemilia virum suum amat. (l.4) = Aemilia virum Aemiliae amat.

Accusative Case: Prepositions

Compare the sentences:

Iūlius in vīllā est.

Iūlius in vīllam intrat.

In the first sentence, in takes the ablative (vīllā), as we have seen often; in the second, it is followed by the accusative (vīllam). The examples show that in takes the accusative when there is motion into a place. Therefore we read:

Syra in cubiculum intrat. (l.14)

“Venī in hortum, Iūlia!” (l.17)

Place where:

ubi? in + ablative

in vīllā, in hortō, in cubiculō

Place to which:

quō? in + accusative

in vīllam, in hortum, in cubiculum

{52} Interrogative num and nōnne

A question introduced with num calls for a negative answer; therefore, Julia asks, “Num nāsus meus foedus est?” (l.20). The num shows she wants a “no!” answer. The opposite effect is obtained by nōnne: when Syra asks, “Nōnne fōrmōsus est nāsus meus?” (l.26), she certainly expects the answer to be “yes.” Nevertheless, Julia says, “Immō foedus est!” The word immō serves to stress a denial (English “no,” “on the contrary”).

question:

expected answer:

nōnne…est?

…est

num…est?

…nōn est

Verbs: Imperative of the Verb esse

The imperative of est is es! (i.e., the stem without an ending; plural este!):

“Tergē oculōs! Es laeta!” (l.23)

Este bonī (be good!)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Preposition Ex/ē + the Ablative Case

The example Iūlia ē cubiculō exit shows the shorter form ē of the preposition ex. The same rule applies to the use of ex and ē as to ab and ā:

• before vowels and h-, only ex and ab are used

• ē and ā are only used before consonants, never before vowels or h-

• ex and ab can also be used before consonants

Examples with ex and ē:

• ē/ex vīllā (before a consonant, use either ē or ex)

• ex ātriō (before a vowel, use only ex)

• ex hortō (before an “h,” use only ex)

Dative Case (cāsus datīvus)

I. Nouns

When we are told that Julius gives something to a member of the family, the name of this person ends in -ō (Mārcō, Quīntō, Syrō, Lēandrō) or in -ae (Aemiliae, Iūliae, Syrae, Dēliae). This form, ending in -ō in the masculine (and neuter) and in -ae in the feminine, is called dative (Latin datīvus, from dat, “gives”):

Iūlius Syrō et Lēandrō māla dat.

{53} In the plural, the dative ends in -īs like the ablative:

Iūlius servīs māla dat.

Iūlius ancillīs māla dat.

dative

m./n.

f.

sing.

-ō

-ae

pl.

-īs

-īs

Summary of 1st and 2nd Declension Endings

II. is, ea, id

The dative of the pronoun is, ea, id is eī in the singular:

Iūlius eī (: Quīntō/Iūliae) mālum dat.

In the plural, the dative of the pronoun is, ea, id is iīs (or eīs):

Iūlius iīs (: servīs/ancillīs) māla dat.

The forms are the same for all three genders.

Summary of is, ea, id and Reflexive Pronoun sē

Salvē/Salvēte

The greeting Salvē! expresses a wish for good health. It was understood as an imperative, so it has a plural form in -te: “Salvēte, fīliī!” (l.31)

sing.

salvē!

pl.

salvē|te!

{54} Demonstrative Pronouns: hic, haec, hoc

Referring to things close to him, Julius says, e.g., hic saccus (l.43) and hoc mālum (ll.90–91), and Julia says haec rosa of the flower that she is holding (l.85). The demonstrative (or pointing) pronoun hic, haec, hoc (English “this”) is treated in Cap. VIII.

Plēnus + the Genitive Case

Note the genitive after plēnus (“full of…”):

Hic saccus plēnus mālōrum est. (ll.43–44)

Oculī Iūliae plēnī sunt lacrimārum. (l.79)

plēnus + gen.

Verbs: Compound Verbs

Compound verbs often have prepositions as their first element, like ad-est and ab-est. In this chapter, you find in-est, ad-venit, ad-it, ex-it, and in the next, ab-it. Often, the same preposition is put before a noun in the same sentence:

Quid inest in saccīs? (l.39)

Iūlius ad vīllam advenit. (l.30)

Iūlia ē cubiculō exit. (ll.82–83)

compounds with prepositions:

ad-, ab-, ex-, in-

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Dative Case (continued): Interrogative and Relative Pronoun

The dative (sing.) of the interrogative and relative pronoun is cui (see ll.101–104):

Cui Iūlius mālum dat? (l.101)

Puer/puella cui Iūlius mālum dat est fīlius/fīlia eius. (ll.101–102)

The genitive of the interrogative and relative will be met in Cap. VIII.

Point of Style: et…et/neque….neque/nōn sōlum…sed etiam

Note the repetition of the conjunctions et and neque (ll.50, 57):

et Mārcus et Quīntus māla habent.

English “both…and”

Servī neque māla neque pira habent.

English “neither…nor”

{55} Instead of et…et, we often find nōn sōlum…sed etiam:

nōn sōlum māla, sed etiam pira. (l.56)

English “not only…but also”

et…et

neque…neque

nōn sōlum…sed etiam

Recēnsiō: Interrogative Words

Quis? Quid?

Who? What?

Ubi?

Where? In what place?

Quot?

How many?

Cūr?

Why?

Unde?

Whence? From what place?

Quō?

Where? To what place?

-ne?

Asks a question with no expectations.

Nōnne?

Expects a “yes” answer.

Num?

Expects a “no” answer.

Studia Rōmāna

While her brothers attend school (Caps. XIV, XV, XVII, XVIII), Julia remains at home; she is too young for school. Not all girls were educated outside the home, but there is evidence that some girls were—even in the early years of Rome’s history (Livy, 3.44).

The amount of education girls received varied greatly. For some girls, education consisted of learning the domestic duties involved in managing a household. Others were clearly well educated and even wrote poetry. Although we have poems remaining only from two women poets (both named Sulpicia), the poets Propertius, Tibullus, and Catullus (all first century BC) refer to women in their poetry as docta (learned), a word that suggests they wrote verse. A famous portrait from Pompeii shows a young woman holding a stylus and a tabula, pondering her next words. Clearly her family wanted to publicize her education.

Young girls from prominent families participated in festivals, particularly in the chorus (Catullus 34, “Hymn to Diana”; Horace, Carmen Saeculāre). There were priesthoods open to women, most exalted of which were the six Vestal Virgins; a daughter of a patrician father could become one of the two young girls (aged six to ten) who became apprentices to the service of Vesta. Just as Vesta protected the home (see Cap. IV) she was also the guardian of Rome’s sacred fire.

Her parents’ aspirations for Julia are to be a wife and mother. The age of marriage varied, and while some girls were married very young, not all were. A law that Roman girls could not be married before the age of twelve tells us {56} just how young! A girl required a dowry (dōs), money that a family gave to her husband or his family when they were married. If the couple were divorced or if the wife died, the dowry had to be returned.

Girls were expected to be chaste and mōrigera (compliant to her father and later to her husband). The Younger Pliny (Plīnius Secundus, first century AD) gives us a portrait of ideal young womanhood in a letter he wrote about the death of the young daughter of a friend (Epist. 5.16). She was only thirteen and about to be married. Pliny praises her effusively as a bright young woman, an eager reader with a joyful and lovable personality. She combined the virtues of all ages in one: the wisdom of an old woman (anīlis prūdentia), the seriousness of character of a married woman (gravitās mātrōnālis), the charm of a young girl and virginal modesty (suāvitās puellāris cum virginālī verēcundiā). She bore her illness with restraint (temperantia), patient endurance (patientia), and self-possession (cōnstantia).

Pliny’s letter is not an isolated example. When his daughter Tullia died in childbirth, Cicero was distraught and wrote many letters trying to come to terms with his feelings. During the time of our narrative, letters between the emperor Marcus Aurelius (AD 121–180) and his friend Mārcus Cornēlius Frontō (c. AD 95–c. 166) contain many references to their love of their children, girls as well as boys. We know from inscriptions (particularly epitaphs), from images on tomb markers as well as from literary representations, that girls were much loved.

Salutations and valedictions in Latin: in this chapter, you learned to say “hello” to one person (salvē) and to more than one (salvēte). Romans even today say, “Salve!” as an informal greeting. You can also say, Quid novī est? or just Quid novī?, which means, “What’s new?” When leaving, you can say, Valē or Valēte (“Be well! Fare well!,” Cap. XIV).

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

lacrima, -ae

tear

2nd

datīvus, -ī (cāsus)

dative

mālum, -ī

apple

oculus, -ī

eye

ōsculum, -ī

kiss

ōstiārius, -ī

doorkeeper

pirum, -ī

pear

speculum, -ī

mirror

{57} Verba

-ā (1)

dat, dant

give

exspectat, exspectant

wait (for), expect

lacrimat

cry

-ē (2)

tenet, tenent

hold, keep (back)

terget, tergent

wipe

consonant (3)

claudit, claudunt

shut, close

currit, currunt

run

vertit, vertunt

turn

-ī (4)

advenit, adveniunt

arrive

aperit, aperiunt

open, disclose

Irregular

adit, adeunt

go to, approach

exit, exeunt

go out

inest, insunt

be in

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

fōrmōsus, -a, -um

beautiful

plēnus, -a, -um (+ gen./abl.)

full (of)

Prōnōmina

hic, haec, hoc

this

sē, sibi

himself, herself

Adverbia

immō

no, on the contrary

illīc

there[1]

nōn sōlum…sed etiam

not only…but also

Coniūnctiōnēs

et…et

both…and

neque…neque

neither…nor

Praepositiōnēs

ē (prp. + abl.)

out of, from, of, since

Vocābula Interrogātīva

nōnne?

not?

____________

1. Accent on the ultima: illīc; originally the word was illīce, with accent on the long penult; when the e dropped, the accent was retained.

{58} VIII. Taberna Rōmāna

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. 3rd Conjugation “i-stems”

2. Nouns

a. Case Uses

i. Ablative of Price (ablātīvus pretiī)

ii. Ablative of Means/Instrument (ablātīvus īnstrūmentī) (continued)

iii. Dative (continued): Indirect Object

3. Adjectives

a. Interrogative Adjective

b. Pronoun vs. Interrogative Adjective

c. Correlatives: tantus/quantus

4. Pronouns

a. Relative Pronoun without an Antecedent

b. Demonstratives hic, haec, hoc/ille, illa, illud

5. Adverbs

a. quam

6. Points of Style: convenit

Daily Life: Shopping

In the ancient world, people did their shopping over open counters lining the streets. Passers-by could simply stand on the pavement in front of a shop and buy what they wanted. We can be sure that the shopkeepers gave their customers every encouragement.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Pronouns

In this chapter, we pay particular attention to some important pronouns:

• the interrogative pronoun: quis, quae, quid (introduced in Cap. II)

• the relative pronoun: quī, quae, quod (introduced in Cap. III)

{59} • the demonstrative pronouns

is, ea, id (introduced in Cap. III)

hic, haec, hoc (introduced in Cap. VII)

ille, illa, illud

Relative Pronoun without an Antecedent (Quī = Is quī)

Instead of saying “he who, etc.” or “whoever,” Latin sometimes has just “who,” e.g.:

Quī tabernam habet, tabernārius est = is quī…
Whoever has a shop is a shopkeeper. (ll.3–4)

Quī magnam pecūniam habent ōrnāmenta emunt = Iī quī…
Those who have a lot of money buy jewelry. (ll.16–17)

Quae nūllam aut parvam pecūniam habent ōrnāmenta aspiciunt tantum, nōn emunt. (ll.14–15)

Pecūniōsus est quī magnam pecūniam habet. (l.35)

When the relative pronoun is used without an antecedent, a demonstrative pronoun may be understood, that is, quī can equal is quī.

Demonstrative Pronouns

The demonstrative pronoun hic, haec, hoc points to something that is near the speaker (compare the adverb hīc, “here”) and represents the English “this.” In the first reading, we meet only the feminine singular, nominative, accusative/ablative:

haec taberna? (l.2)

in hāc viā (l.11)

ad hanc tabernam (l.16)

Ablative of Means/Instrument (ablātīvus instrūmentī) (continued)

You learned the ablative of means or instrument in Cap. VI (in conjunction with the passive voice). Here are more examples of the ablative of instrument (without prepositions):

Fēminae ōrnāmentīs dēlectantur.

Women are delighted by adornments. (ll.12–13)

Gemmīs et margarītīs ānulīsque ōrnantur.

They are adorned by jewels and pearls and rings. (l.24)

Lydia tabernam Albīnī digitō mōnstrat.

Lydia points to the store of Albinus with her finger. (l.43)

{60} Interrogative Adjective

In Cap. II, you learned the interrogative pronoun, which asks the question “who, what?” The interrogative adjective is used before nouns:

quī servus?

what/which slave?

quae ancilla?

what/which slave-woman?

quod oppidum?

what/which town?

Quī vir et quae fēmina? (l.26)

Quod ōrnāmentum? (ll.30–31)

Notā Bene: The interrogative pronoun looks the same as the interrogative adjective (and relative pronoun) except in the nominative masculine and neuter singular:

quis, quid

nominative m./n. singular interrogative pronoun

quī, quod

nominative m./n. singular interrogative adjective

Recēnsiō: Interrogative Pronoun vs. Interrogative Adjective

Quis clāmat?

Who is shouting? (pronoun)

Quī puer clāmat?

What boy is shouting? (adjective)

Quae ōrnāmentum accipit?

Who receives the jewelry? (pronoun)

Quae fēmina ōrnāmentum accipit?

What woman receives the jewelry? (adjective)

Quid vēndit tabernārius?

What does the shopkeeper sell? (pronoun)

Quod ōrnāmentum vēndit tabernārius?

What piece of jewelry does the shopkeeper sell? (adjective)

Notā Bene:

• You will sometimes find quis (i.e., the form of the interrogative pronoun) used instead of quī (the form of the interrogative adjective) before a noun (especially a name) in questions of identity: Quis servus? Mēdus.

• While we here use quae for the nominative feminine singular of the interrogative pronoun, when you read ancient authors, you will usually find quis used for both masculine and feminine.

3rd Conjugation “i-stems”

So far you have learned verbs with stems ending in a long vowel (ā, ē, ī,) or a consonant. The final group of verbs has a stem ending in a short ĭ and is {61} grouped with the 3rd conjugation. In this chapter, we see the verbs accipit and aspicit, which have plural forms in -iunt:

Stem: accipi-; accipit; accipiunt

Stem: aspici-; aspicit; aspiciunt

The short ĭ appears only before an ending beginning with a vowel, such as -unt: accipiunt, aspiciunt; otherwise, these verbs behave like consonant-verbs and are regarded as belonging to the 3rd conjugation.

The imperatives of “i-stems” (introduced in Section II of LINGUA LATINA) in -e, -ite are just like consonant stems:

accipe! accipite!

aspice! aspicite!

You will learn more about i-stem verbs in Cap. XII. When you have learned all the forms of the verb, it will be easy to distinguish the consonant and i-stems of the 3rd conjugation. Until then, they will be listed separately in the vocabulary.

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Demonstrative Pronouns

In this reading, we meet more forms of hic, haec, hoc:

hae margarītae (l.49)

hic ānulus (l.69)

hī ānulī (l.53)

hunc ānulum (l.76)

in hīs ānulīs (l.55)

huius (ānulī) (l.75)

We are also introduced to the demonstrative ille, illa, illud, which refers to something that is further away from the speaker and is represented by the English “that”:

illam tabernam (l.41)

illum (ānulum) (l.76)

illa ōrnāmenta (l.42)

illīus ānulī (l.75)

ille ānulus (l.70)

Like hic, haec, hoc and ille, -a, -ud, most pronouns have the endings -īus in the genitive and -ī in the dative in all three genders (but the i is short or consonantal in eius, cuius, huius, cui, huic).

The neuter ending -ud in illud is also found in alius, -a, -ud (l.33) and is like the -od in quod.

See the paradigms for hic haec hoc, ille illa illud, and is ea id in the recēnsiō at the end of the chapter.

{62} Correlatives: tantus/quantus

In Cap. VI, you learned the correlatives tam…quam (as…as). When talking about size, the adjectives tantus and quantus are used (instead of tam magnus and quam magnus). So, tantus…quantus stands for tam magnus quam. Tantus…quantus (“as big as”) are correlative adjectives, as tam…quam are correlative adverbs (l.75). As adjectives, they agree with the nouns they modify; as correlatives, they respond to one another:

Digitus quārtus nōn tantus est quantus digitus medius.

The fourth finger is not as big as the middle finger. (ll.126–128)

Pretium illīus ānulī tantum est quantum huius.

The price of that ring is as great as that of this one. (l.75)

Tantus and quantus can also be used alone:

Tanta gemma sōla octōgintā sēstertiīs cōnstat.

Such a large gem alone costs 80 sesterces. (ll.64–65)

Quantum est pretium illīus ānulī?

How much is the price of that ring? (ll.72–73)

Remember, you have already learned (in Cap. IV) tantum as an adverb meaning “only.”

Quae nūllam aut parvam pecūniam habent ōrnāmenta aspiciunt tantum, nōn emunt.

Those (women) who have no or little money only look at jewelry, they don’t buy. (ll.14–19)

Quam

Quam is also used in exclamations and means “how”:

“Ō, quam pulchra sunt illa ōrnāmenta!”

Oh, how beautiful those ornaments are! (ll.41–42)

Recēnsiō: Quam

• relative pronoun: feminine accusative singular
Puella quam Aemilia videt est Iūlia.

• interrogative pronoun: feminine accusative singular
Quam videt Aemilia?

• interrogative adjective: feminine accusative singular
Quam puellam videt Aemilia?

• adverb correlating with tam (= as)
Estne via Latīna tam longa quam Via Aurelia?

• adverb in questions and exclamations (= how)
Quam pulchra est vīlla Iūliī!

{63} Ablative of Price (ablātīvus pretiī)

With the verbs emit, vēndit, and cōnstat (verbs of buying and selling, etc.), the price is in the ablative, called ablātīvus pretiī (“ablative of price”). Examples:

Hic ānulus centum nummīs cōnstat.

This ring costs 100 coins. (l.59)

Albīnus…Mēdō ānulum vēndit sēstertiīs nōnāgintā. (ll.116–117)

Dative (continued)

In the last example, Mēdō is dative with vēndit. The dative now occurs also with ostendit (ll.46, 52, 58, 83) and mōnstrat (l.130). Being transitive, these verbs have an object in the accusative, which is often called the direct object to distinguish it from the dative, which is called the indirect object. Examples:

Albīnus Lȳdiae margarītās ostendit.

Albinus shows Lydia the pearls. (ll.46–47)

Shows what?

pearls, accusative direct object

Shows to whom?

Lydia, dative indirect object

Albīnus iīs trēs ānulōs ostendit.

Albinus shows them three rings. (l.52)

Shows what?

three rings, accusative direct object

Shows to whom?

them, dative indirect object

Lȳdia, quae Rōmae habitat, Mēdō viam mōnstrat.

Lydia, who lives in Rome, points out the road to Medus. (ll.129–130)

Shows what?

road, accusative direct object

Shows to whom?

Medus, dative indirect object

Points of Style: Convenit

Latin is not English. While we all know this, it presents one of the biggest obstacles to understanding the language, especially if you try to put a Latin thought into English! The use of convenit in the following examples illustrates important principles to bear in mind. Consider the following two sentences:

Tanta gemma ad tam parvum ānulum nōn convenit.

Such a big gem does not suit such a small ring. (l.81)

Hic ānulus ad digitum tuum nōn convenit.

This ring does not fit your finger. (l.121)

{64} Note that:

1. The syntax of the two languages works differently. In English, both “suit” and “fit” are transitive verbs and take a direct object. In Latin, convenit is intransitive and (here) is followed by ad + the accusative.

2. The same word often needs to be translated by different English words in different contexts. The concept, if kept in Latin, is perfectly clear: one thing does not “come together well” (convenit) with something else (ad + accusative). In English, however, we say, “a gem does not suit a ring” rather than “does not come together with.” In the second sentence, however, we are more likely to use “fit” for convenit.

You will find that you can often understand the Latin more fluently if you don’t translate, but understand the concept behind the vocabulary and apply that concept to its context. When moving between the two languages, remember to be flexible in your vocabulary and to let go of the expectation that other languages “should” act like English.

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Demonstrative Pronouns

In the final reading, we continue to see more forms of the demonstratives hic and ille:

huic tabernāriō (l.97)

haec ōrnāmenta (l.105)

illī tabernāriī (l.100)

hōs ānulōs (l.105)

illae viae (l.102)

hās gemmās (l.105)

in illīs tabernīs (ll.103–104)

hōrum ōrnāmentōrum (l.107)

Notā Bene: As you can see, with a few exceptions, their declension is already familiar to you. The stem of hic, haec, hoc is just h-, cf. the plural hī hae, hōs hās, hōrum hārum, hīs, but in the singular (and in n. pl. nom./acc.), a -c is added. Again, full paradigms are below in the recensiō and in the GRAMMATICA LATINA in LINGUA LATINA.

In the GRAMMATICA LATINA, you will find that not only ille, -a, -ud but also is, ea, id are used as adjectives. Is, ea, id can be used as a weaker form of hic (English “this”) or ille (English “that”):

is servus

ea ancilla

id ōrnāmentum

Pronouns Multiplied (examples)

Note the use of both the interrogative and relative pronouns in the same sentence in the following examples:

{65} Quae sunt illae viae in quibus illae tabernae sunt?

Which (interrogative) are those roads in which (relative) there are those shops? (ll.102–104)

Et quae sunt illa ōrnāmenta quae in illīs tabernīs parvō pretiō emuntur?

And which (interrogative) are those jewels which (relative) are sold for such a small price in those shops? (ll.103–104)

Recēnsiō: Pronouns

Personal: takes the place of a noun

is, ea, id

Demonstrative: points out as closer (hic, haec, hoc) or further away (ille, illa, illud)

Hic, haec, hoc

Ille, illa, illud

{66} Interrogative: Asks a question (quis/quid: interrogative pronoun; qui/quod: interrogative adjective; all other forms the same)

Quis, quid

Relative: Connects a dependent clause to a sentence

Qui, quae, quod

Studia Rōmāna

The pictures of Lydia and Medus shopping reproduce a storefront scene commonly found at Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Ostia, our best sources of town architecture. Pompeii and nearby Herculaneum, at the foot of Mt. Vesuvius (and near to Puteoli on the map on p. 40), were destroyed by the volcanic eruption of 79 AD. Because they were buried for centuries by volcanic ash (Pompeii) and lava (Herculaneum), much remains that gives us a great deal of information about Roman towns in the first century AD. There are also extensive remains from Ostia, the port of Rome (map, p. 40), which was at its peak at the time of our narrative. Many shops such as the one seen in the drawings on pages 54 and 55 are found there. Shops can often be found flanking the entranceways to Roman townhouses and apartment blocks (called īnsulae). The shopkeeper and his family lived above the shop in the small quarters on the second floor.

Some shops sold prepared food and drinks over counters accessible both from the street and from the inside (which often had eating areas as well). The counters can be equipped with large built-in jars for storing foodstuffs or jars of wine (dōlia, ōrum). Behind the counter, there are often built-in shelves. We find a variety of names for food shops: thermopōlium (a Greek word, “cook shop,” found in the comic writer Plautus), taberna, popīna, caupōna (which {67} was an inn that offered food). There were also a lot of bakeries (pistrīnae), often where they not only baked bread, but milled flour as well. Just as at a home, painted larāria adorn many walls.

We also see the couple walking on a kind of sidewalk, called crepīdinēs after crepida (from the Greek word for a sandal, the same as the Latin solea). These raised projections helped keep pedestrians away from the traffic (and filth!) of the streets. Another boon to pedestrians were raised stepping-stones that made a kind of ancient crosswalk. In this way, pedestrians were protected from the water that overflowed from the many fountains that provided water to the citizens (only the wealthy had running water in their homes), as well as from the refuse of daily life that found its way into the gutters.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

gemma, -ae

precious stone, jewel

līnea, -ae

string, line

margarīta, -ae

pearl

taberna, -ae

shop, stall

2nd

ānulus, -ī

ring

collum, -ī

neck

digitus, -ī

finger

ōrnāmentum, -ī

ornament, piece of jewelry

pretium, -ī

price, value

sēstertius, -ī

sesterce (coin)

tabernārius, -ī

shopkeeper

3rd

prōnōmen, prōnōminis (n.)

pronoun

Verba

-ā (1)

clāmat, clāmant

shout

cōnstat, cōnstant

cost, stand firm

mōnstrat, mōnstrant

point out, show

ornat, ornant

equip, adorn

consonant (3)

cōnsistit, cōnsistunt

stop, halt

emit, emunt

buy

ostendit, ostendunt

show

vēndit, vēndunt

sell

ĭ-stem (3)

aspicit, aspiciunt

look at, look

accipit, accipiunt

receive

{68} -ī (4)

convenit, conveniunt

come together, meet, suit

Irregular

abit, abeunt

go away

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

alius, alia, aliud

another, other

gemmātus, -a, -um

set with a jewel

medius, -a, -um

mid, middle

pecūniōsus, -a, -um

wealthy

quantus, -a, -um

how large, (as large) as

quārtus, -a, -um

fourth

tantus, -a, -um

so big, so great

Numerī (indeclinable unless otherwise noted)

nōnāgintā

ninety

octōgintā

eighty

vīgintī

twenty

Prōnōmina

ille, illa, illud

that, the one, he

Adverbia

nimis

too, too much

satis

Enough

Coniūnctiōnēs

aut

or

{69} IX. Pāstor et Ovēs

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. ēst/edunt

b. dūc/dūcite

c. Assimilation

2. Nouns: 3rd Declension (Consonant and i-Stem)

a. Declensions

b. Gender

c. 3rd Declension

d. Case Uses

i. Prepositions suprā and sub

3. Pronouns: ipse, ipsa, ipsum

4. Conjunction: dum

The Italian Landscape

We leave the family at the villa for a while and join a shepherd and his dog guarding sheep.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Third Declension Nouns

By studying the landscape above the chapter, you will learn a great many new Latin nouns. In the words campus, herba, rīvus, umbra, silva, and caelum, you see the familiar endings -us, -a, and -um. The remaining words, collis, pāstor, canis, mōns, sōl, etc., have quite different endings, not only in the nominative, but also in the other cases.

Words declined (i.e., inflected) in this way are said to belong to the 3rd declension (Latin dēclīnātiō tertia), whereas the 1st declension (dēclīnātiō prīma) comprises words in -a (like fēmina), and the 2nd declension (dēclīnātiō secunda) words in -us and -um (like servus and oppidum).

{70} In the GRAMMATICA LATINA section of LINGUA LATINA, you will find examples of these three declensions. Take advantage of this opportunity to review the case-forms of īnsula (1st declension) and servus and verbum (2nd declension), and then study the new 3rd declension (examples: pāstor and ovis).

The nominative singular of 3rd declension nouns varies. In this chapter, you meet 3rd declension nouns whose nominative singular have either:

• no ending

pāstor

sōl

arbor

• or end in -is

ovis

pānis

canis

collis

• or end in -ēs
nūbēs

• or end in just -s

mōns

dēns

This final -s causes changes in the stem, which can be seen in the genitive singular, e.g.:

When the stem (genitive singular) of mōns and dēns ends in -t (mont|is, dent|is)

When -s is added to a stem ending in -t, the -t drops and the vowel lengthens (mont|s and dent|s → mōns, dēns)

We can see from the example of mōns and dēns that the nominative of a 3rd declension word might look quite different from the rest of the cases. The endings of the other cases, however, are regular:

• in the singular they have the following endings:

-em in the accusative

-is in the genitive

-ī in the dative

-e in the ablative

• in the plural they have the following endings:

-ēs in the nominative and accusative

-um or -ium in the genitive

-ibus in the dative and ablative

Or, schematically:

sing.

pl.

nom.

-/-(e/i)s

ēs

acc.

-em

-ēs

gen.

-is

-(i)um

dat.

-ī

-ibus

abl.

-e

-ibus

{71} Notā Bene: There are two possible endings to the genitive plural (-um and-ium) because there are two different kinds of 3rd declension nouns: consonant-stems (ending in -um in the genitive plural) and i-stems (ending in -ium in the genitive plural). The two types differ only in the genitive plural.

Consonant-Stems

• nouns with no ending in the nominative, e.g., pāstor, have -um in the genitive plural (and others to be learned later)

I-Stems

• m./f. nouns of two syllables ending in -is, -es:

nūbēs, nūbis (gen.pl: nūbium)

ovis, ovis (gen.pl.: ovium)

canis, canis is an exception to this rule; the gen.pl. is canum

some m./f. nouns in -s

• nouns in -ns:

mōns, montis (gen.pl.: montium)

dēns, dentis (gen.pl.: dentium)

Examples of all these endings are shown with the nouns ovis and pāstor (ll.3–7, 11–18).

Gender

The 3rd declension nouns in this chapter are masculine or feminine, but since the endings are the same for the two genders, you cannot determine the gender of such nouns until they are combined with adjectives of the 1st and 2nd declensions (like magnus, -a, -um) or until they appear with pronouns (e.g., hic pāstor). By looking at the noun/adjective combinations below, you can determine the gender of each noun:

pāstor fessus

ovis alba

parvus collis

magna vallis

magnus mōns

multae arborēs

From the above, you can see that pāstor, collis, and mōns are masculine and that ovis, vallis, and arbor are feminine.

Ēst/edunt

The verb in the sentence Ovēs herbam edunt (l.8) is a consonant-verb, as shown by the plural ending -unt, but the singular is irregular: Pāstor pānem ēst (edit also appears, but is more rare). The macron (long mark) over the “ē” in ēst will distinguish “he/she eats” from est “he/she is.”

sing.

ēst

pl.

edunt

{72} Dūc/dūcite

Also note the short imperative dūc! of the consonant-verb dūcit, dūcunt. The original form, dūce, is found in early poets.

imp.

dūc! dūc|ite!

Suprā/sub

New prepositions are suprā, which takes the accusative, and sub, which takes the ablative (when motion is implied, sub takes the accusative).

suprā + acc.

above

sub + abl. (acc.)

below

Sōl in caelō est suprā campum. (l.25)

Caelum est suprā terram. (l.26)

Sub arbore autem umbra est. (l.30)

Sub arboribus sōl nōn lūcet. (l.52)

Summary of Declension Endings: 1st, 2nd, 3rd

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Dum

So far, the conjunctions you have met join two things—either words, phrases, or independent clauses (a set of words with a subject and a verb that makes complete sense by itself):

{73} We will now meet a different kind of conjunction. A temporal conjunction joins two clauses: a main clause and a subordinate clause that explains the time relationship between the ideas in the two clauses. The temporal conjunction dum expresses simultaneousness, that is, that the actions in the two clauses happen at the same time (English “while”):

Dum pāstor in herbā dormit, ovis nigra abit. (l.39)

Dum (“while”) shows that the action in the main clause (“the black sheep goes away”) is happening at the same time (simultaneously) as the action in the subordinate clause (“the shepherd sleeps in the grass”).

Ut

Ut is both an adverb and, as you will learn later, a conjunction. As an adverb, it often represents the English “as”:

Oculī lupī in umbrā lūcent ut gemmae et dentēs ut margarītae (l.72–73)

Ipse, ipsa, ipsum

The demonstrative pronoun ipse is used for emphasis like English “himself/herself/itself”: Ubi est lupus ipse? (ll.54–55). It is declined like ille apart from the neuter sing. in -um (not -ud): ipse, -a, -um.

Ubi est lupus ipse?

Where is the wolf itself (or “himself”)?

Ovis vestīgia lupī in terrā videt, neque lupum ipsum videt.

The sheep sees the tracks of the wolf in the earth, but she does not see the wolf itself.

Ubi est ovis ipsa?

Where is the sheep herself (or “itself”)?

Assimilation

The meaning of verbs can be modified or clarified when they are augmented by prefixes. The final consonant of the prefix sometimes undergoes a sound change because of the initial consonant of the simple verb with which it is joined. So, for example, when ad and in enter into compounds with currit and pōnit, they change to ac- and im-: ac-currit, im-pōnit. Such a change, which {74} makes one consonant more similar to another (m is a labial consonant like p), is called assimilation (from Latin similis, “similar,” “like”).

Recēnsiō: Grammatical Terms

Case (cāsus): The various forms a noun/adjective/pronoun takes depending on its function in a sentence are called cases. The cases are nominative, accusative, genitive, dative, ablative, and vocative.

Declension (dēclīnātiō): a family of nouns/adjectives is called a declension. You have learned the first three of five declensions of nouns.

Decline (dēclīnāre): When we recite the paradigm of a noun, adjective, or pronoun by giving each of the cases, we are said to decline the word.

Temporal conjunction (coniūnctiō temporālis): a temporal conjunction joins two clauses in a sentence by showing the time relation between them, that is, whether the action in one clause happens before, after, or at the same time as the other.

Independent clause: A group of words with a subject (expressed or implied) and verb expressing a complete thought is called an independent clause (“The shepherd sleeps”).

Dependent clause: A group of words with a subject (expressed or implied) and verb that does not express a complete thought is called a dependent clause (“While the shepherd sleeps…”).

Assimilation: When a prefix is added to a verb, the initial consonant of the verb may cause the final consonant of the prefix to adapt in sound to its neighbor; that is to say, it undergoes assimilation.

Studia Rōmāna

Shepherds were an important part of the Roman agricultural economy and their lives played a role in ancient literary imagination. The belief that being a shepherd entails vigilance but not a lot of physical labor, and that the life of a shepherd was both simple and lovely, led to an idealized portrait in Greek literature, emulated by Vergil’s Eclogues in the first century BC, in which shepherds sang songs and played music on rustic reed pipes. Ovid strikes a similar theme (Remedia Amōris, 181–182):

Pāstor inaequālī modulātur harundine carmen nec dēsunt comitēs, sēdulus turba, canēs.

“The shepherd plays his song on a pipe with reeds of varying lengths, nor does he lack his dogs for companions, that diligent pack.”

Both shepherds in the countryside and folks in the city celebrated the Parīlia on April 21, a festival dedicated to Pales, the god who watched over shepherds. The Parīlia is revered for another reason: on that festival day, Romulus, a shepherd himself, dug the pōmērium, the ditch that marked the {75} boundaries of Rome and which kept the countryside free from the encroachment of houses. So, Romans considered the Parilia Rome’s birthday.

Rome’s founding myth owes a good deal to shepherds. The legend begins and ends with brothers. The first two are Numitor and Amulius; the elder, Numitor, inherited a kingdom, but was usurped by his younger brother. Amulius also made Numitor’s daughter, Rhea Silva, a priestess of the goddess Vesta (a Vestal Virgin), which meant she could not marry (and thus bear legitimate heirs to the throne). The god Mars fathered twin boys with Rhea Silva. Her uncle Amulius ordered them drowned in the Tiber. Since the river was rising and flooding (as it did often in antiquity), the servant left them in a basket by the bank. They were found by a she-wolf (lupa) who nursed them and kept them alive. Faustulus, the chief herdsman of the king’s flocks, subsequently found and adopted them. The boys, Romulus and Remus, grew to be shepherds like their adoptive father; they also became young men worthy of their kingly grandfather. They reclaimed the kingdom and returned it to Numitor and then went off to found their own city. To determine who would be king, they consulted the flight of birds—called taking the auspices (auspicium), a word that comes from the combined roots of “bird” (avis) and “watch” (*spec-), but the practice in Roman culture also covers determining the will of the gods from the weather, from sacred chickens, from four-footed animals, and from unnatural occurrences. (When something happens that suggests the success of a project or event, we still call it auspicious.) Quarreling over the interpretation of the auspices, Romulus killed Remus and became the first king of Rome.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

herba, -ae

grass, herb

silva, -ae

wood, forest

terra, -ae

earth, ground, country

umbra, -ae

shade, shadow

2nd

caelum, -ī

sky, heaven

campus, -ī

plain

cibus, -ī

food

lupus, -ī

wolf

modus, -ī

manner, way

rīvus, -ī

brook

vestīgium, -ī

footprint, trace

3rd

arbor, arboris (f.)

tree

canis, canis (m./f.)

dog

clāmor, clāmōris (m.)

shout, shouting

{76} collis, collis (m.)

hill

dēclīnātiō, dēclīnātiōnis (f.)

declension

dēns, dentis (m.)

tooth

mōns, montis (m.)

mountain

nūbēs, nūbis (f.)

cloud

ovis, ovis (f.)

sheep

pānis, pānis (m.)

bread, loaf

pāstor, pāstōris (m.)

shepherd

sōl, sōlis (m.)

sun

timor, timōris (m.)

fear

vallis, vallis (f.)

valley

Verba

-ā (1)

bālat, -ant

bleat

dēclīnat, -ant

decline, inflect

errat, -ant

wander, stray

lātrat, -ant

bark

ululat, -ant

howl

-ē (2)

iacet, -ent

lie

lūcet, -ent

shine

Consonant/ĭ (3)

accurrit, -unt

come running

bibit, -unt

drink

dūcit, -unt

guide, lead, draw, trace

impōnit, -unt

place (in/on), put

petit, -unt

make for, aim at, attack, seek, ask for, request

quaerit, -unt

look for, seek, ask (for)

relinquit, -unt

leave

-ī (4)

reperit, -iunt

find

Irregular

ēst, edunt

eat

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

niger, -gra, -grum

black

albus, -a, -um

white

Numerī (indeclinable unless otherwise noted)

ūndēcentum

ninety-nine

Prōnōmina

ipse, ipsa, ipsum

myself, yourself, etc; the very, the actual

{77} Adverbia

procul

far (from), far away

Praepositiōnēs

sub (prp. + abl./acc.)

under, at the foot of, near

suprā (prp. + acc.)

above

Coniūnctiōnēs

dum

while, as long as

ut

like, as

{78} X. Bēstiae et Hominēs

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Infinitive Active

b. Infinitive Active in -se

c. Infinitive Passive

d. Verbs and Expressions that take an Infinitive

i. potest/possunt

ii. necesse est

iii. vult/volunt, audet/audent

e. Accusative and Infinitive Construction

2. Nouns

a. 3rd Declension Masculine and Feminine

b. 3rd Declension Neuter

c. nēmō

d. Case Uses

i. Dative of Interest

ii. Ablative of Manner (ablātīvus modī)

3. Conjunctions

a. cum

b. quod

4. Points of Style

a. alius…alius

b. active and passive

The Story

After reading about the physical characteristics of animals, humans, and gods, we rejoin Marcus, Quintus, and Julia in the garden.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

3rd Declension Masculine and Feminine

In this chapter, several new 3rd declension nouns are introduced.

{79} • Some of them have peculiar forms in the nominative singular: in leō, an -n is dropped: gen. leōn|is.

• In homō, this is combined with a vowel change: gen. homin|is.

• The -s ending produces the spelling -x for -cs in vōx: gen. vōc|is.

• The -s ending also produces the loss of d in pēs (note also the short vowel of the stem): gen. ped|is.

From now on, the nominative and genitive of new nouns will be found in the margins of your LINGUA LATINA text, as well as in the vocabulary list at the end of each chapter in this book:

leō leōn|is m. lion

vōx vōc|is f. voice

homō homin|is m. person

pēs ped|is m. foot

This way of listing a noun (nominative, genitive, gender, meaning) is called the lexical entry, since that is the way the word will be listed in a lexicon (dictionary).

Conjunctions

Cum

You have already learned the preposition cum, which takes the ablative and means “with.” Cum is also a temporal conjunction (referring to time) meaning when:

Cum avis volat, ālae moventur.

When a bird flies, (its) wings move (are being moved). (l.15)

It is easy to distinguish between cum preposition and cum conjunction. Look at the following sentences:

Iūlius in vīllā suā habitat cum magnā familiā. (Cap. V, l.9)

Aemilia cum Mārcō, Quīntō Iūliāque in peristȳlō est. (Cap. V, l.47)

Etiam līnea cum margarītīs ōrnāmentum est. (Cap. VIII, ll.8–9)

Cum homō ambulat, pedēs moventur. (Cap. X, l.15)

Cum piscis natat, cauda movētur. (Cap. X, ll.15–16)

Quod

You have learned quod as the neuter singular of both the relative pronoun quī, quae, quod and the interrogative adjective. Quod is also a causal conjunction with the same meaning as quia (because):

Hominēs ambulāre possunt, quod pedēs habent. (ll.23–24)

means the same as:

Hominēs ambulāre possunt, quia pedēs habent.

It is easy to distinguish between quod pronoun, quod interrogative adjective, and quod conjunction. Look at the following sentences:

{80} Iūlius ambulat ad ōstium, quod ab ōstiāriō aperītur. (Cap. VII, l.33)

Lȳdia ōrnāmentum pulchrum in collō habet. Quod ōrnāmentum? (Cap. VIII, ll.30–31)

Ōrnāmentum quod Lydia habet est līnea margarītārum. (Cap. VIII, ll.31–32)

Hominēs volāre nōn possunt, quod ālās nōn habent. (Cap. X, ll.23–25)

Neque avēs neque nīdī avium ab aquilā reperīrī possunt, quod rāmīs et foliīs occultantur. (Cap. X, ll.89–91)

Potest/possunt

The verb potest, which first appears in the sentence Canis volāre nōn potest (l.21), denotes ability (English “is able to,” “can”). It is a compound with est: pot-est; the first element pot-(meaning “able”) is changed before s by assimilation to pos-: Hominēs ambulāre pos-sunt (l.23). More examples:

Pāstor duōs pedēs habet, itaque pāstor ambulāre potest. (ll.22–23)

Homō sub aquā spīrāre nōn potest. (ll.47–48)

Nēmō enim sine cibō vīvere potest. (ll.59–69)

Hominēs deōs neque vidēre neque audīre possunt. (ll.38–39)

Piscēs numerārī nōn possunt. (l.45)

Avēs canere possunt, piscēs nōn possunt: piscēs vōcēs nōn habent. (ll.85–86)

sing. pot-est

pl. pos-sunt

Infinitive Active

Volāre and ambulāre are the first examples of the basic verb form that is called the infinitive (Latin īnfīnītīvus); the infinitive in English is expressed by “to” with the verb. The Latin infinitive active ends in -re. In ā-, ē-, and ī-verbs (1st, 2nd, and 4th conjugations), this ending is added directly to the stem:

volā|re: to fly

vidē|re: to see

audī|re: to hear

In consonant-verbs of the 3rd conjugation, a short e is inserted before the ending:

pōn|ere: to put

sūm|ere: to take

The infinitive of i-stem verbs of the 3rd conjugation is indistinguishable from that of consonant stems:

{81} accip|ere: to receive

fac|ere: to do, make

From now on, the infinitive will be the form of new verbs shown in the margin of LINGUA LATINA and in the vocabulary of this book, so that you can always tell to which of the four conjugations the verb belongs: 1. -āre; 2. -ēre; 3. -ĕre; 4. -īre. Third conjugation verbs (-ĕre) are separated into consonant and i-stem in the vocabulary of this book but not in the margins of LINGUA LATINA.

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Infinitive Active in -se

The infinitive ending -ere developed from an earlier ending (-se). That earlier intervocalic -s-, i.e., an -s- between vowels, was changed to -r-, so -se became -re after a vowel (e.g., amāre < amā|se). The ending -se was kept only in the following infinitives, because it was added directly to the stems es- and ed:

esse (est sunt)

ēsse (ēst edunt, with assimilation ds > ss)

posse (potest possunt, Cap. XI)

Examples:

Quī spīrat mortuus esse nōn potest. (ll.108–109)

Mārcus et Iūlia Quīntum vīvum esse vident. (l.122)

Ēsse quoque hominī necesse est. (l.59)

…nēmō enim gemmās ēsse potest. (l.64)

Gemmae edī nōn possunt. (l.64) (Notā Bene: The passive infinitive edī of ēsse is explained in the next section)

Infinitive -se:

es|se

ēs|se (< ed|se); passive edī

pos/se (< pot|se)

Infinitive Passive

The sentence Hominēs deōs vidēre nōn possunt becomes in the passive: Deī ab hominibus vidērī nōn possunt. Vidērī (to be seen) is the passive infinitive corresponding to the active vidēre (to see). In the passive, ā-, ē-, and ī-verbs have the ending -rī in the infinitive, e.g.:

numerā|rī (l.45)

vidē|rī (l.39)

audī|rī (l.39)

{82} Consonant-verbs have only -ī, e.g.:

em|ī: Sine pecūniā cibus emī nōn potest. (l.62)

Infinitive

active

passive

āre → ārī: vocā|re

vocā|rī

ēre → ērī: vidē|re

vidē|rī

ĕre → ī: pōn|ere

pōn|ī

īre → īrī: audī|re

audī|rī

More examples:

Aemilia fīlium suum ā Iūliō portārī videt. (l.126)

Sed Mārcus eum spīrāre nōn videt, neque enim anima vidērī potest. (ll.109–110)

Deī ab hominibus neque vidērī neque audīrī possunt. (ll.38–39)

Gemmae edī nōn possunt. (l.64)

Necesse est + the Infinitive and Dative of Interest

We have seen that the infinitive occurs as the object of:

Potest possunt

It occurs after other verbs and expressions as well, for example, in this section of the reading, necesse est. Necesse est is an impersonal expression, that is, one without a subject (“it is necessary”):

Necesse est cibum habēre. (l.60)

The person for whom it is necessary to do something is in the dative (dative of interest):

Spīrāre necesse est hominī. (l.58)

3rd Declension Neuter Nouns

You also meet the first neuter nouns of the 3rd declension. The declension of these nouns will be taken up in the next chapter, but for now, here are the nominative and accusative. Remember, the nominative and accusative of neuter nouns (and adjectives) are always the same:

flūmen

mare

animal

{83} Like all neuter nouns, in the nominative and accusative plural, these nouns end in -a:

flūmina

maria

animālia

Nēmō

Homō combined with the negation nē forms the pronoun nēmō (< nē + homō, “nobody”).

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Vult/volunt, audet/audent + infinitive

In addition to potest/possunt and necesse est, an infinitive also occurs after:

vult volunt

the irregular verb that denotes will

audet audent

a verb that denotes courage

Examples:

Iūlia cum puerīs lūdere vult, neque iī cum puellā lūdere volunt. (ll.74–76)

Canis avem…capere vult, neque potest. (ll.83–84)

Quī volāre vult neque potest, ad terram cadit! (ll.129–130)

Fēminae quae pecūniam facere volunt ōrnāmenta sua vēndunt. (ll.67–68)

Avēs canere nōn audent. (l.88)

Mārcus ipse in arborem ascendere nōn audet! (ll.96–97)

Notā Bene: The form vult (he/she wants) lacks a thematic vowel; the verb is irregular.

Accusative and Infinitive Construction

The object of verbs of perception, like vidēre and audīre, can be combined with an infinitive to express what someone is seen or heard to be doing (active infinitive), or what is being done to someone (passive infinitive). There are several ways of rendering the accusative and infinitive construction in English:

Puerī puellam canere vident (l.80):

The boys see (that) the girl is singing.

The boys see the girl sing/that the girl sings.

The boys see (that) the girl does sing.

Mārcus Quīntum ad terram cadere videt (l.104):

{84} Marcus sees (that) Quintus is falling to the ground.

Marcus sees Quintus fall to the ground/that Quintus falls to the ground.

Marcus sees (that) Quintus does fall to the ground.

Aemilia fīlium suum ā Iūliō portārī videt (l.126):

Aemilia sees (that) her son is being carried by Julius.

Aemilia sees her son being carried by Julius.

Aemilia Quīntum ā Iūliō in lectō pōnī aspicit (l.131):

Aemilia sees (that) Quintus is being put onto the bed by Julius.

Aemilia sees Quintus being put onto the bed by Julius.

Notā Bene: The word “that” is optional in English translation and is supplied; there is no Latin equivalent to “that” in any of the sentences above.

Ablative of Manner (Ablātīvus Modī)

Besides means and cause, the simple ablative can also denote manner (ablātīvus modī), e.g.:

magnā vōce clāmat (l.112)

“leō” dēclīnātur hōc modō… (l.169)

Points of Style

1. Alius…alius: In line 9, we read, “Aliae bēstiae sunt avēs, aliae piscēs.” Repeating a form of alius, alia, aliud signals the idiom that represents the English “some…others.” So:

a. Aliae bēstiae sunt avēs, aliae piscēs: some creatures are birds, others fish.

b. Alius librīs dēlectātur, alius ōrnāmentīs: one person is delighted by books, another by jewelry.

c. Aliī alia dīcunt: Different people say different things. Or: Some say one thing, others say another.

2. Cauda movet/movētur: Another example of how Latin differs from English can be seen in this chapter. In lines 16–17, we find “Cum piscis natat, cauda movētur” (when a fish swims, its tail moves). In line 79, we see “Canis pilam capit et caudam movet” (the dog catches the ball and wags its tail). In English, the first use is intransitive, the second transitive. Latin, however, expresses the same idea using the passive and active voices, respectively.

3. enim: as your marginalia tell you, enim is a combination of is and nam; {85} it is postpositive, which means it never comes as the first word in its clause:

• …is enim nūntius deōrum est (l.30)

• …nēmō enim sine cībō vīvere potest (ll.59–60)

Studia Rōmāna

Dogs were valued as guardians of flock (as we saw in the previous chapter) and home, as pets and as hunters. Dogs were important for hunting, a sport Romans loved—there were even hunts (vēnātiōnēs) staged in the Circus Maximus and the Amphitheātrum Flāviānum (also called the Colosseum, as it was built next to a colossal statue of the first-century AD emperor Nero). Romans saw the hunt as a way for men to display their manliness. Horace called it the “customary work for Roman men, useful for reputation, life and limbs” (Epist. 1.18.49–50: Rōmānīs sollemne virīs opus, ūtile fāmae/vītaeque et membrīs). Grattius, a contemporary of Ovid (first century BC–first century AD), wrote the Cynēgetica (τὰ κυνηγετικά) a didactic poem (see below) on hunting dogs, only a small portion of which (540 lines of dacytlic hexameter) survives.

Varrō (116–27 BC) in his book about the Latin language (dē Linguā Latīnā) says that dogs were called canēs because they sing (canere) when guarding at night and when hunting. In Cap. XXII, Cavē Canem (Beware of the Dog), the opening illustration shows a mosiac flooring in the vestibulum depicting a guard dog. In that chapter, we will also meet one of the family’s dogs: canis catēnārius (the guard dog, who was bound with a chain). Such dogs were also used in wall paintings—in Petrōnius’s Satyricōn (first century AD), the arriving guests find “not far from the room of the doorkeeper, a huge dog bound with a chain had been painted on the wall and above it was written in capital letters, ‘Beware of the dog’.”[1] But dogs were also pets: in this chapter, we see Julia playing with her pet dog (l.77). Cicero relates a story of a father going home to find his youngest daughter in tears over the death of her puppy (dē Dīvīnātiōne, 1.102). Especially favored by Greeks and Romans alike was a small terrier similar to the Maltese, called Melitaeus (from the island Melita, modern Malta).

Wealthy Romans enjoyed fishponds (piscīnae) on their estates—both for fresh and salt-water fish, and fish were sometimes tamed and trained to eat from their master’s hand (Cicero, ad Att. 2.1). There was even a word for someone whose hobby was fish ponds: piscīnārius!

Romans were also partial to pet birds and sometimes had private aviaries (aviāria). The first-century BC poet Catullus (poems 2, 3) writes about his girlfriend’s grief over her dead sparrow (passer, quoted in Cap. XXXIV). Ovid (Amōrēs 2.6) writes about his girlfriend’s dead parrot (psittacus). Birds are {86} sometimes associated with particular divinities: the eagle (aquila) was a symbol of Iūppiter and the peacock (pāvō) of his wife Iūnō (you will learn more of Iūppiter and Iūnō later). The swan (cȳcnēus) was the bird of Apollō, god of light, learning and literature. Apollo’s sister, the huntress Diāna, is accompanied by her hunting dogs (although she, too, is associated with birds). And Venus, the goddess of love, rides in a chariot drawn by white doves.

In this chapter, you are also introduced to two Roman divinities: Mercurius, the messenger of the gods, whose winged cap and sandals might be familiar to you from florist advertisements, which display Mercury in flight carrying flowers (rushing for speedy delivery). Mercury carried a herald’s staff, the cadūceum. In addition to being the deus mercātōrum, Mercury was the god of thieves, of eloquence and of prosperity. He led the souls of the dead to the underworld. Just as Mercury is associated with the Greek god Hermes, Neptune, an ancient Italian god, later became associated with Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea, and thus of journeys on water. There was a festival to Neptune on July 23 called the Neptūnālia.

* Didactic Poetry

Didactic poetry is a genre that aims to teach the reader. In the first century BC, Lucretius wrote an epic in six books on Epicurean philosophy (dē Rērum Nātūrā); Vergil wrote an epic in four books on farming (Geōrgica).

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

āla, -ae

wing

anima, -ae

breath, life, soul

aquila, -ae

eagle

bēstia, -ae

beast, animal

cauda, -ae

tail

fera, -ae

wild animal

pila, -ae

ball

2nd

asinus, -ī

ass, donkey

deus, -ī

god (pl. deī/diī/dī, voc. deus)

folium, -ī

leaf

īnfīnītīvus (modus)

infinitive

lectus, -ī

bed, couch

nīdus, -ī

nest

nūntius, -ī

message, messenger

ōvum, -ī

egg

petasus, -ī

hat with a brim

{87} pullus, -ī

young (of an animal)

rāmus, -ī

branch, bough

3rd

āēr, āeris (m.)

air

animal, animālis (n.)

animal, living being

avis, avis (f.)

bird

flūmen, flūminis (n.)

river

homō, hominis (m.)

human being, person

leō, leōnis (m.)

lion

mare, maris (n.)

sea

mercātor, mercātōris (m.)

merchant

pēs, pedis (m.)

foot

piscis, piscis (m.)

fish

pulmō, pulmōnis (m.)

lung

vōx, vōcis (f.)

voice

Verba

-āre (1)

natat, natāre

swim

occultat, occultāre

hide

spīrat, spīrāre

breathe

volat, volāre

fly

-ēre (2)

audet, audēre

dare, venture

movet, movēre

move, stir

sustinet, sustinēre

support, sustain, endure

-ěre (3)

ascendit, ascendere

climb, go up, mount

cadit, cadere

fall

canit, canere

sing (of), crow, play

lūdit, lūdere

play

vīvit, vīvere

live, be alive

i-stem

capit, capere

take, catch, capture

facit, facere

make, do, cause

parit, parere

give birth to, lay

Irregular

necesse est

it is necessary

potest, possunt, posse

be able

vult, volunt

want, be willing

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

crassus, -a, -um

thick, fat

ferus, -a, -um

wild

mortuus, -a, -um

dead

{88} perterritus, -a, -um

terrified

vīvus, -a, -um

living, alive

3rd (you will learn about these in Cap. XII)

tenuis, -e

thin

Prōnōmina

nēmō

no one

Adverbia

ergō

therefore, so

Coniūnctiōnēs

cum

when

enim

for

quod

because

____________

1. Satyricōn 72: “…nōn longē ab ōstiāriī cellā canis ingēns, catēnā vīnctus, in pariete erat pictus superque quadrāta litterā scrīptum ‘cave canem’.”

{89} XI. Corpus Hūmānum

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Infinitive in Indirect Statement

b. Posse

2. Nouns

a. 3rd Declension Neuter

i. Neuter i-stem nouns

b. Case Uses

i. Accusative in Indirect Statement

ii. Ablative of Respect

iii. Preposition: dē + ablative

3. Possessive Adjectives

4. Conjunctions atque/neque (ac/nec)

Roman Medicine

The art of healing was naturally far more primitive in the ancient world than it is today, although not all the doctors of antiquity were so incompetent as the zealous physician who treats poor Quintus. Blood-letting was used then as a kind of panacea.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Third Declension Neuter Nouns

Among the names of parts of the body, there are a number of neuter nouns of the 3rd declension. Like all neuters, these nouns have:

• the same form in the nominative and accusative

• the plural nominative/accusative ending in -a

In the other cases, they have the well-known endings of the 3rd declension. These nouns are all consonant-stems, like flūmen, -in|is:

{90} ōs, ōr|is

cor, cord|is

crūs, crūr|is

iecur, iecor|is

corpus, corpor|is

caput, capit|is

pectus, pector|is

viscer|a, -um

Notā Bene:

• final -s is changed into r when endings are added (-s between two vowels turns to -r)

• u can become o in the stem, as in corpus, pectus, and iecur

• caput, capit|is and cor, cord|is are irregular

• viscer|a, -um is only used in the plural

3rd Declension i-Stem Nouns

In Cap. X, we met the 3rd declension neuter nouns mar|e mar|is and animal -āl|is. There are not many of these nouns; they differ from neuter consonant stems in that they have:

• -ia in the nom./acc. pl.

• -ium in the gen. pl.

• -ī in the abl. sing.

The complete declension patterns (or paradigms) are shown below and on page 83 of LINGUA LATINA.

Summary of Declension Endings: 1st, 2nd, 3rd

{91}

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Indirect Statement (Accusative and Infinitive Construction)

In sentences like Iūlius puerum videt and Iūlius puerum audit, we have seen that an infinitive may be added to the accusative puerum to describe what the boy is doing or what is happening to him, e.g.:

Iūlius puerum vocāre audit.

Iūlius puerum perterritum esse videt.

Such a construction is called an accusative and infinitive construction (accūsātīvus cum īnfīnītīvō); in these constructions, the accusative is logically the subject of the infinitive (“subject accusative”). You will find this construction with:

• verbs of perception (e.g., vidēre, audīre, and sentīre)

Medicus puerum dormīre videt. (l.59)

Cor eius palpitāre sentit. (l.112)

• verbs of speaking (e.g., dīcere) and thinking (e.g., putāre)

Medicus ‘puerum dormīre’ dīcit. (ll.63–64)

Syra eum mortuum esse putat. (l.108)

• iubēre

Dominus ‘servum venīre’ iubet.

Medicus Quīntum ‘ōs aperīre atque linguam ostendere’ iubet. (ll.69–70)

• gaudēre (and with other verbs expressing mood)

Syra Quīntum vīvere gaudet (= Syra gaudet quod Quīntus vīvit) (l.118)

• necesse est (and other impersonal expressions)

Necesse est puerum dormīre. (l.128)

The accusative and infinitive construction reports a person’s words or thoughts as an indirect statement, e.g.:

• Direct statement: “Puer dormit.”

• Indirect statement: Medicus ‘puerum dormīre’ dīcit.

In your text, single quotation marks are used to mark indirect speech but {92} not reported thoughts or perceptions, e.g., when Syra sees the unconscious Quintus:

Syra eum mortuum esse putat. (l.108)

In English, indirect statement is generally expressed by a clause beginning with “that”: “says/thinks/believes that…”

Conjunctions

Atque/ac

The conjunction atque has the same function as et and -que; the shortened form ac is often found (see Cap. XII, l.59):

• before consonants

• but not before vowels or h-

In the following sentences, ac could be substituted for atque:

Quīntus oculōs claudit atque dormit. (l.41)

Medicus ad lectum adit atque puerum aspicit. (ll.56–57)

But in this sentence, ac could not be substituted because horret begins with h:

Quīntus sanguinem dē bracchiō fluere sentit atque horret. (ll.100–101)

Neque/nec

Nec, the shortened form of neque, is used before consonants as well as vowels:

Itaque pedem aegrum habet nec ambulāre potest. (l.54)

Dē + ablative

Like ab, the preposition dē expresses motion “from” (mostly “down from”) and takes the ablative:

dē arbore (ll.53–54) dē bracchiō (l.99)

Ablative of Respect

The ablative in pede aeger (l.55) specifies the application of the term aeger. It is called ablative of respect, as it answers the question “in what respect?”

Nec modo pede, sed etiam capite aeger est. (l.55)

Quintus is sick “in his foot” and “in his head.”

{93} Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Posse

We saw in Cap. X that the infinitive of est, sunt is esse; similarly, the infinitive of potest, which is formed from pot-+ est, sunt is posse (pot + esse):

Aemilia nōn putat medicum puerum aegrum sānāre posse. (ll.134–135)

Possessive Adjectives

In Cap. II, you learned the possessive adjectives meus, -a, -um and tuus, -a, -um, and in Cap. IV, the reflexive possessive suus, -a, -um. Here, we see the plural possessive adjectives noster, -tra, -trum (English “our”):

Iam fīlius noster nōn modo pede, sed etiam bracchiō aeger est. (ll.131–132)

Ille medicus crassus fīlium nostrum sānāre nōn potest. (ll.133–134)

In Cap. XII, you will find several examples of the possessive adjectives noster, -tra, -trum (“our”) and vester, -tra, -trum (“your”).

Studia Rōmāna

The ancient world offered a variety of approaches to medicine—some rooted in tradition, some in religious practice, some in inquiry into the nature of the body and the power of nature to cure the body. During the time of our narrative (second century AD), Rome boasted several medical schools. The hospitals that had originated with the military had spread to the cities. Doctors had a variety of ways of treating patients: rest, diet, herbs, surgery, and, as in our chapter, bloodletting. The purpose of bloodletting was to help the body come into its natural harmony. At this time lived the philosopher and medical scholar Galēnus (Galen), who was born in Pergamon (on the west coast of what is now Turkey) and later traveled to and lived in Rome; famous in his lifetime, Galen’s work remained highly influential for centuries.

Many of the doctors practicing in Italy were Greeks (both slave and free). They brought with them a developed theoretical approach to medicine. Some of them, such as Antōnius Mūsa, the physician of the emperor Augustus, became famous and wealthy. But, as a culture closely in tune with agriculture, Romans often looked to the plant world for cures.

Cato’s treatise on farming (dē Agrī Cultūrā, second century BC) and the Elder Pliny’s (Gāius Plīnius Secundus, first century AD) Natural History (Nātūrālis Historia), for example, are full of home remedies based on plants and on charms. Cato’s dē Agri Cultūrā, for example, promotes cabbage {94} prepared in a variety of ways as a purgative (a treatment of which Romans were particularly fond), as a remedy for aching joints, as a poultice for an open sore, as a preventative of hangover from too much wine. Pliny the Elder’s (first century AD) Natural History devotes several books to remedies found in nature.

Worship of the god of healing, Aesculapius (Greek spelling: Asclepius), the son of Apollo, continued well into the Roman Empire at his many sanctuaries and shrines. Archaeologists have found many medical instruments and votive tablets offering gratitude for specific cures.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

gena, -ae

cheek

lingua, -ae

tongue, language

vēna, -ae

vein

2nd

bracchium, -ī

arm

capillus, -ī

hair

cerebrum, -ī

brain

culter, cultrī

knife

labrum, -ī

lip

medicus, -ī

doctor

membrum, -ī

limb

pōculum, -ī

cup

3rd

auris, auris (f.)

ear

caput, capitis (n.)

head

color, colōris (m.)

color

cor, cordis (n.)

heart

corpus, corporis (n.)

body

crūs, crūris (n.)

leg

frōns, frontis (f.)

forehead

iecur, iecoris (n.)

liver

ōs, ōris (n.)

mouth

pectus, pectoris (n.)

chest

sanguis, sanguinis (m.)

blood

venter, ventris (m.)

stomach

viscera, viscerum (n. pl.)

internal organs

4th (introduced in the next chapter)

manus (f.)

hand

Verba

-āre (1)

aegrōtat, aegrōtāre

be ill

palpitat, palpitāre

beat, throb

{95} putat, putāre

think, suppose

sānat, sānāre

heal, cure

spectat, spectāre

watch, look at

stat, stāre

stand

-ēre (2)

dēterget, dētergēre

wipe off

dolet, dolēre

hurt, feel pain, grieve

gaudet, gaudēre

be glad, be pleased

horret, horrēre

bristle, shudder (at)

iubet, iubēre

order, tell

sedet, sedēre

sit

-ěre (3)

appōnit, appōnere

place (on), serve

arcessit, arcessere

send for, fetch

dīcit, dīcere

say, call, speak

fluit, fluere

flow

tangit, tangere

touch

-īre (4)

revenit, revenīre

come back

sentit, sentīre

feel, sense, think

Irregular

potest, posse

be able

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

aeger, -gra, -grum

sick, ill

hūmānus, -a, -um

human

noster, nostra, nostrum

our, ours

ruber, rubra, rubrum

red

sānus, -a, -um

healthy, well

stultus, -a, -um

stupid, foolish

Adverbia

bene

well

male

badly, ill

modo

only, just

Praepositiōnēs

dē (prp. + abl.)

(down) from, of, about

īnfrā (prp. + acc.)

below

super (prp. + acc.)

on (top of), above

Coniūnctiōnēs

atque/ac

and, as, than

nec

and/but not, nor, not

____________

1. The genitive plural occurs only once in extant texts and in the form marum, not marium.

2. The neuter accusative singular will be the same as the nominative.

{96} XII. Mīles Rōmānus

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. ferre

b. Irregular Imperatives

c. 3rd Conjugation Vowel Stems

2. Nouns

a. 4th Declension

b. plūrāle tantum

c. Case Uses

i. Dative of Possession

ii. Dative with Intransitive Verbs

iii. Partitive Genitive

iv. Accusative of Extent of Space

3. Adjectives

a. 3rd Declension Adjectives

b. Comparison of Adjectives

4. Mīlle/Mīlia

The Roman Army

The military played an important part in the Roman world. Above this chapter, you find a picture of a mīles Rōmānus. The word “military” is derived from mīles, whose stem ends in -t: gen. mīlit|is (so also pedes -it|is and eques -it|is).

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Dative of Possession

In the sentence Mārcō ūna soror est (l.6), Mārcō is dative. This dative of possession with esse is used to express to whom something belongs. These two sentences are different ways of expressing the same thing:

Mārcus ūnam sorōrem habet.

Marcus has one sister.

{97} Mārcō ūna soror est.

Marcus has one sister, or, literally: there is to Marcus one sister.

In the second sentence, ūna soror is nominative, and the dative Mārcō tells us “to whom” or “for whom” there is a sister. In English, we would still say, “Marcus has one sister.” Here are more examples:

Quod nōmen est patrī? Eī nōmen est Iūlius. (ll.9–10)

Aemiliae est ūnus frāter, cui “Aemilius” nōmen est. (l.17)

Virō Rōmānō tria nōmina sunt. (ll.10–11)

Fīliīs nōmina sunt “Mārcus Iūlius Balbus” et “Quīntus Iūlius Balbus.” (ll.12–13)

Irregular Verb: Ferre

In the verb fer|re, the infinitive ending -re is added directly to the consonant-stem. The endings -t and -tur are also added directly to the stem:

Infinitive:

fer|re

Singular:

fer|t

fer|tur

Plural:

fer|unt

fer|untur

The imperative has no -e:

fer!

fer|te!

E.g.:

Mīles est vir quī scūtum et gladium et pīlum fert. (ll.33–34)

Aemilius pīlum tantum fert. (l.42)

Gladius eius brevis et levis est—brevior et levior quam is quī ab equite fertur. (ll.56–57)

Gladiī…ā Germānīs feruntur. (ll.57–58)

Hispānī et Gallī…et alia arma et arcūs sagittāsque ferunt. (ll.90–91)

{98} Irregular Imperatives

Like fer!, a few other verbs lost the original “e” ending of the infinitive and are monosyllables:[1]

es! of esse (pl. es|te!)

dūc! of dūcere (pl. dūc|ite!)

dīc! of dīcere (pl. dīc|ite!)

fac! of facere (pl. faci|te!—facere is an i-stem: faci|unt)

3rd Declension Adjectives

All the adjectives learned so far, e.g., alb|us -a -um, follow the 1st and 2nd declensions: the 1st in the feminine (alb|a) and the 2nd in the masculine and neuter (alb|us, alb|um). A few 1st/2nd declension adjectives, like niger -gr|a -gr|um, have -er, not -us, in the nom. sing. m. (cf. nouns like liber -br|ī, culter -tr|ī). Thus:

aeger, aegra, aegrum

noster, nostra, nostrum

pulcher, pulchra, pulchrum

vester, vestra, vestrum

ruber, rubra, rubrum

There are also adjectives of the 3rd declension, one of which (tenuis) you met in Cap. X. Some others are:

brevis, breve

trīstis, trīste

gravis, grave

fortis, forte

levis, leve

In the masculine and feminine, these adjectives are: i-stems, that is, they decline like ovis, except:

• -ī (not -e) in the ablative singular

sing.
m./f.

pl.
m./f.

nom.

brev|is

brev|ēs

acc.

brev|em

brev|ēs

gen.

brev|is

brev|ium

dat.

brev|ī

brev|ibus

abl.

brev|ī

brev|ibus

In the neuter, they are declined like mare:

• -e in the nom./acc. sing.

• -ī in the abl. sing.

• -ia in the nom./acc. pl.

• -ium in the gen. pl.

{99} sing.
n.

pl.
n.

nom.

brev|e

brev|ia

acc.

brev|e

brev|ia

gen.

brev|is

brev|ium

dat.

brev|ī

brev|ibus

abl.

brev|ī

brev|ibus

So in the nominative singular, we have gladius brevis, hasta brevis, and pīlum breve.

Examples:

Itaque trīstis est Aemilia. (l.20)

Cūr tam brevis est gladius? Quod gladius brevis nōn tam gravis est quam gladius longus. (ll.50–53)

Pīlum nostrum breve et leve est. (l.134)

Mīlitēs Rōmānī fortēs sunt. (ll.118–119)

Pīla eōrum brevia et levia sunt, nōn longa et gravia ut Germānōrum. (ll.136–137)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Nouns: 4th Declension

The noun exercitus here represents the 4th declension (dēclīnātiō quārta). All the forms are shown in lines 80–89. This declension does not comprise nearly so many words as the first three.

In the singular:

• the accusative has -um

• the genitive -ūs

• the dative -uī

• the ablative -ū

In the plural:

• the nominative and accusative end in -ūs

• the genitive in -uum

• the dative and ablative in -ibus

{100} Fourth declension nouns are regularly masculine, e.g.:

arcus

metus

equitātus

passus

exercitus

versus

impetus

manus is feminine (duae manūs)

Dative with Intransitive Verbs

Intransitive verbs are those that are not completed by an accusative direct object. The verbs imperāre and pārēre (first introduced in Cap. IV) are intransitive and take the dative (persons whom you command and whom you obey are in the dative). In the following sentences, exercituī and ducī are datives:

Dux exercituī imperat. (l.82)

Exercitus ducī suō pāret. (l.82)

nec Rōmānīs pārent. (ll.75–76)

Hispānī et Gallī iam exercitibus nostrīs pārent. (ll.88–89)

Notā Bene: Verbs that are transitive in English are not always transitive in Latin. It can be helpful to memorize intransitive verbs with a dative pronoun (eī) to help you remember that they do not take an accusative direct object, e.g.:

imperāre eī

pārēre eī

Adjectives: Comparison

A comparison like Via Latīna nōn tam longa est quam via Appia can also be expressed Via Appia longior est quam via Latīna. Longior is a comparative adjective (Latin comparātīvus, from comparāre, “compare”) and quam here means “than” (as opposed to “as” in tam…quam “as…as,” which you learned in Cap. VI).[2]

The comparative:

• ends in -ior in the masculine and feminine (gladius/hasta longior)

• ends in -ius in the neuter (pīlum longius)

• declines like 3rd declension consonant-stem nouns:

gen. -iōr|is; plural -iōr|um

nom./acc. pl. -iōr|ēs (m./f.) and -iōr|a (n.)

abl. sing. -e -iōr|e

{101}

Examples:

Gladius equitis longior et gravior est quam peditis. (ll.53–54)

The sword of the cavalryman is longer and heavier than that [i.e., the sword] of the foot-soldier.

Gladius peditis brevis et levis est—brevior et levior quam is quī ab equite fertur. (ll.56–57)

Etiam gladiī quī ā Germānīs feruntur longiōrēs et graviōrēs sunt quam Rōmānōrum ac pīla eōrum longiōra et graviōra quam nostra sunt. (ll.57–59)

Comparative (neuter forms, where different from masculine and feminine, are in parentheses)

sing. m./f. (n.)

pl. m./f. (n.)

nom.

-ior (-ius)

-iōrēs (-iōra)

acc.

-iōrem (-ius)

-iōrēs (-iōra)

gen.

-iōris

-iōrum

dat.

-iōrī

-iōribus

abl.

-iōre

-iōribus

Genitive Case: Partitive

So far you have encountered the following uses of the genitive case:

• possession (Cap. II)

• with numerus (Cap. II)

• with plēnus (Cap. VII)

Iūlius dominus Mēdī est.

Numerus servōrum est centum.

Hic saccus plēnus mālōrum est.

In this chapter, we see the genitive expressing the whole of which a part (pars part|is f.) is taken. It is called partitive genitive:

Prōvincia est pars imperiī Rōmānī, ut membrum pars corporis est. (ll.64–65)

{102} Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Verbs: 3rd Conjugation Vowel Stems

Besides consonant-stems (like pōn|ere, sūm|ere, dīc|ere), the 3rd conjugation includes some verbs whose stems end in short u or i.

U-Stems: The inflection of u-stems does not differ from that of consonant-stems, e.g.:

flu|ere: fluit, fluunt

metu|ere: metuit, metuunt

I-Stems: I-stems, too, largely agree with consonant-stems, but they are characterized by having i before vowel endings, e.g., -unt. In Cap. VIII, you saw the i-stems accipiunt and aspiciunt. In this chapter, we also see:

capi|unt

iaci|unt

fugi|unt

Notā Bene: Instead of the characteristic i, you will find e:

• before r, e.g., in the infinitive: cape|re, iace|re, fuge|re, stem capi-, iaci-, fugi-

• and in final position: cape! iace! fuge! (imperative)

Plūrāle Tantum

Here, you read about the equipment of a Roman soldier and the layout of a Roman army camp: castra. This noun is neuter plural, called plūrāle tantum (“plural only,” cf. “barracks,” “entrails,” “arms”). Other plūrāle tantum nouns:

līberī, -ōrum

arma, -ōrum

viscera, -um

Accordingly, though only one camp is meant, you read:

castra sunt (l.94)

in castrīs (l.97)

vāllum castrōrum (l.101)

Notā Bene: Plūrāle tantum nouns take plural verbs.

Mīlle/mīlia

The common Roman linear measures were:

• pēs, “foot” (29.6 cm or 11.65 inches)

• passus = 5 pedēs (1.48 m or 4.85 feet)

In Cap. I, you learned mīlle (one thousand). Mīlle passūs (4th decl.), or “1,000 paces,” that is, “5,000 feet,” equals a “Roman mile” of 1.48 km, a little {103} less than an English mile (“mile” is derived from mīlia). In the singular, mīlle is an indeclinable adjective; the plural is expressed by the noun mīlia -ium n., e.g., duo mīlia (2,000) which is followed by a partitive genitive:

mīlle passūs (adjective agrees with passūs)

duo mīlia passuum (noun + genitive)

sex mīlia mīlitum

Ūnus passus est quīnque pedēs, ergō mīlle passūs sunt quīnque mīlia pedum. (ll.96–97)

Long distances were given in mīlia passuum (“Roman miles”).

1,000 = mīlle + noun

For numbers between 1,000 and 2,000, use mīlle and an ordinal between 1–999: e.g., mīlle et ūnum (1,001), mīlle ducentī (1,200). Above 2,000, use mīlia + partitive genitive.

Accusative of Extent of Space

The accusative without a preposition is used to indicate extent (“how long?” “how high?”), e.g.:

Gladius duōs pedēs longus est.

The sword is two feet long. (l.49)

Aemilius in castrīs habitat mīlle passūs ā fīne imperiī.

Aemilius lives in a camp one mile from the boundary of the empire. (l.93)

Prope decem pedēs altum est, et duo mīlia passuum longum.

It is almost ten feet high and two miles long. (ll.102–103)

Recēnsiō: 3rd Declension Ablative Singular in -ī and -e

Ends in -e

• consonant-stem nouns of all genders:
pāstor (m.) abl.: pāstōre
vōx (f.) abl.: vōce
nōmen (n.) abl.: nōmine

• masculine and feminine i-stem nouns:
mōns (m.) abl.: monte
nūbēs (f.) abl.: nūbe

• comparative adjectives of all genders
brevior, brevius (from brevis, breve): abl.: breviōre
longior, longius (from longus, longa, longum), abl.: longiōre

Ends in -ī

• neuter i-stem nouns

mare (n.), abl.: marī

{104} • positive adjectives of all genders

brevis, breve, abl.: brevī

gravis, grave, abl.: gravī

Studia Rōmāna

Avunculus vs. Patruus: We call the brothers of our mother and father “uncle,” but the Romans had different names for the mother’s brother (avunculus) and the father’s brother (pātruus). Our English word “avuncular” reflects an ancient distinction: to be avuncular is to behave in a kind and generous way toward a young person or someone with less power. The pātruus was associated with severity (Cicero’s description was pertrīstis, “very stern”). There doesn’t seem to be the same association with the amita (the father’s sister) and the mātertera (the mother’s sister). The name for grandmother (avia) and grandfather (avus) was the same for the parents of both one’s mother and father.

Tria Nōmina: Praenōmen, Nōmen, Cognōmen

Roman men often had three names, called the tria nōmina. Iūlius is a nōmen, or family name: male members of this family are called Iūlius and female members Iūlia. Besides the family name ending in –ius, Roman men have a first or personal name, the praenōmen, and a surname, the cognōmen, which is common to a branch of the family. The cognōmen is often descriptive of the founder of the family, e.g., Longus, Pulcher, Crassus; Paulus means “small” and Balbus “stammering.” Sometimes, the cognōmen is added to a particular person’s name as an honorific or particular marker, for example, Pūblius Cornēlius Scīpiō, the victorious general of the Second Punic War, received the honorific Africānus and was then known as Scīpiō Africānus. Cicero’s good friend Titus Pompōnius Atticus received his cognōmen as a result of his long residence in Athens. Sons adopted into other families would add their father’s name, with the suffix -ānus to their new family name. For example, Pūblius Cornēlius Scīpiō, who did not have a son, adopted one of the sons of Lūcius Aemilius Paulus; that son’s name became Pūblius Cornēlius Scīpiō Aemiliānus. Families with more than one daughter distinguished them with māior (“older,” Cap. XIX) or minor (“younger,” Cap. XIX), by numbers (prīma, secunda, tertia), or by diminutives (just as sacculus, Cap. IV, is the diminutive of saccus, Cap. VI) like Līvilla, “little Līvia.”

The number of praenōmina is quite small. Including the list in the margin of page 86 in LINGUA LATINA, the following names were in common use:

{105}

Why are Gāius and Gnaeus abbreviated with a C and why does Kaesō begin with K instead of C? These spellings reflect an early period of the Latin alphabet, when the “g” sound was represented by “c” and “k” had not yet been replaced by “c.”

The Roman Soldier

As you can see from the illustration on page 89, the castra Rōmāna was a model of organization. It had two main roads connecting four gates; the via praetōria led from the main gate to the principia, an open space in the camp in front of the general’s quarters (praetōrium); the via prīncipālis ran in front of the prīncipia to the other gates. At the end of Cap. XXXIII, you will find more information on the Roman soldier.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

fossa, -ae

ditch, trench

hasta, -ae

lance

patria, -ae

native country/town

sagitta, -ae

arrow

2nd

adiectīvum (nomen)

adjective

avunculus, -ī

(maternal) uncle

arma, -ōrum (n. pl.)

arms

bellum, -ī

war

castra, -ōrum (n. pl.)

camp

comparātīvus, -ī (gradus)

comparative

gladius, -ī

sword

pīlum, -ī

spear, javelin

pugnus, -ī

fist

scūtum, -ī

shield

vāllum, -ī

rampart

3rd

cognōmen, -inis (n.)

surname

dux, ducis (m.)

leader, chief, general

eques, equitis (m.)

horseman

frāter, frātris (m.)

brother

fīnis, fīnis (m.)

boundary, limit, end

hostis, hostis (m.)

enemy

{106} lātus, lāteris (n.)

side, flank

mīles, mīlitis (m.)

soldier

mīlia, mīlium (n.)

thousand

nōmen, nōminis (n.)

name

pars, partis (f.)

part, direction

pedes, peditis (m.)

footsoldier

praenōmen, praenōminis (n.)

first name

soror, sorōris (f.)

sister

4th

arcus, arcūs

bow

equitātus, equitātūs

cavalry

exercitus, exercitūs

army

impetus, impetūs

attack, charge

metus, metūs

fear

passus, passūs

pace

versus, versūs

line, verse

Verba

-āre (1)

pugnat, pugnāre

fight

mīlitat, mīlitāre

serve as a soldier

expugnat, expugnāre

conquer

oppugnat, oppugnāre

attack

-ere (3)

incolit, incolere

inhabit

dīvidit, dīvidere

divide

metuit, metuere

fear

dēfendit, dēfendere

defend

i-stem

iacit, iacere

throw, hurl

fugit, fugere

run away, flee

Irregular

fert, ferre

carry, bring, bear

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

altus, -a, -um

high, tall, deep

armātus, -a, -um

armed

barbarus, -a, -um

foreign, barbarian

lātus, -a, -um

wide

vester, -tra, -trum

your, yours

3rd

brevis, -e

short

fortis, -e

strong, brave

gravis, -e

heavy, severe, grave

{107} levis, -e

light, slight

trīstis, -e

sad

Praepositiōnēs

contrā (prp. + acc.)

against

Coniūnctiōnēs

ac

and, as, than

____________

1. When these imperatives are found in compound verbs e.g., abdūc (“lead away!”) the accent remains on the ultima, a verbal reminiscence of the form was abdūce.

2. The comparative means “too” when there is no comparison expressed or implied.

{108} XIII. Annus et Mēnsēs

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Preterite (Imperfect) Tense

b. dīcitur + Nominative Infinitive

c. Infinitive velle

2. Nouns

a. Case Uses

i. Ablative of Time When

ii. Accusative of Duration of Time

b. 5th Declension

c. māne (noun/adverb)

3. Adjectives

a. Names of the Months

b. Comparison of Adjectives

i. Positive

ii. Comparative

iii. Superlative

c. Numerals

i. Cardinals

ii. Ordinals

iii. Fractions

4. Conjunction: vel

Roman Calendar

Today we still use a version of the Roman calendar as it was reformed by Iūlius Caesar in 46 BC with twelve months and 365 days (366 in leap years). Before this reform, only four months—March, May, July, and October—had 31 days, while February had 28 and the other months only 29. This made a total of 355 days. It was therefore necessary at intervals to put in an extra month. The Julian calendar was revised under Pope Gregory XIII in 1582 (creating the Gregorian calendar).

{109} As you learn from the reading, in the oldest Roman calendar, March was the first month of the year and December the last. The calendar was agricultural and seems to have skipped the winter months. One of the early kings of Rome, Numa, is credited with adding January and February to make twelve months of the year. This explains the names September, Octōber, November, and December, which are clearly formed from the numerals septem, octō, novem, decem. The fifth month in the old calendar was called Quīntīlis (from quīntus), but after the death of Iūlius Caesar, it was renamed Iūlius in memory of him. In the year 8 BC the following month, which until then had been called Sextīlis (from sextus), was given the name of the Roman emperor Augustus.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Fifth Declension Nouns

The noun diēs, gen. diēī, here represents the 5th declension (Latin dēclīnātiō quīnta). Only a few nouns belong to the 5th declension. The complete paradigm is shown below and on page 101 in LINGUA LATINA.

• 5th declension nouns have stems in ē, which is kept before all endings, except for those noted below. Most 5th declension nouns have -iēs in the nominative, like:

diēs

merīdiēs

faciēs

glaciēs

• A few have a consonant before -ēs, e.g., the common word rēs, gen. reī (“thing,” “matter”), which turns up in the next chapter.

• The long ē of the 5th declension is shortened only:

before the ending of the accusative singular: -e m

in the genitive and dative singular when a consonant precedes (e.g., rēs, reī): -e ī

• The nouns of this declension are feminine except for diēs (and merī-diēs), which is masculine. (In special senses and in late Latin, diēs is feminine.)

sing.

pl.

nom.

di|ēs

di|ēs

acc.

di|em

di|ēs

gen.

di|ēī

di|ērum

dat.

di|ēī

di|ēbus

abl.

di|ē

di|ēbus

{110} Recēnsiō: Declensions

You have now learned all five declensions. The classification is based on the (original) final stem-vowel:

1st declension: a-stems, e.g., āla, gen. sing. -ae

2nd declension: o-stems, e.g., equus, ōvum

• the “u” in the ending of these nouns was originally an “o”

equus < equ|os

ōvum < ōv|om, gen. sing. -ī (<-oi)

3rd declension: consonant-stems and i-stems, e.g., sōl, ovi|s, gen. sing. -is

4th declension: u-stems, e.g., lacu|s, gen. sing. -ūs

5th declension: ē-stems, e.g., diē|s, rē|s, gen. sing. -ēī, -eī

Māne

The neuter noun māne is indeclinable; it is also used as an adverb (Cap. XIV, l.155)

Prīma pars diēī est māne, pars postrēma vesper. (ll.35–36)

Nox est tempus ā vesperō ad māne. (l.37)

Calendar: Names of the Months

The names of the months are adjectives: mēnsis Iānuārius, etc., but they are often used alone without mēnsis and come to be felt as masculine nouns (with mēnsis understood).

• Most of the months belong to the 1st/2nd declension (e.g., Iānuārius, -a, -um).

• 3rd declension

Aprīlis

Genitive masculine singular in -is

Ablative in -ī: (mense) Aprīlī

September, Octōber, November, December

Nominative masculine singular: -ber

Genitive masculine singular: -br|is: Septembris, Decembris, etc.

Ablative in -ī: (mēnse) Septembrī, Octōbri, etc.

Expressions of Time

To express time when the ablative (ablātīvus temporis) without a preposition is used:

mēnse Decembrī

in the month of December

illō tempore

at that time

hōrā prīmā

at the first hour

{111} Tempore antīquō Mārtius mēnsis prīmus erat. (ll.17–19)

Nocte sōl nōn lūcet. (l.46)

Vēre campī novā herbā operiuntur. (l.92)

“Quandō sōl altissimus est?” “Hōrā sextā vel merīdiē.” (ll.107–108)

Time how long (duration) is expressed by the accusative:

centum annōs vīvere (ll.10–11)

Numerals

Of the Latin numerals, you already know the cardinals 1–10:

ūn|us, -a, -um

sex

du|o, -ae, -o

septem

tr|ēs, -ia

octō

quattuor

novem

quīnque

decem

and the ordinals 1st–4th. In numbering the months, the first twelve ordinals are needed:

prīm|us, -a, -um

septim|us, -a, -um

secund|us, -a, -um

octāv|us, -a, -um

terti|us, -a, -um

nōn|us, -a, -um

quārt|us, -a, -um

decim|us, -a, -um

quīnt|us, -a, -um

ūndecim|us, -a, -um

sext|us, -a, -um

duodecim|us, -a, -um

The ordinals are also combined with pars to form fractions:

⅓:

tertia pars

¼:

quārta pars

1/5

quīnta pars (etc.)

Notā Bene: ½: dīmidia pars.

Verbs: Preterite (Imperfect) Tense

The preterite comes from a compound of praeter (“beyond,” Cap. XIV) and the verb īre (Cap. XVI)[1] and refers to “what has gone past,” or the past tense. The forms erat, erant are used instead of est, sunt when the past is concerned. Compare the sentences:

Tunc (= illō tempore)

Mārtius mēnsis prīmus erat.

Nunc (= hōc tempore)

Mārtius mēnsis tertius est.

{112} Erat, erant is called the imperfect tense, or preterite, while est, sunt is the present tense (“tense” comes from Latin tempus and refers to the relative time of the verb). The past tense of other verbs comes later (Cap. XIX).

Comparison of Adjectives

Consider the following examples:

Februārius brevis est.

Februārius brevior est quam Iānuārius.

Februārius mēnsis annī brevissimus est.

Brevis breve (positive degree)

• simply describes or limits the noun “February”

• ends in:

-us, -a, -um (e.g., longus, -a, -um)

-is, -e (e.g., brevis, -e)

(other endings will be learned later)

Brevior brevius (comparative degree of brevis)

• compares February with January

• ends in:

-ior, -ius (e.g., longior, longius, brevior, brevius)

Brevissimus -issima, -issimum (superlative degree, Latin superlātīvus, of brevis):

• compares February with all the other months of the year

• ends in:

-issimus, -a, -um (e.g., longissimus, -a, -um, brevissimus, -a, -um)

Quam

Lines 25–30 illustrate the three degrees as well as different uses of quam:

Quam (= how) longus (positive degree) est mēnsis November?

November trīgintā diēs longus est. December ūnum et trīgintā diēs habet.

Iānuārius tam longus est quam (= as…as) December, sed Februārius brevior (comparative degree) est: duodētrīgintā aut ūndētrīgintā diēs tantum habet.

Februārius brevior (comparative degree) est quam (= than) cēterī ūndecim mēnsēs: is mēnsis annī brevissimus (superlative degree) est.

{113} Vel

The conjunction vel was originally the imperative of velle; it implies a free choice between two expressions or possibilities. In each of the following, either expression will do:

duodecim mēnsēs vel trecentōs sexāgintā quīnque diēs (l.7)

centum annī vel saeculum (l.9)

hōra sexta vel merīdiēs (l.43)

Vel is distinct from aut, which is put between mutually exclusive alternatives. February can have either 28 or 29 days:

Februārius brevior est: duodētrīgintā aut ūndētrīgintā diēs. (l.28)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Roman Calendar: Divisons of the Month

Three days in each month had special names; they are all feminine plurals:

kalendae

the 1st

īdūs

the 13th (īdūs -uum 4th decl.)

nōnae

the 5th (the 9th day before īdūs: inclusive reckoning)

In March, May, July, and October (the four months that originally had 31 days):

īdūs was the 15th

nōnae was consequently the 7th

The following mnemonic may help:

In March, July, October, May

The IDES fall on the fifteenth day,

The NONES the seventh; all besides

Have two days less for Nones and Ides.

To these names (kalendae, īdūs, and nōnae) the names of the months are added as adjectives. Thus:

January 1st

kalendae Iānuāriae

January 5th

nōnae Iānuāriae

January 13th

īdūs Iānuāriae

Ablative of Time When

Dates are given in the ablātīvus temporis, e.g.:

kalendīs Iānuāriīs

on January 1st

īdibus Mārtiīs

on March 15th

{114} Giving the Date in Latin

Other dates were indicated by stating the number of days before the following kalendae, nōnae, or īdūs. The Romans counted inclusively; that is, they counted the beginning and ending day, e.g., since April 21st (Rome’s birthday) is the 11th day before kalendae Māiae (inclusive reckoning), it should therefore be:

diēs ūndecimus ante kalendās Māiās

but the Romans put the ante first with all the following words in the accusative:

ante diem ūndecimum kalendās Māiās
usually shortened a. d. XI kal. Māi.

Using the table on page 312 of LINGUA LATINA, you can easily figure out the date.

Dīcitur + Nominative and Infinitive

Note the passive dīcitur with an infinitive and the nominative case:

Lūna ‘nova’ esse dīcitur. (l.52, “is said to be…”)

Compare the same thought using the active verb (dīcunt) with the accusative and infinitive construction you learned in Cap. XI:

(Hominēs) lūnam ‘novam’ esse dīcunt.

When used with a predicate nominative, dīcitur is closer in meaning to “is called.”

Diēs prīmus mēnsis Iānuāriī dīcitur ‘kalendae Iānuāriae.’ (ll.56–57)

Item ‘īdūs Februāriae’ dīcitur diēs tertius decimus mēnsis Februāriī. (ll.64–65)

Diēs octāvus ante kalendās Iānuāriās, quī dīcitur ‘ante diem octāvum kalendās Iānuāriās,’ est diēs annī brevissimus. (ll.72–74)

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Velle

The infinitive of vult, volunt has the irregular form velle, as appears from the acc. + inf. in:

Aemilia puerum dormīre velle putat. (l.140)

Recēnsiō: Expressions of Time and Space: Ablative and Accusative

The ablative represents a point in space or time:

{115} • Space: Where?

Diēs est dum sōl in caelō est. (l.35)

In Germāniā hiemēs frīgidiōrēs sunt quam in Italiā. (ll.95–96)

• Time: When? During what time?

Aestāte diēs longī sunt, sōl lūcet, āēr calidus est. (l.87)

Hōc annī tempore diēs nōn tam calidī sunt quam aestāte et noctēs frīgidiōrēs sunt. (ll.120–121)

The accusative represents movement through a block of space or time.

• Space: How long? How high? How deep?

Gladius duōs pedēs longus est. (Cap. XII, l.49)

vāllum castrōrum…prope decem pedēs altum est, et duo mīlia passuum longum. (Cap. XII, ll.101–103)

• Time: How long?

November trīgintā diēs longus est. (ll.25–26)

Mārtius ūnum et trīgintā diēs longus est. (ll.30–31)

In both cases, the accusative expresses movement through space/time from point A to point B, unlike the ablative, which expresses a specific point in space/time.

Studia Rōmāna

The Julian calendar was all our Julius and his family had ever known. Julius Caesar revised the Roman calendar so that it followed the natural year more closely. Revised very slightly in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII, the Julian calendar (now called the Gregorian calendar) is still the calendar we use today.

The ancients had long known the length of the solar year, but calendars did not strictly follow the natural year until Julius Caesar, in 45 BC, made his reforms law. Before the Julian calendar, the Romans had to periodically insert days into the year in order to “catch up” to the solar calendar. These intercalendary days (or months!) could be a nuisance. Cicero, while governing the province of Cilicia and eager to return to the political scene at Rome, begs his friends to vote against inserting more days into his term of office.

The Romans had two ways of referring to years. Rome was ruled by kings from the founding of the city in 753 BC up to 510 BC, when it became a republic. One way of marking the years was to refer to the number of years from the founding of the city (in Latin: ab urbe conditā, abbreviated AUC). More commonly, the years were named by the two leaders of the republic, the cōnsulēs (after 510 BC); their names appear in the ablative (in a construction you will learn in Caps. XIV and XVI). In the year 70 BC, for example, Gnaius Pompēius (Pompey the Great) and Mārcus Crassus were consuls, and the year was marked: Cn. Pompēiō M. Crassō cōnsulibus, “when Gnaeus Pompey and {116} Marcus Crassus were the consuls.” It was not until 153 BC, however, that January 1st became the start of the consular year (that is, the date when the consuls took office). Our strict notions of time and dates are a relatively recent phenomenon—the marking of precise time was not as important to the Romans.

The illustration at the beginning of the chapter gives you the twelve astrological signs familiar to us today—and familiar to the Greeks and Romans 2,000 years ago. Astrology was adopted by the Greeks from the Babylonians and the Egyptians in the third century BC and from the Greeks was taken up by the Romans. Cicero translated from Greek to Latin a poem about celestial phenomena by Aratus, in which he tells us that the Greeks call the swath of sky divided into the twelve familiar divisions Zōdiacus and the Romans the orbis signifer.[2] The emperor Augustus is said to have had his horoscope (hōroscopus) published as a sign of his destined power. In the first century AD, Manilius wrote Astronomica, a long poem in Latin about astrology, and in the second century, the Egyptian polymath Ptolemy and the lesser-known Vettius Valēns wrote books on astrology.

In the illustration on p. 96, you can see a sundial (hōrologium), an ancient clock. The sundial has twelve divisions, not twenty-four, because it works only during the day. At night, the movement of the heavenly bodies could be consulted and, for use inside, the ancients could use a water clock, in which water poured into a vessel from one on a higher level. Since the days are longer or shorter depending on the time of the year, time in antiquity was flexible. The first hour began with sunrise. You might also have noticed the absence of a word for our “week.” The concept of the week, found in the East (where it was important for astrology), seems to have shown up in Rome under the emperor Augustus, but it did not come into common use until the third century AD, after the time of our narrative. The word for it is septimāna (Latin) and hebdomas (from the Greek). The Romans had other ways of marking the progression of the months. In addition to the Kalends (Kalendae), Ides (Īdūs) and Nones (Nōnae), every ninth day was a market day, called Nūndinae (< novem+dies). The chart on page 312 of your text lays out the Roman calendar.

In this chapter, you also meet two gods of the Roman state: Iānus and Mārs. Roman religion existed on several levels: the state, the neighborhood, the family, and the individual. It is also a mixture of native Italian elements and imports from Greece and elsewhere. Janus is a native Italic deity depicted with two heads facing in different directions. The name Iānus means passageway (and in Cap. XV you will learn the word iānua, which, like ōstium, means “door”). Janus is the god of passageways and thus is associated with beginnings (making January an appropriate name for the first month of the year). The doors of the temple of Janus in the Forum were closed in times of peace and open in times of war. Mars, the god of war, is associated with the Greek god {117} of war Ares. As in the illustration in the margin of your text, Mars is shown in battle array. After Iuppiter, Mars is the chief god of the Romans. The Romans credited Mars with fathering Romulus, the founder of Rome, and his brother Remus.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

fōrma, -ae

form, shape, figure

hōra, -ae

hour

kalendae, -ārum (pl.)

the 1st of the month

lūna, -ae

moon

nōnae, -ārum (pl.)

5th/7th of the month

stēlla, -ae

star

2nd

aequinoctium, -ī

equinox

annus, -ī

year

autumnus, -ī

autumn

initium, -ī

beginning

saeculum, -ī

century

superlātīvus, -ī (gradus)

superlative

vesper, vesperī

evening

3rd

aestās, aestātis (f.)

summer

hiems, hiemis (f.)

winter

imber, imbris (m.)

rain, shower

lūx, lūcis (f.)

light, daylight

mēnsis, mēnsis (m.)

month

nix, nivis (f.)

snow

nox, noctis (f.)

night

tempus, temporis (n.)

time

urbs, urbis (f.)

city

vēr, vēris (n.)

spring

4th

īdūs, īduum (f. pl.)

13th/15th of the month

lacus, -ūs

lake

5th

diēs, -ēī (m.)

day, date

faciēs, -ēī

face

glaciēs, -ēī

ice

merīdiēs, -ēī (m.)

midday, noon, south

indēclīnābilis

indeclinable

māne

morning

{118} Verba

-āre (1)

illūstrat, illūstrāre

illustrate, make clear

nōminat, nōmināre

name, call

-ere (3)

i-stem

incipit, incipere

begin

-īre (4)

operit, operīre

cover

Irregular

erat, erant

was, were

vult, velle

want, be willing

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

aequus, -a, -um

equal, calm

calidus, -a, -um

warm, hot, f. hot water[3]

clārus, -a, -um

bright, clear, loud

decimus, -a, -um

tenth

dīmidius, -a, -um

half

duodecimus, -a, -um

twelfth

exiguus, -a, -um

small, scanty

frīgidus, -a, -um

cold, chilly, cool

nōnus, -a, -um

ninth

obscūrus, -a, -um

dark

octāvus, -a, -um

eighth

postrēmus, -a, -um

last

quīntus, -a, -um

fifth

septimus, -a, -um

seventh

sextus, -a, -um

sixth

tōtus, -a, -um

the whole of, all

ūndecimus, -a, -um

eleventh

3rd

indēclīnābilis, -e

indeclinable

Numerī (indeclinable unless otherwise noted)

ducentī, -ae, -a

two hundred

sexāgintā

sixty

trecentī, -ae, -a

three hundred

trīgintā

thirty

ūndecim

eleven

Adverbia

item

likewise, also

māne

in the morning

{119} nunc

now

quandō

when, as

tunc

then

Coniūnctiōnēs

igitur

therefore, then, so

vel

or

____________

1. You learned the verb “it,” “he/she goes,” in Cap. VI, l.20: Iūlius ab oppidō ad vīllam suam it.

2. Zōdiacum hunc Graecī vocitant, nostrīque Latīnī orbem signiferum perhibēbunt nōmine vērō.

3. When calida (f.) is used as a noun, it means calida aqua = hot water.

{120} XIV. Novus Diēs

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs:

a. inquit, inquiunt

b. Agreement of subject/verb

2. Nouns: Case Uses

a. Dative of Interest (datīvus commodī)

b. Ablative of Attendant Circumstances

3. Present Participles (participium praesēns)

4. Adjectives

a. omnis -e

b. Numbers duo, duae, duo (ablative)

c. uter, neuter, alter, uterque

5. Pronouns: mihi, mē, tibi, tē (dative/ablative)

6. Points of Style: sē habēre

The New Day

At dawn, Marcus is roused from his morning slumbers by Davus, who also sees to it that he washes properly before putting on his tunica and toga, the clothes that were the mark of freeborn Roman men and boys.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Uter, neuter, alter, uterque

Among the new words in this chapter is a group of words that is used only when two persons or things are concerned; they can be used as adjectives or pronouns:

uter?

which (of the two)?

neuter

neither (of the two)

alter

the other (of the two)

uterque

each (of the two)

{121} Uter, utra, utrum is the interrogative used when there are only two alternatives (“which of the two?”), e.g.:

Uter puer, Mārcusne an Quīntus?

(the conjunction an, not aut, is put between the two in question)

The answer may be:

1. neuter, -tra, -trum (“neither”), e.g., neuter puer, nec Mārcus nec Quīntus.

2. alter, -era, -erum (“one”/“the other”), e.g., alter puer, aut M. aut Q.

3. uter-, utra-, utrum- que (“each of the two”), e.g., uterque puer, et M. et Q.

Uterque

Where English prefers “both” followed by the plural (“both boys”), Latin has the singular uterque:

Uterque puer cubat in cubiculō parvō, neuter in cubiculō magnō. (ll.8–9)

Uterque puer quiētus est, neuter puer sē movet. (ll.10–11)

Uterque is singular and followed by a singular verb.

Subject-Verb Agreement

In Cap. I, you learned that a singular subject is joined with a singular verb and in Cap. V, that plural subjects are joined with a plural verb. In this chapter, we see an exception to that rule: the verb is in the singular if there are two subjects separated by neque…neque, aut…aut, or et…et, as in:

et caput et pēs eī dolet. (ll.3–4)

nec caput nec pēs dolet. (l.66)

The general rule is that two or more subjects:

• take a verb in the plural if they denote persons, as in: Parentēs ā fīliō intrante salūtantur. (l.91)

• if the subjects are things, the verb agrees with the nearest subject, as in:

pēs et caput eī dolet. (ll.3–4, 64)

Dative of Interest/Reference

In the last example (pēs et caput eī dolet), the dative eī denotes the person concerned, benefited, or harmed. This use of the dative is called the dative of interest or reference (datīvus commodī), e.g.:

Bracchium quoque dolet Quīntō. (l.4)

Multīs barbarīs magna pars corporis nūda est. (ll.76–77)

{122} Duo, duae, duo

The ablative of duo, duae, duo is:

• masculine and neuter duōbus

ē duōbus puerīs (ll.11–12)

in duōbus cubiculīs

• feminine duābus

ē duābus fenestrīs (l.16)

Ablative of Attendant Circumstances

A noun and an adjective in the ablative can show the conditions surrounding the verb, as in:

Mārcus fenestrā apertā dormit.

with the window open (l.15)

Is fenestrā clausā dormit.

with the window shut (l.18)

Quīntus, quī oculīs apertīs iacet.

with his eyes open (ll.21–22)

Notice that the noun comes first; this is the case unless the adjective is being emphasized.

Present Participle (Participium Praesēns)

On page 104, a new form of the verb is introduced, the participle (Latin participium) ending in -(ē)ns:

puer dormiēns = puer quī dormit (ll.22–23)

puer vigilāns = puer quī vigilat (l.23)

The participle, being part verb and part adjective, was called participium (< pars partis “part” + capere “take” = share, participate). The participle shares in two parts of speech, the adjective and the verb. The participle:

• is a 3rd declension adjective with the same ending in the nōminative singular of all genders.

vigilāns, gen. -ant|is

dormiēns, gen. -ent|is

• keeps verbal functions, e.g.,

it may take an object in the accusative:

Dāvus cubiculum intrāns interrogat… (l.25)

• has an ablative singular in -e when it has verbal force, e.g.: Parentēs ā fīliō intrante salūtantur. (l.91)

• has an ablative singular in -ī only when used only as an adjective, with no verbal force:

{123} ibi nocte silentī Ariadnam dormientem relīquit.

He left Ariadne sleeping there during the silent night. (Cap. XXV, ll.99–100)

Silentī is the ablative of the present participle of silēre. Here, it is being used only as an adjective describing the night and has no verbal force.

Participle

sing.

m./f.

n.

nom.

-ns

-ns

acc.

-ntem

-ns

gen.

-ntis

dat.

-ntī

abl.

-nte/-ntī

pl.

nom./acc.

-ntēs

-ntia

gen.

-ntium

dat./abl.

-ntibus

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Personal Pronouns: Dative and Ablative

Mihi and tibi are the datives corresponding to the accusatives mē and tē:

“Affer mihi aquam!” (l.43)

“Mihi quoque caput dolet!” (l.65)

“Tibi nec caput nec pēs dolet!” (l.66)

The ablative of these pronouns is identical with the accusative: mē, tē. When used as the object of the preposition cum, the preposition is suffixed:

mē-cum

tē-cum

sē-cum

For example:

Dāvus eum sēcum venīre iubet: “Venī mēcum!” (ll.86–87)

“Mēdus tēcum īre nōn potest.” (l.117)

“Alterum tēcum fer!” (l.108)

“Cūr ille servus mēcum venīre nōn potest ut solet?” (l.120)

“…stilum rēgulamque sēcum ferēns ē vīllā abit.” (ll.127–128)

acc.

mē

tē

dat.

mihi

tibi

abl.

mē

tē

{124} Inquit

The verb inquit, “(he/she) says,” is inserted after one or more words of direct speech:

“Hōra prīma est,” inquit Dāvus, “Surge ē lectō!” (l.40)

Servus Mārcō aquam affert et “Ecce aqua,” inquit. (l.44)

It is a defective verb: only inquit, inquiunt and a few other forms of the indicative occur. Neither inquit nor inquiunt is used to begin accusative + infinitive constructions.

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Omnis, -e

The opposite of nūllus is omnis, -e (“every,” “all”), which more often appears in the plural omnēs, -ia (see lines 115 and 119).

Used without a noun, the plural omnēs (“everybody”) is the opposite of nēmō (“nobody”), and the neuter plural omnia (“everything”) is the opposite of nihil (“nothing”).

omnis

↔

nūllus

omnēs

↔

nēmō

omnia

↔

nihil

Points of Style: sē habēre

Davus asks Quintus, Quōmodo sē habet pēs tuus hodiē? (ll.25–26) (“How is your foot today?”). Quintus answers, “Pēs male sē habet” (l.27). Sē habēre + adverb = to be (in a certain state) and is a regular way of asking how, as we say in English, “someone is doing.”

Studia Rōmāna

In Cap. III, you learned tuxtax (ll.64, 65), a word meant to represent the sound of being beaten. The sound of the rooster crowing is “Cucurrū! Cucucurrū!” (l.19); the verb cūcūrīre means “to crow.” You read about the ancient approach to time at the end of Cap. XIII. Romans tended to wake and sleep with the rhythms of the sun and noted exceptions. As a marker of his leisurely life, Horace boasts that he likes to sleep in until the fourth hour after sunrise (Satire 1.6.122); work done after dark, and hence by lamplight, is called lūcūbrātiō, and Cicero coined the verb ēlūcūbrāre for working by lamplight. (Of course, Roman lamps are ubiquitous archaeological finds, so clearly, people didn’t go to bed as soon as the sun set or always wait for the sun to rise to start their day.)

{125} Davus is in charge of getting the boys off to school and it was Medus’s job (before he ran away) to take them to school. It seems these two slaves shared the post of paedagōgus, the slave who minded the children at home and watched over them as they went to school. Paedagōgus is a Greek word adopted by the Romans; the Latin word custos is sometimes found. Quintilian, who wrote a book on the education of the orator (Īnstitūtiō Ōrātōria) in the century before our narrative (c. AD 35–100), stresses that a paedagōgus should be well educated and should speak both Latin and Greek well. That way, the children will not develop bad habits of speech at home. The paedagogus helped with the children’s education, supervised homework and monitored their behavior. He was held responsible for their well-being. Quintilian blames bad behavior on lazy paedagōgī. Cicero, in a letter to his friend Atticus (Ad Att. 12.33), worries about the health of Atticus’s daughter, Attica; were not her paedagogus beyond reproach, Cicero writes, he would be inclined to blame him for Attica’s ill health. Horace’s father acted as his son’s paedagogus, not trusting the job to a slave: ipse mihi custōs incorruptissimus omnīs/circum doctōrēs aderat (Sat. 1.6.81–82: “My father himself, most blameless guardian, was at my side around all my teachers”).

When Marcus goes off to school, his father tells him, “Valē! Bene ambulā!”(l.130). This expression of farewell goes all the way back at least to the comic playwright Plautus in the second century BC.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

rēgula, -ae

ruler

tabula, -ae

writing tablet

toga, -ae

toga

tunica, -ae

tunic

2nd

calceus, -ī

shoe

gallus, -ī

cock, rooster

participium, -ī

participle

stilus, -ī

stylus

vestīmentum, -ī

garment, clothing

3rd

parentēs, -um (m. pl.)

parents

5th

rēs, reī (f.)

thing, matter, affair

Indeclinable

nihil (n.)

nothing

{126} Verba

-āre (1)

cubat, cubāre

lie (in bed)

vigilat, vigilāre

be awake

excitat, excitāre

wake up, arouse

lavat, lavāre

wash, bathe

-ēre (2)

valet, valēre

be strong, be well

solet, solēre

be accustomed

frīget, frīgēre

be cold

-ere (3)

surgit, surgere

rise, get up

mergit, mergere

dip, plunge, sink

poscit, poscere

demand, call for

induit, induere

put on (clothes)

gerit, gerere

carry, wear, carry on, do

-īre (4)

vestit, vestīre

dress

Irregular

affert, afferre

bring (to, forward)

inquit, inquiunt

(he/she) says/said

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

apertus, -a, -um

open

clausus, -a, -um

closed, shut

sordidus, -a, -um

dirty, mean, base

pūrus, -a, -um

clean, pure

nūdus, -a, -um

naked

togātus, -a, -um

wearing the toga

dexter, -tra, -trum

right, f. the right (hand)[1]

sinister, -tra, -trum

left, f. the left (hand)

neuter, -tra, -trum

neither

alter, -era, -erum

one, the other, second

uter, -tra, -trum?

which (of the two)?

uterque, utraque, utrumque

each of the two

3rd

omnis, -e

all, every

Prōnōmina

mihi

me, myself (dat.)

tibi

you, yourself (dat.)

mēcum

with me

{127} tēcum

with you

sēcum

with himself/herself

Adverbia

prīmum

first

nihil/nīl[2]

nothing, not at all

quōmodo

how

hodiē

today

adhūc

so far, till now, still

deinde/dein

afterward, then

Praepositiōnēs

praeter (prp. + acc.)

past, besides, except

Coniūnctiōnēs

an

or (mostly with ūter: ūter…an)

Alia

valē, valēte

farewell, goodbye

____________

1. When dextra (f.) is used as a noun, it means dextra manus = right hand; the noun sinistra means left hand.

2. Nihil acts as an adverb as well as a noun (contracted form is nīl). As a noun, it has two forms, the indeclinable nihil above and the 2nd declension neuter nihilum, -ī.

{128} XV. Magister et Discipulī

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Personal Endings: 1st and 2nd Person

b. esse

c. posse

d. Impersonal Verbs

i. convenit

ii. licet

2. Nouns: Case Uses

a. Accusative of Exclamation

3. Pronouns

a. Personal Pronouns

b. Pronouns vs. Possessive Adjectives

c. Reflexives in Indirect Statement

Going to School in Ancient Rome

The illustration at the start of the chapter is a drawing of an ancient relief sculpture of a schoolroom. Rome had no public school system. Parents who could afford it sent their young children to an elementary school, lūdus, or had them educated at home by a tutor, often a slave. Quintilian (see notes at end of Cap. XIV) writes about the advantages and disadvantages of each, but sees the natural competition and sociability of the schoolroom as a productive atmosphere for learning. The lūdus was run as a private enterprise by a lūdī magister, who taught the children reading, writing and arithmetic.

We now follow Marcus to school. His teacher tries his best to maintain discipline, but he has some difficulty in keeping these boys in hand. His recourse to corporal punishment seems to have been a familiar feature of the schoolroom: the first-century BC poet Horace called his teacher Orbillius “plāgōsus” (full of plāgae or blows) and other writers as well testify to the severity of the schoolroom. Quintilian disapproves of corporal punishment and blames the {129} laxity of contemporary paedagōgī: it is the job of the paedagōgus to monitor the behavior of his charge. He complains that the paedagōgī don’t do their jobs of making the boys behave and then the boys are punished for not behaving (Īnstitūtiō Ōrātōria I.3).

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Personal Endings: 1st and 2nd Person Singular

From the conversation between the teacher and his pupils, you learn that the verbs have different endings as one speaks about oneself (1st person), addresses another person (2nd person), or speaks about someone else (3rd person).

The dialogue in lines 35–40 illustrates the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd singular endings:

Titus, quī librum nōn habet, “Ego librum nōn habeō.”

Magister: “Quid? Sextus librum suum habet, tū librum tuum nōn habēs? Cūr librum nōn habēs?”

Titus: “Librum nōn habeō, quod Mārcus meum librum habet.”

It appears from this that in the singular:

• the 1st person of the verb ends in -ō (habe|ō)

• the 2nd in -s (habē|s)

• the 3rd, as you know, in -t (habe|t)

Personal Pronouns

The verbs in the above examples are preceded by personal pronouns in the nominative:

But these pronouns are only used when the subject is emphasized, for example (ll.24–26):

Sextus: “Num ego discipulus improbus sum?”

Magister: “Immō tū probus es discipulus, Sexte, at Mārcus et Quīntus et Titus improbī sunt!”

Normally, the personal ending is sufficient to show which person is meant, as in these examples (ll.38–39):

Magister: “Cūr librum nōn habēs?”

Titus: “Librum nōn habeō.”

{130} Exclamation: Accusative and Vocative

Diodorus expresses his frustration with the students in two different ways:

“Ō, discipulōs improbōs…!” (l.23)

“Ō improbī discipulī!” (ll.101–102)

The first example (Ō, discipulōs improbōs) is in the accusative, the second (Ō improbī discipulī!) in the vocative. (As you learned in Cap. IV, the vocative plural has the same form as the nominative plural.) What’s the difference? The vocative is used to address those present, while the accusative (called the accusative of exclamation) exclaims about more than to the students.

Esse

The verb esse is irregular; in the singular, it runs:

sum

es

est

Example:

“Cūr tū sōlus es, Sexte?” “Ego sōlus sum.” (ll.20–21)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Personal Endings: 1st and 2nd Person Plural

The dialogue in lines 51–57 illustrates the 1st and 2nd plural endings:

Mārcus (ad Sextum et Titum): “Vōs iānuam nōn pulsātis cum ad lūdum venītis, nec magistrum salūtātis cum eum vidētis. Audītisne id quod dīcō?”

Tum Sextus et Titus: “Id quod dīcis,” inquiunt, “vērum nōn est: nōs iānuam pulsāmus cum ad lūdum venīmus, et magistrum salūtāmus cum eum vidēmus. Nōnne vērum dīcimus, magister?”

It appears from this that in the plural:

• the 1st person ends in -mus (pulsā|mus, vidē|mus, venī|mus)

• the 2nd in -tis (pulsā|tis, vidē|tis, dīc|itis venī|tis)

• the 3rd, as you know, in -nt (pulsa|nt, vide|nt, dīc|unt veni|unt)

The examples in the section GRAMMATICA LATINA in LINGUA LATINA show how these personal endings are added to the various stems in the present tense. The way vocabulary is listed at the end of the chapter will also change. From now on, the 1st person singular, not the 3rd, will be given for each verb.

{131} Personal Pronouns (continued)

The plural of the personal pronouns in the nominative:

nōs

1st pers. pl.

vōs

2nd pers. pl.

The accusative of ego and tū is mē and tē, but nōs and vōs are the same in the accusative (ll.119–120):

“Quid nōs verberās, magister?”

“Vōs verberō.”

You will learn the forms of the genitive in Cap. XXIX. For now, add the nominative and accusative to the forms you have already learned:

Overview of Present Active Endings

1st

-ō, -mus

2nd

-s, -tis

3rd

-t, -nt

Notā Bene:

• before -ō:

ā combines with -ō: puls|ō (stem pulsā)

ē and ī shorten: habe|ō, veni|ō (stems habē-, venī-)

• in 3rd conjugation consonant-stems:

a short i is inserted before:
-s: dīc|is (stem dīc-)
-mus: dīc|imus
-tis: dīc|itis
-t: dīc|it

before nt we find a short u:
-nt: dīc|unt

{132} • in 3rd conjugation i-stems, a short i appears before the endings:

ō: faci|ō (stem faci-)

-unt: faci|unt

Other verbs of this kind that you have met are accipere, aspicere, capere, fugere, iacere, incipere, and parere.

The Reflexive in Indirect Speech

Much of the time, changing direct speech to indirect speech is pretty straightforward. When someone reports his or her own words in the accusative and infinitive construction (indirect speech), the subject accusative is the reflexive sē. This is best learned by studying several examples. We have already read an example in Cap. XIV:

Dāvus…eum sēcum venīre iubet: “Venī mēcum!”: Davus orders him (Marcus) to come with him (Davus): “Come with me!” (Cap. XIV, l.87)

Quīntus: “(Ego) aeger sum” is reported by Marcus: Quīntus dīcit “sē aegrum esse.” Quintus says that he is sick. (l.82)

Mārcus: “Ego eius librum habeō” becomes Mārcus dīcit “sē eius librum habēre.”

Mārcus: “Ego,” inquit, “nōn dormiō” becomes Mārcus dīcit “sē nōn dormīre.”

Sextus et Titus: “Neque nōs dormīmus,” inquiunt. “Vigilāmus et omnia verba tua audīmus” becomes Sextus et Titus dīcunt “sē nōn dormīre; sē vigilāre et omnia verba eius audīre.”

Esse (continued)

The verb esse is irregular; in the plural, it runs:

sumus

estis

sunt

{133} Example:

“Ubi estis, puerī?” “In lūdō sumus.” (ll.113–114)

Esse

sing.

pl.

1st

sum

sumus

2nd

es

estis

3rd

est

sunt

Convenit

We first met convenit in Cap. VIII (see Points of Style in that chapter). Convenit comes from convenīre and is here used impersonally, i.e., in the 3rd person singular.[1] The impersonal convenit often has an infinitive subject and a dative of reference:

Tergum dolet Mārcō, neque ille lacrimat, nam lacrimāre puerō Rōmānō nōn convenit. (ll.62–64)

Posse

Compounds of esse show the same irregular forms. As you learned in Cap. X, the “pot” of the verb:

• remains before the vowel “e” in potes, potest

• becomes “pos” before “s” in possum

In the singular, posse runs:

pos-sum

pot-es

pot-est

Examples (ll.72–73):

Mārcus: “Non cōnsīdō, quod sedēre nōn possum.”

Diodōrus: “Cūr sedēre nōn potes?”

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Posse (continued)

In the plural, posse runs:

pos-sumus

pot-estis

pos-sunt

{134} Examples (ll.124–127):

Magister: “Quid nōn cōnsīditis?” Discipulī: “Nōn cōnsīdimus, quod sedēre nōn possumus.”

Diodōrus: “Quid? Sedēre nōn potestis?… Nec enim stantēs dormīre potestis!”

Licet

The verb licet (“it is allowed,” “one may”) is also (like convenit) impersonal, i.e., only found in the 3rd person singular. It is often, like convenit, combined with a dative: mihi licet (“It is permitted to/for me,” therefore “I may”).

• In lectulō dormīre licet, hīc in lūdō nōn licet dormīre!

• cf. necesse est (Cap. X: “it is necessary”), which, in addition to the accusative and infinitive, also takes the dative and infinitive. In addition to:

Necesse est tē pūnīre. (l.59–60)

We might say:

Necesse est discipulīs aperīre librōs (it is necessary for the students to open [their] books).

Recēnsiō: Pronouns vs. Possessive Adjectives

In this chapter, you learned more forms of the personal pronoun. In Caps. II, IV, V, and XI, you learned the possessive adjective. Review the following forms:

{135} Studia Rōmāna

After studying with a lūdī magister (also called a litterātus), boys would go to a grammaticus to learn Greek and Latin literature, especially poetry. Students should also learn music and astronomy and philosophy, according to Quintilian (Īnstitūtiō Ōrātōria, I.4). The grammaticus might also teach rhetoric (the stages of education are not nearly as rigidly defined as ours), the art of public speaking, but this third stage of education was the province of the rhētor.

As the sons of a wealthy Roman, Marcus and Quintus would receive a highly literary and rhetorical education, that is, training in the art of speaking. Cato (second century BC) defined the ideal Roman as vir bonus dīcendī perītus, a good man skilled in speaking, and this ideal persisted. Cicero wrote several works on oratory (oratory, from ōrātio, is the equivalent Latin word for rhetoric, from the Greek ῥητορικός in the first century BC); Quintilian’s first century AD Īnstitūtiō Ōrātōria follows in the tradition of Cato (whose vir bonus dīcendī perītus he quotes) and Cicero (who receives lavish praise) of preparing a man for an active and honorable life in the state. (His contemporary, the poet Mārtiālis, praised Quintilian as the “consummate guide for directionless youth, the glory of the Roman toga.”[2])

A rhetorical education encompassed training in literature, philosophy and history, as well as language. It was, in other words, an education in the liberal arts (artēs or doctrīnae līberālēs). Cicero (dē Ōrātōre, 3.127) enumerated these liberal studies as geometry (geōmētrīa), music (mūsica), knowledge of literature, both prose and poetry (litterae et poetae), science (dē rērum natūrā), ethics (dē hominum mōribus), and statesmanship (dē rēbus pūblicīs). Educated people could expect other educated people to have studied the same works of literature. Before the imperial period, young men often went to Greece to study with philosophers. By the time of our narrative, however, the emperors had set up professorships of Greek and Latin at Rome, and there were many Greek philosophers teaching in Rome.

Education was not the province only of the family and paid (or slave) teachers. Mentoring the young was part of Roman culture: young men associated with established ones. Cicero writes about sitting and listening to accomplished orators and jurists when he was young, especially Cotta and Hortensius (e.g., Brūtus 189). When he had gained a place for himself among Roman statesmen, he mentored younger Romans. In his defense of the young Caelius Rufus, Cicero tells us that as soon as Caelius assumed the toga virīlis, his father brought him to Cicero and Marcus Crassus to continue his education (prō Caeliō, 9). At that time, Caelius was surely also training with a teacher. In the second century AD, Pliny the Younger tells us much in his letters about his efforts to ensure the continuing education of young men. And Marcus Aurelius {136} was finished with his formal schooling, was married, with children and was emperor—still, he happily received and wrote letters to Marcus Cornelius Fronto, who had been his teacher of Latin rhetoric. Their correspondence is a testimony to Marcus’s continuing education and the importance of the social network.

A good deal of the teaching, both formal and informal, promoted imitation. If you want to be a good orator, read good oratory and listen to good orators and practice. If you want to be a good person, evaluate the examples (exempla) of Roman history. Even in the second century BC, Fronto refers to examples from early Roman history (and can assume that Marcus knows just what he is talking about). The mōs māiōrum, “the way our ancestors did things,” was kept alive though stories of the past and through the tutelage of family, teachers, and other Romans.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

iānua, -ae

door

sella, -ae

stool, chair

virga, -ae

rod

2nd

discipulus, -ī

pupil, disciple

domī

at home (locative)

lūdus, -ī

play, game, school

magister, magistrī

schoolmaster, teacher

tergum, -ī

back

lectulus, -ī

bed

Verba

-āre (1)

exclāmō, exclāmāre

cry out, exclaim

recitō, recitāre

read aloud

-ēre (2)

licet, licēre (+ dat.)

it is allowed, one may

-ere (3)[3]

cōnsīdō, cōnsīdere

sit down

dēsinō, dēsinere

finish, stop, end

reddō, reddere

give back, give

-īre (4)

pūniō, pūnīre

punish

Irregular

redeō, redīre

go back, return

sum, esse

be

{137} Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

malus, -a, -um

bad, wicked, evil

sevērus, -a, -um

stern, severe

tacitus, -a, -um

silent

vērus, -a, -um

true, n. truth

Adiectīva Comparātiva (3rd)

īnferior, -ius

lower, inferior

posterior, -ius

back, hind, later

prior, -ius

first, former, front

Prōnōmina

ego

I, myself

tū

you, yourself

nōs

we, us, ourselves

vōs

you, yourselves

Adverbia

nōndum

not yet

statim

at once

tum

then

Coniūnctiōnēs

antequam

before

at

but

sī

if

nisi

if not, except, but

vērum

but

Vocābula Interrogātīva

quid?

why?

____________

1. Convenīre can also be used personally, i.e., with a subject other than “it.”

2. Martial 2.90: Quīntiliāne, vagae moderātor summe iuventae/Glōria Rōmānae, Quīntiliāne, togae…

3. The first principal part will show you whether a 3rd conjugation verb is a consonant or i-stem; they will, therefore, no longer be separated out.

{138} XVI. Tempestās

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Deponent Verbs (verba dēpōnentia)

b. Irregular Verbs

i. īre

ii. fierī

2. Nouns

a. Pure i-Stems

b. 1st Declension Masculine Nouns

c. Case Uses

i. Partitive Genitive

ii. Ablative of Degree of Difference

iii. Ablative with locus

3. Participles: Ablative Absolute (ablātīvus absolūtus)

4. Points of Style: Word Order

Ancient Navigation

When sailing on the high seas, the Roman sailor had to set his course by the sun in the daytime and by the stars at night. So east and west are named in Latin after the rising and the setting sun, oriēns and occidēns, and the word for “midday,” merīdiēs, also means “south,” while the word for “north” is the name of the constellation Septentriōnēs (septem triōnēs), “The Seven Plow-Oxen,” i.e., “the Great Bear.” The location of the port cities in lines 12–19 can been seen on the map on page 40. Medus approaches a captain and arranges to travel on a merchant ship, as there was no equivalent of the modern passenger ship, although larger ships would have room for more passengers. He and Lydia would have had to bring their own food and sleep on deck.

{139} Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Pure i-Stems

There is a small group of 3rd declension nouns that are called pure i-stems because they have -i throughout, for example, the noun puppis, -is (f.), which has:

• -im in the accusative (instead of -em)

• -ī in the ablative singular (instead of -e)

Very few i-stems are declined in this way, e.g., the river name Tiberis, -is (m.):

Urbs Rōma nōn ad mare, sed ad Tiberim flūmen sita est. (ll.7–8)

1st Declension Masculine Nouns

1st declension nouns (in -a, -ae) are feminine, except for a few which denote male persons and are therefore masculine, e.g., nauta: nauta Rōmānus.

Locus

The ablative of locus may be used

• without in to denote location (“where”):

Ōstia sita est eō locō quō Tiberis in mare īnferum īnfluit. (ll.15–16) eō locō = in eō locō (location)

• without a preposition to denote motion “from”:

Mēdus surgere cōnātur, nec vērō sē locō movēre potest. (ll.140–141) locō movēre (ablative of separation)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Deponent Verbs (verba dēpōnentia)

In Section I, we met opperīrī (= exspectāre) a passive form with active meaning:

necesse est ventum opperīrī (l.29)

Many of the new words in this chapter are deponent verbs (verba dēpōnentia). These verbs have no active forms,[1] hence, verba dēpōnentia: verbs that “put aside” their passive meanings[2] (Latin dēpōnere, “put aside”).

{140} The infinitive ends in -rī, -ī

-ārī:

cōnārī

attempt, try

cōnsōlārī

comfort

laetārī

be happy

-ērī:

intuērī

look

verērī

fear

-ī:

complectī

embrace

ēgredī

go out

lābī

slip

loquī

speak

proficīscī

set out

sequī

follow

-īrī:

opperīrī

wait for

orīrī

rise

From the following examples, you can see verbs that have passive forms but active meanings:

laetārī = gaudēre

verērī = timēre

ēgredī = exīre

nauta Neptūnum verētur = nauta Neptūnum timet

ventō secundō nāvēs ē portū ēgrediuntur = exeunt

Participles: Ablative Absolute (ablātīvus absolūtus)

In Cap. XIV, we learned about the ablative of attendant circumstances, which was illustrated in that chapter by

fenestrā apertā

fenestrā clausā

In this chapter, we learn more about this construction. In the marginalia of Section I, you read that:

marī turbidō = dum mare turbidum est (l.36)

ventō secundō = dum ventus secundus est (l.38)

{141} These are more examples of the ablative used as an adverbial phrase. Such an adverbial phrase, grammatically independent of the rest of the sentence, is called an ablative absolute (Latin ablātīvus absolūtus, “set free,” therefore independent). It represents the circumstances occurring around an action. In each of the following, the ablative gives further information about the verb. We find the ablative absolute with adjectives:

Ventō secundō nāvēs ē portū ēgrediuntur. (ll.38–39)

The ablative ventō secundō tells us under what circumstances the ships put out (“with a fair wind,” “when the wind is favorable”).

Nautae nec marī turbidō nec marī tranquillō nāvigāre volunt. (ll.36–37)

The sailors are unwilling to sail “when the sea is rough,” “when the sea is calm.”

plēnīs vēlīs…vehuntur. (ll.39–40)

They travel “with full sails.”

pedibus nūdīs (Cap. XIV, l.85)

stands “with bare feet”

The ablative absolute is common with a participle, either present or past:

Present participle:

Sōle oriente nāvis ē portū ēgreditur multīs hominibus spectantibus. (ll.64–65); “when the sun is rising,” “at sunrise” … “while many people are looking on”

Past participle:

fenestrā apertā dormīre (Cap. XIV, l.15): to sleep “with the window open” (cf. fenestrā clausā, Cap. XIV, l.15)

Even two nouns can form an ablative absolute:

Sōle duce nāvem gubernō (l.94); “the sun being my guide,” “with the sun as a guide”

The ablative absolute may often be translated with an English temporal clause (when, while), as in the sentences above. It can also show cause (why the verb happens) and even concession (although the verb happens). If you need to translate an ablative absolute into English, it helps to start with “with” and then think about what the relationship of the ablative absolute means to the rest of the sentence.

{142} īre

In the verb īre (and its compounds), the 1st person e ō and 3rd person e unt are irregular, e.g.:

in patriam nostram īmus (l.89)

“Nōnne gaudēs,” inquit, “mea Lydia, quod nōs simul in patriam nostram redīmus?” (ll.79–81)

īre

sing.

pl.

1st

eō

īmus

2nd

īs

ītis

3rd

it

eunt

Partitive Genitive

Since Cap. II, you have been seeing the noun numerus followed by the genitive; in Cap. XII, you learned about the genitive with mīlia:

In flūminibus et in maribus magnus numerus piscium est. (Cap. X, 11.41–42)

Ergō mīlle passūs sunt quīnque mīlia pedum. (Cap. XII, ll.96–97)

In castrīs Aemiliī sex mīlia mīlitum habitant. (Cap. XII, ll.97–98)

These genitives give the whole of which the noun is a part; they are called partitive genitives (or genitives of the whole). This chapter begins with the partitive genitive of the relative pronoun:

Italia inter duo maria interest, quōrum alterum “mare Superum” appellātur; quōrum (= ē quibus: “of which one…the other”) cf. nēmō eōrum (= ex iīs, Cap. XVII, l.12).

Quantity terms like multum and paulum are often followed by a partitive genitive to express “that of which” there is a large or small quantity, e.g.:

paulum/multum aquae (ll.9, 117)

paulum cibī nec multum pecūniae (ll.61–62)

paulum temporis (l.108 margin)

Ablative of Degree of Difference

The ablative of multum and paulum serves to strengthen or weaken a comparative; this is called the ablative of degree of difference:

Nāvis paulō levior fit, simul vērō flūctūs multō altiōrēs fīunt (ll.123–124): “a little,” “a lot”

{143} The same forms are used with ante and post (as adverbs) to state the time difference:

paulō ante (l.148)

paulō post (l.91)

cf. the ablative in annō post (Cap. XIX, l.83)

decem annīs ante (Cap. XIX, l.123)

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Fierī

The infinitive fi|erī (3rd person fi|t fī|unt) is also irregular. This verb functions as the passive of facere (see Cap. XVIII); in connection with an adjective, it comes to mean “become”:

Mare tranquillum fit. (ll.97–98)

Flūctūs multō altiōrēs fīunt. (l.124)

Points of Style: Word Order

In Cap. XIII, we met the demonstrative is, ea, id being used as an adjective with a dependent genitive:

Is mēnsis annī brevissimus est. (l.30)

Is diēs annī prīmus est atque initium annī novī. (ll.58–59)

In both of these examples, we see that the demonstrative generally precedes the noun. In this chapter, we see a similar example:

Ea pars caelī unde sōl oritur dīcitur oriēns. (l.45)

In all these examples, the genitive follows the noun. Another very common word order is for the genitive to come between the qualifier and its noun, as in the following example:

Merīdiēs dīcitur ea caelī pars ubi sōl merīdiē vidētur. (l.48)

Studia Rōmāna

The dangers of sea travel are widely attested in Roman literature. The gubernātor (whence we get the name governor and government, those who guide the ship of state) calls upon Neptūnus, the god of the sea, about whom you learned in Cap. X. Sailors also called on the twin heroes Castor and Pollūx (the Dioscūrī, or “sons of Zeus”) who are associated with the phenomenon we call St. Elmo’s Fire, electric currents around the masts of ships during thunderstorms that appear to be balls of heavenly fire.

Both the Greeks and Romans are fond of cursing the first person who put {144} to sea in a boat. The poet Horace wrote a poem begging Castor and Pollux to take care of his good friend, the poet Vergil, who was about to set out to Greece. He says the man who first entrusted a raft to the sea was a hard man whose heart was surrounded three times with bronze (Ōdēs 1.3.9–12: illī rōbur et aes trīplex/circā pectus erat, quī fragilem trucī/conmīsit pelagō ratem/prīmus).

Despite its dangers, sea travel was efficient and lucrative. Ships carrying a wide variety of merchandise could be found at Ostia (Portus Ōstiēnsis), the port whence Medus and Lydia depart. Still visible among the remains at Ostia is the Square of the Corporations (called, in Italian, Piazzale delle Corporazioni). This porticus contains many small rooms with mosaic floors that proclaim a variety of trades and guilds (collēgia). Among those represented are traders in leather, rope, wood, and several of grain, but many more goods came and left through Ostia. A large number of warehouses (horrea) for storing grain attest to the importance of feeding a large population.

At line 119, the gubernātor tells his crew, “Iacite mercēs!” This iactūra, or throwing overboard of the ship’s cargo (i.e., jetsam) and thus making the boat less heavy, must have been the ruin of many a small merchant. Shipwreck, naufragium, was such a common problem that a law (iūs naufragiī) regulated against the appropriation of the discarded cargo (flotsam). Philosophers explored as an ethical problem the decision of what to throw overboard. Which is sacrificed? The expensive racehorse or the cheap slave? Human feeling argues for the latter, preservation of wealth for the former (Cicero, dē Officiīs, 3.89).[3]

Horace refers to both iactūra and to the saving power of Castor and Pollux in another ode; because he has no attachment to wealth, he has no need to grovel to the gods to save his goods when seas grow stormy. Castor and Pollux will carry him safely in his tiny boat: “It’s not my style, if the mast should wail in a hurricane from the south, to run to wretched prayers and bind myself with vows lest my Cyprian and Tyrian goods add wealth to the greedy sea; at such a time, with the help of my two-oared skiff, Pollux and his twin brother will carry me safely on the breeze through the Aegean storm.” (Odes 3.29.57–64)

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

nauta, -ae (m.)

sailor

ōra, -ae

border, coast

2nd

altum, -ī

“the deep”: the open sea

locus, -ī

place

{145} multum, -ī

a lot, a good deal of

paulum, -ī

a little (also, adv.)

vēlum, -ī

sail

ventus, -ī

wind

3rd

fulgur, fulguris (n.)

flash of lightning

gubernātor, gubernātōris (m.)

steersman

merx, mercis (f.)

commodity, pl. goods

nāvis, nāvis (f.)

ship

occidēns, occidentis (m.)

west

oriēns, orientis (m.)

east

puppis, puppis (f.)

stern, poop deck

septentriōnēs, septentriōnum (m. pl.)

north

tempestās, tempestātis (f.)

storm

4th

flūctus, -ūs (m.)

wave

portus, -ūs (m.)

harbor

tonitrus, -ūs (m.)

thunder

Verba

-āre (1)

appellō, appellāre

call, address

cōnātur, cōnārī

attempt, try

cōnsōlātur, cōnsōlārī

comfort, console

flō, flāre

blow

gubernō, gubernāre

steer, govern

iactō, iactāre

throw, toss about

invocō, invocāre

call upon, invoke

laetātur, laetārī

rejoice, be glad

nāvigō, nāvigāre

sail

servō, servāre

preserve, save

turbō, turbāre

stir up, agitate

-ēre (2)

impleō, implēre

fill, complete

intuētur, intuērī

look at, watch

verētur, verērī

fear

-ere (3)

cernō, cernere

discern, perceive

cōnscendō, cōnscendere

mount, board

īnfluō, īnfluere

flow into

occidō, occidere

fall, sink, set

complectitur, complectī

embrace

ēgreditur, ēgredī

go out

lābitur, lābī

slip, drop, fall

loquitur, loquī

speak, talk

proficīscitur, proficīscī

set out, depart

sequitur, sequī

follow

{146} -īre (4)

hauriō, haurīre

draw (water), bail

opperītur, opperīrī

wait (for), await

oritur, orīrī

rise, appear

Irregular

interest, interesse

be between

fit, fierī

be done, become, happen

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

āter, -tra, -trum

black, dark

contrārius, -a, -um

opposite, contrary

īnferus, -a, -um

lower

maritimus, -a, -um

seaside, coastal

serēnus, -a, -um

clear, cloudless

situs, -a, -um

situated

superus, -a, -um

upper

tranquillus, -a, -um

calm, still

turbidus, -a, -um

agitated, stormy

dēpōnēns (gen. depōnentis)

deponent (verb)

Coniūnctiōnēs

sīve

or, or if

Praepositiōnēs

propter (prp. + acc.)

because of

Adverbia

iterum

again, a second time

paulum

a little, little

praetereā

besides

simper

always

simul

at the same time

vix

hardly

vērō

really, however, but

____________

1. Except for the participle in -ns, and one other form you will learn later in Cap. XXIV.

2. As the first-century AD grammarian Quīntus Remmius Palaemōn wrote, “Dēpōnentia sunt, quod dēpōnant passīvitātem et sūmant actīvitātem.”

3. Quaerit, sī in marī iactūra facienda sit, equīnē pretiōsī potius iactūram faciat anservulī vīlis. Hīc aliō rēs familiāris, aliō dūcit hūmānitās.

{147} XVII. Numerī Difficilēs

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Passive Voice

b. oportēre (impersonal)

c. dare

2. Nouns: Case Uses

a. Double Accusative

3. Adjectives: Numbers

a. Cardinals

b. Inflection

c. Ordinals

4. Pronouns: quisque

5. Adverbs

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Roman Coins

To teach his pupils arithmetic, the teacher has recourse to coins. The current Roman coins were:

as (assis m.) copper

sēstertius (HS[1]) = 4 assēs: brass

dēnārius = 4 sēstertiī: silver

aureus = 25 dēnāriī: gold (Cap. XXII, l.108)

Quisque, quaeque, quodque

Only the first part (quis) of the pronoun quisque (each) declines; you will meet the feminine (quaeque) and neuter (quodque) in Cap. XVIII. Compare:

uterque

each (of two)

quisque

each

{148} Double Accusative

Note the two accusatives with docēre, one for the person(s) (puerōs), the other for the thing (numerōs) taught:

Magister puerōs numerōs docet. (ll.1–2)

Cardinal Numbers

In Cap. IV, you learned to count to ten:

ūnus, a, um

sex

duo, duae, duo

septem

trēs, tria

octō

quattuor

novem

quīnque

decem

To be able to count up to a hundred, you must learn the multiples of ten. With the exception of 10 decem, 20 vīgintī, and 100 centum, they all end in -gintā:

10 decem

20 vīgintī

30 trīgintā

40 quadrāgintā

50 quīnquāgintā

60 sexāgintā

70 septuāgintā

80 octōgintā

90 nōnāgintā

100 centum

The numbers in between are formed by combining multiples of ten and smaller numbers with or without et, e.g.:

21 vīgintī ūnus or ūnus et vīgintī

22 vīgintī duo or duo et vīgintī

The cardinals 11–17 end in -decim, a weakened form of decem:

11 ūn-decim

12 duo-decim

13 trē-decim

14 quattuor-decim

15 quīn-decim

16 sē-decim

17 septen-decim

but 18 and 19 show the pattern numbers will follow:

18 duo-dē-vīgintī (“two-from-twenty”)

19 ūn-dē-vīgintī (“one-from-twenty”)

In the same way, 28 is duo-dē-trīgintā and 29 ūn-dē-trīgintā. Thus, the last two numbers before each multiple of ten are expressed by subtracting two and one, respectively, from the multiple of ten in question.

Inflection of Numbers

Like quot, the interrogative that asks the number (“how many?”), and tot, the demonstrative that refers to the number (“so many”), most Latin cardinals are indeclinable.

{149} Of the cardinals 1–100, only ūn|us, -a, -um, du|o, -ae, -o and tr|ēs, tr|ia decline (and those cardinals that end in them: e.g., ūna et vīgintī nāvēs: 21 ships). You have already met most forms of these numbers (the genitives, ūn|īus, du|ōrum, -ārum, -ōrum and tr|ium, will be introduced in Cap. XIX).

Multiples of 100 (centum) end in -centī (200, 300, 600) or -gentī (400, 500, 700, 800, 900) and are declined like adjectives of the 1st/2nd declension:

200 du-cent|ī, -ae, -a

600 ses-cent|ī, -ae, -a

300 tre-cent|ī, -ae, -a

700 septin-gent|ī, -ae, -a

400 quadrin-gent|ī, -ae, -a

800 octin-gent|ī, -ae, -a

500 quīn -gent|ī, -ae, -a

900 nōn-gent|ī, -ae, -a

Ordinal Numbers

In Cap. XIII, you learned the ordinal numbers 1st through 12th:

prīm|us, -a, -um

septim|us, -a, -um

secund|us, -a, -um

octāv|us, -a, -um

terti|us, -a, -um

nōn|us, -a, -um

quārt|us, -a, -um

decim|us, -a, -um

quīnt|us, -a, -um

ūndecim|us, -a, -um

sext|us, -a, -um

duodecim|us, -a, -um

The ordinals are adjectives of the 1st/2nd declension; for the multiples of 10, 20–90, and of 100, 100–1,000, they are formed with the suffix -ēsim|us, -a, -um:

20th vīcēsimus, -a, -um

100th centēsimus, -a, -um

30th trīcēsimus, -a, -um

200th ducentēsimus, -a, -um

40th quadrāgēsimus, -a, -um

300th trecentēsimus

50th quīnquāgēsimus, etc.

1,000th mīllēsimus

Notā Bene:

• Cardinals end in:

11–17 -decim

30–90 -gintā

200, 300, 600 -cent|ī

400, 500, 700, 800, 900 -gent|ī

• Ordinals end in:

20th–90th, 100th–1,000th -ēsim|us

A summary is given on page 308 in LINGUA LATINA.

{150} Adverbs

The forms rēctē, prāvē, stultē, and aequē are formed from the adjectives rēctus, prāvus, stultus, and aequus; this formation will be dealt with in the next chapter.

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

The Passive Voice

You have been using the passive voice in the 3rd person singular and plural since Cap. VI. Now we see the remaining endings, the 1st and 2nd persons, singular and plural. The following sentences show examples of the passive voice (ll.63–81):

• 1st person:

singular:

Cūr ego semper ā tē reprehendor, numquam laudor?

plural:

Nōs quoque saepe interrogāmur, nec vērō prāvē respondēmus. Itaque nōs ā magistrō laudāmur, nōn reprehendimur.

• 2nd person:

singular:

Tū ā mē nōn laudāris, quia numquam rēctē respondēs. Semper prāvē respondēs, ergō reprehenderis!

plural:

Et cūr vōs semper laudāminī? Quia id quod vōs interrogāminī facile est—ego quoque ad id rēctē respondēre possum. Vōs numquam reprehendiminī!

• 3rd person:

singular:

Mārcus semper ā magistrō reprehenditur, numquam laudātur.

plural:

Sextus et Titus ā magistrō semper laudantur, numquam reprehenduntur

Forming the Passive Voice

• personal endings

sing.

pl.

1.

-r

-mur

2.

-ris

-minī

3.

-tur

-ntur

• The 1st, 2nd, and 4th conjugations: add the endings to the stem with the same vowels as in the active.

• The 3rd conjugation (including 3rd i-stems): the vowels are the same as in the active, except in the 2nd person singular, where the short i becomes e before r (e.g., reprehenderis: you are being censured; caperis: you are being taken).

{151} • Remember that deponent verbs (Cap. XVI) use these endings as well, as in largior and vereor in the paradigms that follow.

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Oportēre (Impersonal)

The verb oportēre occurs only in the 3rd person singular, like licet and convenit (Cap. XV):

Prīmum cōgitāre oportet. (ll.110–111)

Nōn oportet respondēre antequam interrogāris. (ll.115–116)

Dare

The stem of the verb da|re ends in a short a: da|mus, da|tis, da|tur, da|te! etc., except in dā! dā|s and dā|ns (before ns, all vowels are lengthened).

Studia Rōmāna

When Diodorus puts his students through their mathematical paces, he makes them apply their skills to money. Horace gives us an example of such interrogation: “Roman boys learn through lengthy calculations to divide a copper coin (as, assis, m.) into a hundred parts.”… “if a 12th part is taken from 5/12, what remains?” … “a third.” “Excellent! You’ll be able to safeguard your finances!” (Ars Poētica 325–29). The as could be divided into 12 parts, which were represented by names, not by fractions as we do. The Latin word for 1/12 is uncia, whence comes our word ounce. Twelve unciae, or ounces, made up the Latin pound (lībra). In Cicero’s opinion, the goal of mathematics began and ended with its practical value. He had little interest in the theoretical mathematics of the Greeks, among whom geometry held the highest honor and nothing was more respectable than mathematics. The Romans, on the other hand, have set the limit to this art at the expedience of measuring and calculating (dē Fīnibus 1.5: in summō apud illōs honōre geōmētria fuit, itaque nihil mathēmaticīs illustrius; at nōs mētiendī ratiōcinandīque ūtilitāte huius artis termināvimus modum).

{152} Our monetary system is fiduciary (from fidēs, fideī, “belief, trust,” Cap. XXXI)—that is, the value of the paper bills or metal coins we use in buying and selling does not equal the face value (it costs as much to produce a $100 bill as a $5 bill), but we all agree that a $100 bill buys 20 times as much as a $5 bill. During the Roman Empire, the state determined the value of coins, but that value reflected the worth of the metal used in producing the coin. The various metals used during the period of our text show this relative value: copper (the as) is worth less than brass (sēstertius), which in turn is less than silver (dēnārius) and gold (aureus). Adulteration and devaluation of currency was a problem—by the end of the second century AD (the time of our narrative), the silver dēnārius was only about 50 percent silver, and the rest was bronze. As you can see from the image in the margins on page 129, the border of the image embossed on the surface of the coin did not reach to the edge; sometimes, people trimmed off the extra metal before spending the coin.

The study of coins is called numismatics; the images on coins provide a wealth of information. The front of a coin is called the obverse and the back the reverse. Imperial coins often show the head of the emperor (or a member of his family) on the obverse and a significant image on the reverse. For example, Mārcus Decimus Brūtus, one of the men who assassinated Julius Caesar on the Ides of March in 44 BC, issued a denarius with his image on the obverse and, on the reverse, a pilleus (cap that indicated freedom) flanked by two daggers. In the second century AD, Hadrian (emperor 117–138) issued a gold aureus with his head on the obverse and the inscription Hadriānus Augustus; on the reverse is embossed Romulus and Remus nursing at the wolf with the inscription COS (= consul) and the number four: consul for the fourth time. The reverse of a coin issued by Marcus Aurelius has a reverse with the inscription PIETAS AUG (= pietās Augusta) showing implements symbolic of sacrifice and priestly office.

Vocabula Disposita/Ordinata

Nōmina

2nd

dēnārius, -ī

denarius (silver coin)

respōnsum, -ī

answer

3rd

as, assis (m.)

as (copper coin)

Verba

-āre (1)

cōgitō, cōgitāre

think

computō, computāre

calculate, reckon

dēmōnstrō, dēmōnstrāre

point out, show

interpellō, interpellāre

interrupt

laudō, laudāre

praise

{153} -ēre (2)

doceō, docēre

teach, instruct

oportet, oportēre

it is right, one should

-ere (3)

discō, discere

learn

prōmō, prōmere

take out

repōnō, repōnere

put back

reprehendō, reprehendere

blame, censure

tollō, tollere

raise, lift, pick up, remove, take away

-īre (4)

largior, largīrī

give generously

nesciō, nescīre

not know

partior, partīrī

share, divide

sciō, scīre

know

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

centēsimus, -a, -um

hundredth

certus, -a, -um

certain, sure

doctus, -a, -um

learned, skilled

incertus, -a, -um

uncertain

indoctus, -a, -um

ignorant

industrius, -a, -um

industrious

largus, -a, -um

generous

piger, pigra, pigrum

lazy

prāvus, -a, -um

faulty, wrong

rēctus, -a, -um

straight, correct

3rd

absēns (gen. absentis)

absent

difficilis, -e (sup. difficillimus)

difficult, hard

facilis, -e (sup. facillimus)

easy

prūdēns, prūdentis

prudent, clever

Numerī

trēdecim

thirteen

quattuordecim

fourteen

quīndecim

fifteen

sēdecim

sixteen

septendecim

seventeen

duodēvīgintī

eighteen

ūndēvīgintī

nineteen

quadrāgintā

forty

quīnquāgintā

fifty

septuāgintā

seventy

quadringentī, -ae, -a

four hundred

quīngentī, -ae, -a

five hundred

sescentī, -ae, -a

six hundred

{154} septingentī, -ae, -a

seven hundred

octingentī, -ae, -a

eight hundred

nōngentī, -ae, -a

nine hundred

Prōnōmina

quisque, quaeque, quodque

each

Adverbia

aequē

equally

numquam

never

postrēmō

finally

prāvē

wrongly

quārē

why

rēctē

correctly

saepe

often

tot

so many

ūsque

up (to), all the time

Coniūnctiōnēs

quamquam

although

____________

1. The abbreviation HS represents IIS, or 2 (II) and a half (sēmis); originally the sēstertius was valued at 2½ assēs.

{155} XVIII. Litterae Latīnae

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs: facere/fierī

2. Adjectives

a. Superlatives (continued)

b. frequēns

c. facilis

3. Pronouns

a. īdem, eadem, idem

b. quisque, quaeque, quodque

4. Adverbs

a. Positive, Comparative, Superlative Degrees

b. Numerical Adverbs

5. Conjunction: cum

6. Points of Style: idiom suum cuique

Pronunciation

In the Classical period, Latin spelling gave a fairly reliable representation of the pronunciation. In some cases, however, letters continued to be written where they were no longer pronounced in colloquial Latin, e.g., h-, -m in the unstressed endings -am, -em, -um, and n before s. An indication of this is the occurrence of “misspellings” in ancient inscriptions written by people without literary education, e.g., ora for horam, septe for septem, and meses for menses. In his short exercise, Marcus makes several errors of this kind. Quintilian recognized the difficulty Marcus has encountered (Īnstitūtiō Ōrātōria I.1.30): “There is no shortcut to learning the syllables; all must be thoroughly learned and the hardest ones must not—as people often do—be put off.”[1]

{156} Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Īdem, eadem, idem

The demonstrative pronoun īdem, eadem, idem (“the same,” cf. “identical”) is a compound, the first element of which is the pronoun is, ea, id; the addition of the suffix -dem causes the following changes:

• is-dem to īdem

• eum-dem, eam-dem to eundem, eandem.[2]

Examples:

Numerus syllabārum et vōcālium īdem est. (l.21) in eādem syllabā (l.26)

Vocābulum prīmum utrīusque sententiae idem est, sed hoc idem vocābulum duās rēs variās significat. (ll.32–33)

Item varia vocābula eandem rem vel eundem hominem significāre possunt. (ll.33–35)

Discipulī eandem sententiam nōn eōdem modō, sed variīs modīs scrībunt. (ll.56–58)

Quisque, quaeque, quodque

The pronoun quis-que, quae-que, quod-que (“each”) is declined like the interrogative adjective with the addition of -que.

{157} Examples:

Quisque discipulus in tabulā suā scrībit eās sententiās quās magister eī dictat. (ll.49–50)

Quisque puer stilum et rēgulam prōmit et dūcit līneam rēctam in tabulā suā. (ll.55–56)

Discipulus quamque litteram cuiusque vocābulī sīc legit. (ll.41–42)

Ita quodque vocābulum cuiusque sententiae ā discipulō legitur. (ll.43–44)

Quaeque syllaba vōcālem habet. (l.20)

Facere/fierī

The verb facere has no passive form. Instead, fierī functions as the passive of facere:

Vōcālis syllabam facit; sine vōcālī syllaba fierī nōn potest. (l.25)

Cum syllabae iunguntur, vocābula fīunt. (l.29)

Cum vocābula coniunguntur, sententiae fīunt. (ll.29–30)

active

facere: facit, faciunt

passive

fierī: fit, fīunt

Notā Bene: Compounds of facere ending in -ficere, e.g., ef-ficere, can be used in the passive:

stilus ex ferrō efficitur (= fit)

Conjunction Cum

The conjunction cum may serve to introduce a sudden occurrence, as in this example (l.128):

Titus sīc incipit, “Magister! Mārcus bis…”—cum Mārcus stilum in partem corporis eius mollissimam premit! (English “when…,” “and then…”)

Frequēns

The adjective frequēns follows the pattern of present participles (Cap. XIV); that is, it has the same nominative in all three genders in the positive degree:

k littera, quae frequēns est in linguā Graecā, littera Latīna rārissima est. (ll.14–15)

{158} id vocābulum est frequentissimum. (l.101)

Y et z igitur litterae rārae sunt in linguā Latīnā, in linguā Graecā frequentēs. (ll.13–14)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Points of Style: Idiom suum cuique

Suus, -a, -um cuique is an idiom:

Magister suam cuique discipulō tabulam reddit.

The teacher gives each student back his own tablet. (ll.67–68)

suum cuique

to each his (her) own: proverbial (even in English!)

Superlatives of Adjectives in -er

Adjectives in -er, e.g., pulcher and piger, form superlatives by adding -errim|us, -a, -um (instead of -issim|us) to the nominative masculine singular (instead of the adjective base).[3] In this chapter, you find pulcherrim|us and pigerrim|us, in the next miserrim|us and pauperrim|us from miser and pauper.

adj. -er, sup. -errim|us

Facilis, -e

The superlative of facilis is facillim|us (l.102). Only a very few adjectives form their superlatives like facilis:

facilis, -e: facillimus, -a, -um

difficilis, -e: difficillimus, -a, -um

(Cap. XVII)

gracilis, -e: gracillimus, -a, -um

slender (Cap. XIX)

humilis, -e: humillimus, -a, -um

low (Cap. XXV)

similis, -e: simillimus, -a, -um

similar (Cap. XXXV)

dissimilis, -e: dissimillimus, -a, -um

dissimilar, different

Adverbs

Remember:

• Adjectives qualify nouns.

The adjective answers the question: quālis?

○ In the sentence, Puer stultus est, stultus is an adjective qualifying the noun puer (Quālis est puer?).

• Adverbs (Latin adverbium, from ad verbum) qualify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs.

{159} The adverb answers the question: quōmodo?

○ In the sentence, Puer stultē agit, the word stultē belongs to the verb agit, which it modifies (Quōmodo agit puer?).

In Cap. XVII, we saw the adverbs rēctē, prāvē, stultē, and aequē from the adjectives rēctus, prāvus, stultus, and aequus. Similarly, in the sentence, mīles fortis est quī fortiter pugnat, fortis is an adjective (qualifying mīles) and fortiter an adverb (modifying pugnat).

Positive Degree

Just as there are three degrees of adjectives, there are three of adverbs: positive (e.g., fast), comparative (e.g., faster), and superlative (e.g., fastest). Positive degree:

Certē pulcherrimae sunt litterae Sextī.

Sextus’s letters are certainly very beautiful. (l.73)

Litterae vestrae aequē foedae sunt.

Your letters are equally ugly. (l.78)

Adjectives of the 1st/2nd declension form adverbs ending in -ē:

stult|us -a -um → stultē

rēct|us -a -um → rēctē

pulcher -chr|a -chr|um → pulchrē

3rd declension adjectives form adverbs in -iter, e.g.:[4]

fort|is -e → fortiter

brev|is -e → breviter

turp|is -e → turpiter

Notā Bene: Bene and male are irregular formations from bonus and malus, whose forms you will learn in Cap. XIX.

Comparative Degree

The comparative of the adverb ends in -ius. Note that the form of the comparative adverb is the same as the neuter of the comparative of the adjective:

pulchrius

fortius

rēctius

{160} Comparative Degree:

“Tū, Tite, neque pulchrius neque foedius scrībis quam Mārcus.”: “neither more beautifully nor more unattractively” (ll.79–80) “At certē rēctius scrībō quam Mārcus.”: “more correctly” (l.81)

Superlative Degree

The superlative of the adverb ending in -issimē (-errimē) is formed from the superlative of the adjective:

pulcherrimē

fortissimē

rēctissimē

Superlative Degree:

“Comparā tē cum Sextō, quī rēctissimē et pulcherrimē scrībit.”: “most correctly,” “most beautifully” (ll.85–86)

When the superlative occurs without the idea of comparison, it can be translated “very”:

Latīnē pulcherrimē recitās!

You read Latin aloud very beautifully!

Recēnsiō: Comparison of Adjectives and Adverbs

Adjectives

Positive Degree

Comparative Degree

Superlative Degree

rārus, rāra, rārum

rārior, rārius

rārissimus, -a, -um

mollis, molle

mollior, mollius

mollissimus, -a, -um

pulcher, pulchra, pulchrum

pulchrior, pulchrius

pulcherrimus, -a, -um

facilis, facile

facilior, facilius

facillimus, -a, -um

frequēns

frequentior, frequentius

frequentissimus, -a, -um

Adverbs

Positive Degree

Comparative Degree

Superlative Degree

rārō

rārius

rārissimē

molliter

mollius

mollissimē

pulchrē

pulchrius

pulcherrimē

facile[*]

facilius

facillimē

frequenter

frequentius

frequentissimē

[*]more rare: faciliter

{161} Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Numerical Adverbs

Numerical adverbs are formed with the suffix -iēs (or -iēns) and denote how many times an action occurs:

quīnquiēs = 5×

sexiēs = 6×

septiēs = 7×, etc.

Only the first four have special forms:

semel: once

ter: three times

bis: twice

quater: four times

From quot and tot are formed quotiēs and totiēs:

Mārcus deciēs H scribit: H H H H H H H H H H (l.119)

Quotiēs Mārcus V scribit? Quater tantum V scrībit. (ll.122–123)

Quotiēs? Semel. (ll.133–134)

Mārcus ter rēctē et bis prāvē scrībit. (ll.125–126)

Studia Rōmāna

You have already learned (Cap. I) about the wax tablets and the stylus used for scratching letters into the wax. In the house of Caecilius Iucundus in Pompeii, 154 such wax tablets were found that recorded business transactions. In addition to wax tablets, Romans wrote on papȳrus, a plant that came originally from Egypt whose leaves were glued together, and smoothed out and on parchment (membrāna, ae), animal skins dried, stretched and polished. Quintilian (I.O. 10.3.31) encourages his orators to write on wax tablets since they erase easily. Parchment is easier to read (as the letters are inked, not scratched) but slow, since the pen has to be so frequently re-inked. Into the ink (ātrāmentum) was dipped a reed pen, a calamus (as you can see in the margins on p. 141 and on the bottom of p. 142). By the sixth century AD, the penna (quill-pen, from the word for feather) had come into use—a technology that stayed the same until the nineteenth century.

Marcus wrongfully boasts that he doesn’t need to learn how to write because he dictates to Zeno, a slave who knows both Latin and Greek (et Latīnē et Graecē scit, l.159). Writing was a valuable skill and could offer a good profession. Scrībae (literate professionals) assisted magistrates at various levels. The best post was scrība quaestōrius, a post that the poet Horace held, as did at least one of his young friends to whom he wrote a verse letter (Epistles 1.8). The young man, Celsus Albinovanus, was abroad with Caesar Augustus’s stepson Tiberius as companion (comes) and scribe (scrība), a post that Horace suggests {162} might have gone to his head (“we’ll treat you accordingly as you treat your good fortune!”[5]).

Marcus implies he doesn’t really even need to learn to read, since Zeno reads aloud to him (l.160). A slave whose function it is to read aloud (especially at dinner for entertainment) is called an anagnōstēs (from Greek: ἀναγνώστης). Zeno seems to be more of a general secretary than just a slave who can read aloud: a librārius (there were female librāriae as well) or āmanuēnsis. As such, he would have been a valued (and valuable) addition to the household. Cicero depended on and became so close to his secretary Tiro that he manumitted him. Tiro remained a part of the household; after Cicero’s death, Tiro collected and published his patron’s letters, some of his speeches, and a collection of his jokes (which collection does not, unfortunately, survive).

Diodorus complains in his letter that he has not yet been paid for the month. His complaint, “Mercēs numquam mihi trāditur ad diem,” was common among teachers at all levels. Lucian, a Greek who also lived in the second century AD, also wrote about the financial plight of teachers. His dē Mercēde Conductīs (“On Those Hired for Pay”), for example, bemoans the impoverished plight of teachers who attach themselves to wealthy Roman houses as a live-in scholar. Juvenal (Decimus Iūnius Iūvenālis), a satiric poet who wrote around the time of our narrative, writes at length about the travails of intellectuals, including teachers of rhetoric and of lūdī magistrī (Satire 7). Juvenal uses the imagery of the racecourse; although he trains many future jockeys, he will be paid less than the purse for one race:[6]

nōn est leve tot puerōrum

observāre manūs oculōsque in fīne trementīs.

‘haec’ inquit ‘cūra; sed cum se verterit annus,

accipe, victōrī pōpulus quod postulat, aurum.’

Quintilian stresses the importance of a good working relationship between the paterfamiliās and the lūdī magister. As we shall see, the relationship between Julius and Diodorus is far from amiable and cooperative.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

cēra, -ae

wax

charta, -ae

paper

epistula, -ae

a letter

{163} māteria, -ae

material

sententia, -ae

opinion, sentence

2nd

adverbium, -ī

adverb

calamus, -ī

reed, reed pen

erus, -ī

master

ferrum, -ī

iron, sword

mendum, -ī

mistake

papȳrus, -ī

papyrus (paper)

zephȳrus, -ī

west wind

3rd

apis, apis (f.)

bee

cōnsonāns, cōnsonantis (f.)

consonant

mercēs, mercēdis (f.)

hire, pay, wages

vōcālis, vōcālis (f.)

vowel

Verba

comparō, comparāre

liken, compare; prepare, get ready

dictō, dictāre

dictate

signō, signāre

mark, inscribe, indicate, notice, seal

significō, significāre

indicate, show, mean

-ēre (2)

dēleō, dēlēre

blot out, efface, destroy

-ere (3)

addō, addere

add, join

animadvertō, animadvertere

notice[7]

coniungō, coniungere

connect, unite

corrigō, corrigere

correct

efficiō, efficere

bring about

imprimō, imprimere

seal, emboss

intellegō, intellegere

understand

iungō, iungere

join

legō, legere

pick, read

premō, premere

press

scrībō, scrībere

write

-īre (4)

exaudiō, exaudīre

hear plainly or favorably

Irregular

dēsum, deesse

fall short, be lacking

supersum, superesse

be over and above, remain, survive

Adiectīva

1st/2nd

dūrus, -a, -um

hard

impiger, -gra, -grum

active, energetic

{164} rārus, -a, -um

rare

varius, -a, -um

manifold, various

3rd

frequēns (gen. frequentis)

crowded, numerous, frequent

mollis, molle

soft

quālis? quāle?

(interrogative and relative) of what sort?

tālis, tāle

of such a sort

turpis, turpe

ugly, foul

Prōnōmina

īdem, eadem, idem

the same (adj./pronoun)

quisque, quaeque, quodque

each

Adverbia

sīc

so, thus

ita

so, in such a way

quotiēs

as many times

totiēs

so many times

semel

once

bis

twice

ter

three times

quater

four times

quīnquiēs

five times

sexiēs

six times

deciēs

ten times

____________

1. Syllabīs nūllum compendium est: perdiscendae omnēs nec, ut fit plērumque, difficillima quaeque eārum differenda ut in nōminibus scrībendīs dēprehendantur.

2. The m changes to n by assimilation—see Cap. X—n being a dental consonant like d, cf. septendecim and septentriōnēs.

3. That is, the genitive singular minus the ending.

4. If the base of an adjectives ends in nt, its adverb ends in nter, e.g., frequēns, frequenter.

5. …ut tū fortūnam, sīc nōs tē, Celse, ferēmus.

6. It’s no easy thing to watch the eyes and hands—trembling at the starting block—of so many boys. “This,” says he, “is your business; but at the end of a full year, receive one gold piece—the reward the people demand for the victor in but one race.”

7. From animum adverte: “turn your mind toward.”

{165} XIX. Marītus et Uxor

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Imperfect of all Conjugations: Active and Passive

b. Imperfect of esse

2. Nouns

a. domus

b. Case Uses

i. Genitive of Quality/Description

ii. Vocatives for Nouns in -ius

iii. Archaic Genitive

3. Adjectives

a. Irregular Adjectives

b. Superlative Adjectives

i. Absolute

ii. with Partitive Genitive

c. nūllus/ūllus/tōtus/sōlus

d. Numerals: Genitive of ūnus, duo, trēs

e. 3rd Declension Adjectives of One Termination

f. dignus (Ablative of Respect)

4. Points of Style: Idioms

Julius and Aemilia

Undisturbed by their noisy children, Julius and Aemilia are walking up and down in the beautiful peristyle, which is adorned with statues of gods and goddesses. Romans could take the choice of sculptural decoration very seriously. Letters written by Cicero in the first century BC demonstrate both his zeal to acquire appropriate ornamentation for his several country estates and his annoyance when his agents picked out statues that didn’t project the right image: “Really, why a statue of Mars for me, a proponent of peace?” (Epistulae ad Familiārēs, VII.23: Martis vērō signum quō mihi pācis auctōrī?). Great numbers of statues were imported from Greece; Cicero thanks his friend Atticus for sending a number of statues (which he has not yet even seen, since they {166} were delivered to one of his estates) and details his plans for distributing them among his villae (Epistulae ad Atticum, I.4).

Among the names of the gods, notice the name of the supreme god Iūppiter Iov|is; the stem is Iov- (meaning “sky”), and the long nominative form is due to the addition of pater weakened to -piter. The Roman gods were identified with the Greek, e.g., Iūppiter[1] with Zeus, his wife Iūnō with Hēra, Venus with Aphrodītē, the goddess of love; Aphrodītē’s son Erōs became Cupīdō (“desire”).

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Irregular Adjectives

Iūppiter has the honorific titles Optimus Māximus, which are the superlatives of bonus and magnus. The comparison of these adjectives and their opposites malus and parvus is quite irregular. So is the comparison of multī: comp. plūrēs, sup. plūrimī. Look at these examples:

malus (ll.13–16):

Nēmō deōrum pēior marītus est quam Iūppiter, neque ūlla dea pēior uxor est quam Venus.

Inter omnēs deōs deāsque Iūppiter pessimus marītus est ac Venus pessima uxor.

bonus (ll.25–30):

Certē Iūlius marītus melior quam Iūppiter est!

Certē Aemilia uxor melior est quam Venus!

Aemila Iūlium “virum optimum” appellat

Item Iūlius uxōrem suam “optimam omnium fēminārum” vocat.

magnus and parvus (ll.35–37):

Quīntus māior est quam Iūlia et minor quam Mārcus.

Māximus līberōrum est Mārcus, minima est Iūlia.

multī (ll.52, 54):

Rōmae plūrēs hominēs habitant quam in ūllā aliā urbe imperiī Rōmānī.

Urbs Rōma plūrimōs hominēs et plūrimās domōs habet.

bonus, -a, -um

melior, melius

optimus, -a, -um

malus, -a, -um

pēior, pēius

pessimus, -a, -um

magnus, -a, -um

māior, māius

māximus, -a, -um

parvus, -a, -um

minor, minus

minimus, -a, -um

multī, -ae, -a

plūres, plūra

plūrimī, -ae, -a

{167} Superlative + Partitive Genitive; Superlative Absolute

The superlative is often linked with a partitive genitive:

optimam omnium fēminārum (l.30)

pulcherrima omnium deārum (l.21)

Without such a genitive, the superlative often denotes a very high degree (absolute superlative):

“mea optima uxor” (l.90): “my excellent wife”

vir pessimus (l.110)

“mī optime vir” (l.94)

Tunc miserrima eram (l.107)

virgō pauperrima (l.128)

Archaic Genitive

The ending -ās in māter familiās and pater familiās (ll.17, 38) is an old genitive ending of the 1st declension (= -ae).

Numerals: ūnus, duo, trēs

You have met the other forms of the first three numbers before; in this chapter, you meet the genitive:

Iūlius et Aemilia sunt parentēs trium līberōrum: duōrum fīliōrum et ūnīus fīliae. (ll.31–32)

The complete paradigms for these three are:

You have met the variation of declension shown in ūnus before, in ille (gen. illīus, dat. illī), hic (gen. huius, dat. huic, from hui-ce).

Nūllus/ūllus/tōtus/sōlus

Ūnus, -a, -um is one of a small group of pronouns and adjectives whose genitive singulars end in -īus and dative singulars in ī. You meet some more of these in this chapter:

nūllus, -a, -um

none, not any

ūllus, -a, -um

any (always with a negative)

tōtus, -a, -um

the whole of, all

sōlus, -a, -um

alone, only

{168} All of these adjectives have a genitive -īus and dative -ī in the singular.

As you know (Cap. III), et is not placed before nōn; nor is it placed before nūllus: instead of et nūllus, we find neque ūllus:

• neque ūlla dea pēior uxor est quam Venus. (l.14)

• Iūlius…uxōrem suam neque ūllam aliam fēminam amat. (ll.24–25)

• Aemilia…marītum suum neque ūllum alium virum amat. (ll.26–27)

So, we find ūllus only with a negative.

Genitive of Quality/Description

A noun + adjective in the genitive can be used to describe a quality (genetīvus quālitātis or genitive of description). For example:

Mārcus octō annōs habet; Quīntus est puer septem annōrum. (ll.33–34)

Adulēscēns vīgintī duōrum annōrum erat. (ll.39–40)

Imperfect of All Conjugations: Active and Passive

The last example (Adulēscēns vīgintī duōrum annōrum erat) has erat, not est, because this was ten years ago (he is no longer adulēscēns). Est describes the present, erat the past. Compare the two sentences:

Nunc Iūlius Aemiliam amat.

(loves, is loving, does love)

Tunc Iūlius Aemiliam amābat.

(loved, was loving, used to love)

The form amā|bat is the past tense or preterite (Latin tempus praeteritum) of the verb amā|re, as distinct from ama|t, which is the present tense (Latin tempus praesēns). The preterite or past tense occurring in this chapter is called the imperfect (Latin praeteritum imperfectum, “incompleted past”). The imperfect denotes a past state of things or an action going on (not completed) or repeated in the past. In each of the following examples, the action goes on over a period of time:

ūlius et Aemilia Rōmae habitābant: used to live; were living

Iūlius cotīdiē epistulās ad Aemiliam scrībēbat: used to write (l.76)

Iūlius male dormiēbat: was sleeping (l.69)

Tunc ego tē amābam, tū mē nōn amābās. (l.98)

Neque epistulās, quās cotīdiē tibi scrībēbam, legēbās. (ll.101–102)

The imperfect is formed by inserting -bā- (1st and 2nd conjugations) or -ēbā- (3rd and 4th conjugations) between the stem and the person endings: in the active -m, -mus (1st pers.), -s, -tis (2nd pers.), and -t, -nt (3rd pers.).

In Section II of your reading, you will find that the passive is formed the same way, with the passive endings: -r, -mur (1st pers.), -ris, -minī (2nd pers.), and -tur, -ntur (3rd pers.).

{169} Notā Bene: The 1st person ends in -m and -r (not -ō and -or) and that ā is shortened before -m, -r, -t, -nt, and -ntur (amā|ba|m, amā|ba|r, etc.).

1st Conjugation (āre): stem + bā + personal endings:

Iūlius ambulat → Iūlius ambulābat

Signa stant → Signa stābant

2nd Conjugation (ēre): stem + bā + personal endings:

Tēctum columnīs altīs sustinētur → tēctum columnīs altīs sustinēbātur

Habēsne librum tuum? → Habēbāsne librum tuum?

3rd and 4th Conjugation (ere/īre): stem + ēbā + personal endings:

Consonant-stem:

Iūlius flōrēs ad Aemiliam mittit → Iūlius flōrēs ad Aemiliam mittēbat.

Cotīdiē epistulās scrībimus → Cotīdiē epistulās scrībēbāmus.

Vowel-stem:

Aemilia flōrēs ā Iūliō accipit → Aemilia flōrēs ā Iūliō accipiēbat.

Nihil faciō → Nihil faciēbam.

4th Conjugation:

Dormītisne? → Dormiēbātisne?

Saepe Rōmānī conveniunt → Saepe Rōmānī conveniēbant.

Imperfect: stem vowel (1st conj. -ā otherwise -ē)

active

passive

sing.

1. -(ā||ē)ba|m

1. -(ā||ē)ba|r

2. -(ā |ē)bā|s

2. -(ā||ē)bā|ris

3. -(ā||ē)ba|t

3. -(ā||ē)bā|tur

pl.

1. -(ā||ē)bā|mus

1. -(ā||ē)bā|mur

2. -(ā||ē)bā|tis

2. -(ā||ē)bā|minī

3. -(ā||ē)ba|nt

3. -(ā||ē)ba|ntur

Imperfect of esse

You have already met the 3rd person of the imperfect of the irregular verb esse: era|t, era|nt (Cap. XIII). Now you learn the 1st and 2nd persons:

1st

era|m, erā|mus

2nd

erā|s, erā|tis

3rd

era|t, era|nt

Compounds of esse, e.g., ab‑esse, including posse, show the same forms:

ab‑era|m, ab‑erā|s, etc.

pot‑era|m, pot‑erā|s, etc.

{170} Domus

The noun domus, -ūs is a 4th declension feminine noun, but it has some 2nd declension endings (underlined in the paradigm below):

nom.

domus

domūs

acc.

domum

domōs

gen.

domūs

domōrum (or domuum)

dat.

domuī

domibus

abl.

domō

domibus

The form domī, “at home,” in Cap. XV (Is domī est apud mātrem suam, l.81) is locative; for this form, as well as the accusative domum and ablative domō used as adverbs without a preposition, see the next chapter.

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

3rd Declension Adjectives of One Termination

You have already learned (Cap. XII) 3rd declension adjectives that end in -is, -e in the nominative, where -is is the masculine and feminine ending and -e is the neuter ending, e.g.:

brevis, breve

fortis, forte

And in the last chapter, you learned frequēns, an adjective with the same ending in the nominative masculine, feminine, and neuter. Other 3rd declension adjectives as well have the same ending in the nominative singular masculine, feminine, and neuter. Such adjectives vary from brevis, breve in the nominative only. Two such adjectives are:

dīves (dīvitior, dīvitissimus: rich)

pauper (pauperior, pauperrimus: poor)

Examples:

Iūlius dīves erat, nōn pauper.

Aemilia pauper erat, nōn dīves.

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Vocative for Nouns in -ius

In Cap. IV, you learned that 2nd declension words in -us have a special form used when addressing a person, the vocative, ending in -e, e.g., domine. When Aemilia addresses her husband by name, she uses the vocative Iūlī, “Ō, Iūlī!” and she adds, “mī optime vir!” (ll.93–94). The vocative of personal names in -ius ends in -ī (a contraction of -ie):

{171} Iūlius → Iūlī

Cornēlius → Cornēlī

Lūcius → Lūcī

The vocative of meus is mī and of fīlius is fīlī:

Ō, mī fīlī! (Cap. XXI, l.30)

mī optime vir (l.94)

Ablative of Respect

In Cap. XI, you encountered the ablative of respect (l.55 pede aeger). Dignus, -a, -um also takes an ablative of respect:

Ille vir pessimus tē dignus nōn erat!: not worthy of you (l.110)

Tu sōlus amōre meō dignus erās: worthy of my love (ll.111–112)

Points of Style: Idioms

Compare:

I. Apposition

in urbe Rōmā: in the city of Rome (Rōma in apposition to urbs)

Rōmae: at/in Rome (locative)

II. Ante/Post

ante decem annōs: ante the preposition + the accusative

decem annīs ante: ante as adverb + ablative of degree of difference

similarly: paulō ante, etc.

III. Ita…ut/ut…ita

Ut tunc tē amābam, ita etiam nunc tē amō.

As I loved you then, so even now I love you.

Ita est ut dīcis.

It is just as you say.

IV. Quam

relative pronoun: feminine accusative singular (Cap. III)

interrogative adjective: feminine accusative singular (Cap. III)

correlative: tam…quam: as…as (Cap. VI)

adverb: how (Cap. VIII)

in comparisons: than (Cap. XII)

V. Opus est

= necesse est; oportet

nōn opus est mē plūs dīcere = nōn necesse est mē plūs dīcere

{172} Studia Rōmāna

Both Aemilia and Julius describe themselves as miser (Ergō lūlius miser erat et nocte male dormiēbat … Itaque ea quoque misera erat, l.69 and l.73). In Latin love poetry, miser is the standard word to describe someone suffering in love. In the image on page 148, we see Julius and Aemilia with their right hands joined—the iconography in art for the bond between husband and wife (the iūnctiō[2] dextrārum, joining of right hands). There were different ways to be married in Rome. To be married cum manū (literally: “with the hand”) meant that a woman passed from the jurisdiction of her father’s household to that of her husband (or of her husband’s father, if he were still alive and the paterfamilias). Instead of being her father’s daughter, she became as if the daughter of her new family (in locō fīliae). If a woman were married sine manū (“without the hand”), she remained under her father’s jurisdiction even though married. Aemilia’s marriage to Julius would most likely have been sine manū; manus marriage became a rarity by our time period. The goal of marriage was the birth and rearing of children; mātrimōnium…hinc līberōrum prōcreātiō hinc ēducātiō.[3]

The perisyle of the villa, adorned with statuary, demonstrates the wealth and culture of the dominus. Cupīdō Amor is the Latin translation of the Greek personification of love Erōs (Ἔρως); in Roman culture, he is primarily a literary and artistic motif (hence the statue of Cupid in the peristyle). Venus, however, is a different story. She is not only the wife of Vulcan and mother of Cupid, the paramour of Mars and the goddess of love and beauty, but she is a powerful goddess as well. She is Venus Genetrix, goddess of fertility and the ancestral goddess of the Romans (because she was the mother of Aeneas). There were several temples and festivals dedicated to Venus at Rome.

Venus’s husband, Vulcānus (also Volcānus) is an ancient Roman god of devastating fire (as opposed to Vesta, the goddess of the life-sustaining hearth-fire, whose priestesses—the Vestals—guarded the state-protecting shrine of Vesta in the Roman Forum). Vulcan became associated with the Greek god Hephaistus (and Vesta with the Greek Hestia); he is the god of forge, depicted as burly and lame, and a bit of a trickster.

Jūnō who, like Venus, was an ancient Italic goddess, was Juppiter’s wife and, appropriately, the goddess of marriage. Her husband, Juppiter, was (as your text tells you) a terrible husband prone to falling in love with other women. This kind of immorality among the gods was one of the reasons the Greek philosopher Plato wanted to exclude them from the ideal state.

Jūppiter, as a sky god, regulated the weather; once he became associated {173} with the Greek Zeus, he became the most powerful of all gods, hence Jūppiter Optimus Māximus: Juppiter the Best and Greatest. At Rome, Juppiter had a temple called the Capitōlium on a hill overlooking the Roman Forum (l.50); hence the hill is called the Mōns Capitōlīnus. Minerva and Iūnō also had shrines in the Capitolium. Minerva was an Italic goddess of crafts, who became associated with the Greek Pallas Athena, the daughter of Zeus, also goddess of crafts (and war and wisdom!). Towns often imitated Rome by building their own Capitōlium, with the same triad of Juppiter, Juno, and Minerva.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

columna, -ae

column

dea, -ae

goddess

mātrōna, -ae

married woman

2nd

dōnum, -ī

gift

forum, -ī

forum

marītus, -ī

husband

praeteritum, -ī (tempus)

past (tense)

signum, -ī

statue, sign

tēctum, -ī

roof

templum, -ī

temple

3rd

adulēscēns, adulēscentis (m.)

young person

amor, amōris (m.)

love

coniūnx, coniugis (m./f.)

spouse

flōs, flōris (m.)

flower

praesēns, entis (tempus)

present tense

pulchritūdō, pulchritūdinis (f.)

beauty

uxor, uxōris (f.)

wife

virgō, virginis (f.)

unmarried girl

4th

domus, -ūs (f.)

house

Verba

-āre (1)

ōsculor, ōsculārī

kiss

-ēre (2)

augeō, augēre

increase

possideō, possidēre

possess

{174} -ere (3)

minuō, minuere

diminish

mittō, mittere

send

remittō, remittere

send again, send back

-īre (4)

conveniō, convenīre

come together, fit together; fit

Irregular

opus esse (+ inf. or abl.)

to need

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

beātus, -a, -um

blessed, fortunate

dignus, -a, -um (+ abl.)

worthy of

magnificus, -a, -um

magnificent

miser, misera, miserum

wretched

3rd

dīves (gen. dīvitis)

rich

gracilis, -e

slender

pauper (gen. pauperis)

poor

Irregular

melior, melius

better

pēior, pēius

worse

māior, māius

larger, greater

minor, minus

smaller

plūres, plūra

more

optimus, -a, -um

best

pessimus, -a, -um

worst

māximus, -a, -um

largest, greatest

minimus, -a, -um

smallest

plūrimī, -ae, -a

most, a great many

Prōnōmina

ūllus, -a, -um

any (usually only with negation)

mī

vocative of meus

Adverbia

cotīdiē

daily

minus

less

plūs (adv. + n. noun)

more

tamen (adv. + conj.)

nevertheless

Praepositiōnēs

ergā (prp. + acc.)

toward

____________

1. Also spelled Jupiter.

2. Iūnctiō is from iungere, Cap. XVIII.

3. Justinian, Digest 1.3. The Digest represents the emperor Justinian’s (AD 527–565) efforts to bring together all of Roman law in a more accessible way.

{175} XX. Parentēs

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Future Tense: All Conjugations, Active and Passive, and esse

b. velle/nōlle

2. Nouns

a. domus (continued)

b. carēre + Ablative of Separation

3. Pronouns: Personal Pronouns: 1st and 2nd Person, Plural: Dative and Ablative

4. Adverbs: minus/magis

Julius and Aemilia Look to the Future

A happy event is in store for our Roman family. This gives the parents occasion for thoughts about the future, which in turn gives you a chance to get acquainted with the future tense (Latin tempus futūrum) of Latin verbs.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Future Tense

The future is formed by the insertion between the stem and personal ending of:

(1) -b- in the 1st and 2nd conjugations, with the following vowel variations:

a. 1st person singular in ō: amā|b|ō, habē|b|ō

b. 3rd plural in u: amā|bu|nt, amā|bu|ntur

c. 2nd singular passive in e: amā|be|ris

d. Otherwise in i: amā|bi|s, amā|bi|t, amā|bi|mus

Notā Bene: Remember the sequence -bō, -bi, -bu (plus the change of i to e before r).

{176} (2) In the 3rd and 4th conjugations, the sign of the future is:

a. 1st pers. sing. -a- + active ending m as in the imperfect, e.g.:

dīc|a|m, capi|a|m, audi|a|m

dīc|a|r, capi|a|r, audi|a|r

b. Otherwise -ē-

dīc|ē|s, capi|ē|s, audi|ē|s

dīc|ē|ris, capi|ē|ris, audi|ē|ris

c. But -ē- is shortened to -e-before -t, -nt, -ntur:

dīc|e|t

dīc|e|nt

dīc|e|ntur

future

Esse: future

sing.

pl.

1.

erō

erimus

2.

eris

eritis

3.

erit

erunt

{177} Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Minus/magis

Note irregular adverbs minus (less) and magis (more), often paired with quam (than):

Num parvulam fīliam minus amābis quam fīlium? (ll.57–58)

Nēminem magis amābō quam parvulam fīliam. (l.59)

Iam fīliōs tuōs magis amās quam tuam Iūliam fīliolam. (l.61–62)

Velle/nōlle

You already know the 3rd person present of the irregular verb velle: vult, volunt. The 1st and 2nd persons are: volō, volumus and vīs, vultis, respectively. The negation nōn is not placed before the forms volō, volumus, volunt, and velle; instead, we find the forms nōlō, nōlumus, nōlunt, and nōlle, which are contracted from nē + volō, etc.:

Ego alteram fīliam habēre volō, plūrēs quam duōs fīliōs nōlō!: want…do not want (ll.54–55)

Cūr tū fīlium habēre vīs, Iūlī? (l.56)

Vōs virī fīliōs modo habēre vultis. (ll.63–64)

Nōs virī etiam fīliās habēre volumus. (ll.72–73)

Iūlia dīcit “sē patre suō carēre nōlle.” (ll.140–141)

The imperative nōlī, nōlīte is used with an infinitive to express a prohibition (“don’t…!”), e.g.:

Nōlī abīre! (l.69)

Nōlī dīcere “tatam” et “mammam.” (l.157)

Nōlīte mē “Iūliolam” vocāre! Id nōmen mē nōn decet. (ll.160–161)

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Domus (continued)

In Cap. VI, you learned that names of cities and towns express place with the accusative (to which), ablative (from which), and locative (at which). Domus {178} follows the same rule: the accusative and ablative of domus (domum and domō) are used without a preposition to express motion to or from one’s home, e.g.:

domum revertentur (ll.123–124)

domō abīre (l.137)

The form domī is locative (“at home”) e.g.:

domī manēre (l.127)

Notā Bene:

domum

acc.: “to home”

domō

abl.: “from home”

domī

loc.: “at home”

Ablative of Separation

The ablative expressing “place from which” in domō and Tūsculō is the ablative of separation; the verb carēre (“be without,” “lack”) is completed by an ablative of separation (and not an accusative), e.g.:

Īnfāns neque somnō neque cibō carēre potest.: somnō…cibō carēre = sine + abl.: sine somnō et cibō esse (ll.5–6)

Iūlia dīcit “sē patre suō carēre nōlle.” (l.141)

Personal Pronouns nōs/vōs (continued)

The personal pronouns nōs and vōs become nōbīs and vōbīs in the ablative and dative:

Necesse est mihi crās rūrsus ā vōbīs discēdere. (ll.129–130)

Nōlī ā nōbīs discēdere! (l.136)

You will see the dative (also nōbīs and vōbīs) in the reading in the next chapter:

Prīmum magister nōbīs aliquid recitāvit. (Cap. XXI, l.91)

Tabellam vōbīs ostendam. (Cap. XXI, l.109)

You will learn the genitive of the personal pronouns in Cap. XXIX.

Recēnsiō: personal pronouns

{179} Recēnsiō

1. Expressions of comparison

…nōn minus…quam

no less than

nec plūs nec minus quam opus est

no more or less than is necessary

magis quam

more than

2. nōn tantum…sed etiam = nōn sōlum…sed etiam

3. “Emotion” adverbs: minimē, profectō

4. Expressions of time:

Eō ipsō tempore

at that very time

Eō tempore

at that time

Tempore praeteritō

in the past; at a past time

Tempore futūrō

in the future; at a future time

Tōtam noctem

for the whole night

Tertiō quōque diē[1]

every third day

Cotīdiē

daily

Herī

yesterday

Hodiē

today

Crās

tomorrow

Decem annīs post

afterward by ten years; ten years later = post decem annos: after ten years (the first is an ablative of degree of difference and post is an adverb, the second a preposition + the accusative)

Summary of esse

Present

Future

Imperfect

sum

erō

eram

es

eris

erās

est

erit

erat

sumus

erimus

erāmus

estis

eritis

erātis

sunt

erunt

erant

Studia Rōmāna

While Aemilia insists she will nurse her own baby, many babies born to wealthier women were nursed by nūtrīcēs, who might be slaves or free women. Like our understanding of education, much of our knowledge of early childhood comes from treatises about raising and educating children. The nurse, {180} according to Quintilian, must speak Latin well and be of the highest character (ante omnia nē sit vitiōsus sermō nūtrīcibus: Īnstitūtiō Ōrātōria, I.1). Cicero had said the same, claiming a speaker who was not particularly well educated had gained his eloquence from being raised in a home where language mattered (Brūtus, 211). After all, the child will learn to speak by listening to the surrounding adults.

But before the baby can be raised, it must be born and acknowledged. After the birth, fires are lit in the house and a couch laden with food for the gods is set in the atrium (such a gift-laden couch for the gods is called a lectisternium). The day will be celebrated annually, as we do. The gods who were invoked during the birth will be thanked: Iūnō and Diāna. Also venerated were the ancient Italic deities of childbirth, Lūcīna and the Carmentēs. (Lucina is often melded with Juno: Iūnō Lūcīna.[2]) After eight days (for a girl) or nine (for a boy) the family celebrates a lūstrātiō, or purification, and officially welcomes the child to the family.

Roman writers often emphasize the importance of the mother’s role in the raising of children, pointing to famous Roman mothers who greatly influenced their sons. Titus Līvius (2.40) gives us one such formidable mother of the fifth century BC. When Marcius Coriolanus was preparing to wage war against Rome, his own city, the women of Rome marched out to the camp to plead with their rebellious sons. Livy recounts Coriolanus’s mother Veturia giving a scathing reprimand to her son, thereby stopping the war.

Perhaps the most famous Roman mother of the republican period was Cornēlia, the mother of the Gracchi, statesmen renowned for their oratorical skills. Cornelia, who lived in the second century BC, was the daughter of Publius Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus (about whom you will learn more in the second book in this series, Rōma Aeterna) and the wife of Tiberius Semprōnius Gracchus. Cornēlia bore twelve children, but nine died before adulthood—such infant mortality was not unusual. A story related by Valerius Maximus, a writer of the first century AD who compiled historical anecdotes, pays tribute to her character as a mother. To illustrate maxima ōrnāmenta esse mātrōnīs līberōs, Valerius tells this story: When a woman from Campania was visiting at the home of Cornelia and showing off her very beautiful jewelry, Cornelia drew out the conversation until her children came home from school and then said, “These are my jewels.”[3] Cicero praised the eloquence of her letters (which he had read) by saying, “It appears her sons were raised not as much on the lap of their mother as in conversing with her” (appāret fīliōs nōn tam in gremiō ēducātōs quam in sermōne mātris, Brutus, 211). Cornelia was so revered as an image of ideal motherhood that a statue of her was set up in the Forum.

{181} Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

cūnae, -ārum

crib

fīliola, -ae

diminuitive of fīlia

2nd

colloquium, -ī

conversation

domō (abl.)

from home

fīliolus, -ī

diminuitive of fīlius

officium, -ī

duty

silentium, -ī

silence

somnus, -ī

sleep

3rd

īnfāns, īnfantis (m./f.)

baby

lac, lactis (n.)

milk

mulier, mulieris (f.)

woman, wife

nūtrīx, nūtrīcis (f.)

(wet) nurse

sermō, sermōnis (m.)

conversation

4th

gradus, -ūs (m.)

step

Verba

-āre (1)

cūrō, cūrāre

care for

for, fārī

speak

postulō, postulāre

demand

-ēre (2)

careō, carēre (+abl.)

lack

dēbeō, dēbēre

owe, ought

decet, decēre (impersonal)

be fitting, proper

maneō, manēre

remain

sileō, silēre

be silent

-ere (3)

advehō, advehere

carry to

alō, alere

nourish, raise

colloquor, colloquī

converse

dīligō, dīligere

love, cherish

occurrō, occurrere

run up

pergō, pergere

continue

revertor, revertī

turn back

-īre (4)

vāgiō, vāgīre

wail (of babies)

Irregular

nōlō, nōlle

be unwilling, not want

volō, velle

wish, want

{182} Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

aliēnus, -a, -um

belonging to another

futūrus, -a, -um

future

necessārius, -a, -um

necessary

parvulus, -a, -um

small

praeteritus, -a, -um

past

ūmidus, -a, -um

humid, wet

Adverbia

crās

tomorrow

magis

more

minimē

not at all; very little

mox

soon, next

profectō

surely; for a fact

rārō

rarely

Praepositiōnēs

ad…versus (prp. + acc.)

toward

adversus (prp. + acc.)

toward

ūnā cum (prp. + acc.)

together with

Coniūnctiōnēs

sīve…sīve

whether…or

____________

1. Quōque (from quisque), not quŏque (conjunction: also, too).

2. Terence Andria 473: Iūna Lūcīna, fer opem, servā mē! cries a woman in childbirth.

3. Cornēlia Gracchōrum māter, cum Campāna mātrōna apud illam hospita ōrnāmenta sua pulcherrima illīus saeculī ostenderet, trāxit eam sermōne, dōnec ē scholā redīrent līberī, et “haec,” inquit, “ōrnāmenta sunt mea.”

{183} XXI. Pugna Discipulōrum

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Perfect System

i. Indicative, Active and Passive

ii. Infinitive

b. Perfect Passive Participle

c. Varieties of the Perfect Stem

d. crēdere + Dative Case

2. Nouns:

a. Locative: humī

b. Neuters of the 4th Declension

3. Pronouns: aliquis, aliquid

4. Adjectives:

a. Substantive Adjectives

b. Perfect Participles as Adjectives

Marcus Gets into a Fight

The chapter opens with Marcus coming home from school. He seems to be in a bad way: he is wet and dirty, and his nose is bleeding. Whatever can have happened on his way home? This is what you find out reading the chapter. You are reading Marcus’s version of the story, and whether it is true or not, you can learn from it the verb forms that are used when you talk about an event that has already taken place.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Perfect System

We find a new form of the verb ambulāre—ambulāvit—in the explanation given for Marcus’s wet clothes:

Mārcus per imbrem ambulāvit.

Marcus walked/has walked through the rain. (ll.7–8)

{184} This tense is called the perfect, in Latin tempus praeteritum perfectum, “past completed,” as distinct from the imperfect tense or praeteritum imperfectum, “past not completed” (Cap. XIX).

The difference is that the imperfect, as we know, describes a state of affairs or an ongoing or repeated (habitual) action in the past, while the perfect tense tells about what once happened and is now finished. Compare the two preterites in the sentences:

Iūlia cantābat. Tum Mārcus eam pulsāvit!

Julia was singing. Then Marcus hit her!

The perfect can also denote the present result of a past action (“the present perfect”), e.g.:

Iam Iūlia plōrat, quia Mārcus eam pulsāvit.

Julia is crying, because Marcus has hit her.

Context will tell you which sense of the perfect is more appropriate.

The tenses you have thus far learned (present, imperfect, future) have been formed from the present stem. The perfect is formed by adding endings (often called “secondary” endings) to the perfect stem. In the first section, we find the secondary endings for the 3rd person: -it and -ērunt.

Examples:

Puerī per imbrem ambulāvērunt. (ll.7–8)

Mārcus et Titus Sextum pulsāvērunt. (ll.13–14)

Sordidus est quod humī iacuit. (ll.19–20)

Et Mārcus et Sextus humī iacuērunt. (ll.21–22)

Titus vērō Mārcum vocāre audīvit. (ll.22–23)

nec vērō parentēs eum audīvērunt. (ll.25–26)

Perfect Passive

The present stem has been the basis for the active and passive voice in all tenses you have learned so far (that is, the present, future, and imperfect tenses), e.g.:

Sextus Mārcum pulsat/pulsābit/pulsābat.

Mārcus ā Sextō pulsātur/pulsābitur/pulsābātur.

The active and passive of the perfect tense, however, are based on different stems. The passive voice is formed from the perfect passive participle in combination with the present of esse (sum, es, est, etc.). Since the participle is a verbal adjective, the ending of the participle agrees with the subject in gender, number, and case, e.g.:

Mārcus ā Sextō pulsātus est. (l.11)

Sextus…pulsātus est. (ll.14–15)

{185} Iūlia ā Mārcō pulsāta est.

Puerī laudātī sunt.

Litterae ā Sextō scrīptae sunt.

The Perfect Stem: Active Voice

The personal endings of the perfect active are added to the perfect stem, which is the familiar present stem expanded or changed. Compare the following examples:

Present Stem

Perfect Stem

1st

pulsā-

pulsāv-

2nd

iacē-

iacu-

4th

audī-

audīv-

3rd

dīc-

dīx-

3rd

scrīb-

scrīps-

As you can see, consonant-stems undergo even greater changes in the perfect tense. The varieties of the perfect stem may seem confusing at first, but the stem, in fact, can undergo a limited number of changes. For example:

• 1st and 4th conjugation verbs (present stems ending in ā or ī) regularly form the perfect stem by the addition of v, e.g.:

pulsā-: pulsāv-

audī-: audīv-

• 2nd conjugation verbs (stems in -ē) frequently drop the ē from the stem and add v (which becomes u when not following a vowel):

iacē-: iacu-

• 3rd conjugation verbs (with present stems ending in a consonant) show a variety of perfect stem changes, e.g.:+

by adding s to the present stem, which can change the way the stem looks:

In scrīb-: scrīps- voiced b changes to voiceless p

In dīc-: dīx- only the spelling changes (x = cs)

You will learn more about the formation of the perfect passive stem, usually called the supine stem, in the next chapter.

Locative: humī, rurī

You have met the locative form domī, “at home,” in Cap. XV (l.81) and in the last chapter. In this chapter, we meet the locative humī, “on the ground.” In Cap. XXVII, you will meet rūrī, “in the country(side).” These three nouns {186} are used in the locative (in addition to the names of cities and towns, as you learned in Cap. VI).[1]

Is domī est apud mātrem suam. (Cap. XV, l.81)

Sordidus est quod humī iacuit. (ll.19–20)

In urbe lūlius semper in negōtiō est, sed rūrī in ōtiō cōgitat dē negōtiīs urbānīs. (Cap. XXVII, ll.65–67)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Perfect Active System (continued)

The perfect active endings for the

• 1st person are -ī (sing.) and -imus (pl.)

• 2nd person are -istī (sing.) and -istis (pl.)

Examples:

Ego illum pulsāvī! (l.40)

Tūne sōlus Sextum pulsāvistī? (l.41)

Ego et Titus eum pulsāvimus. (l.42)

Vōs duo ūnum pulsāvistis? (l.43)

Summary of Endings for the Perfect Active:

sing.

pl.

1.

-ī

-imus

2.

-istī

-istis

3.

-it

-ērunt

Neuters of the 4th Declension

The two nouns cornū, -ūs and genū, -ūs are among the rare 4th declension neuters:

{187} Aliquis, aliquid

Aliquis, aliquid is an indefinite pronoun, which refers to an undetermined person or thing (English “someone,” “something”). It declines just like quis, quid with ali- added.

Aliquis pedibus sordidīs in solō mundō ambulāvit. (ll.65–66)

Prīmum magister nōbīs aliquid recitāvit. (ll.91–92)

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Esse (continued)

The verb esse has a separate perfect stem fu-:

fu|ī    fu|imus

Notā Bene: In the perfect, esse is completely regular (in fact, all Latin verbs are regular in the perfect system).

Examples:

In lūdōne quoque bonus puer fuistī? (ll.82–83)

Profectō bonus puer fuī. (l.84)

Mārcus dīcit, sē bonum puerum fuisse. (l.85)

Malī discipulī fuistis! (ll.104–105)

Certē malī discipulī fuimus. (l.106)

Perfect Infinitive Active

In Cap. XI, you learned the accusative and infinitive construction using the present infinitive, e.g.:

Medicus “puerum dormīre” dīcit = “Puer,” medicus inquit, “dormit.”

Dormī|re is called the present infinitive (Latin īnfīnītīvus praesentis) and corresponds to the present tense dormi|t. Compare lines 96–97 in this chapter:

Iūlius: “Mārcus dormīvit!”

Iūlius “Mārcum dormīvisse” dīcit.

Dormīv|it is the perfect tense and the corresponding infinitive dormīv|isse is called the perfect infinitive (Latin īnfīnītīvus perfectī); it represents completed action and is formed by the addition of -isse to the perfect stem, e.g.:

• intrāv|isse: Iūlius “Mārcum intrāvisse” dīcit. (l.73)

• iacu|isse: Nōn dīcit, “eum humī iacuisse.” (ll.73–74)

• fu|isse: Mārcus dīcit, “sē bonum puerum fuisse.” (l.85)

{188} The present infinitive represents an action happening at the same time as the main verb, while the perfect infinitive represents an action happening before the main verb.

present infinitive: -re

perfect infinitive: -isse

pulsāre

pulsāvisse

iacēre

iacuisse

scrībere

scrīpsisse

audīre

audīvisse

esse

fuisse

Perfect Infinitive Passive

As you have learned (above), the perfect passive indicative is formed from the perfect passive participle and the indicative of esse. Similarly, the perfect infinitive passive is formed from the perfect passive participle with the infinitive esse:

laudātum esse

to have been praised

scrīptum esse

to have been written

audītum esse

to have been heard

In the accusative + infinitive construction, the participle agrees with the subject accusative, e.g:

Mārcus “sē ā magistrō laudātum esse” dīcit.

Aemilia litterās ā Mārcō scrīptās esse crēdit. (ll.121–122)

Intellegēbam tē nōn cornibus, sed pugnīs pulsātum esse. (ll.35–36)

Notā Bene:

• Perfect Infinitive Passive: neuter of the perfect passive participle + esse

laudāt|um esse

• Accusative + Infinitive Construction: participle agrees with the subject

Iūliam laudātam esse

Mārcum et Quīntum laudātōs esse

Perfect Passive Participle as an Adjective

The perfect participle is also used as an attributive adjective; it is passive in meaning, as opposed to the present participle in -ns, which is active:

puer laudātus = puer quī laudātus est.

puer laudāns = puer quī laudat.

{189} Adjectives as Substantives

The neuter plural of adjectives and pronouns is often used as a noun (substantively) in a general sense, e.g.:

multa

a great deal, many things (l.90)

omnia

everything, all things (l.95)

haec

these things (l.123)

et cētera

and all the rest

Crēdere

With the intransitive verb crēdere, the person whom you trust or whose words you believe is put in the dative:

Mihi crēde! (l.119)

Mārcō nōn crēdit. (l.140)

Cūr nōn crēdis fīliō tuō? (l.146)

Summary of Perfect

Perfect Active

{190} Perfect Passive

Varieties of the Perfect Stem

• suffix v/u added to verb stem (ama-v-) or to the root (hab-u-)

• suffix s added to the root; s often changes the stem (dūc-s- = dux-)

• root perfect (see also Cap. XXIII):

the vowel of the root is lengthened; sometimes the vowel changes (fac → fēc)

the root is “reduplicated” by repeating the initial consonant of the verb, followed by a vowel (see also Cap. XXIII)

usually e: fallere → fefellisse

sometimes the root vowel: e.g., mordēre, momordisse (Cap. XXII)

Sometimes, perfect and present stem appear identical: ostendere → ostendisse

• Some verbs have a perfect stem that cannot be easily understood just by the rules above:

verbs formed from a lost or imaginary stem (petere → petīvī, as if from petīre)

verbs that have features peculiar to the present stem

{191} e.g., scindere → scidisse has a “nasal infix”[2] only in the present system

inchoative verbs[3] with -scō lose the -scō in the perfect system (cognōscere → cognōvisse)

• Note on emere and compounds (Cap. XVIII):

emere and its compounds have a euphonic p before the perfect participle (try saying emtum and you’ll find that the p in emptum is a very natural development from that combination)

sūmere is a compound of emere

Studia Rōmāna

Marcus and Sextus should not have been fighting—they should also not have been walking home on their own, but would have been accompanied by their paedagōgī as chaperones, part of whose job was to ensure safe (and street-brawling-free!) travel between home and school. Children enjoyed many games while not in school. From infancy, there were toys: rattles for babies (crepundia), pull-toys for toddlers and small children, and dolls (pūpae) for girls. In a famous simile, Vergil describes boys intently spinning tops through empty ātria (see Cap. V for the ātrium): “as sometimes, a top flying under the force of the hurled lash, a top which boys, intent on their game, send round in a circle through the empty atrium.”[4] Horace (Satires 2.3.247–48) talks about building houses (aedificāre casās: “sand-castles”?), hitching mice to small carts (plostellō adiungere mūrīs), riding a stick-horse (equitāre in harundine), playing a game called pār impār (“odds and evens”), in which one player holds a number of small things—coins, nuts, etc.—in his hand and the other player has to guess whether it is an odd or even number. A player could also use small bones (knucklebones, astragalī Greek or tālī Latin) for pār impār as well as for other dice games (a version of our “jacks,” for example). Reversible game boards (tabulae lūsōriae) have been found with a board for lūdus lātrunculōrum (lātrunculus means “robber” but also “pawn”—this seems to be a sort of chess game) on one side and on the other, duodecim scrīpta (or lūdus duodecim scrīptōrum, a kind of backgammon) played with calculī, or small stones, as game pieces.

Although the Latin word is unattested, Roman children surely played hide-and-go-seek (Greek children called it ἀποδιδρασκίνδα). Ball games (pīlae) were popular with adults as well as children. The game trigōn (τρίγων, triangle, also called pīla trigōnālis: a kind of handball played by three people {192} standing in a triangle shape) was very popular and often played in the baths. Pliny’s villa at Laurentium included a ball court in the baths to accommodate players (called a sphaeristērium after the Greek word for ball, sphaera, σφαῖρα). Horace (Satires 1.6.126) says he played trigōn on the Campus Martius, a popular venue for games (as well as for military exercises). Playing at war seems to have been popular as well. In a letter (Epistles 1.18.60–64), Horace advises his ambitious young addressee, Lollius, not to turn up his nose at the enthusiasms of his influential friends (like hunting, a popular sport) so that he can write poetry instead. Lollius himself has played at mock battles on his father’s estate, reenacting the (naval) Battle of Actium (31 BC), apparently on a lake with small boats, with slaves as soldiers.[5]

It will come as no surprise to learn that Roman society placed a very high value on good faith (bona fidēs, (Cap. XXXI). In a useful, if false, etymology, Cicero identifies fidēs with fierī (Cap. XVI): “Fidēs” enim nōmen ipsum mihi vidētur habēre cum fit quod dīcitur (dē Rē Pūblicā 4.7). Julius and Aemilia should not have to be wary of their son’s sincerity. Marcus violates the foundations of propriety when he lies to his parents. In dē Officiīs, a book on proper values or duties addressed to his son Marcus (who was studying philosophy in Athens), that continued to be widely read until relatively recently, Cicero examines honorable conduct (honestum, Book I), advantageous behavior (ūtile, Book II), and the conflict between the two (Book III). Beyond all the quarels of philosophers, he says, the old, simple proverb holds true: a good person is one with whom you can in tenebrīs micāre. Micāre is to flash up a number of fingers while another person simultaneously guesses the number; like “rock, paper, scissors,” it is both a game and a way of making a decision. A character in the Satyricon, Petronius’s first-century AD comic novel, includes the same proverb as proof of solid character: someone “upright, dependable, a friend to a friend, a guy with whom you could flash fingers in the dark” (rēctus…certus, amīcus amīcō, cum quō audacter possēs [= you could] in tenebrīs micāre, 44.8).

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

causa, -ae

cause, reason

pugna, -ae

fight

tabella, -ae

writing tablet

2nd

humus, -ī (f.)

ground

humī (loc.)

on the ground

imperfectum, -ī

imperfect (tense)

{193} perfectum, -ī (tempus)

perfect (tense)

porcus, -ī

pig

solum, -ī

soil, ground, floor

3rd

bōs, bovis (m./f.)

ox

cruor, cruōris (m.)

gore, blood

sordēs, sordis (f.)
often pl. sordēs, -ium

dirt

vestis, vestis (f.)

clothes, cloth

4th

cornū, cornūs (n.)

horn

genū, genūs (n.)

knee

Verba

-āre (1)

(dubitō) dubitāre, dubitāvisse, dubitātum

doubt

(excūsō) excūsāre, excūsāvisse, excūsātum

excuse

(mūtō) mūtāre, mūtāvisse, mūtātum

change, exchange

(nārrō) nārrāre, nārrāvisse, relate, nārrātum

tell

-ere (3)

(cognōscō) cognōscere, -nōvisse, -nitum

get to know, recognize

(cōnspiciō) cōnspicere, cōnspexisse, cōnspectum

catch sight of, see

(crēdō) crēdere, -didisse, -ditum (intr. + dat.)

believe, trust, entrust

(fallō) fallere, fefellisse, falsum

deceive

(vincō) vincere, vīcisse, victum

defeat, overcome, win

-īre (4)

(mentior) mentīrī, mentītum

lie

Irregular

(sum) esse, fuisse

be

(āiō) ais, ait, āiunt

say

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

angustus, -a, -um

narrow

candidus, -a, -um

white, bright

falsus, -a, -um

false

indignus, -a, -um (+ abl. of respect)

unworthy, shameful

mundus, -a, -um

clean, neat

validus, -a, -um

strong

{194} Prōnōmina

aliquis, aliquid

someone, something

Adverbia

interim

meanwhile

Coniūnctiōnēs

postquam

after, since

Alia

humī

on the ground (locative)

ain’ = ais ne?

you don’t say? really?

____________

1. In Cap. XXV, you will learn that this rule applies not only to cities and towns, but to small islands as well.

2. The consonants m and n are sounds formed partially through the nose, and are therefore called nasals. Tangere (Cap. XI) shows both the nasal infix and reduplication: tangere → tetigisse. Note that the “n” disappears in the perfect and the reduplication te is added to the stem, whose vowel has shortened.

3. An inchoative verb is one that suggests that action of the verb is beginning or undergoing change.

4. Aeneid 7.378–380: ceu quondam tortō volitāns sub verbere turbō,/quem puerī magnō in gȳro vacua ātria circum/intentī lūdō exercent.

5. Interdum nūgāris rūre paternō:/partītur lintrēs exercitus, Actia pugna/tē duce per puerōs hostīlī mōre refertur;/adversārius est frāter, lacus Hadria, dōnec/alterutrum vēlōx Victōria fronde corōnet.

{195} XXII. Cavē Canem

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Supine: Accusative and Ablative

b. The Three Verbal Stems, or Principal Parts

c. Relative Time of Infinitives

d. ferre

2. Participles: Ablative Absolute

a. Relative Time of Participles

3. Pronouns

a. quis quid (from aliquis, aliquid)

b. iste, ista, istud

4. Adverbs: forās, forīs

Cavē Canem

The picture over the chapter represents an ancient mosaic found inside the front door of a house in Pompēiī. The picture and the warning inscription Cavē canem! are evidence of the way the Romans tried to safeguard their houses against intruders. Every house was guarded by a doorkeeper (ōstiārius or iānitor), who often had a watchdog to help him. So, it is not easy for a stranger to be admitted to Julius’s villa. First, he must wake the doorkeeper and then he has to convince him that his intentions are not hostile.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

The Three Verbal Stems, or Principal Parts

From the three verbal stems are derived all forms of the verb:

the present stem

the perfect stem

the supine stem

{196} Knowing the three forms in which these stems are contained will enable you to conjugate (i.e., inflect) any Latin verb. These crucial forms are called the Principal Parts, given here as the three infinitives:

1. The present infinitive active, e.g., scrīb|ere

2. The perfect infinitive active, e.g., scrīps|isse

3. The perfect infinitive passive, e.g., scrīpt|um esse

The Supine Stem

The stem we use to form the perfect passive system and the supine (below) is usually called the supine stem. From this stem we also form the perfect passive participle as well as and the future active participle, as you learn in the next chapter (Cap. XXIII).

The supine stem is regularly (but not always) formed:

• by the addition of t to the present stem, e.g.:

salūtā-: salūtāt-

audī-: audīt-

dīc-: dict-

• When phonetics dictate, we find s instead of t:

dt/tt → s (usually ss after a short vowel and s after a long vowel)

claudere → clausum

gt → ct

augēre → auctum

• In ē-stems ē is changed to i, e.g.:

terrē-: territ-

• There are several other irregularities, especially in 3rd conjugation verbs, where the addition of t may cause changes by assimilation, e.g.:

scrīb-: scrīpt- (p is voiceless like t)

claud-: claus- (dt > tt > ss >s)

Supine

The supine (Latin supīnum) is a verbal noun used only in the accusative (in -um) and the ablative (in -ū).

Accusative (-um)

In this chapter the letter carrier (tabellārius) tries to assure the ōstiārius with the words:

Ego nōn veniō vīllam oppugnātum sīcut hostis, nec pecūniam postulātum veniō (ll.33–34).

Oppugnātum and postulātum are examples of the accusative supine. In the accusative, the supine:

{197} • ends in -tum

• is found with verbs of motion, e.g., īre and venīre

• expresses purpose

Other examples of the accusative supine in this chapter are:

salūtātum venīre

to come to greet (in order to greet, with the purpose of greeting) (l.49)

dormītum īre

to go to sleep (in order to sleep, with the purpose of sleeping) (l.50)

ambulātum exīre

to go out to walk (in order to walk, with the purpose of walking) (l.51)

lavātum īre

to go to wash (in order to wash, with the purpose of washing) (l.52)

Ablative (-ū)

In addition to the accusative expressing purpose with verbs of motion, the supine is found in the ablative. The ablative supine is a rare form used to modify certain adjectives, particularly facilis and difficilis. The ablative shows the respect in which the adjectives apply (cf. the ablative of respect in Caps. XI and XIX).

The following forms dictū and audītū are examples of the ablative supine:

Nōmen meum nōn est facile dictū. (l.43) = Nōn est facile meum nōmen dīcere.

Vōx tua difficilis est audītū. (l.46) = Difficile est vōcem tuam audīre.Id facilius est dictū quam factū. (l.81) = Facilius est dīcere quam facere.

The Supine Versus the Perfect Passive Participle

The supine:

• exists in two unchanging forms: the accusative and the ablative

• will always end in -um (accusative) or -ū (ablative)

The perfect passive participle:

• by itself acts as an adjective

• creates the passive voice of the past tense when combined with a finite form of esse

• creates the perfect infinitive passive when combined with the infinitive esse

As an adjective, the participle exhibits all the forms of a 1st/2nd declension adjective (like bonus, bona, bonum). It will agree with the word it modifies in gender, number, and case.

{198} Discipulī, ā magistrō monitī, silent.

The students, warned by the teacher, are being quiet.

The perfect passive participle combined with the present tense of esse (sum, es, etc.) forms the perfect passive tense; the participle will agree with its subject.

Discipulī ā magistrō monitī sunt et silent.

The students were warned by the teacher and are being quiet.

The simple perfect infinitive passive (to have been + perfect passive) consists of the neuter singular of the perfect passive participle + the present infinitive of esse.

monitum esse

to have been warned

In indirect statement, the perfect infinitive passive must agree with its subject.

Puerī sciēbant sē monitōs esse.

The boys knew they had been warned.

The Three Verbal Stems in the Vocabulary

1. The margins of Familia Romana and the vocabulary at the back of this book give three verbal stems, or principal parts, as they are commonly called:

present infinitive active

perfect infinitive active

supine (accusative)

2. At the end of each chapter in this book, however, four principal parts will be listed in the vocabulary:

1st person singular present indicative active

present infinitive active

perfect infinitive active

supine (accusative)

Notā Bene:

• The perfect infinitive passive will be listed without esse.

• The perfect infinitive passive will be missing if the verb has no passive, e.g.: posse potuisse.

• The deponent verbs show the passive present and perfect infinitives, e.g.: loquī locūtum esse.

The forms show various stem mutations, e.g.:

{199} • vowel lengthening, e.g.:

emere, ēmisse, ēmptum

venīre, vēnisse

• loss of n and m, e.g.:

scindere, scidisse, scissum

rumpere, rūpisse, ruptum

• reduplication (doubling) of syllables in the perfect, e.g.:

pellere, pepulisse, pulsum

• occasionally an unchanged perfect stem, e.g.:

solvere, solvisse, solūtum

To learn such stem varieties, a new exercise is now introduced in PĒNSVM A in LINGUA LATINA, where the missing perfect and supine stems are to be inserted in the verbs listed. Symbols used: [~] for perfect stem and [≈] for supine stem.

The principal parts (from the margins) to be learned in this chapter follow (the 1st person singular present active indicative is given in parentheses):

(aperiō) aperīre, aperuisse, apertum

(claudō) claudere, clausisse, clausum

(dīcō) dīcere, dīxisse, dictum

(emō) emere, ēmisse, ēmptum

(pellō) pellere, pepulisse, pulsum

(possum) posse, potuisse

(scindō) scindere, scidisse, scissum

(solvō) solvere, solvisse, solūtum

(sūmō) sūmere, sumpsisse, sumptum

(terreō) terrēre, terruisse, territum

(veniō) venīre, vēnisse

(vinciō) vincīre, vīnxisse, vīnctum

Quis, Quid from Aliquis, Aliquid (after sī, num, nisi, nē)

After sī, nisi (Cap. XV), num, and nē, the indefinite pronoun aliquis, aliquid (someone, something) is shortened to quis quid. In the following examples, the pronouns quis, quid are not interrogative, but indefinite (= aliquis):

Sī quis vīllam intrāre vult (l.7)

“if anyone”

Num quis hīc est? (ll.27–28)

i.e., not “who,” but whether “anyone” is there.

Num quid tēcum fers? (ll.104–105)

i.e., not “what,” but “anything” or “something.”

If you find mnemonics useful, a good one for this rule is: “after sī, nisi, num, and nē, all the alis go away.” Compare these examples:

Aliquis intrāre vult.

Someone wants to enter.

{200} Sī quis intrāre vult.

If someone wants to enter.

Num quis intrāre vult?

Surely no one wants to enter?

Recēnsiō: Declension of Quis, Quid

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Iste, ista, istud

The demonstrative pronoun iste, -a, -ud (declined like ille, -a, -ud) refers to something connected with the person addressed (2nd person): Tlepolemus says iste canis about the doorkeeper’s dog (l.86, “that dog of yours”) and talking about Tlepolemus’s cloak, the doorkeeper says istud pallium (l.103).

Recēnsiō

Review the following pronouns/demonstrative adjectives

hic, haec, hoc

this one (over here by me)

iste, ista, istud

that one (over there by you)

ille, illa, illud

that one (over there by him)

is, ea, id

he, she, it/this/that

ipse, ipsa, ipsum

himself, herself, itself

Because of relative nearness of the demonstratives to the speaker (i.e., hic → her by me, ipse → there by you and ille → there by him), they are sometimes called demonstratives of the 1st (hic, haec, hoc), 2nd (ipse, ipsa, ipsum) and 3rd (ille, illa, illud) persons.

Ablative Absolute (continued from Cap. XVII)

Compare the following sentences:

Iānitōre dormiente, canis vigilāns iānuam cūstōdit. (l.23)

Cane vīnctō, tabellārius intrat. (l.119)

{201} Iānitōre dormiente is the ablative absolute with the present participle, which expresses what is happening now, i.e., at the same time (= dum iānitor dormit…, “while…”).

Cane vīnctō is the ablative absolute with the perfect participle, which expresses what has been done (= postquam canis vīnctus est…, “after…”).

Relative Time of Participles and Infinitives

The tense of the participle is relative to the main verb:

• present participle is happening at the same time as the main verb

• perfect participle happened before the main verb

The English rendering in the sentences below demonstrates the time relationship of the main verb and the participle:

Iānitōre dormiente, canis vigilāns iānuam cūstōdit.

While the doorkeeper sleeps/is sleeping, the watchful dog guards the door.

Iānitōre dormiente, canis vigilāns iānuam cūstōdiebat.

While the doorkeeper slept/was sleeping, the watchful dog was guarding the door.

Cane vīnctō, tabellārius intrat.

When the dog is tied up, the letter carrier enters.

Cane vīnctō, tabellārius intrāvit.

When the dog had been tied up, the letter carrier entered.

The same time relation holds between main verbs and infinitives:

• present infinitive/participle means “same time as main verb”

• perfect infinitive/participle means “time before the main verb”

Adverbs forās, forīs

In this section, we meet two new adverbs which both mean “outside”:

• forīs: place where (cf. ibi, hīc, illīc)

Tandem iānitor forēs aperit et Tlēpolemum forīs in imbre stantem videt (ll.56–57)

“Manē forīs!” inquit iānitor. (l.68)

• forās: place to which (cf. hūc, illūc)

Prius vincī canem et sine mē intrāre! Nōlī iterum mē forās in imbrem pellere! (l.115)

“Non ego,” inquit, “sed hic canis tē forās pepulit.” (ll.116–117)

{202} Recēnsiō: Ferre

In this chapter we meet the full conjugation of the irregular verb ferre (ll.105ff.). As you can see from the paradigm below, only the present tense of ferre is irregular: it lacks a vowel before the personal ending in the 2nd and 3rd persons singular (fers, fert), and in the 2nd person plural (fertis). In the other tenses, it is completely regular:

Present

Imperfect

Future

ferō

ferēbam

feram

fers

ferēbās

ferēs

fert

ferēbat

feret

ferimus

ferēbāmus

ferēmus

fertis

ferēbātis

ferētis

ferunt

ferēbant

ferent

Studia Rōmāna

The letter carrier (tabellārius) is (justifiably!) afraid of the watchdog. In his treatise on agriculture, Columella (first century AD) praises the virtues of the watchdog. What servant is more loving of his master? What companion is more loyal? What guard is more incorruptible? What more wakeful sentinel can be found? What, in short, avenger or defender is more steadfast? (quis famulus amantior dominī, quis fidēlior comes, quis custos incorruptior, quis excubitor inuenīrī potest uigilantior, quis denique ultor aut uindex constantior? dē Rē Rusticā, 7.12).

The privacy of the home is guarded not only by the dog, but also by the slaves, including the iānitor and the ōstiārius. In Book 3 of dē Ōrātōre, Cicero tells a funny story about the poet Ennius visiting Scipio Nasica (second century BC): When Nasica arrived at the house of the poet Ennius and asked to see Ennius, a female slave answered that Ennius was not at home. He had the feeling that she had spoken on her master’s orders and that Ennius was within. After a few days, Ennius went to see Nasica and asked for him at the door; Nasica cried, “I’m not here!” Ennius then said, “Really? Do I not recognize your voice?” At this, Nasica replied, “You are an impudent man! When I asked after you, I believed your slave woman when she claimed that you were not at home. You do not believe me in person?” For the most part, this is a story you can read! The parts you can’t are translated in parentheses. Cicero is talking about jokes where someone seems to not know what he knows—like that one of Nasica (ut illud Nāsīcae)

Ut illud Nāsīcae, quī cum ad poētam Ennium vēnisset (when he had come), eīque ab ostiō quaerentī Ennium ancilla dīxisset (the female slave had said) domī nōn esse. Nāsīca sēnsit illam dominī iussū dīxisse et illum intus esse; paucīs post diēbus cum ad Nāsīcam vēnisset (when {203} he had come), Ennius et eum ad iānuam quaereret (and was asking for), exclāmat Nāsīca domī non esse. Tum Ennius, “Quid? Ego nōn cognoscō vōcem,” inquit “tuam?” Hic Nāsīca, “Homō es impudēns: ego cum tē quaererem (when I asked for you) ancillae tuae crēdidī tē domī nōn esse, tū mihi nōn crēdis ipsī?”

Without a post office—never mind a telephone or email—how did the Romans send messages to each other? They often called upon a traveler (particularly if known to them) to take a message. Cicero writes to his friend Marcus Marcellus that he was sending a second letter so soon after a first because there was a carrier at hand and he couldn’t pass up the opportunity (Ad Fam. 4.9.1). In a letter to his friend Atticus, he alludes to the difficulties of the job of letter-carrier; Atticus’s freedman Philogenes had just made a long and rather unsafe journey to bring Cicero a letter (Ad Att. 5.20.8: perlonga et nōn satis tūta via). Friends, freedmen, slaves: all were pressed into service of carrying letters—generally on foot. Cicero had slaves who seemed reserved expressly for sending letters (domesticii tabellāriī, Ad Fam. 2.7.3).

Augustus established what would become the cursus pūblicus: a conveyance of official messages from the emperor, magistrates, or the military. Its original purpose was military: to speed communication between Rome and the provinces; “first he set up regular stations of young men (later, carriages) at short distances along the military roads” (Suetonius, Augustus. 49.3: iuvenēs prīmō modicīs intervallīs per mīlitārīs viās, dehinc vehicula disposuit).

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

catēna, -ae

chain

2nd

aurum, -ī

gold

faber, fabrī

craftsman

lignum, -ī

wood

pallium, -ī

cloak

tabellārius, -ī

letter carrier

supīnum, -ī

supine (grammar)

3rd

cardō, cardinis (m.)

hinge

foris, foris (f.)

folding door

iānitor, iānitōris (m.)

door keeper = ōstiārius

imāgō, imāginis (f.)

picture, image

līmen, līminis (n.)

threshold

{204} Verba

-āre (1)

(arbitror) arbitrārī, arbitrātum

think, judge

(rogitō) rogitāre, rogitāvisse, rogitātum

keep asking

-ēre (2)

(caveō) cavēre, cāvisse, cautum

beware

(dērīdeō) dērīdēre, dērīsisse, dērīsum

laugh at

(moneō) monēre, monuisse, monitum

advise, warn

(mordeō) mordēre, momordisse, morsum

bite

(removeō) removēre, remōvisse, remōtum

remove

(retineō) retinēre, retinuisse, retentum

hold on to

(terreō) terrēre, terruisse, territum

frighten

-ere (3)

(accēdō) accēdere, accessisse, accessum

approach

(admittō) admittere, admīsisse, admissum

let in

(cēdō) cēdere, cēssisse, cessum (intr. + dat.)

yield

(fremō) fremere, fremuisse, fremitum

growl

(pellō) pellere, pepulisse, pulsum

strike, drive out

(prehendō) prehendere, prendisse, prēnsum

grab hold of

(prōcēdō) prōcēdere, prōcessisse, processum

move forward

(recēdō) recēdere, recessisse, recessum

withdraw

(resistō) resistere, restitisse (intr. + dat.)

resist

(rumpō) rumpere, rūpisse, ruptum

break

(scindō) scindere, scidisse, scissum

rip, tear

(sinō) sinere, sīvisse, situm

allow

(solvō) solvere, solvisse, solūtum

loose (also pay)

(tremō) tremere, tremuisse

tremble

-īre (4)

(cūstōdiō) cūstōdīre, cūstōdīvisse, cūstōdītum

guard

(saliō) salīre, saluisse

leap

(vinciō) vincīre, vīnxisse, vīnctum

bind

{205} Irregular

(ferō) ferre, tulisse, lātum

carry, bear

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

aureus, -a, -um

golden

ferreus, -a, -um

iron

ligneus, -a, -um

wooden

3rd

ferōx (ferōcis)

fierce, ferocious

Prōnōmina

iste, ista, istud

that one (of yours)

quis, quid

shortened from aliquis, aliquid

Adverbia

anteā

before

forās

outside (toward)

forīs

outside (place where)

nūper

recently

posteā

after

prius

before

quīn

why not? in fact

scīlicet

naturally, of course

sīcut

just as

tandem

finally

Praepositiōnēs

extrā (prp. + acc.)

outside

intrā (prp. + acc.)

inside, within

{206} XXIII. Epistula Magistrī

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Participles

i. Future Participle

ii. Eō, īre: Present Participle and Summary

b. Infinitives

i. Future Active Infinitive

ii. Future Passive Infinitive

c. pudēre (impersonal)

d. Perfect Stem, Continued (ferre, root perfects, reduplicated)

e. Principal Parts

Julius Responds to Diodorus’s Letter

At the end of Cap. XVIII, an angry Diodorus (the schoolmaster) wrote a letter to Marcus’s father. In this chapter, you find out what is in that letter. The reproduction heading the chapter shows the kind of handwriting the ancient Romans used. Compare this with the text on page 180 of LINGUA LATINA, and you will have no difficulty in deciphering the script.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Recēnsiō: Participles (Sections I and II)

The first two readings in this chapter offer a good review of the participles and infinitives you have learned thus far:

• Present participle in an ablative absolute: Tacente Mārcō… (l.55)

• Present participle: Interim Mārcus pallidus et tremēns patrem legentem spectat. (ll.34–36)

• Perfect participle: vidēsne nōmen “Sextī” litterīs plānīs in parte superiōre īnscrīptum? (ll.63–64)

• Present infinitive active: Nōlō hās litterās legere. (l.15)

{207} • Present infinitive passive: Tūne putās tē hīs litterīs laudārī, Mārce? (ll.49–50)

• Perfect infinitive active: Magister plānīs verbīs scrībit, “tē discipulum improbissimum fuisse ac foedē et prāvē scrīpsisse!” (ll.60–61)

• Perfect infinitive passive: Tantum sciō epistulam Tūsculō missam et ā tabellāriō ad tē lātam esse. (ll.8–9)

Ferre

The principal parts of the irregular verb ferre tulisse lātum come from different stems and must be memorized. Examples:

Ecce epistula quam illinc ad tē tulit. (ll.3–4)

Tantum sciō epistulam Tūsculō missam et ā tabellāriō ad tē lātam esse. (ll.8–9)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Pudēre (Impersonal)

When Marcus has been caught cheating, his father says, “Nōnne tē pudet hoc fēcisse?” (l.79)

The impersonal verb pudet:

• tells that a feeling of shame affects someone

• the person affected is in the accusative, e.g.:
mē pudet “I feel ashamed”

• the cause of the feeling of shame can be expressed by an infinitive, as above (l.79), or by a genitive, e.g.:
Puerum pudet factī suī. (l.82)

Pudēre (it causes shame) is one of a few impersonal verbs[1] that take:

• The accusative of person concerned and either of the following:

genitive of person/thing affected

infinitive that completes the thought

examples:

Pudet mē pigritiae meae.

I’m embarrassed about my laziness.

Pudet mē hoc dīcere.

I’m ashamed to say this.

{208} Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

The Future Participle

Julius has to answer the letter. So, after putting Marcus in his place, he says, “Iam epistulam scrīptūrus sum.” (l.125) He could have said, “Iam epistulam scrībam,” using the ordinary future tense of scrībere (scrībam), for scrīptūrus sum is merely an extended form (or periphrasis[2]) of the future, which serves to express what someone intends to do or is on the point of doing; it is composed of the present of esse and scrīptūrus, which is the future participle (Latin participium futūrī) of scrībere.

The difference between the simple future and the periphrasis of the future participle with a form of esse is one of tone. The simple future means the speaker intends to do something at some point in the future (which point can be made more by use of an adverb or time expression), while the future participle plus esse suggests that the subject is on the point of acting.

The future participle:

• is formed by adding ≈ūr|us, -a, -um to the participle/supine stem, e.g.:

pugnāt|ūr|us from pugnāre

pārit|ūr|us from pārēre

dormīt|ūr|us from dormīre

• as an adjective means “about to X,” “intending to X”

• as an adjective agrees with its noun in gender, number, and case

• combined with esse has a verbal force pointing to the immediate future

examples:

pugnātūrus est

he is about to fight, intending to fight, he will fight

pāritūrus est

he about to obey, intending to obey, he will obey

dormītūra est

she is about to sleep, intending to sleep, she will sleep

scrīptūrī sumus

we are about to write, intending to write, we will write

The future participle of esse is futūr|us, a form you know already from the expression tempus futūrum. All of these forms can be seen in context in Marcus’s plea to his parents (ll.84–87):

Certē malus puer fuī, sed posthāc bonus puer futūrus sum: semper vōbīs pāritūrus sum, numquam pugnātūrus sum in viā nec umquam in lūdō dormītūrus sum.

{209} Future Active Infinitive

The future active infinitive (īnfīnītīvus futūrī) is composed of the future active participle and esse. In the following sentence, scrīptūrum esse is a future infinitive. Compare Julius’s direct remark that he is about to write a letter with the reported statement:

“Epistulam scrīptūrus sum.” (l.125)

Iūlius dīcit, “sē epistulam scrīptūrum esse.” (ll.125–126)

Other examples are:

futūrum esse

pugnātūrum esse

pāritūrum esse

dormītūrum esse

These infinitives are all used in the report of Marcus’s promises: (ll.89–93)

Mārcus “sē malum puerum fuisse” fatētur ac simul prōmittit “sē posthāc bonum puerum futūrum esse, semper sē parentibus pāritūrum esse nec umquam in viā pugnātūrum nec in lūdō dormītūrum esse”—id quod saepe antehāc prōmīsit!

The future active infinitive (summary):

• is comprised of the future active participle and the infinitive of the verb to be (esse)

• when used as a simple infinitive, the participle is neuter and singular:

dormītūrum esse

to be about to sleep

ductūrum esse

to be about to lead

• when used in indirect statement, the participle agrees with its subject:

Puerī dīcunt sē dormītūrōs esse.

The boys say that they are about to go to sleep.

Puellae dīcunt sē dormītūrās esse.

The girls say that they are about to go to sleep.

Future Passive Infinitive

The future passive infinitive is comprised of the supine and the present passive infinitive to the verb to go (īrī). This form never changes: it is always the supine + īrī. For example:

Aemilia Mārcum ā Iūliō

Aemilia thinks Marcus will be

verberātum īrī putat.

beaten by Julius. (ll.114–115)

Ego eum nec mūtātum esse nec posthāc mūtātum īrī crēdō. (will be changed) (ll.118–119)

The supine, you will remember from the previous chapter (XXII), expresses purpose. When Julius gets up to go, Aemilia suspects mischief and {210} (using the supine with īre to express purpose) asks, “Mārcumne verberātum īs?” (ll.113–114).

In the accusative and infinitive construction, her misgivings could be expressed by changing the direct verberātum īs to the active infinitive and the supine:

Aemilia Iūlium Mārcum verberātum īre putat.

In practice, however, to avoid the ambiguity of two accusatives the passive form is preferred, hence:

Aemilia Mārcum ā patre verberātum īrī putat. (ll.114–115)

Notā Bene: The supine does not change, regardless of the subject:

Dīc eī, “respōnsum meum crās ā Mārcō trāditum īrī.” (ll.132–133)

Dīc eī, “epistulam meam crās ā Mārcō trāditum īrī.”

Summary: Future Participles and Infinitives

The future active participle:

• can be used just as an adjective

exhibits all the forms of a 1st/2nd declension adjective (like bonus, bona, bonum)

agrees with the word it modifies in gender, number, and case

• combined with a verb, creates a periphrasis of the future

can be used instead of the future tense

agrees with its subject

• combined with esse, creates the future infinitive active

neuter singular of the future active participle + the present infinitive of esse

in indirect statement, the participle must agree with its subject

The future passive infinitive:

• consists of the accusative of the supine and īrī

• never changes in form

• is relatively rare in Latin

Recēnsiō: Summary of Infinitives and Participles

Now you have all the infinitives:

• present active and passive

• perfect active and passive

• future active and passive

{211} You also have almost all the participles:

• present active (there is no present passive)

• perfect passive

• perfect active (deponent verbs only: passive forms but active meaning)

• future active

• the gerundive (Cap. XXXIII) is sometimes called the future passive participle

Again, the tense, or time, of infinitives and participles is purely relative: it does not show absolute time. It is relative to the tense of the main verb:

• The present infinitive/participle shows time simultaneous with the main verb.

• The perfect infinitive/participle shows time prior to the main verb.

• The future infinitive/participle shows time subsequent to the main verb.

Summary: Infinitives

Active

Passive

Present

-āre
-ēre
-ere
-īre

-ārī
-ērī
-ī
-īrī

Past

Perfect stem + isse

Perfect passive participle + esse

Future

Supine stem + ūrum esse

Supine + īrī

Summary: Participles

For contrast, here is a summary of participles.

Active

Passive

Present

-āns
-ēns
-ēns/iēns
-iēns

Past

See notā bene, note 1 below

-tus, -ta, -tum
See notā bene, note 2 below

Future

Supine stem + -ūrus, -ūra, -ūrum

Notā Bene:

1. The perfect participle of Latin deponents can be used as the equivalent of the missing perfect active participle, e.g., locūtus: “having spoken.”

{212} 2. The -tus, -ta, -tum of the perfect passive participle can undergo changes in verbs that end in certain consonants. For example, the verb claudere has clausus, -a, -um, which comes from claudtus, -a, -um

Eō, īre

The present participle of īre looks regular enough: i|ēns, but the declension is irregular: acc. eunt|em, gen. eunt|is, etc. So also compounds, e.g., red-īre, part. red-iēns, -eunt|is. Examples in ll.106–107.

Present Participle

sing.

m./f.

n.

nom.

iēns

iēns

acc.

euntem

iēns

gen.

euntis

euntis

dat.

euntī

euntī

abl.

eunte/ī

eunte/ī

pl.

m./f.

n.

nom.

euntēs

euntia

acc.

euntēs

euntia

gen.

euntium

euntium

dat.

euntibus

euntibus

abl.

euntibus

euntibus

Recēnsiō: Forms of the Perfect Stem

In Cap. XXI, you learned that in addition to adding u/v to the stem (with or without the stem vowel: amāvisse/habuisse), or s (e.g., dīcere, dīxisse < dīcsisse), perfects are formed from the root of the verb or from the reduplicated root.

Root Perfects: A “root perfect” is a verb that forms the perfect tense by adding the endings directly to the root of the verb without the addition of any intervening tense sign (e.g., v or s). Root perfects can show:

• vowel lengthening
legere, lēgisse, lēctum
fugere, fūgisse

• vowel change
facere, fēcisse

Reduplicated Perfects: A perfect stem is called reduplicated when it repeats the initial consonant of the verb, as in the verb dare. Dare is an unusual looking verb because the stem is basically d. In the perfect tense, the stem repeats {213} the d, separated from the original d of the root by another vowel (d + e + d) and adds the endings: dare dedisse. Trā-dere (= trāns + dare) and per-dere (= per + dare) are compounds of dare, which explains the perfect trā-didisse and per-didisse.

perdere, perdidī, perditum

trādere, trādidī, trāditum

Principal Parts

The principal parts (from the margins) to be learned in this chapter are (the 1st person singular present active indicative is given in parentheses):

(afferō < ad + ferō) afferre, attulisse, allātum

(dēbeō) dēbēre, dēbuisse, dēbitum

(dūcō) dūcere, dūxisse, ductum

(faciō) facere, fēcisse, factum

(ferō) ferre, tulisse, lātum

(fugiō) fugere, fūgisse

(inclūdō < in + claudō) inclūdere, inclūsisse, inclūsum

(legō) legere, lēgisse, lēctum

(mereō) merēre, meruisse, meritum

(mittō) mittere, mīsisse, missum

(ostendō) ostendere, ostendisse

(perdō) perdere, perdidisse, perditum

(trādō) trādere, trādidisse, trāditum

Recēnsiō: Impersonal Verbs

decet

it is fitting

licet

it is permitted

necesse est

it is necessary

oportet

it is right (morally right)

opus est

it is needed

Studia Rōmāna

We begin letters with Dear X and end with “sincerely,” “love” or some similar signal that closes our letters. Roman letter writers followed a pattern similar to that of Diodorus in his letter to Julius: Diodōrus lūliō salūtem dīcit. The name of the writer comes first in the nominative followed by the name of the recipient in the dative and a greeting. Other greetings (sometimes abbreviated):

• sī valēs, bene est, ego valeō = s.v.b.e.e.v.

• sī valēs, bene est = s.v.b.e.

{214} The younger Seneca (55 BC–AD 39), in a letter (14) to his young friend Lucilius, wrote, “Our ancestors had a custom, preserved up to my time, to add these words to the beginning of a letter: ‘sī valēs bene est, ego valeō,’ We say—correctly—‘si philosophāris, bene est.’ For this is precisely what it means to be well”[3] (philosophārī: to apply oneself to philosophy).

Diodorus’s closing, Scrībēbam Tusculī kalendīs lūniīs, demonstrates another common letter convention, giving the place and date of composition. Diodorus uses the imperfect because he is writing from the perspective of the reader. This is called the epistolary imperfect.

When Julius is handed the letter, he immediately recognizes Diodorus’s seal (obsignāre: seal a letter). Both tablets and papyrus scolls could be sealed; the seal not only identified the sender, but kept the letter private. During the tumultuous late republic, Cicero joked in a letter that he was afraid to write of political matters lest the papyrus itself betray him (Ad Att. 2.20): “I will write to you briefly about affairs of state; for at this point, I’m anxious that the very paper I write on might betray us. And so, in the future, if I have more that I must write about, I will conceal it with allegories.”[4]

Cicero often wrote his letters to his friends himself, without the services of his secretary. On one occasion, he explained to Atticus that the different handwriting was a clear sign of how busy he was: he had his librārius write the letter while he dictated (Ad Att. 4.16: Occupātiōnum meārum vel hoc signum erit quod epistula librārī manū est). On another occasion, he reveals the mystery of the nearly illegible handwriting in a letter he had written to his brother Quintus (Ad Quīntum Fratrem, 2.15): “No, I wasn’t busy, upset or angry—just careless. It’s my habit to assume that whatever pen I pick up is a good one.” He opens the letter with a nice representation of what one did to prepare to write a letter. His reed pen (calamō) and ink (ātrāmentō) were prepared (temperātō—this time, he bothered to check the point of the pen!), and the papyrus had been smoothed with a file made of a tooth (chartā dentātā):

Calamō et ātrāmentō temperātō, chartā etiam dentātā rēs agētur. Scrībis enim tē meās litterās superiōrēs vix legere potuisse. In quō nihil eōrum, mī frāter, fuit quae putās. Neque enim occupātus eram neque perturbātus nec īrātus alicuī. Sed hoc faciō semper ut, quīcumque calamus in mānūs meās vēnerit, eō sīc ūtar tamquam bonō.

Papyrus was expensive and was often reused by whiting over the old writing and beginning anew. Such reused papyri are called palimpsestī (παλίμψηστος); the practice continued and several ancient texts have come to light underneath later writings. Cicero chides his friend Trebatius (Ad Fam. 7.18), “I commend {215} your frugality in using a palimpsest—but it really makes me wonder what was on that paper (chartula) that you preferred to erase rather than not write this letter (literally: these things) to me, unless it was one of your legal briefs. I surely don’t think you erase my letters so you can replace them with yours! Perhaps you mean ‘nothing is happening, I have no clients; I haven’t even any paper!’”

Nam quod in palimpsestō, laudō equidem parsimōniam, sed mīror quid in illā chartulā fuerit quod dēlēre mālueris quam haec nōn scrībere, nisi fortē tuās formulās; nōn enim putō tē meās epistulās dēlēre ut repōnās tuās. An hoc significās, nihil fierī, frīgēre[5] tē, nē chartam quidem tibi suppeditāre?

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

litterae, -ārum

a letter = epistula

2nd

factum, -ī

deed

prōmissum, -ī

promise

signum, -ī

sign, statue

3rd

clāvis, clāvis (f.)

key

comes, comitis (m./f.)

companion

laus, laudis (f.)

praise

pudor, pudōris (m.)

(good) shame

verbera, um (n. pl.)

a lashing

4th

vultus, vultūs (m.)

face, facial expression

Verba

-āre (1)

(comitor) comitārī, comitātum

accompany

(negō) negāre, negāvisse, negātum

deny, say…not

-ēre (2)

(contineō) continēre, continuisse, contentum

contain

(dēbeō) dēbēre, dēbuisse, dēbitum

owe, ought

(fateor) fatērī, fassum

acknowledge

(mereō) merēre, meruisse, meritum

earn, deserve

(palleō) pallēre

be pale

(pudet) pudēre, puduit

feel shame (impersonal)

(rubeō) rubēre

be red

{216} -ere (3)

(āvertō) āvertere

turn aside or away

(dīmittō) dīmittere, dīmīsisse, dīmissum

send in different directions

(inclūdō) inclūdere, inclūsisse, inclūsum

shut in

(īnscrībō) īnscrībere, īnscrīpsisse, īnscrīptum

inscribe

(perdō) perdere, perdidisse, perditum

lose

(prōmittō) prōmittere, prōmīsisse, prōmissum

promise

salūtem dīcere

say hi

(solvō) solvere, solvisse, solūtum

loose, pay

(trādō) trādere, trādidisse, trāditum

hand over or down

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

integer, -ra, -rum

whole, undamaged

pallidus, -a, -um

pale

plānus, -a, -um

level, clear

superior, superius

higher

Prōnōmina

quidnam?

what in the world?

quisnam?

who in the world?

Adverbia

antehāc

before this

fortasse

perhaps

herī

yesterday

hinc

from here

illinc

from there

posthāc

after this

umquam

ever (always in neg. context)

Praepositiōnēs

ob (prp. + acc.)

on account of

____________

1. The other verbs are piget (it causes revulsion or displeasure), paenitet (it causes regret), miseret (it causes pity) and taedet (it causes boredom).

2. A grammatical periphrasis uses two words to express a relationship instead of a simple inflected form.

3. Mōs antiquīs fuit, usque ad meam servātus aetātem, prīmīs epistulae verbīs adicere, “Sī valēs bene est, ego valeō.” Rectē nōs dīcimus, “Sī philosophāris, bene est.” Valēre enim hoc dēmum est.

4. Dē rē pūblicā breviter ad tē scrībam; iam enim charta ipsa nē nōs prōdat pertimēscō. Itaque posthāc, sī erunt mihi plūra ad tē scrībenda, ἀλληγορίαις obscūrābō.

5. Frīgēre (to be cold, like refrigerator) is the opposite of calēre (to be hot, like calorie), not to be confused with algēre (to feel cold, for which we say, “I am cold” when we mean, “I feel cold”) and aestuāre (to feel hot). Frīgēre thus means, (as here) “have nothing to do, be disregarded.”

{217} XXIV. Puer Aegrōtus

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Pluperfect Tense: Active and Passive

b. Deponent Verbs: Perfect Tense

c. nōscere

d. Principal Parts

2. Adjectives

a. Comparisons

i. Conjunction quam

ii. Ablative of Comparison

3. Pronouns: Reflexive Pronoun

4. Adverbs: Adverbs in ō

5. Points of Style

a. quid agis?

b. posse

c. Hyperbaton

Quintus Hears about His Brother’s Troubles

From his sickbed Quintus calls Syra and asks her to tell him what has been going on while he has been lying alone and feeling left out of things. Syra readily gives him all the details of Marcus’s return home and what had gone before.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Adverbs

In Cap. XVIII you learned about adverbs ending in -ter (e.g., fortiter) and in -ē (e.g., stultē). Note the adverbs ending in -ō:

subitō (l.12)

rārō

certō (l.59)

prīmō (l.100, “at first”)[1]

postrēmō (l.78)

{218} Reflexive Pronoun

Of the reflexive pronoun, the form sē is accusative and ablative, the dative is sibi (cf. tibi, mihi):

• Syra: “Doletne tibi pēs adhūc?”

• Puer “pedem sibi dolēre” ait: “Valdē mihi dolet pēs.” (ll.23–24)

acc.

sē

gen.

See Cap. XXIX

dat.

sibi

abl.

sē

Comparisons

There are two ways of expressing comparison between two things:

1. The conjunction quam (“than”) is used after the comparative (adjective or adverb). Comparisons in any case can be made with quam, “than;” the second member of the comparison will go into the same case as the first, e.g.:

Mārcus pigrior est quam Quīntus.

Pēs dexter multō māior est quam pēs laevus! (l.6)

Pulchrius scrīpserātis et recitāverātis quam Mārcus. (ll.113–114)

2. Instead of using quam, it is possible to put the second term in the ablative. This construction, the ablative of comparison, is used only when the first member of the comparison is in the nominative or the accusative case, e.g.:

Mārcus pigrior est Quīntō.

Nunc pēs dexter māior est pede laevō. (l.30)

Cēterum in hāc rē is nōn pēior fuerat cēterīs. (l.77)

Is canis lupō ferōcior est! (l.90)

Melior sum frātre meō! (l.108)

Ego Mārcum bene nōvī, nec putō eum vōbīs stultiōrem esse. (ll.115–116)

At certē pigrior est nōbīs! (l.117)

Deponent Verbs (continued from Cap. XVI)

You learned the present tense of deponents in Cap. XVI. Deponent verbs like cōnārī and mentīrī are always passive in form, except for the present and future participles:

cōnāns, mentiēns

trying, lying

cōnātūrus, mentītūrus

about to try, about to lie

{219} Just as the present tense has the form of the present passive, the perfect tense has the form of the perfect passive. It is formed by the perfect participle and esse. Some examples of perfect participles of deponent verbs:

patī: passus: tergī dolōrēs passus est. (l.47)

loquī: locūtus: saepe dē eā locūtus est. (l.60)

verērī: veritus: Tabellārius canem veritus est. (l.88)

fatērī: fassus: Mārcus “sē mentītum esse” fassus est. (l.101, note the

perfect infinitive: mentītum esse)

Compare the present and the perfect tense:

Quīntus surgere cōnātur.

Quintus tries to rise.

Quīntus surgere cōnātus est.

Quintus has tried to rise.

Mārcus mentītur.

Marcus is lying.

Mārcus mentītus est.

Marcus has lied.

The imperative of deponent verbs ending in -re is treated in the next chapter, but note the following examples of the imperative:

Cōnsōlāre mē, Syra! (l.40)

loquere mēcum! (l.41)

immō laetāre (l.44)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

The Pluperfect Tense

Through Syra’s report to Quintus, you learn the tense called pluperfect (Latin tempus plūsquamperfectum). It is used to express that an action comes before some point in the past, i.e., that something had taken place (ll.65–67):

Mārcus nōn modo ūmidus erat quod per imbrem ambulāverat, sed etiam sordidus atque cruentus, quod humī iacuerat et ā Sextō pulsātus erat. Puerī enim in viā pugnāverant.

The pluperfects explain why Marcus was (erat) wet and dirty: he had (previously) walked, had lain, had been hit, had fought (ambulāv|erat iacu|erat, pulsāt|us erat, and pugnāv|erant).

In the active, the pluperfect is formed by the insertion of -erā- (shortened -era-) between the perfect stem and the personal endings:

1st person

~era|m, ~erā|mus

2nd

~erā|s, ~erā|tis

3rd

~era|t, ~era|nt

{220} ambulā +v+era+m: I had walked (etc.)

iac +u+era+m: I had lain (etc.)

ambulā +v+erā+s

iac +u+erā+s

ambulā +v+era+t

iac +u+era+t

ambulā +v+erā+mus

iac +u+erā+mus

ambulā +v+erā+tis

iac +u+erā+tis

ambulā +v+era+nt

iac +u+era+nt

In the passive the pluperfect is composed of the perfect participle and the imperfect of esse (eram, erās, erat, etc.), e.g.:

Mārcus ā Sextō pulsātus erat. = Sextus Mārcum pulsāverat.

pulsātus, -a, -eram: I had been hit (etc.)

pulsātus, -a, -erās

pulsātus, -a, -erat

pulsātī, -ae, -erāmus

pulsātī, -ae, -erātis

pulsātī, -ae, -erant

→ In the GRAMMATICA LATINA—both of LINGUA LATINA and at the end of this book—you find examples of all the pluperfect forms of the four conjugations and of esse (fu|era|m, fu|erā|s, fu|era|t, etc.).

Nōscere

The perfect nōvisse of nōscere (“get to know”) has present force: “be acquainted with,” “know,” e.g.:

Quōmodo Mēdus puellam Rōmānam nōscere potuit? (ll.57–58)

Nesciō quōmodo, sed certō sciō eum aliquam fēminam nōvisse. (ll.59–60)

Canis tē nōvit, ignōrat illum. (l.94)

Principal Parts

The principal parts (from the margins) to be learned in this chapter are (the 1st person singular present active indicative is given in brackets):

(cadō) cadere, cecidisse, cāsum

(cognōscō) cognōscere, cognōvisse, cognitum

(cōnor) cōnārī, cōnātum

(dō) dare, dedisse, datum

(eō) īre, īvisse (or iisse), itum

(fateor) fatērī, fassum

(frangō) frangere, frēgisse, frāctum

(lavō) lavāre, lāvisse, lautum (or lavātum)

(loquor) loquī, locūtum

(lūdō) lūdere, lūsisse

{221} (mentior) mentīrī, mentītum

(mordeō) mordēre, momordisse, morsum

(nōscō) nōscere, nōvisse, nōtum

(percutiō) percutere, percussisse, percussum

(reprehendō) reprehendere, reprehendisse, reprehēnsum

(vereor) verērī, veritum

(videō) vidēre, vīdisse, vīsum

(volō) velle, voluisse

Points of Style

Quid agis

Quid agis? = Quōmodo tē habēs?

Syra Quīntō loquitur, “Sed tū quid agis? Doletne tibi pēs adhūc?”

How are you? Does your foot still hurt? (ll.22–23)

Posse

Syra’s remonstration to Quintus illustrates the idiomatic use of posse:

Mīror tē crūs nōn frēgisse. Facile ōs frangere potuistī. (ll.32–33)

English would have used the perfect of “break” in both clauses: “I’m amazed that you did not break your leg. You could easily have broken a bone.” In English, in other words, we would use a subjunctive (could/might have broken). Posse, however, works differently. To express what could have happened in the past, but didn’t, Latin uses a past indicative tense of the verb posse with a present infinitive.

Hyperbaton

When Quintus hears Syra’s narration of what Marcus had done, the word order of his question reflects what is uppermost in his mind—his mother’s reaction:

Māter quid dīxit? (l.71)

Marcus throws emphasis on the word māter by putting it first. Making the word order reflect the emphasis of thought is called hyperbaton and is an important feature of Latin style.

Recēnsiō: The Verbal System (thus far)

Verbs have:

person

first, second, third

number

singular, plural

{222} tense

present, future, imperfect, perfect, pluperfect

voice

active (subject acts); passive (subject acted upon)

finite mood

indicative (Fact: asks question; makes statements), imperative (Order: gives an order; commands)

Outside the finite[2] verbal system, you have thus far learned the following verbal forms:

infinitive

supine

participle

Tense

Tense shows two things:

duration in time (going on or completed)

position in time (past, present, future)

Present tense: what is in progress right now

Future: what will be in progress in the future

Imperfect: what was in progress in the past

Perfect: shows completion in the present (i.e., in relation to present time, the action is completed.

Pluperfect: shows completion in the past (i.e., the action was completed in relation to another completed action)

Examples:

Indicative

I. Iūlius signum frangit.

Julius is breaking the seal.

Ā Iūliō signum frangitur.

The seal is being broken by Julius.

Iūlius signum franget.

Julius will break the seal.

Ā Iūliō signum frangētur.

The seal will be broken by Julius.

Iūlius signum frangēbat.

Julius was breaking the seal.

Ā Iūliō signum frangēbātur.

The seal was being broken by Julius.

Iūlius signum frēgit.

Julius broke/has broken the seal.

Ā Iūliō signum frāctum est.

The seal has been broken by Julius.

Iūlius signum frēgerat.

Julius had broken the seal.

Ā Iūliō signum frāctum erat.

The seal had been broken by Julius.

II. Latīnē loquī cōnor.

I am trying to speak Latin, I do try, I try

Latīnē loquī cōnābar.

I was trying to speak Latin, I used to try, I tried

Latīnē loquī cōnābor.

I will try to speak Latin.

Latīnē loquī cōnātus/a sum.

I have tried to speak Latin, I tried to speak Latin, I did try

{223} Latīnē loquī cōnātus/a eram, sed nōn potuī.

I had tried to speak Latin, but I could not.

Participle

I. frangēns, frangentis

breaking

frāctūrus, -a, -um

about to break

frāctus, -a, -um

having been broken

II. cōnāns, cōnantis

trying

cōnātūrus, -a, -um

about to try

cōnātus, -a, -um

having tried (notice active meaning!)

Infinitive

I. frangere

to break

frangī

to be broken

frāctūrum esse

to be about to break

frāctum īrī

to be about to be broken

frēgisse

to have broken

frāctum esse

to have been broken

II. cōnārī

to try

cōnātūrum esse

to be about to try

cōnātum esse

to have tried

Infinitive in indirect statement

I. Present

Videō puerōs signum frangere.

I see that the boys are breaking the seal.

Videō signum ā puerīs frangī.

I see that the seal is being broken by the boys.

Videō puerōs signum frāctūrōs esse.

I see that the boys will break the seal.

Videō signum ā puerīs frāctum īrī.

I see that the seal will be broken by the boys.

Videō puerōs signum frēgisse.

I see that the boys broke/have broken the seal.

Videō signum ā puerīs frāctum esse.

I see that the seal has been broken by the boys.

II. Past

Vīdī puerōs signum frangere.

I saw that the boys were breaking the seal.

Vīdī signum ā puerīs frangī.

I saw that the seal was being broken by the boys.

{224} Vīdī puerōs signum frāctūrōs esse.

I saw that the boys would break the seal.

Vīdī signum ā puerīs frāctum īrī.

I saw that the seal would be broken by the boys.

Vīdī puerōs signum frēgisse.

I saw that the boys had broken the seal.

Vīdī signum ā puerīs frāctum esse.

I saw that the seal had been broken by the boys.

Studia Rōmāna

While Syra and Quīntus are discussing the day’s drama around Marcus, other slaves are in the kitchen (culīna) preparing for the dinner party you will read about toward the end of the narrative. What people would have eaten varied a lot, depending on where they lived (city? country?), their socioeconomic status, and other factors. Certain festivals and celebrations included special foods. Birthdays, for example, needed a cake (lībum) to offer to the gods in thanksgiving. Wealthy people living in a port city would have a wide variety of choices of foods imported from abroad as well as elsewhere in Italy and their homes would include a culīna. People living in apartment blocks (īnsulae) might have a portable brazier (grill) but not a kitchen.

Breakfast was a very light meal and seems to have been optional. The breaking of the night fast was often the prandium, a simple meal taken late morning or noontime. That breakfast (ientāculum) was originally called prandicula, or little prandium (prandicula antīquī dīcēbant, quae nunc ientācula[3]), suggests the prandium was often the first meal of the day. The poet Horace (65–8 BC), writing about his moderate (and therefore virtuous) habits, claims he rises late and, after a variety of activities, has his first (around midday) meal: “After eating sparingly—as much as keeps me from enduring the day on an empty stomach, I relax at home” (prānsus nōn avidē, quantum interpellet inānī/ventre diem dūrāre, domesticus ōtior, Sat. 1.6.127–28). That’s fine for Horace, but Martial tells us that early-rising schoolboys grabbed something on their way: “Get up! The baker is already selling breakfast to boys/and the crested birds of daylight are everywhere singing” (Surgite: iam vendit puerīs ientācula pistor/Cristātaeque sonant undique lūcis avēs, 14.223). These meals were simple and probably consisted of bread and vegetables. (The number of bakeries—with and without milling equipment—in Pompeii shows the importance of bread.) A. Cornelius Celsus (first century AD), who wrote an encyclopedia of medicine (dē Medicīnā), sensibly remarks that food intake depends on one’s age, activity, and the time of year. He suggests one meal a day in winter (if one must {225} eat prandium, skip the meat and wine!) and in summer, one should include the prandium (Aestāte vērō et potiōne et cibō saepius corpus eget; ideō prandēre quoque commodum est, I.3).

The main meal of the day was called the cēna. Generally, the Romans talk about three courses to the cēna: gustātiō (appetizer), cēna (the main course), secunda mēnsa (dessert). Again, the poet Horace claims that, at the end of the day, “I go home back home to a bowl of leaks and chickpeas and flatbread” (inde domum mē ad porrī et ciceris referō laganīque catīnum, Sat. 1.6.114–115). At the other end of the spectrum are the satiric meals, such as a dinner at Trimalchio’s house (in Petronius’s first-century AD Satyricon), which consisted of an absurd number, amount, and variety of foodstuffs. The Romans seem to have eaten a good deal of pork. Fish was a prized delicacy (the fish swimming in the fishponds mentioned in Cap. XI were dinner as well as pets). Two poems of Horace satirizing effete and pretentious “foodies” (Satires 2.4 and 2.8) and the survival of a Roman cookery book named after the first-century AD gourmand Apicius (but actually written in the fourth century AD) are some of the many testimonies to the Roman infatuation with ars culīnāria. A staple of Roman cookery was garum, a sauce produced by fermenting fish with salt out in the sun for several months. Garum is also called liquāmen, a word which means a liquid mixture, but comes to be synonymous with the famous (and lucrative) sauce. Aulus Umbricius Scaurus made so much money producing and selling his garum that he put a mosaic depicting a jar of his fish sauce in the atrium of his house. Garum, like wine, came in various qualities and was traded all over the Mediterranean. From time to time, the Romans—mostly in vain—enacted sumptuary laws that tried to curtail extravagance in general and at meals in particular.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

2nd

plūsquam perfectum, -i (n.)

pluperfect (tense)

sonus, ī (m.)

sound

3rd

dolor, dolōris (m.)

pain, grief

latus, lateris (n.)

side

os, ossis (n.)

bone

4th

strepitus, -ūs (m.)

noise, din

tumultus, -ūs (m.)

uproar

Verba

-āre (1)

(ignōrō) ignōrāre, ignōrāvisse, ignōrātum

not to know, be ignorant of

(mīror) mīrārī, mīrātum

wonder at

{226} -ēre (2)

(fleō) flēre, flēvisse, flētum

weep

-ere (3)

(convertō) convertere, convertisse, conversum

turn

(cupiō) cupere, cupīvisse, cupitum

want, desire

(frangō) frangere, frēgisse, frāctum

break

(nōscō) nōscere, nōvisse, nōtum

get to know; pf.: know

(patior) patī, passum

suffer, permit, allow

(percutiō) percutere, percussisse, percussum

strike, hit

(recumbō) recumbere, recubuisse

lie down, lie back

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

aegrōtus, -a, -um

sick

cruentus, -a, -um

bloody, gory

laevus, -a, -um

left

subitus, -a, -um

sudden

3rd

impār (gen. imparis)

unequal

pār (gen. paris)

equal

Coniūnctiōnēs

etsī

even if, although

Adverbia

aliter

otherwise

certō[4]

for certain

cēterum

besides, however

continuō

immediately

dēnuō

anew, again

intus

within

prīmō

at first

subitō

suddenly

valdē

strongly, very (much)

Praepositiōnēs

iūxtā (prp. + acc.)

next to, beside

____________

1. Cf. prīmum, l.68, adv. “first.”

2. Finite: that is, verbs which have a personal ending limiting their meaning.

3. Fēstus.

4. Cf: certē: certainly, at any rate.

{227} XXV. Thēseus et Mīnōtaurus

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Imperative of Deponent Verbs

b. Accusative and Infinitive

i. velle

ii. iubēre (continued)

2. Participle Perfect (deponents)

3. Nouns: Case Use

a. Locative

i. small islands

ii. plural nouns

b. Ablative of Respect

c. Ablative of Manner

d. Objective Genitive

e. oblīvīscī with Genitive/Accusative

4. Adverbs: Adverbs of Place

5. Points of Style

a. quī = et is

b. bene/male velle

Greek Mythology: Theseus and the Minotaur

In this and the next chapter, we will leave the family and read some well-known Greek myths. These thrilling stories have fascinated not only the Romans, but also readers through the ages, and many poets and artists have drawn inspiration from the narrative art of the Greeks.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Adverbs of Place

In this chapter, we add to your store of adverbs signaling place that respond to the questions:

{228} ubi?

hīc (Cap. III) ibi:

Ibi nāvis mea parāta est. (l.93–94)

illīc (Cap. VII)

Notā Bene: The accent on illīc is on the ultima (illíc): see Cap. VII.

unde?

hinc (Cap. XXIII)

illinc (Cap. XXIII): Nēmō quī tāle aedificium semel intrāvit rūrsus illinc exīre potest. (ll.30–31)

quō?

hūc: Auxiliō huius fīlī hūc ad mē redībis (ll.73–74)

illūc: hūc et illūc currēns (l.110)

Notā Bene: Illinc and illūc, like illīc, are pronounced with the accent on the ultima.

Velle + Accusative and Infinitive

Like iubēre, the verb velle can take the accusative + infinitive construction:

Tē hīc manēre volō

want you to… (ll.2–3)

Quam fābulam mē tibi nārrāre vīs?

do you want me to… (ll.2–4)

Ablative of Respect (continued from Cap. XI)

You have learned (Caps. XI, XIX, XXII) that the ablative case is used to show the respect in which something is true:

Nec modo pede, sed etiam capite aeger est. (Cap. XI, l.55)

Tū sōlus amōre meō dignus erās. (Cap. XIX, l.111)

Vōx tua difficilis est audītū. (Cap. XXII, ll.45–46)

Similarly, a new name can be presented with the ablative nōmine (“by name,” abl. of respect), e.g.:

mōnstrum terribile, nōmine Mīnōtaurus (ll.25–26)

parva īnsula nōmine Naxus

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Locative (continued)

Small islands:

You have learned (Caps. VI, XIX) that for the names of cities and towns, and the nouns domus, rus, and humus, place where, place to which, and place from {229} which are expressed by the plain ablative (unde, from where), accusative (quō, to where), and locative (ubi, where) without prepositions. This rule applies also to the names of small islands, of which Naxos (Naxus) is an example:

acc.

Naxum = ad īnsulam Naxum (l.99)

abl.

Naxō = ab/ex īnsulā Naxō (l.100)

loc.

Nāxī = in īnsulā Naxō (l.132)

Large islands (like Crete), however, still require prepositions.

Naxō in Crētām

ē Crētā Athēnās

Plural nouns

In Cap. VI, you learned about constructions of place with the names of cities and towns. The place-names mentioned in the story can be found on the map of Greece.

Among the names of towns, note the plural forms Athēnae and Delphī:

nom.

Athēnae, Delphī

acc.

Athēnās, Delphōs

abl.

Athēnīs, Delphīs

The accusative and ablative, as you know, serve to express motion to and from the town: Athēnās, “to Athens,” Athēnīs, “from Athens.”

But the locative of plural town names has the same form as the ablative, so that Athēnīs can also mean “from Athens” or “in Athens” (e.g., the equivalent of in urbe Athēnīs):

Thēseus Athēnīs vīvēbat. (ll.51–52)

Context will tell you when to interpret as locative (place where) or ablative (place from which).

Ablative of Manner (Ablātīvus Modī)

The ablative can express the way or manner in which an action is done, as you see in lines 142–143:

Quī multōs annōs Athēnās magnā cum glōriā rēxit. (“with great glory”)

We saw this construction much earlier but without a preposition:

Vocābulum “īnsula” dēclinātur hōc modō. (“in this way”) (Cap. IX, l.90)

Mārcus perterritus ad vīllam currit et magnā vōce clāmat. (“with a great voice,” “loudly”) (Cap. X, ll.111–112)

{230} Notā Bene: The preposition cum in the ablātīvus modī is optional if the noun is modified by an adjective (magnā cum glōriā, magnā vōce, hōc modō). If there is no adjective, cum must be used (e.g., cum glōriā).

Objective/Subjective Genitive

Transitive verbs like timēre and amāre are generally used with an object in the accusative, e.g.:

mortem timēre

patriam amāre

Nouns and adjectives (including participles used as adjectives) that are derived from verbs, e.g., timor (from timēre) and amor (from amāre), can be combined with a genitive to denote what is the object of that verb (e.g., fear or love of something/someone).

timor mortis

fear of death (l.77)

amor patriae

love of country (l.86)

Such a genitive is called an objective genitive. Other examples are:

timor mōnstrōrum (ll.21–22): timor < timēre

expugnātiō urbis (ll.45–46): expugnātiō < expugnāre

cupiditās pecūniae (ll.122–123): cupiditās < cupere

cupidus aurī atque sanguinis (ll.44–47) = quī cupit aurum atque sanguinem

patriae amāns (l.51) = quī patriam amat

Iubēre + Accusative and Infinitive (continued)

You have seen several examples of the accusative and infinitive with the verb iubēre.

An active infinitive expresses what a person is to do:

Medicus Quīntum linguam ostendere iubet. (Cap. XI, ll.69–70)

A passive infinitive expresses what is to be done to a person, like dūcī in:

[Rēx] eum (ā mīlitibus) in labyrinthum dūcī iussit: “ordered him to be taken into the labyrinth” (l.59)

Perfect Participle of Deponents

You know (Cap. XIV) that present participles can have an object:

Dāvus cubiculum intrāns (l.25)

Mārcus oculōs aperiēns (ll.37–38)

{231} In the same way, the perfect participle of deponent verbs (being active in meaning) can be used with the subject of the sentence to express what a person has/had done or did:

haec locūta Ariadna… (“having said/after saying this…”) (l.74) Thēseus fīlum Ariadnae secūtus… (“having followed…”) (ll.84–85) Aegeus arbitrātus… (“who believed…”) (ll.137–138)

Compare

An ablative absolute with a perfect passive participle:

Hīs dictīs, Ariadna Thēseō fīlum longum dedit: (literally) “these things having been said, Ariadna…”

A nominative feminine singular perfect participle of a deponent verb, which is active in meaning:

haec locūta, Ariadna Thēseō fīlum longum dedit: “Ariadna, having spoken these things…”

Points of Style

Quī = et is

A relative pronoun at the beginning of a sentence functions as a demonstrative pronoun referring to a word in the preceding sentence. That is, the relative can be a transitional, connecting word, e.g.:

Thēseus Athēnīs vīvēbat. Quī (= “and he”) nūper Athēnās vēnerat. (ll.51–52)

Labyrinthus ā Daedalō, virō Athēniēnsī, aedificātus erat. Quī iam antequam ex urbe Athēnīs in Crētam vēnit, complūrēs rēs mīrābilēs fēcerat. (l.34)

Mīnōs autem fīliam virginem habēbat, cui nōmen erat Ariadna. Quae (“and she”) cum prīmum Thēseum cōnspexit, eum amāre coepit cōnstituitque eum servāre. (ll.60–62)

Thēseus rēx Athēniēnsium factus est. Quī multōs annōs Athēnās magnā cum glōriā rēxit. (ll.141–143)

Bene/male velle

The idiomatic expressions bene velle (“to wish someone well”) and male velle (“to wish someone ill”) take a dative of person. From the participle (bene volēns and male volēns) come the English words “benevolent” and “malevolent.” Example:

Rēx enim Athēniēnsibus male volēbat. (ll.48–49)

{232} Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Imperative of Deponent Verbs

The imperative of deponent verbs ends in:

• -re in the singular (cons.-stems -ere)

• -minī in the plural (cons.-stems -iminī)

Notā Bene:

• The plural imperative of deponents looks identical to the 2nd plural indicative: sequiminī

• The singular imperative of deponents looks like a present active infinitive: sequere

You have already seen examples of the singular imperative of deponents (ending in -re) in Cap. XXIV, e.g.:

Intuēre pedēs meōs, Syra! (ll.28–29)

loquere mēcum! (l.41)

immō laetāre. (l.44)

In this chapter, Theseus says to Ariadne (singular imperative):

Opperīre mē! (l.75) Et tū sequere mē! Proficīscere mēcum Athēnās! (ll.95–96)

To his countrymen, Theseus uses the plural imperative (ll.92–93):

Laetāminī, cīvēs meī!

Intuēminī gladium meum cruentum!

Sequiminī mē ad portum!

Oblīvīscī with Genitive/Accusative

The verb oblīvīscī can be completed both by an accusative direct object and by the genitive. Oblīvīscī can take an accusative when the object is a thing:

Quis tam facile prōmissum oblīvīscitur quam vir quī fēminam amāvit? (ll.119–120)

Redeō ad nārrātiōnem fābulae, quam prope oblīta sum. (ll.129–130)

When oblīvīscī means “disregard,” “don’t be mindful of,” it takes a genitive:

oblīvīscere illīus virī! (l.126)

Nōn facile est amōris antīquī oblīvīscī. (l.128)

{233} Nāvigandum, fugiendum

The forms nāvigandum and fugiendum (ll.94, 97) will be taken up in Cap. XXVI.

Recēnsiō: Adverbs of Place

ubi?

in what place?

quō? to what place?

ibi

in that place, there

(eō: to that place: Cap. XXVIII)

illīc

in that place

illūc to that place[1]

hīc

in this place

hūc to this place

unde?

from what place?

(inde: from that place: Cap. XXIX)

illinc

from that place

hinc

from this place

hūc atque illūc

here and there (to this place and to that)

hīc atque illīc

here and there (on this side and that)

More adverbs

brevī (brevī tempore)

in a short time

quotannīs

every year

ūnā cum + abl.

together with

Studia Rōmāna

Syra alludes to several famous Greek myths before settling on the story of Theseus and the Minotaur. Greek literature and stories became an integral part of Roman culture (as Horace wrote, “After Greece was captured, she captivated her uncultivated conqueror and brought culture to unsophisticated Latium”[2]). Greek exempla are often put in service of illustrating Roman moral precepts (although Syra uses the narrative of Theseus and Ariadne as a “misery loves company” solace for her own disappointment in love).

The boy who wanted to drive the chariot of the sun god (an fābulam dē puerō quī cupīvit regere equōs quī currum Sōlis per caelum trahunt? ll.6–7) was Phaëthōn, the son of Helios, the god who drove the chariot of the sun through the sky each day (about whom you will learn more in the next chapter). She next refers to Homer’s Iliad, the story of the Trojan war and the most famous Greek epic in antiquity. (An cupis audīre fābulam dē Achille, duce Graecōrum, quī Hectorem, ducem Trōiānum, interfēcit atque corpus eius mortuum post {234} currum suum trāxit circum moenia urbis Trōiae? ll.8–11). “Achilles, the best of the Greeks, killed Hector, the best of the Trojans, and then dragged his body around the walls of Troy.” Finally she asks Quintus if he wants to hear about Romulus, a story you read about in the notes to Cap. IX (an fābulam dē Rōmulō, quī prīma moenia Rōmāna aedificāvit… ll.11–13).

The two great heroes of the Greek mainland were Herakles (Latin: Hercules) in the south among the Dorians in the Peloponnese and Theseus among the Athenians in Attica. Inspired by the renown of Herakles’s prowess, Theseus looked for his own adventures. Although the twelve labors of Herakles are more famous, Theseus also performed several labors—seven before the defeat of the Minotaur. Afterward, he continued his adventures, many of them with his best friend Pirithous. Their last undertaking together was a journey to the underworld to capture Persephone, where they were trapped. Herakles saved Theseus, but Pirithous remained in Hades. Near the end of the first century BC, the poet Horace used the image of Theseus’s inability to free his friend from Hades as a marker of the finality of death (IV.7.27–28):

nec Lēthaea valet Thēseus abrumpere cārō vincula Pīrithoo.[3]

The prolific Greek writer Plurarch (first–second century AD) wrote parallel biographies of famous Greeks and Romans. His life of Theseus, as founder of Athens, is paired with that of Romulus, as founder of Rome. The Greek playwright Euripides (fifth century BC) wrote a play about Theseus and his son Hippolytus, and Theseus makes frequent appearances in Greek vase painting. Ovid (43 BC–AD 17/18) includes Theseus in several poems (the Hērōidēs, the Ars Amātōria, the Metamorphōsēs).

There are always variations on myths. In one of the variations of the Theseus and Ariadna myth, Ariadna is rescued and marries Dionysius (Roman: Bacchus), the god of wine.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

fābula, -ae

story

glōria, -ae

glory

mora, -ae

delay

2nd

aedificium, -ī

building

agnus, -ī

lamb

auxilium, -ī

help, aid

{235} fīlum, -ī

thread

labyrinthus, -ī

labyrinth

mōnstrum, -ī

monster

saxum, -ī

rock

taurus, -ī

bull

3rd

cīvis, cīvis (m./f.)

citizen

cupiditās, cupiditātis (f.)

desire

expugnātiō, expugnātiōnis (f.)

conquest

lītus, lītoris (n.)

shore

moenia, moenium (n. pl.)

walls

mors, mortis (f.)

death

nārrātiō, nārrātiōnis (f.)

story

nex, necis (f.)

death

rēx, rēgis (m.)

king

4th

cōnspectus, -ūs (m.)

sight, view

currus, -ūs (m.)

chariot

exitus, -ūs (m.)

way out, end

Verba

Notā Bene: Not all verbs have all principal parts (e.g., maerēre and patēre exist only in the present system).

-āre (1)

(aedificō) aedificāre, aedificāvisse, aedificātum

build

(necō) necāre, necāvisse, necātum

kill

(vorō) vorāre, vorāvisse, vorātum

devour

-ēre (2)

(maereō) maerēre

grieve

(pateō) patēre (intr.)

lie open

(polliceor) pollicērī, pollicitum

promise

-ere (3)

(cōnstituō) cōnstituere, cōnstituisse, cōnstitūtum

decide, fix

(dēscendō) dēscendere, dēscendisse, dēscēnsum

descend

(dēserō) dēserere, dēseruisse, dēsertum

leave, desert

(incipiō) incipere, coepisse, coeptum

begin

(interficiō) interficere, interfēcisse, interfectum

kill

(oblīviscor) oblīvīscī, oblītum

forget

(occīdō) occīdere, occīdisse, occīsum

kill

{236} (prōspiciō) prōspicere, prōspexisse, prōspectum

look out, look ahead

(regō) regere, rēxisse, rēctum

rule

(trahō) trahere, trāxisse, tractum

drag

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

cupidus, -a, -um

desirous

parātus, -a, -um

ready

saevus, -a, -um

savage

timidus, -a, -um

timid

3rd

complūrēs, -e

very many

humilis, -e

low

mīrābilis, -e

wonderful, marvelous

terribilis, -e

terrible

Adverbia

brevī

in a short time

forte

by chance

hūc

to this place

ibi

there, in that place

illūc

to that place

ōlim

once, long ago

quotannīs

every year

____________

1. Like illīc, illūc is accented on the ultima (i.e., originally illūce).

2. Epist. 2.1.156: Graecia capta ferum victōrem cēpit et artīs/intulit āgrestī Latiō.

3. Lēthaeus, -a, -um: belonging to Lēthē, the river from which the dead drink and thereby forget the past; abrumpere = ab + rumpere (Cap. XXII); vinculum = catēnam (Cap. XXII).

{237} XXVI. Daedalus et Īcarus

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Future Imperative (esse)

b. vidērī

2. Verbal Noun: Gerund (gerundium)

3. Adjectives

a. Adjectives in -er

b. Irregular Superlatives summus and īnfimus

4. Pronoun

a. quisquam

b. Summary of Negative Expressions

5. Points of Style: Participles

Daedalus and Icarus

The story of the boy Icarus, who soared up to the scorching sun only to be plunged into the sea as the sun melted the wax that fastened his wings, has always been admired as an image of the penalty for arrogance and rashness. Syra, too, uses the story to warn Quintus to be careful.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Gerund

The gerund is a verbal noun that corresponds to English verbal nouns in “-ing.” It is 2nd declension, singular neuter. You have already met the gerund in Cap. XXV:

Ibi nāvis mea parāta est ad nāvigandum. (ll.93–94)

Parāta sum ad fugiendum. (l.97)

{238} The words nāvigandum and fugiendum are gerunds. The gerund:

• is characterized by -nd-added to the present stem

before consonant- and ī-stems (3rd and 4th conjugations), a short e is inserted before -nd-:

ad vīv|end|um

ad audi|end|um

• corresponds to English verbal nouns in “-ing”

• exists only in the singular oblique cases (acc., gen., dat., abl.) of the noun:

accusative ends in -ndum (pugna|nd|um)

the genitive in -ndī (pugna|nd|ī)

the dative and ablative in -ndō (pugna|nd|ō)

The infinitive supplies the missing nominative of the verbal noun.

Uses of the Gerund

In this chapter, you find several examples of the gerund in the different cases (except the dative, which is rarely used). The following examples come from the whole chapter, not just Lēctiō Prīma:

• The accusative is only found after ad and expresses purpose, e.g.:

Hodiē plūs temporis ad nārrandum nōn habeō.

I do not have more time today for recounting (stories). (ll.10–11)

Haud longum tempus nōbīs reliquum est ad vīvendum.

There is not much time left to us for living. (l.28)

ūna via nōbīs patet ad fugiendum.

one road lies open to us for fleeing. (l.36)

• The genitive occurs:

with nouns, e.g.:

fīnem nārrandī facere (= fīnem nārrātiōnis f.)

to make an end of telling (l.13)

cōnsilium fugiendī (= cōnsilium fugae)

a plan for escaping (ll.55–56)

Haud difficilis est ars volandī.

The art of flying is hardly difficult. (l.72)

Tempus dormiendī est.

It is time for sleeping. (ll.122–123) (= tempus est dormīre)

or as an objective genitive with the adjectives cupidus and studiōsus:

cupidus audiendī studiōsus volandī

desirous of hearing (ll.17–18, cf. l.108) eager for flying (l.43)

{239} causā + a preceding genitive of the gerund denotes cause or purpose:

Nōn sōlum dēlectandī causā, vērum etiam monendī causā, nārrātur fābula.

Not only for the sake of delighting, but even for the sake of warning, is the story being told. (ll.134–135)

• The ablative of the gerund is found after in and dē:

in volandō

in flying (l.80)

dē amandō

about loving (l.154)

or alone as the ablative of means or cause:

Puerī scrībere discunt scrībendō.

Boys learn to write by writing.

Fessus sum ambulandō.

I am tired out by walking. (l.24; cf. ll.129–130)

Adjectives in -er

Adjectives that have -er in the m. nom. sing. are found among 1st/2nd declension adjectives (as you learned in Cap. V):

niger, gr|a, gr|um

miser, er|a, er|um

līber, er|a, er|um

As well as among 3rd declension adjectives (as you learned in Cap. XIII):

September, (gen.) Septembris

Octōber, (gen.) Octōbris

November, (gen.) Novembris

December, (gen.) Decembris

The following are examples of 3rd declension adjectives in -er that have three endings in the nominative (-er, (e)ris, (e)re):

celer, celer|is, celer|e

ācer, ācr|is, ācr|e

Notā Bene: Look to the feminine and neuter nominative singulars to see whether an adjective in -er has the e (like celer, celeris) or lacks it (like ācer, ācris).

Adjectives in -er have -errimus in the superlative, e.g., celerrimus, ācerrimus.

Summary of 3rd Declension Adjective forms

Third declension adjectives exhibit three different nominative groups:

a. One nominative form: adjectives ending in -ns and -x, like prūdēns and audāx (gen. prūdent|is, audāc|is) have the same form in the nominative masculine, feminine, and neuter:

{240} vir/fēmina/cōnsilium prūdēns

vir/fēmina/cōnsilium audāx

b. Two nominative forms: adjectives ending in -is, -e, like brevis, breve or gravis, grave, have one form for the masculine and feminine, and one for the neuter:

vir/fēmina gravis; cōnsilium grave

hōra/mēnsis brevis; tempus breve

c. Three nominative forms: adjectives ending in -er (see above) have a different nominative ending for masculine, feminine, and neuter:

Vir ācer; fēmina ācris; cōnsilium ācre

Negative Expressions

In Cap. III, you learned that Latin uses the conjunction neque to express “and not, but not” (instead of et nōn and sed nōn). Similarly, in Cap. XIX, we found neque ūllus for “and no one,” not “et nūllus.” This chapter adds two more such negations:

• The pronoun quis-quam, quid-quam (“anyone,” “anything”) is likewise used in a negative context. Latin does not express “and no one” and “and nothing” by et nēmō, et nihil, but by neque quisquam (l.26, “and no one”), nec quidquam (Cap. XXVII, l.106, “and nothing”);

Quidquam is changed by assimilation to quicquam

• Similarly, et is avoided before numquam by using neque umquam (Cap. XXIII, l.26, “and never”).

Summary

and not/but not

neque/nec

and no one

neque/nec ūllus

and no one

neque/nec quisquam

and nothing

neque/nec quicquam

and never

neque umquam

āēr

The 3rd declension masculine noun āēr is borrowed from the Greek and keeps its Greek ending -a in the acc. sing. āer|a (l.22 = āer|em).

nom.

āēr

acc.

āer|a

gen.

āer|is

{241} Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Irregular Superlatives summus and īnfimus

• summus (l.79) comes from super(us), -era, -erum (comparative superior)

• īnfimus (l.77) comes from īnfer(us), -era, -erum (comparative īnferior)

Future Imperative

Instead of the short imperative es! es|te! of esse, the longer form in -tō, -tōte is often preferred: es|tō! es|tōte!

Cautus estō, mī fīlī! (l.81; cf. l.138)

In other verbs, this so-called future imperative is not very common (it will be treated in Cap. XXXIII).

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Vidērī

Vidērī, the passive of vidēre, is used (with nom. + inf.) in the sense of “seem (to be),” e.g.:

īnsulae haud parvae sunt, quamquam parvae esse videntur. (ll.92–94)

In this function, a dative is often added, e.g.:

Mēlos īnsula nōn tam parva est quam tibi vidētur. (ll.94–95, = quam tū putās; cf. ll.96–97, 125);

puer sibi vidētur volāre (ll.143–145, = sē volāre putat).

Points of Style: Participles

This chapter offers many examples of how participles contribute to the strongly verbal nature of Latin:

Daedalus in labyrinthō inclūsus errābat. (l.19)

Nēmō nōs volantēs persequī poterit. (l.42)

Tum puerum ōsculātus, “Parātī sumus ad volandum,” inquit. (ll.75–76)

Haec verba locūtus Daedalus cum fīliō sūrsum ē labyrinthō ēvolāvit. (ll.83–84)

Aliquī pāstor, quī forte suspiciēns eōs tamquam magnās avēs volantēs vīdit. (ll.85–86)

novā lībertāte dēlectātī (l.89)

{242} Īcarus dēspiciēns multitūdinem īnsulārum mīrātus est. (ll.90–91) dēspiciēbat mīrāns (l.106)

Sōlem in caelō serēnō lūcentem suspexit. (ll.107–108)

Puer territus, lacertōs nūdōs quatiēns, in mare cecidit. (ll.115–116)

lībertātem quaerēns mortem invēnit. (l.122)

quī currum patris regere cōnātus item dē summō caelō cecidit (ll.127–128)

Hīs verbīs puerō monitō (l.141)

Neque Quīntus eam abeuntem revocat. (l.142)

Studia Rōmāna

The fall of Icarus was a very popular motif in ancient literature, and enjoyed a long afterlife in art and literature. The most famous representation is perhaps Pieter Brueghel the Elder’s (sixteenth century) painting, The Fall of Icarus. Ovid tells the story of Daedalus and Icarus at length in the Metamorphōsēs (Book 8), but the stories about Daedalus go all the way back to Homer’s Iliad.

At the close of the narrative, Syra follows Roman practice by drawing a moral lesson for Quintus: ecce omnem fābulam habēs dē puerō temerāriō quī lībertātem quaerēns mortem invēnit (ll.121–122). Daedalus, along with Hercules, also figures as an example of human arrogance in one of Horace’s Odes (1.3.34–40)

expertus vacuum Daedalus āera

pinnīs nōn hominī datīs;

perrūpit Acheronta Herculeus labor.

nīl mortālibus arduī est:

caelum ipsum petimus stultitiā neque

per nostrum patimur scelus

īrācunda Iovem ponere fulmina.

Vocabulary

āēr, Cap. X; vacuus, Cap. IV; pinna = penna; perrumpere < per + rumpere (Cap. XXII); Acheron, Acherontis, m.: a river in the underworld; Acheronta is accusative; Herculeus, -a, -um: of Hercules; labor, -ōris, m.: labor, work (Cap. XXVII); mortālis, -e: mortal (Cap. XXVIII); arduus, -a, -um: difficult (Cap. XXXIII); stultitia, -ae < stultus, -a, -um (Cap. XI); patī, passum: Cap. XXIV; scelus, sceleris, n.: crime, wickedness (Cap. XXXI); īrācundus, -a, -um = prone to anger (cf. irātus, Cap. III); fulmen, fulminis, n.: lightning bolt (cf. Cap. XVI fulgur: flash of lightning); ponere = dēponere: put down, set aside.

Notes

Expertus: understand est

{243} Nil arduī: cf Cap. XVI: Partitive genitive with paulum, multum; nīl = nihil

Iūppiter, king of the gods, is declined as follows

Iūppiter

Iovem

Iovis

Iovi

Iove

Quintus says the story of Icarus delights him more than the one about the son of the sun god (ll.125–129 and 25.6–7). He refers to Phaëthōn, the son of Helios (the sun god) and a mortal woman, Clymenē. Helios promised to give Phaethon whatever he wanted. Phaethon wanted, as it were, the keys to the chariot of the sun, even though driving the four horses across the sky was far beyond his strength and experience. When the boy began driving erratically, bringing the sun now too close to, now too far from the earth, Juppiter had no choice but to strike the boy from the sky. Cicero (dē Officiīs 3.94) uses the story of Phaethon as an example of promises that should not be kept because they are harmful to the recipient. He ends with quantō melius fuerat in hōc promissum patris nōn esse servātum: “how much better it would have been in this case had the promise of the father not been kept!”

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

fuga, -ae

flight, a running away

nātūra, -ae

nature

paenīnsula, -ae

peninsula

penna, -ae

feather, wing

2nd

cōnsilium, -ī

plan

gerundium, -ī

gerund

lacertus, -ī

arm

3rd

ars, artis (f.)

art, skill

carcer, carceris (m.)

prison

ignis, ignis (m.)

fire

lībertās, lībertātis (f.)

freedom

multitūdō, multitūdinis (f.)

large number, multitude

opus, operis (n.)

work

orbis, orbis (f.)

circle, orbit

4th

cāsus, -ūs (m.)

fall, event, (grammatical) case

{244} Verba

-āre (1)

(aberrō) aberrāre, aberrāvisse, aberrātum

wander away, stray

(ēvolō) ēvolāre, ēvolāvisse, ēvolātum

fly away

(excōgitō) excōgitāre, excōgitāvisse, excōgitātum

think out, devise

(imitor) imitārī, imitātum

imitate

(iuvō) iuvāre, iūvisse

help, delight

(levō) levāre, levāvisse, levātum

lift, raise

(revocō) revocāre, revocāvisse, revocātum

call back

-ēre (2)

(videor) vidērī, vīsum

be seen, seem

-ere (3)

(accidō) accidere, accīdisse

happen, occur

(cōnsūmō) cōnsūmere, cōnsūmpsisse, cōnsūmptum

consume, spend

(cōnsequor) cōnsequī, cōnsecūtum

follow, overtake

(cōnficiō) cōnficere, cōnfēcisse, confectum

make, accomplish

(dēspiciō) dēspicere, dēspexisse, dēspectum

look down (at)

(effugiō) effugere, effūgisse

escape

(fīgō) fīgere, fīxisse, fīxum

fix, fasten

(perficiō) perficere, perfēcisse, perfectum

complete, accomplish

(persequor) persequī, persecūtum

follow, pursue

(quatiō) quatere

shake

(suspiciō) suspicere, suspexisse, suspectum

look up (at)

(ūrō) ūrere, ussisse, ustum

burn

-ire (4)

(inveniō) invenīre, invēnisse, inventum

come upon, find

(molliō) mollīre, mollīvisse, mollītum

make soft, soften

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

cautus, -a, -um

cautious

īnfimus, -a, -um

lowest

līber, lībera, līberum

free

propinquus, -a, -um

near, close

reliquus, -a, -um

remaining, left

studiōsus, -a, -um (+ gen.)

interested in

{245} summus, -a, -um

highest

temerārius, -a, -um

reckless

3rd

audāx (gen. audācis)

bold

celer, celeris, celere

swift

ingēns (gen. ingentis)

huge, vast

Prōnōmina

quisquam, quidquam

anyone, anything

Adverbia

deorsum

down

haud

not, scarcely

paene

nearly, almost

quidem

indeed

quoniam

since

sūrsum

up

tamquam

as, like, as though

vērum

but

Coniūnctiōnēs

sīn

but if

Praepositiōnēs

trāns (prp. + acc.)

across

{246} XXVII. Rēs Rūsticae

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Moods in Latin

b. Subjunctive Mood

i. Present Subjunctive: Active/Passive

ii. Verbs of Demanding and Effecting: verba postulandī et cūrandī

iii. Present Subjunctive of Irregular esse

c. Translating the Subjunctive

2. Nouns: Case Uses

a. Ablative

i. Ablative of Instrument

ii. Ablative of Separation

iii. Prepositions with Ablative

1. prae

2. prō

3. abs

b. Accusative: Preposition circā

c. Locative: Summary

3. Adverb: parum

4. Conjunctions

a. ut

b. quam + the Superlative

5. Alia

a. nē…quidem: not…even

b. locus, locī/loca

Julius’s Estate

Julius is the owner of a large estate in the Alban Hills, Mōns Albānus, near Tusculum and the Alban Lake, Lacus Albānus. The running of the farm is left to tenant farmers, colōnī. Julius follows their work with great interest when he is in residence in his Alban villa. A typical wealthy Roman, he divides his time {247} between Rome and his country estate. Here we meet him walking in his fields and vineyards, questioning his men about the quality of the crops.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Ablative of Instrument (Ablātīvus Īnstrūmentī) (continued)

The ablative of instrument (Caps. VI and VIII) appears in the discussion of the use of the farmers’ tools (īnstrūmentum) (ll.18–20):

Frūmentum falce metitur.

Quō īnstrūmentō serit agricola?

The verb ūtī (“use”) takes the ablative of instrument, not the accusative (ll.20–22):

Quī serit nūllō īnstrūmentō ūtitur praeter manum.

Quī arat arātrō ūtitur.

Quī metit falce ūtitur.

Quī serit manū suā ūtitur.

In addition to “use,” ūtī also means “enjoy,” “treat,” etc.:

Amīcīs meīs bene ūtor.

I treat my friends well.

Vīnō numquam ūtor.

I never use (drink, enjoy) wine.

Locus, plural: locī/loca

Instead of the regular plural locī of locus, you often find the neuter form loca, -ōrum (l.30), which is usual in the concrete sense (places, localities); locī is used for passages in books, topics, and points of argument.

Italia est terra fertilis, sed multa loca Italiae nōn arantur. (ll.30–31)

Theophrastus cum tractat locōs ab Aristotele ante tractātōs…; “when Theophrastus treats subjects previously treated by Aristotle…”[1]

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Summary: Locative

{248} Subjunctive Mood

In addition to many new words, you learn important new verb forms in this chapter. Compare the sentences:

Servus tacet et audit.

Dominus imperat ut servus taceat et audiat.

The first sentence uses the indicative mood (Latin modus indicātīvus)—tace|t and audi|t—to tell us what the slave actually does. The second sentence uses the subjunctive mood (Latin modus coniūnctīvus)—tace|at and audi|at—to express what the master wants his slave to do. Taceat and audiat are the present subjunctive (Latin coniūnctīvus praesentis) of tacēre and audīre.

Moods (Modī) in Latin

Remember, language is an attempt to express thought. So, the mood used in a sentence reflects the way the speaker conceives that thought.

• The indicative (modus indicātīvus) makes a statement or asks a question.[2] The attitude of the speaker is a simple “fact” or “question.”

• The imperative (modus imperātīvus) gives a direct command.

• The subjunctive (modus coniūnctīvus) has various functions, such as expressing the will (volitive) or wish (optative) of the speaker. The subjunctive is used in dependent (subordinate) and independent clauses.

Common subjunctive uses in dependent clauses:

indirect commands (Cap. XXVII)

noun clauses (substantive clauses) (Cap. XXVII)

final (purpose) clauses (Cap. XXVIII)

consecutive (result) clauses (Cap. XXVIII)

cum temporal, cum causal, cum concessive (Cap. XXIX)

Common subjunctive uses in independent clauses:

deliberative questions (Cap. XXIX)

wishes (Cap. XXXII)

Present Subjunctive

Forms of present subjunctive:

• 2nd, 3rd, and 4th conjugations insert -ā/a between the present stem and the personal endings:

active

passive

-a|m

-a|r

-ā|s

-ā|ris

{249} -a|t

-ā|tur

-ā|mus

-ā|mur

-ā|tis

-ā|minī

-a|nt

-a|ntur

• 1st conjugation verbs, whose stems, as you know, end in -ā -, have -ē/e- before the personal endings in the present subjunctive:

-e|m

-e|r

-ē|s

-ē|ris

-e|t

-ē|tur

-ē|mus

-ē|mur

-ē|tis

-ē|minī

-e|nt

-e|ntur

→ In the section GRAMMATICA LATINA of LINGUA LATINA and at the back of this book, you will find examples of verbs with all these endings.

Breviter: The present subjunctive is formed with an e in 1st conjugation verbs, and an a in the other conjugations.

Translating the Subjunctive: The best way to read Latin is not to translate, but to understand in Latin. That requires knowing how your own language works as well as Latin! Then you can say to yourself, How does this work in my language? That may mean there are several ways to translate any given construction. The English translations below aim at showing the variety of interpretations possible. Some may seem rather literal and strained, others too free.

Verba postulandī

While the indicative is used to express that something does actually happen, the subjunctive expresses a desire or effort that something shall happen. Such an indirect command can be introduced by verbs that express an order (verba postulandī):

imperāre

ōrāre

postulāre

monēre

These verba postulandī—verbs that order, ask, warn, etc.—are often followed by object clauses introduced by ut, or, if they are negative (see Section III), by nē (or ut nē); the verb will be in the subjunctive. Examples can be found in the account of Julius’s dealings with his men, e.g.:

Iūlius colōnō imperat ut mercēdem solvat.

Julius orders the farmer to pay his fee/gives an order to the farmer that he pay/commands the farmer in order that he pay. (ll.81–82)

Vōs moneō ut industriē in vīneīs labōrētis. (l.126)

{250} Complements in Verba Postulandī

Notice that the person commanded in each of the three sentences is expressed in a different case:

Iūlius colōnō imperat ut mercēdem solvat. (ll.81–82)

Colōnus eum ōrat ut patientiam habeat. (ll.92–93)

Num uxor abs tē postulat ut tū prō mātre īnfantēs cūrēs? (ll.100–101)

The case of the person ordered depends on the verb used.

Dative (intransitive verbs):

imperāre eī ut

persuādēre eī ut

Ab + ablative (the following verbs suggest “seek from”):

quaerere ab eō ut

petere ab eō ut

postulāre ab eō ut

Accusative (transitive verbs):

rogāre eum ut

ōrāre eum ut

monēre eum ut

Notā Bene: Iubēre (order) does not regularly take an indirect command, but the accusative and infinitive construction. Compare:

Vōs moneō ut industriē in vīneīs labōrētis. (ll.125–126)

Iubeō vōs industriē in vīneīs labōrāre.

Medicus Quīntum ōs aperīre atque linguam ostendere iubet. (Cap. XI, ll.69–70)

Medicus Quīntō imperat ut ōs aperiat atque linguam ostendat.

Ut

Most Latin ut-clauses with the subjunctive correspond to English “that”-clauses.

Remember: ut is also a comparative conjunction, meaning “like” or “as,” and is followed:

• by the indicative:
ut tempestās mare tranquillum turbāvit, ita (as…thus)… (ll.8–9) ut spērō (l.149)
Cūr ille servus mēcum venīre nōn potest ut solet? (Cap. XIV, l.120)

• by a noun adjective:
Oculī lupī in umbrā lūcent ut gemmae et dentēs ut margarītae. (Cap. IX, ll.72–73)
{251} Puer quiētus super lectum iacet ut mortuus. (Cap. XI, ll.103–104) Gallia autem prōvincia Rōmāna est, ut Hispānia, Syria, Aegyptus. (Cap. XII, ll.63–64)
ut saxa…vorāginēs…praedōnēs (Cap. XXVIII, ll.131–132)

Nē…quidem

The negation nē is also used in nē…quidem (“not even”):

Nē in Campāniā quidem plūrēs vīllae sunt. (l.55)

Nē assem quidem habeō. (l.86)

Nē verbum quidem dīc!

Prae, prō, abs

The prepositions prae and prō take the ablative; the basic meaning of both is “before,” from which other meanings are derived (prae ll.63, 83; prō ll.71, 72):

Arātor duōs validōs bovēs quī arātrum trahunt prae sē agit. (ll.13–14)

Quamquam nūllō modō labōrem agricolārum sordidum indignumve esse exīstimat, tamen sē prae agricolīs beātum esse cēnset. (ll.61–63)

Colōnus pallidus prae metū loquī nōn potest. (l.83)

Colōnus est agricola quī nōn suōs, sed aliēnōs agrōs prō dominō absentī colit. (ll.71–72)

Mercēdem dominō solvit prō frūgibus agrōrum. (l.72)

Abs for ab is found only before tē: abs tē:

Cūr nōndum solvistī mercēdem quam ter quaterve iam abs tē poposcī. (ll.79–80 = ā tē).

Ablative of Separation

Note the ablative of separation (without ab) with:

pellere: ut tē agrīs meīs pellant. (l.89)

prohibēre: Nōlī mē officiō meō prohibēre! (ll.173–174)

Parum

The adverb parum often means not “a little” but “too little,” as in the following examples:

Parum temporis habeō ad opus rūsticum. (ll.98–99)

Imber brevis quem hodiē habuimus frūmentō prōfuit quidem, sed parum fuit. (ll.130–131)

{252} Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Verba cūrandī

Verba cūrandī (verbs that show an effort to get something done) can be used to give commands as well:

Verba cūrandī are not always in the imperative, however, but are often followed by object clauses,[3] e.g.:

Calor sōlis nōn ipse per sē efficit ut vīnum bonum sit.

The heat of the sun does not itself through its own agency bring it about that/effect that/accomplish that the wine is good/does not make the wine good. (ll.124–125)

Faciam ut tergum eī doleat.

I will make his back hurt (literally: I will bring it about that the back to him hurts). (l.153)

Like verba postulandī, verba cūrandī are often followed by object clauses introduced by ut, or, if they are negative, by nē (or ut nē) and the subjunctive.

Prīmum cūrā ut uxor et līberī valeant, tum vērō labōrā ut pecūniam solvās.

First of all take care that/make sure that (your) wife and children be well/are well, then surely work to pay the money/work so that you can pay the money. (ll.111–113)

Fac ut ovēs ex agrīs agantur! (ll.175–176)

Officium tuum est cūrāre nē ovēs aberrent nēve ā lupō rapiantur. (ll.161–162)

As appears from the last example, the second of two negative clauses is introduced by nē-ve, i.e., nē with the attached conjunction -ve, which has the same value as vel.

Summary:

ut + subjunctive

command, ask that something happen

nē/ut nē + subjunctive

command, ask that something not happen

{253} Subjunctive of esse

In lines 151–152, we find an example of the irregular present subjunctive of esse:

Ego vērō cūrābō nē ille pāstor neglegēns sit nēve dormiat!

Here are the other forms:

sim

sīmus

sīs

sītis

sit

sint

Quam + the superlative

Quam + superlative (with or without posse) denotes the highest possible degree:

Pāstor quam celerrimē potest ad ovēs suās currit. as quickly as possible (ll.177–178)

Studia Rōmāna

We read about Julius’s villa in Cap. V and now learn that around the hortus lie the fields that support the farm. Iūlius has no doubt inherited the many villas and the house in Rome that had belonged to his father (Pater lūliī…magnam pecūniam habēbat multāsque vīllās magnificās possidēbat praeter domum Rōmānam, Caps. XIX, XXX). It was not unusual for wealthy Romans to own more than one estate (Cicero had several), as agriculture was the noble profession and capital rooted in land was the mark of a gentleman. This attitude persists through Roman history. In the second century BC, Cato had written in his treatise dē Rē Rūsticā, “Our ancestors, when they praised a man as being good, were praising him on these merits: a good farmer and good husbandman” (Māiōrēs nostrī… virum bonum quom (= cum) laudābant, ita laudābant, bonum agricolam bonumque colōnum). In the first century BC, Cicero, in his book On Duties (dē Officiīs), writes, “Of all the pursuits, from which something is acquired, nothing is better than farming, nothing richer, nothing sweeter, nothing worthier of a free man” (Omnium autem rērum, ex quibus aliquid adquīrītur, nihil est agrī cultūrā melius, nihil ūberius, nihil dulcius, nihil homine līberō dignius). Columella (first century AD) still sees agriculture as the only way of making a living worthy of a freeborn man.[4]

Vergil wrote a four-book didactic epic (see Cap. X) on farming, called the Geōrgica (Γεωργικά, Concerning Farming) after his bucolic poems (see Cap. IX) and before his more famous Aenēis (Aeneid). In the beginning of Book II, he praises the life of farmers, beginning with (II.458–460):

{254} Ō fortūnātōs nimium, sua sī bona nōrint,

agricolās! quibus ipsa procul discordibus armīs

fundit humō facilem uictum iustissima tellūs.

Vocabulary

nimium = nimis

nōrint = noverint (condition about which you will learn in Rōma Aeterna): “if they would come to know their good fortune”

discors (genitive: discordis): discordant, harsh

fundere: pour, pour out

victus, ūs: sustenance, nourishment (do not confuse with victum from vincere)

Of course, the situation was not so idyllic for the colōnī, as we see in this chapter. A colōnus is a tenant farmer who signs a lease with the landowner (Julius). Sometimes, the tenant farmers paid the owner for the right to farm; sometimes, they remunerated the owner by giving him part of the produce. Colōnī, as the one in our chapter, can wind up in debt to the farmer and be driven from the farm.

This chapter highlights three important aspects of Roman culture: officium (duty, responsibility: from opus + facere: a labor or duty which one performs), ōtium (leisure time, freedom from responsibility), and negōtium (literally: the lack of ōtium; business, employment). We have already seen the idea of officium in Cap. XX, when Aemilia declares of her coming baby, (l.83–84): “Māter ipsa eum cūrāre et alere dēbet—hoc est mātris officium!” Julius’s inspection of his estate is part of what he sees as his officium (Cap. XX, l.96–97: Meum officium est pecūniam facere ac magnam familiam alere).

A Roman active in city life (as Julius is with his frequent trips to Rome, Cap. XX) would see his praedium not only as the backbone of his finances, but also as an opportunity for ōtium, away from the pressures of city life. At his estate, a paterfamilās has the ōtium after lunch to nap, take a stroll, and bathe (prīmum quiēscit, tum ambulat, dēnique lavātur, ll.1–2). But he also must check his farm. In this he also follows Cato’s advice: When the master has come to the villa, when he has greeted the household god, let him take a tour of the farm on the same day, if he can; if not the same day, then the day after.[5] His farm would have been managed by a combination of slaves and tenant farmers, freemen who pay Julius rent (ll.70–73). Julius behaves himself exactly as Columella teaches: he is stern but not unreasonable with his farmhands (although we might consider beating the shepherd less than reasonable).

{255} Cato’s advice to greet the household god (larem familiārem salūtāre) refers to the protective spirit who guarded the place. You read about the lar familiāris in the notes to Cap. IV.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

agricola, -ae (m.)

farmer

cōpia, -ae

abundance

cūra, -ae

care, concern

lāna, -ae

wool

patientia, -ae

patience

ūva, -ae

grape

vīnea, -ae

vineyard

2nd

ager, agrī

field

arātrum, -ī

plow

colōnus, -ī

(tenant) farmer

coniūnctīvus

subjunctive

frūmentum, -ī

grain

īnstrūmentum, -ī

tool, instrument

negōtium, -ī

business

ōtium, -ī

leisure

pābulum, -ī

fodder

praedium, -ī

estate

vīnum, -ī

wine

3rd

calor, calōris (m.)

heat

falx, falcis (f.)

sickle

frīgus, frīgoris (n.)

chill, cold

frūgēs, frūgum (f. pl.)

crops

grex, gregis (m.)

herd

labor, labōris (m.)

labor, toil

pecus, pecoris (n.)

livestock, cattle

precēs, precum (f. pl.)

prayers

regiō, regiōnis (f.)

region

rūs, rūris (n.)

countryside

sēmen, sēminis (n.)

seed

vītis, vītis (f.)

vine

Verba

-āre (1)

(arō) arāre, arāvisse, arātum

plow

(rigō) rigāre, rigāvisse, rigātum

water

(labōrō) labōrāre, labōrāvisse, labōrātum

work, toil

{256} (exīstimō) exīstimāre, exīstimāvisse, exīstimātum

think

(ōrō) ōrāre, ōrāvisse, ōrātum

beg, pray

-ēre (2)

(cēnseō) cēnsēre, cēnsuisse, cēnsum

think

(noceō) nocēre, nocuisse (intr. + dat.)

harm

(prohibeō) prohibēre, prohibuisse, prohibitum

keep off, prevent

-ere (3)

(cingō) cingere, cīnxīsse, cīnctum

bind round, surround

(colō) colere, coluisse, cultum

cultivate

(crēscō) crēscere, crēvisse

grow

(invehō) invehere, invēxisse, invectum

import

(metō) metere, messuisse, messum

reap, harvest

(neglegō) neglegere, neglēxisse, neglēctum

neglect

(pāscō) pāscere, pāvisse, pāstum

to pasture

(prōiciō) prōicere, prōiēcisse, prōiectum

throw forward

(quiescō) quiescere, quiēvisse

rest

(rapiō) rapere, rapuisse, raptum

tear away, carry off

(serō) serere, sēvisse, satum

sow

(spargō) spargere, sparsisse, sparsum

sprinkle

(ūtor) ūtī, ūsum (+abl.)

use

{257} Irregular

(prōsum) prōdesse, prōfuisse (+dat.)

to be profitable, of advantage

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

amoenus, -a, -um

pleasant (of places)

gravidus, -a, -um

heavy, weighty, pregnant

immātūrus, -a, -um

not ripe

inhūmānus, -a, -um

inhumane

mātūrus, -a, -um

ripe, early

rūsticus, -a, -um

of the country, rustic

siccus, -a, -um

dry

suburbānus, -a, -um

near the city

trīcēsimus, -a, -um

30th

urbānus, -a, -um

of the city, sophisticated

3rd

fertilis, -e

fertile

neglegēns (gen. neglegentis)

careless

patiēns (gen. patientis)

enduring, patient

rudis, -e

rough

Irregular

nēquam/nēquior, nēquius/nēquissimus, -a, -um

worthless

Prōnōmina

quīdam, quaedam, quoddam

a certain

Adverbia

circā

around

dēnique

finally

parum

little, too little, also indecl. noun

prae

before

tantum

only, so much, also indecl. noun

Coniūnctiōnēs

nē

negative conjunction

-ve

or (=vel)

Praepositiōnēs

abs = ā, ab (before te)

circā (prp. + acc.)

around

prae (prp. + abl.)

before, in front of, in comparison with

prō (prp. + abl.)

before, in front of, on behalf of

____________

1. Cicero, de Finibus 1.2.6.

2. In Cap. XXIX you will learn about questions in the subjunctive (deliberative questions).

3. An “object clause” is a dependent clause that functions as the object of the verb.

4. 1.10: superest…genus līberāle et ingenuun reī familiāris augendae, quod ex agricolātiōne contingit.

5. 2.1: Paterfamiliās ubi ad vīllam vēnit, ubi lārem familiārem salūtāvit, fundum eōdem diē, sī potest, circumeat; sī nōn eōdem diē, at postrīdiē.

{258} XXVIII. Perīcula Maris

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Imperfect Subjunctive: Active and Passive

b. Tense in the Subjunctive

c. Uses of the Subjunctive

i. Purpose (Final) Clauses

ii. Result (Consecutive) Clauses

d. Indirect Statement vs. verba postulandī

e. velle, nōlle, mālle

f. īre (Present Subjunctive)

2. Pronoun: Reflexive (continued)

Medus and Lydia at Sea

In this chapter and the next, you hear more about Medus and Lydia. When the violent storm dies down, their ship sails on over the open sea. Lydia shows Medus the little book that she has brought with her and reads aloud from it, and in this way, you become acquainted with the oldest Latin translation of the New Testament, used by St. Jerome in the fourth century in his Latin version of the Bible (the so-called Vulgate, Vulgāta, the “popular” version).

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Imperfect Subjunctive

When Lydia explains the power of Jesus Christ to Medus, she uses verba cūrandī:

Quī medicus verbīs sōlīs potest facere ut hominēs caecī videant, surdī audiant, mūtī loquantur, claudī ambulent? (ll.30–32)

Compare what happens to the verb in the subjunctive clause when the main verb is in the past:

{259} In Iūdaeā Iēsūs nōn sōlum faciēbat ut caecī vidērent, surdī audīrent, mūtī loquerentur, vērum etiam verbīs efficiēbat ut mortuī surgerent et ambulārent. (ll.34–37)

When the main verb refers to the past, the tense of the subjunctive changes as well. Just as the present subjunctive tells us the verb is incomplete in present time, the imperfect subjunctive tells us the verb is incomplete in past time (see below, Sequence of Tense).

Forming the Imperfect Subjunctive

The imperfect subjunctive is formed by inserting -rē- (in consonant-stems -erē) between the present stem and the personal endings. The imperfect subjunctive thus looks exactly like the present infinitive plus personal endings.

1st, 2nd, and 4th conjugations insert -rē-/-re between the present stem and the personal endings, e.g.:[1]

ambulā|re|m

vidē|re|m

audī|re|m

ambulā|rē|s

vidē|rē|s

audī|rē|s

ambulā|re|t

vidē|re|t

audī|re|t

ambulā|rē|mus

vidē|rē|mus

audī|rē|mus

ambulā|rē|tis

vidē|rē|tis

audī|rē|tis

ambulā|re|nt

vidē|re|nt

audī|re|nt

3rd conjugation inserts -erē-/-ere between the present stem and the personal endings:

surg|ere|m

fac|ere|m

surg|erē|s

fac|erē|s

surg|ere|t

fac|ere|t

surg|erē|mus

fac|erē|mus

surg|erē|tis

fac|erē|tis

surg|ere|nt

fac|ere|nt

Summary of Imperfect Subjunctive Endings

active

sing.

1st

-(ā, ē, e, ī) re|m

2nd

-(ā, ē, e, ī) rē|s

3rd

-(ā, ē, e, ī) re|t

pl.

1st

-(ā, ē, e, ī) rē|mus

2nd

-(ā, ē, e, ī) rē|tis

3rd

-(ā, ē, e, ī) re|nt

{260} passive

sing.

1st

-(ā, ē, e, ī) re|r

2nd

-(ā, ē, e, ī) rē|ris

3rd

-(ā, ē, e, ī) rē|tur

pl.1st

-(ā, ē, e, ī) rē|mur

2nd

-(ā, ē, e, ī) rē|minī

3rd

-(ā, ē, e, ī) re|ntur

esse: present and imperfect subjunctive

sing.

present

imperfect

1st

sim

esse|m

2nd

sīs

essē|s

3rd

sit

esse|t

pl.

1st

sīmus

essē|mus

2nd

sītis

essē|tis

3rd

sint

esse|nt

→ Examples of all the forms of the four conjugations, active and passive, and of esse are found in the section GRAMMATICA LATINA of LINGUA LATINA and at the back of this book.

Tense in the Subjunctive

Just as with infinitives and participles, time (tense) in the subjunctive is not about absolute time as much as relation. The present and imperfect subjunctives in dependent clauses represent incomplete action relative to the main verb.

If the main verb:

• is present or future, use the present subjunctive to indicate incomplete action

• refers to the past (perfect, imperfect, or pluperfect), the imperfect subjunctive indicates incomplete action[2]

Compare the sentences:

Magister mē monet (/monēbit) ut taceam et audiam.

Magister mē monēbat (/monuit/monuerat) ut tacērem et audīrem.

{261} Sequence of Tense

Main Verb

Subordinate Verb

Incomplete Action

Completed Action

present future

present subjunctive

(Cap. XXXII)

past tense

imperfect subjunctive

(Cap. XXXIII)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Uses of the Subjunctive: Result

The subjunctive, introduced by ut, is used in clauses that tell the consequence of the main clause. These are called result clauses. The main clause that introduces the result clause usually contains a word (note below tam, ita) that signals the result. Result clauses are also called consecutive clauses (cōnsecūtīvus, -a, -um < cōnsequī) as they show what naturally follows from the idea in the main clause.

Result clauses (show tendency or effect):

Num quis tam stultus est ut ista vēra esse crēdat?

ut…crēdat tells the consequence of anyone being so stupid: For who is so stupid that he would believe these things are true? (ll.90–91)

Nam trēs diī, Neptūnus, Iūppiter, Plūtō, mundum ūniversum ita inter sē dīvīsērunt ut Iūppiter rēx caelī esset.

For three gods, Neptune, Juppiter, Pluto, divided the whole world among themselves in such a way that Juppiter was king of the sky. (ll.85–87)

There are more examples in Cap. XXIX.

Reflexive sē (continued)

In ut/nē-clauses expressing an indirect command, the reflexive pronouns sē, sibi, suus refer to the subject of the main verb, i.e., the person ordering, requesting, etc. Compare:

Dāvus eum sēcum venīre iubet.: i.e., eī imperat ut sēcum (cum Dāvō) veniat (Cap. XIV, l.86–87)

Pāstor dominum ōrat nē sē verberet.: i.e., nē pastōrem verberet (Cap. XXVII, ll.158–159)

Mēdus eam rogat ut aliquid sibi legat.: i.e., ut Mēdō legat (ll.56–57)

[Iaīrus] Iēsum rogāvit ut fīliam suam mortuam suscitāret. (l.65–66)

{262} Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Uses of the Subjunctive: Purpose (Final)

The subjunctive, introduced by ut, is used in clauses that tell the end or goal of the main clause. These are called purpose, or final (fīnālis), clauses.

Purpose clauses (show intention):

Praedōnēs nāvēs persequuntur, ut mercēs et pecūniam rapiant nautāsque occīdant.

Pirates follow the ships in order to (or just “to”) seize and kill. (ll.132–134)

Petrus ambulābat super aquam, ut venīret ad Iēsum. (ll.102–103)
ē vīllā fūgī, ut verbera vītārem atque ut amīcam meam vidērem ac semper cum eā essem. (ll.162–163)

Indirect Statement versus Verba Postulandī (Indirect Commands)

Note the difference between:

• verba dīcendī et sentiendī, which are combined with the acc. + inf.

• verba postulandī, which take an ut-clause in the subjunctive.

Some verbs can have both functions, e.g., persuādēre in these two examples:

Mihi nēmō persuādēbit hominem super mare ambulāre posse.: no one will persuade/convince me that… (ll.110–111)

Mēdus mihi persuāsit ut sēcum venīrem.: Medus persuaded me to… (ll.174–175)

In both senses, persuādēre takes the dative (intransitive, like oboedīre, impendēre, servīre, prōdesse, and nocēre).

Īre: Present Subjunctive

In ll.145–146 we meet the present subjunctive of īre:

cūrābō ut salvī in Graeciam eāmus,

Īre:

Indicative Subjunctive

eō

eam

īs

eās

it

eat

īmus

eāmus

ītis

eātis

eunt

eant

{263} Velle, nōlle, mālle

In addition to velle (Caps. X, XIII), nōlle (= nōn velle, Cap. XX), this chapter presents mālle (magis velle), to “want more,” or “prefer.” Mālle is often followed by quam:

Ego Rōmae vīvere mālō quam in Graeciā. (ll.150–151)

Nōs cīvēs Rōmānī morī mālumus quam servīre! (ll.154–155)

Volō, velle, voluisse to be willing, want

Nōlō, nōlle, nōluisse to be unwilling, not want

Mālō, mālle, māluisse to prefer

volō

vīs

vult

volumus

vultis

volunt

nōlō

nōn vīs

nōn vult

nōlumus

nōn vultis

nōlunt

mālō

māvīs

māvult

mālumus

māvultis

mālunt

Recēnsiō: Subordinate Subjunctive Clauses

Verba postulandī et cūrandī + ut/nē subjunctive:

Quī medicus verbīs sōlīs potest facere ut hominēs caecī videant, surdī audiant, mūtī loquantur, claudī ambulent? (ll.30–32)

In Iūdaeā Iēsūs nōn sōlum faciēbat ut caecī vidērent, surdī audīrent, mūtī loquerentur, vērum etiam verbīs efficiēbat ut mortuī surgerent et ambulārent. (ll.34–37)

Ille cūrāvit ut nōs ē tempestāte servārēmur nēve mergerēmur—vel potius nōs ipsī quī mercēs ēiēcimus. (ll.127–129)

Cūrābō ut omnia perīcula vītēmus ac salvī in Graeciam eāmus. (ll.145–146)

“Legam tibi,” inquit, “dē virō claudō cui Iēsūs imperāvit ut surgeret et tolleret lectum suum et domum ambulāret.” (ll.58–60)

Modo dīxistī, “Chrīstum etiam mortuīs imperāvisse ut surgerent et ambulārent.” (ll.61–62)

In Italiā dominō sevērō serviēbam quī ā mē postulābat ut opus sordidum facerem nec mihi pecūlium dabat. (ll.158–160)

Sī quid prāvē fēceram, dominus imperābat ut ego ab aliīs servīs tenērer et verberārer. (ll.160–161)

Multīs prōmissīs eī persuāsī ut mēcum ex Italiā proficīscerētur, Lydia enim Rōmae vīvere māvult quam in Graeciā. (ll.163–165)

Certē nōn laetō animō Rōmā profecta sum, et difficile fuit mihi persuādēre ut amīcās meās Rōmānās dēsererem. (ll.172–174)

Num dominus ille sevērus, quī tibi imperābat ut opus sordidum facerēs, tantum pecūlium tibi dabat prō opere sordidō? (ll.181–183)

{264} Reflexive sē, sibi, suus in indirect command:

Mēdus, quī legere nōn didicit, Lydiae librum reddit eamque rogat ut aliquid sibi legat. (ll.56–57)

Audī igitur quod scrīptum est dē Iaīrō, prīncipe quōdam Iūdaeōrum, quī Iēsum rogāvit ut fīliam suam mortuam suscitāret. (ll.64–66)

Nec prōmissīs sōlīs Mēdus mihi persuāsit ut sēcum venīrem, sed etiam dōnō pulcherrimō. (ll.174–175)

Purpose/final clause: ut/nē + subjunctive (fīnālis -e < fīnis, “end,” “purpose”):

Praedōnēs maritimī quī nāvēs persequuntur, ut mercēs et pecūniam rapiant nautāsque occīdant. (ll.132–134)

Ōstiā igitur hanc nāvem cōnscendimus, ut in Graeciam nāvigārēmus. (ll.165–167)

Sed herī ē vīllā fūgī, ut verbera vītārem, atque ut amīcam meam vidērem ac semper cum eā essem. (ll.161–163)

Result/consecutive clause: ut + subjunctive:

Tanta ūnīus deī potestās nōn est. Nam trēs diī, Neptūnus, Iūppiter, Plūtō, mundum ūniversum ita inter sē dīvīsērunt, ut Iūppiter rēx caelī esset, rēx maris esset Neptūnus, Plūtō autem rēgnāret apud Īnferōs, ubi animae mortuōrum velut umbrae versārī dīcuntur. (ll.85–89)

Num quis tam stultus est ut ista vēra esse crēdat? (ll.90–91)

Num tū tam stultus es ut haec crēdās? (ll.109–110)

Compare

Indirect statement: verba dīcendī et sentiendī → accusative + infinitive:

Mihi nēmō persuādēbit hominem super mare ambulāre posse! (ll.110–111)

Nōnne id tibi persuāsit eum habēre potestātem maris et ventōrum? (ll.115–116)

Studia Rōmāna

The strait (between Sicily and mainland Italy) through which Medus and Lydia are traveling was notoriously dangerous and considered the location of the infamous Scylla and Charybdis: dextrum Scylla latus, laeuum implācāta Charybdis/obsidet (Vergil, Aeneid 3.420–21). Charybdis was a fierce whirlpool, personified as female that sucked down ships in its vortex. Scylla occupied the {265} rocks opposite Charybdis; she is variously described, but she often appears as a woman from the waist up, a pack of dogs that grab and devour sailors from the waist down. Ovid gives a sympathetic version of the myth in the Metamorphoses (Books 13–14): Scylla was a beautiful young girl turned into a monster by the witch Circe, jealous of her beauty and angry because the handsome Glaucus loved Scylla instead of her.

Medus, living as a house slave in Tusculum, would have been less likely to meet Christians than Lydia, who lived in Rome, where there were growing numbers of Christians. We can learn more about early Christians from inscriptions and archaeology than from Latin authors. By the time of our narrative, there were several texts available to Christians like Lydia, in Koine Greek (which, due to its simplicity, both she and Medus could read) as well as Latin translations (the earliest of which to survive is from the fourth century AD). Matthew was written around AD 70, and by the middle of the second century, all four Gospels had been written, along with the Acts of the Apostles and the letters of Paul. From these texts, from inscriptions, and from the (somewhat later) catacombs and their wall painting, we can get some idea about a growing Christian church.

Around this time, Quīntus Septimius Flōrens Tertulliānus was born in Carthage in Roman Africa. The first Christian author in Latin, Tertullian came from the educated classes and brought considerable rhetorical skill to his writings. At the turn of the century we have also the narrative of Perpetua and Felicity, two young Christian martyrs at Carthage, put to death in the persecutions of the early third century.

Our story presents us with a credible scenario: the presumably uneducated gubernātor holds firm to traditional stories of the realms of Juppiter, Neptune, and Pluto. Medus, although he has never heard of Jesus Christ, is very interested to hear about a new god who might offer him something, and Lydia is a young Christian eager to share her faith. By the time of our story, the Christians had suffered sporadic persecution, most horribly under Nero, who used Christians as a scapegoat, blaming them for the great fire in Rome in AD 64, but also under Domitian (AD 81–96). From the reign of the emperor Trajan (AD 98–117), we have a commercium epistulārum between Trajan and Pliny. Pliny did not understand Christian insistence on an allegiance to a god that would not allow them to demonstrate loyalty to the state gods, and especially to the emperor (a loyalty demonstrated by offering a sacrifice of wine and incense, in violation of Christian principles). It is clear from these letters that Christians were suspect as disloyal to the empire and they were at risk of being informed upon by others.

{266} Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

fāma, -ae

report, reputation

nāvicula, -ae

small boat

turba, -ae

crowd

vigilia, -ae

night watch

2nd

animus, -ī

mind, emotion, courage

dictum, -ī

saying

fretum, -ī

strait, channel

libellus, -ī

small book

mundus, -ī

world

pecūlium, -ī

money (given to slaves), “slave stipend”

perīculum, -ī

risk, danger

3rd

phantasma, phantasmatis (n.)

ghost, apparition

potestās, potestātis (f.)

power, ability

praedō, praedōnis (m.)

robber, pirate

prīnceps, prīncipis (m.)

chief, leader, head man

tībīcen, tībicinis (m.)

flute player

tranquillitās, tranquillitātis (f.)

tranquility

vorāgō, vorāginis (f.)

abyss, whirlpool

Verba

-āre (1)

(adōrō) adōrāre, adōrāvisse, adōrātum

adore, worship

(admīror) admīrārī, admīrātum

wonder at

(cessō) cessāre, cessāvisse, cessātum

cease, stop

(memorō) memorāre, memorāvisse, memorātum

relate, recall

(rēgnō) rēgnāre, rēgnāvisse, rēgnātum

rule

(rogō) rogāre, rogāvisse, rogātum

ask

(salvō) salvāre, salvāvisse, salvātum

make safe

(spērō) spērāre, spērāvisse, spērātum

hope for

(suscitō) suscitāre, suscitāvisse, suscitātum

wake up, rouse

(tumultuor) tumultuārī, tumultuātum

make an uproar

(versor) versārī, versātum

move about, be present

(vītō) vītāre, vītāvisse, vītātum

avoid

-ēre (2)

(habeor) habērī, habitum

be held, be considered

{267} (impendeō) impendēre, impendisse (intr. + dat.)

threaten

(persuādeō) persuādēre, persuāsisse (intr. + dat.)

persuade, convince

-ere (3)

(apprehendō) apprehendere, apprehendisse, apprehēnsum

seize

(disiungō) disiungere, disiūnxisse, disiūnctum

unyoke, separate

(ēiciō) ēicere, ēiēcisse, ēiectum

throw out, eject

(ēvolvō) ēvolvere, ēvolvisse, ēvolūtum

unroll

(extendō) extendere, extendisse, extentum

extend

(morior) morī, mortuum

die

(nāscor) nāscī, nātum

be born

-īre (4)

(oboediō) oboedīre, -īvisse/iisse (+ dat.)

obey

(pereō) perīre, periisse

perish

(perveniō) pervenīre, pervēnisse

arrive

(serviō) servīre, -īvisse/iisse, -ītum (+ dat.)

be a slave to, serve

Irregular

(mālō) mālle, māluisse

prefer

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

attentus, -a, -um

attentive

caecus, -a, -um

blind

claudus, -a, -um

lame

mūtus, -a, -um

mute

perīculōsus, -a, -um

dangerous

quadrāgēsimus, -a, -um

40th

salvus, -a, -um

safe

surdus, -a, -um

deaf

tūtus, -a, -um

safe

ūniversus, -a, -um

the whole of, entire

3rd

cōnstāns (gen. cōnstantis)

steady, firm

immortālis, -e

immortal

mortālis, -e

mortal

Adverbia

potius

rather

utrum

whether

Coniūnctiōnēs

velut

as, as if

____________

1. Remember: short e before -m, -t, -nt, -r, -ntur.

2. A perfect tense main verb can be followed by the present subjunctive if the perfect tense represents a present state (e.g., I have arrived=I am here), e.g., Cap. XXXIV, l.31–32: nisi tam fortiter pugnāvit ut spectātōrēs eum vīvere velint.

{268} XXIX. Nāvigāre Necesse Est

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Uses of the Subjunctive

i. Deliberative Questions

ii. Indirect Questions

b. Cum Clauses

i. Cum Temporal (Indicative)

ii. Cum Temporal and Causal (Subjunctive)

c. Compound Verbs

2. Nouns: Case Uses

a. Genitive of Value

b. Genitive of the Charge

c. Partitive Genitive: Nostrum and Vestrum

3. Pronouns: Personal (continued)

“What Shall I Do?”

The Roman merchant, who is ruined because his goods had to be thrown overboard during the storm to keep the ship afloat, cannot fully share the joy of the others at being saved.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Deliberative Questions

In his distress, the merchant exclaims, “Heu, mē miserum!” (acc. in exclamation, Cap. XV) and asks in despair (ll.22–23):

Quid faciam? What am I to do? What can I do?

Quid spērem? What am I to hope for? What can I hope for?

In this kind of deliberative question, when you ask irresolutely what to do, the verb is usually in the subjunctive. Deliberative questions expect to get a directive as an answer, either in the form of the imperative or the subjunctive, {269} or no answer at all (that is, they are questions asked in desperation with no hope of an answer).

Further Examples:

Quōmodo uxōrem et līberōs alam? (l.23)

Gubernātor perterritus exclāmat, “Ō dī bonī! Quid faciāmus?” (ll.198–199)

Sed quōmodo vīvāmus sine pecūniā? Quōmodo cibum et vestem emam īnfantibus meīs? (ll.51–52)

Quid ergō faciam? Ipse dē nāve saliam, an in eādem nāve maneam vōbīscum? (ll.56–57)

Genitive of Value

In order to indicate how much you value something, genitives like magnī, parvī, plūris, minōris are used with verbs that evaluate (e.g., aestimāre or facere in the same sense). Examples:

Mercātōrēs mercēs suās magnī aestimant, vītam nautārum parvī aestimant! (ll.6–7)

Nōnne līberōs plūris aestimās quam mercēs istās? (ll.26–27)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Clauses with the Subordinate Conjunction cum

You first learned the conjunction cum in Cap. X. Depending on the force of the conjunction, cum is used with a verb either in the indicative (as you have met many times) or the subjunctive.

After cum, the verb is in the indicative:[1]

• in temporal clauses, meaning “when.” We met this use of cum in Cap. X:

Cum avis volat, ālae moventur. (Cap. X, l.15)

Cum syllabae iunguntur, vocābula fīunt. (Cap. XVIII, l.29)

Cum vocābula coniunguntur, sententiae fīunt. (Cap. XVIII, ll.29–30)

• in clauses describing something that happens usually or repeatedly,[2] e.g.:

Semper gaudeō cum dē līberīs meīs cōgitō. (l.47)

Tū numquam mē salūtābās, cum mē vidēbās. (Cap. XIX, ll.99–100)

{270} After cum, the verb is in the subjunctive:

• when cum means “since,” “because,” or “as,” the subjunctive can be present tense (with a present main verb) or imperfect (with a past tense main verb):

Gubernātor, cum omnēs attentōs videat, hanc fābulam nārrat. (ll.76–77)

Cum iam vītam dēspērāret, id ūnum ōrāvit. (ll.88–89)

Ānulum abiēcit, cum sēsē nimis fēlīcem esse cēnsēret. (ll.156–157)

Polycratēs, cum ānulum suum recognōsceret, māximā laetitiā affectus est. (ll.171–172)

• when the cum refers to the past and means “when,” its verb is mostly in the imperfect subjunctive, e.g.:

Cum Arīōn ex Italiā in Graeciam nāvigāret magnāsque dīvitiās sēcum habēret… (ll.78–80)

Cum haec falsa nārrārent, Arīōn repente appāruit. (ll.110–111)

Indirect Questions

When questions are reported, that is, they are indirect, the verb goes into the subjunctive. Compare Lydia’s (direct) question with her reminder (indirect) of that question in this chapter:

“Nōnne tua erat ista pecūnia?”

“Wasn’t that your money?” (Cap. XXVIII, l.187)

“Modo tē interrogāvī tuane esset pecūnia.”

“I just asked you if that was your money.” (ll.127–128)

As the object of the verb interrogāre, the verb in an indirect question goes into the subjunctive. Similarly, Num haec fābula vēra est? after dubitāre becomes:

dubitō num haec fābula vēra sit. (ll.116–117)

Notā Bene: You will find dubitāre with an more frequently than with num, as you can see in this sentence from the Younger Pliny (Gāius Plīnius Secundus):

Quibus ex causīs, ut suprā scrīpsī, dubitō an īdem nunc tibi quod tunc mihi suādeam.

Consider the implied levels of questions in (ll.105–106):

“Ubi est Arīōn et quid facit?” (direct question)

Scītisne ubi sit Arīōn et quid faciat? (indirect question)

Rēx eōs interrogat “num sciant ubi sit Arīōn et quid faciat?” (indirect, present main verb)

Rēx eōs interrogāvit “num scīrent ubi esset Arīōn et quid faceret?” (indirect, past main verb)

{271} Notā Bene: Sometimes the reported question is deliberative (see above); context will make this clear:

Vir ita perturbātus est ut sē interroget, utrum in mare saliat an in nāve remaneat. (ll.57–59) = a result clause introducing an indirect deliberative question; what he originally asked himself was: “Should I leap into the sea or remain on the boat,” and this becomes: “The man is so distressed that he asks himself whether he should leap into the sea or remain on the boat.”

Mēdus rubēns nescit quid respondeat. (Cap. XXVIII, l.184): “Medus, blushing, does not know what he should respond.” Medus originally asks himself, “what should I respond?”

More Result Clauses

We met consecutive clauses (clauses of result) in the last chapter. Here are further examples from this chapter:

Vir ita perturbātus est ut sē interroget… (ll.57–58)

Arīōn tam pulchrē fidibus canēbat ut alter Orpheus appellārētur. (ll.66–67)

An tam ignārus es ut etiam Orpheus tibi ignōtus sit? (ll.67–68)

Is fidicen nōbilissimus fuit quī tam pulchrē canēbat ut bēstiae ferae, nātūram suam oblītae, accēderent. (ll.70–72)

Nautae precibus eius ita permōtī sunt ut manūs quidem ab eō abstinērent. (ll.86–87)

Tanta erat potestās eius, tanta glōria tantaeque dīvitiae, ut nōn sōlum aliī tyrannī, sed etiam dī immortālēs eī invidērent. (ll.158–160)

Piscem cēpit quī tam fōrmōsus erat ut piscātor eum nōn vēnderet. (ll.167–168)

Words that signal result clauses

tantus, -a, -um

so great

adjective of magnitude, quantity

talis, tale

of such a sort

adjective of quality

eius modī

of such a sort

descriptive genitive

tot

so many

adjective of quantity

sīc

in this way

adverb

ita

so, in such a way

adverb

adeō

for far, to such an extent

adverb

tam

so

adverb: only with adjs. and other advs.

Under GRAMMATICA LATINA, examples are shown of typical ut- and nē-clauses.

{272} Summary: Purpose and Result

• Purpose clauses show the goal of the main verb (in order to); result clauses describe the consequence of the modified (tam, tantus, ita) word.

• Purpose clauses are negated by nē; result clauses are negated by ut plus a negative.

Negative Purpose

Negative Result

that…not

nē

ut…nōn

that…no one

nē quis

ut…nēmō

that…nothing

nē quid

ut…nihil

that…never

nē umquam

ut…numquam

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Genitive of the Charge

With accūsāre, the charge is in the genitive:

Lydia pergit eum fūrtī accūsāre.: accuses him of theft (l.137)

Partitive Genitive (continued)

A partitive genitive may qualify a pronoun, e.g.:

aliquid pecūliī (l.135)

nihil malī (l.157)

quid novī? (Cap. XXXI, ll.2–3)

The partitive genitive of nōs, vōs is nostrum, vestrum:

nēmō nostrum/vestrum (ll.39, 42–43)

Personal Pronouns (continued from Cap. XX)

There are two forms for the genitive plural of the personal pronouns. The forms meī, tuī, nostrī, vestrī, and suī (used for singular and plural) are generally used as objective genitives, e.g.:

amor meī

love of me (as opposed to amor meus: my love)

timor vestrī

fear of you (as opposed to timor vester: your fear)

The forms nostrum and vestrum, as you learned in the previous section, are partitive. It is helpful to distinguish the two by memorizing a phrase. A good one is the partitive phrase Cicero often uses when addressing his audience: quis vestrum? (who of you?)

{273} Recēnsiō: Personal Pronouns

Compound Verbs

Many verbs are formed with prefixes, mostly prepositions. Examples in this chapter:

dē-terrēre

per-movēre

ā-mittere

sub-īre

in-vidēre

ex-pōnere

per-mittere

re-dūcere (re- means “back” or “again”)

Prefixes cause a short a or e in the verbal stem to be changed to i. Thus from:

facere is formed

af-, cōn-, ef-, per-ficere

capere

ac-, in-, re-cipere

rapere

ē-, sur-ripere

salīre

dē-silīre

fatērī

cōn-fitērī

tenēre

abs-, con-, re-tinēre

premere

im-primere

Similarly, in compounds, iacere becomes -iicere, but the spelling ii is avoided by writing -icere, e.g.:

ab-, ad-, ē-, prō-icere

Recēnsiō: Indicative/Subjunctive

Indicative

Ut Orpheus cantū suō ferās ad sē alliciēbat, ita[3] tunc Arīōn canendō piscēs allēxit ad nāvem. (ll.93–95)

Subitō mercātor ē dīvitissimō pauperrimus factus est. (ll.17–18)

Ita spērābat sē magnum lucrum factūrum esse. (l.15)

Laetitia vestra mē nōn afficit. (l.45)

Nec quisquam nostrum trīstitiā tuā afficitur. (ll.46–47)

Quisnam est Arīōn? Nē nōmen quidem mihi nōtum est. (ll.63–64)

{274} Mercātōrēs mercēs suās magnī aestimant, vītam nautārum parvī aestimant! (ll.6–7)

Nōnne līberōs plūris aestimās quam mercēs istās? (ll.26–27)

Sī fūrtum fēcī, tuā causā id fecī. (l.139)

Nāvis autem vēlīs sōlīs nōn tam vēlōciter vehitur quam ante tempestātem, nam vēla ventō rapidō scissa sunt. (ll.191–193)

“Per deōs immortālēs!” inquit gubernātor, cum prīmum nāvem appropinquantem prōspexit. “Illa nāvis vēlōx nōs persequitur.” (ll.187–189)

Subjunctive

Purpose (final clauses)

Is laetus Ōstiā profectus est cum mercibus pretiōsīs quās omnī pecūniā suā in Italiā ēmerat eō cōnsiliō ut eās māiōre pretiō in Graeciā vēnderet. (ll.12–15)

Eō enim cōnsiliō nummōs surripuī ut dōnum pretiōsum tibi emerem. (ll.139–141)

Rēctē dīcis: meae mercēs ēiectae sunt, ut nāvis tua salva esset! (ll.34–35)

Mercēs iēcimus ut nōs omnēs salvī essēmus. (ll.36–37)

Orpheus etiam ad Īnferōs dēscendit ut uxōrem suam mortuam inde redūceret…. Sed perge nārrāre dē Arīone. (ll.73–75)

Verba Postulandī

Nōlī tū mē cōnsōlārī quī ipse imperāvistī ut mercēs meae iacerentur! (ll.30–32)

Quid iuvat deōs precārī ut rēs āmissae tibi reddantur? Frūstrā hoc precāris. (ll.54–55)

Sed tamen imperāvērunt ut statim in mare dēsilīret! (ll.87–88)

At nōlīte mē monēre ut laetus sim, postquam omnia mihi ēripuistis! (ll.43–45)

Hāc fābulā monēmur ut semper bonō animō sīmus nēve umquam dē salūte dēspērēmus. Dum anima est, spēs est. (ll.122–124)

Ille vērō, cōnsiliō eōrum cognitō, pecūniam cēteraque sua nautīs dedit, hoc sōlum ōrāns ut sibi ipsī parcerent. (ll.81–83)

Itaque gubernātor imperat ut nāvis rēmīs agātur. (l.193)

Studia Rōmāna

Travel was extensive in the period of our narrative and travel narratives were a growing genre. The Greek historian Arrian of Nicomedia (on the west coast of Turkey near Istanbul) wrote Periplūs Pontī Euxīnī, a Latin translation of {275} Περίπλους τοῦ Εὐξείνου Πόντου, a travel narrative about sailing around the Black Sea. Arrian, while governor of the province of Cappadocia, addressed his narrative to the emperor Hadrian (emperor AD 117–138). A contemporary of Arrian, the Greek Pausanias, wrote a guide in ten volumes detailing what he saw and heard on his travels through Greece. Pausanias remains a valuable reference for Roman Greece in the second century AD.

In both this and the previous chapter, the helmsman expresses his fear of pirates. Piracy had been one of the many dangers of sea travel during the republican period (and thus Pompey the Great was given extraordinary military powers to rid the seas of pirates in 67 BC, about which you will read in Cap. XXXII). During the empire, attacks by pirates would be countered by the Roman navy, and sea travel was a good deal safer (although not completely safe). Although large-scale piracy had ceased to exist, it lived on in the popular imagination. More dangerous was the sea itself and shipwreck was not unknown. The iactūra of goods was a common practice when shipwreck threatened: the chance of staying afloat was increased by lightening the load. This real danger posed grounds for the following ethical discussion reported in Cicero’s dē Officiīs (Cicero is reporting a discussion led by Hecaton, a prominent Stoic philosopher from Rhodes of the first century BC): Question: “If one is forced to make a iactūra at sea, which should one throw overboard? An expensive horse or a cheap slave?” Response: financial considerations lead in one direction, humane sensibility in the opposite. “What if a foolish man has grabbed a board floating from the shipwreck—will the philosopher grab it away if he can?” No, because it would be wrong. “What about the owner of the ship? Will he grab the plank—it belongs to him.” Not at all, not any more than he would toss a passenger overboard because the boat was his. Until they arrive at the ship’s destination, the boat belongs not to the owner, but to the passengers (3.23.89–90).

In this chapter, you also read two well-known Greek stories: about the poet Arion and the tyrant Polycrates. The fifth century Greek historian Herodotus writes about both. The famous seventh–century BC Greek lyre-player Arion (Herodotus 1.23–24) was sailing from southern Italy back to Corinth in Greece when he was thrown overboard and rescued by a dolphin. Herodotus (3.40–43) also records the story of Polycrates (the tyrant of Samos in the sixth century BC) who, on the advice of his friend Amasis, the king of Egypt, threw away his signet ring, a valuable emerald set in gold. This last story reflects a common theme that the gods are displeased by too much good fortune; by throwing away the ring, Polycrates hopes to restore the balance of human fortune. That he is unsuccessful signals the magnitude of his ultimate downfall (Polycrates was eventually killed in a way Herodotus finds too horrible to reveal, and when dead, his corpse was crucified for all to see). Pliny the Elder in his Natural History (37.2) claims that the gem in Polycrates’ ring was on display, set in a golden horn, in the temple of Concord, given to the temple as a gift from Augustus’ wife Livia.

{276} The gubernātor’s words (124–124) “Dum anima est, spēs est” echo Cicero (Ad Atticum 9.10) ut aegrōtō, dum anima est, spēs esse dīcitur.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

dīvitiae, -ārum

riches

fortūna, -ae

fortune

iactūra, -ae

throwing away, loss

invidia, -ae

envy, ill will

laetitia, -ae

happiness

trīstitia, -ae

sadness

vīta, -ae

life

2nd

beneficium, -ī

good deed

delphīnus, -ī

dolphin

dorsum, -ī

back

fundus, -ī

bottom

fūrtum, -ī

theft

lucrum, -ī

profit

maleficium, -ī

evil deed

rēmus, -ī

oar

tyrannus, -ī

tyrant

3rd

carmen, carminis (n.)

song, poem

fēlīcitās, fēlīcitātis (f.)

happiness

fidēs, fidium (f. pl.)

lyre

fidicen, fidicinis (f.)

lyre-player

fūr, fūris (m.)

thief

nāvigātiō, nāvigātiōnis (f.)

sailing

piscātor, piscātōris (m.)

fisherman

salūs, salūtis (f.)

safety

4th

cantus, -ūs (m.)

song

5th

spēs, -eī (f.)[4]

hope

Verba

-āre (1)

(aestimō) aestimāre, -āvisse, -ātum

value, estimate

(appropinquō) appropinquāre, -āvisse (intr. + dat.)

approach

(dēspērō) dēspērāre, -āvisse, -ātum

lose hope

{277} (dōnō) dōnāre, -āvisse, -ātum

give, present with

(perturbō) perturbāre, -āvisse, -ātum

disturb

(precor) precārī, precātum

pray, beg

(secō) secāre, secuisse, sectum

cut

-ēre (2)

(abstineō) abstinēre, abstinuisse, abstentum

keep off

(appāreō) appārēre, appāruisse(intr. + dat.)

appear

(cōnfiteor) cōnfitērī, cōnfessum

confess

(dēterreō) dēterrēre, dēterruisse, dēterritum

deter

(invideō) invidēre, invīdisse (intr. + dat.)

envy, grudge

(permoveō) permovēre, permōvisse, permōtum

move deeply

(remaneō) remanēre, remānsisse, remānsum

remain

(stupeō) stupēre, stupuisse

be aghast

(suādeō) suādēre, suāsisse (intr. + dat.)

advise

-ere (3)

(abiciō) abicere, abiēcisse, abiectum

throw away

(adiciō) adicere, adiēcisse, adiectum

add

(afficiō) afficere, affēcisse, affectum

affect, stir

(alliciō) allicere, allēxisse, allectum

attract

(āmittō) āmittere, āmīsisse, āmissum

lose

(dētrahō) dētrahere, dētrāxisse, dētractum

pull off

(ēripiō) ēripere, ēripuisse, ēreptum

snatch away, deprive

(expōnō) expōnere, exposuisse, expositum

put out, expose

(parcō) parcere, pepercisse (intr. + dat.)

spare

(permittō) permittere, permīsisse (intr. + dat.)

allow, permit

(queror) querī, questum

complain

(recognōscō) recognōscere, recognōvisse, recognitum

recognize

(redūcō) redūcere, redūxisse, reductum

lead back

(surripiō) surripere, surripuisse, surreptum

steal

-īre (4)

(dēsiliō) dēsilīre, dēsiluisse

jump down

(fīniō) fīnīre, fīnīvisse, fīnītum

finish

{278} Irregular

(subeō) subīre, subiisse

undergo

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

celsus, -a, -um

tall, high

ignārus, -a, -um

ignorant, unaware

ignōtus, -a, -um

unknown

maestus, -a, -um

sad

mīrus, -a, -um

surprising, strange

nōtus, -a, -um

known

pretiōsus, -a, -um

precious

rapidus, -a, -um

rapid

3rd

fallāx (gen. fallācis)

false, deceitful

fēlīx (gen. fēlīcis)

lucky, fortunate

nōbilis, -e

well-known, famous

vēlōx (gen. vēlōcis)

swift

Prōnōmina

nōnnūllī, -ae, -a

several

sēsē

intensive form of sē

Adverbia

frūstrā

in vain

inde

from there

nōnnumquam

often

prōtinus

immediately, at once

quasi

as if

repente

suddenly

____________

1. When the cum-clause follows the main clause and provides the main focus of the sentence, the indicative is used. This construction is called cum inversum. Compare the force of the two English sentences: When I was reading, the phone rang; I was reading when the phone rang. In both sentences, the focus of the sentence is on the phone ringing.

2. Cum in this function is called “cum” iterātīvum (from iterāre, “repeat”).

3. For ut…ita, see Cap. XIX.

4. Like rēs (Cap. XIV), spēs has a short ĕ in the genitive and dative singular (see Cap. XIII for the rules): spēs, spĕī.

{279} XXX. Convīvium

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Uses of the Subjunctive

i. Hortatory Subjunctive

b. Future Perfect Indicative Tense

c. miscēre/aspergere

d. fruī

2. Nouns

a. sitis (Pure i-Stem)

b. vās

3. Adjectives

a. Distributive Numbers

4. Adverbs from 3rd Declension Adjectives (continued)

Convīvium (Dinner Party)

In this and the following chapter, you read about a dinner party at the home of Julius and Aemilia. The guests are good friends of the family. The dinner begins at the early (to us) hour of four o’clock in the afternoon (hōra decima), a normal time for the principal meal of the Romans. We hear about the arrangement of a typical Roman dining-room, the triclīnium, where the guests reclined on couches. Such a dining-room was not designed for large parties, as not more than three guests could lie on each of the three couches grouped around the little table.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Fruor, fruī

Like ūtī, ūsum esse (Cap. XXIII) the deponent verb fruī (“delight in,” “enjoy”) takes the ablative:

Ego numquam īnstrūmentō rūsticō ūsus sum. (l.38)

ōtiō fruor (l.23)

{280} Orontēs…vītā rūsticā nōn fruitur (l.35)

cotīdiē bonō vīnō fruor (l.59)

Adverbs from 3rd Declension Adjectives (continued)

3rd declension adjectives in -ns form adverbs in -nter, e.g.:

cōnstāns -ant|is → cōnstanter (contraction of cōnstantiter)

prūdēns -ent|is → prūdenter

dīligēns -ent|is → dīligenter

patiēns -entis → patienter

Examples:

dīligenter cūrō ut colōnī agrōs meōs bene colant. (ll.33–34)

Prūdenter facis. (l.35)

Patienter exspectā, dum servī lectōs sternunt. (l.82; cf. Cap. XXXIII, l.120)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Distributive Numbers

When using repetitive numbers to say, for example, how many guests are reclining on each couch, we might say in English, “three to a couch,” or “three each/apiece,” or “in threes.” Latin does not use the usual numerals ūnus, duo, trēs, but the numbers singulī, bīnī, ternī:

In singulīs lectīs aut singulī aut bīnī aut ternī convīvae accubāre solent.

Dinner guests usually recline on individual couches in ones or twos or threes. (ll.74–75)

These distributive numerals:

• are adjectives of the 1st/2nd declension

• all end in -n|ī -ae -a, except singul|ī -ae -a

• are used when the same number is used repetitively, that is, applies to more than one person or thing, e.g.:

bis bīna (2×2) sunt quattuor

bis terna (2×3) sunt sex

In vocābulīs “mea” et “tua” sunt ternae litterae et bīnae syllabae.

Future Perfect Indicative

To indicate that an action will not be completed until some point in the future, the future perfect is used (Latin futūrum perfectum), e.g.:

{281} Cēnābimus cum prīmum cocus cēnam parāverit et servī triclīnium ōrnāverint. (ll.83–84)

Although all three acts will happen in the future, the future perfect shows that the cooking and dining room preparation will be finished before the guests will eat.

Cum prīmum meum vīnum pōtāveritis, Falernun pōtābitis! (ll.145–146)

The guests will drink the Falernum wine as soon as they will have drunk the wine from Julius’s vineyard. Both will happen in the future, but the action in the future perfect tense will be completed before the action in the future tense takes place.

To form the future perfect:

• Active: to the perfect stem add the following endings:

1st

~er|ō

~eri|mus

2nd

~eri|s

~eri|tis

3rd

~eri|t

~eri|nt

• Passive: the perfect participle and the future of esse (erō, eris, erit, etc.), e.g.:

Brevī cēna parāta et triclīnium ōrnātum erit. (ll.84–85; cf. l.14)

This tense is especially common in conditional clauses (beginning with sī) in cases where some future action must be completed before something else can take place, e.g.:

Discipulus laudābitur, sī magistrō pāruerit.

Further examples of this use will be found in the section GRAMMATICA LATINA.

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Independent Subjunctive: Hortatory

When at last the servant announces that dinner is ready, Julius says:

Triclīnium intrēmus!

Let us enter the dining room! (ll.86–87)

At table he raises his glass with the words:

Ergō bibāmus!

Therefore, let us drink! (l.120)

The forms intrēmus and bibāmus are the present subjunctive (1st pers. pl.) of intrāre and bibere; accordingly, they denote an action that is intended or encouraged, in this case an exhortation (“let’s…”). In the next chapter, you will find further examples of this hortatory subjunctive (Latin hortārī, “exhort”).

{282} Sitis/vās

Sitis, -is f. is a pure i-stem (see Cap. XVI):

acc.

-im (sitim patī, l.55)

abl.

-ī (sitī perīre, l.57)

Vās, vās|is n. follows the 3rd declension in the singular but the 2nd declension in the plural: vās|a, -ōrum (l.93: ex vāsīs aureīs).

Miscēre/aspergere

Wine was not often drunk undiluted (merum); it was customary to mix (miscēre) one’s wine with water. The verb miscēre (to mix) can be completed by an accusative and ablative or dative and accusative. The Latin expression is either:

accusative and ablative

vīnum aquā (cum aquā) miscēre

mix wine with water (l.115)

dative and accusative

mel vīnō miscēre

mix honey (in)to wine (l.132)

Aspergere (to sprinkle) follows the same pattern:

cibum sāle aspergere

sprinkle food with salt (l.111)

sālem carnī aspergere

sprinkle salt (on)to meat (l.109–110)

Recēnsiō: Cum

Cum referring to the future: Indicative

Cēnābimus cum prīmum cocus cēnam parāverit et servī triclīnium ōrnāverint. (ll.82–84)

Tum dēmum hoc vīnum cum illō comparāre poterimus, cum utrumque gustāverimus. (ll.143–144)

Cum iterative: Indicative

Nec vērō omnēs mercātōrēs domī remanent, cum mercēs eōrum nāvibus vehuntur. (Cap. XXIX, ll.8–9)

Cum igitur paucissimī sunt convīvae, nōn pauciōrēs sunt quam trēs, cum plūrimī, nōn plūrēs quam novem—nam ter ternī sunt novem. (ll.75–78)

Cum strict temporal: Indicative

“Per deōs immortālēs!” inquit gubernātor, cum prīmum nāvem appropinquantem prōspexit. (Cap. XXIX, ll.187–188)

Octō diēs iam sunt cum Rōmae nōn fuī. (Cap. XXXI, l.3)

{283} Sex hōrae iam sunt cum cibum nōn sūmpsī. Venter mihi contrahitur propter famem. (ll.40–42)

“Haec carō valdē mihi placet,” inquit Fabia cum prīmum carnem gustāvit. (ll.106–107)

Cum prīmum meum vīnum pōtāveritis, Falernum pōtābitis! (ll.145–146)

Cum circumstantial: Subjunctive

Cum Arīōn, nōbilissimus suī temporis fidicen, ex Italiā in Graeciam nāvigāret magnāsque dīvitiās sēcum habēret, nautae pauperēs, quī hominī dīvitī invidēbant, eum necāre cōnstituērunt. (Cap. XXIX, ll.78–81)

Respondērunt “hominem, cum inde abīrent, in terrā Italiā fuisse eumque illīc bene vīvere, aurēs animōsque hominum cantū suō dēlectāre atque magnum lucrum facere.” (Cap. XXIX, ll.106–109)

Cum causal: Subjunctive

Gubernātor, cum omnēs attentōs videat, hanc fābulam nārrat. (Cap. XXIX, ll.76–77)

Ibi homō territus, cum iam vītam dēspērāret, id ūnum ōrāvit ut sibi licēret vestem ōrnātam induere et fidēs capere et ante mortem carmen canere. (Cap. XXIX, ll.187–188)

Ānulum abiēcit, cum sēsē nimis fēlīcem esse cēnsēret. (Cap. XXIX, ll.156–157)

Polycratēs, cum ānulum suum recognōsceret, māximā laetitiā affectus est. (Cap. XXIX, ll.171–172)

Midās enim, quamquam terram, lignum, ferrum manū tangendō in aurum mūtāre poterat, fame et sitī moriēbātur, cum cibus quoque et pōtiō, simul atque ā rēge tācta erat, aurum fieret. (Cap. XXXI, ll.38–42)

Opus nōn est vetus exemplum Graecum afferre, cum complūres fābulae nārrentur puerīs quī ita servātī sunt. (Cap. XXXI, ll.154–156)

Studia Rōmāna

Julius joins his guests after bathing: Tum lūlius lautus et novā veste indūtus intrat (l.15). Lautus, -a, -um is a perfect passive participle from lavāre, to wash, bathe (the verb has three variations of the participle; in Cap. XXII, you met lavātum, the participle you would expect from lavāre[1]). Lautus is rarely used to {284} mean simply “having been washed, i.e., clean.” Rather, it suggests the impression one gives who has the leisure and resources to bathe: “elegant, refined.”

Introduced from Greece via Greek Southern Italy, baths were an important feature of Roman life. Private baths in the home are called balneum,[2] (in the republican period, they were also called lavātrīna, shortened to lātrīna). There were also public baths (mostly privately owned) called balneae and, in the imperial period, enormous public baths called thermae. The Augustan period architect Vitruvius tells us the various rooms for a bath, although archaeological remains show a great deal of variation: the hot room (caldārium, also spelled calidārium), the warm room (tepidārium), the sweating room (sūdātōrium, lacōnicum), a room with a cold bath (frīgidārium), as well as a changing room (apodȳtērium). The natural starting place is the apodȳtērium; from there, one visited rooms of increasing warmth and finished in the frīgidārium. While baths were ideally placed in a part of the house that would receive the most warmth, they were also kept warm by the use of hypocausts (hypocaustum): flooring raised on short brick pillars through which the heat of an external furnace could flow.

Julius entertains his friend Cornelius (familiar to you from Cap. VI) and his wife Fabia, along with Orontes and his wife Paula. Orontes, a freedman (lībertīnus), is reminiscent of the freedmen at Trimalchio’s dinner party in the first century AD novel written by Petronius, Satyricon, and of various Greek freedmen in the satires of Juvenal (first–second century AD). Orontes exhibits the stereotypes of literature and illustrates Roman ambivalence toward the Greeks.

The triclinium consists of three couches that can hold three diners each. The diners would recline facing a central communal table. Wealthy houses might have more than one triclinium. Generally, the way the mosaic floors and (often elaborate) wall paintings are arranged identifies a room as a triclinium and shows where the couches and table were set up. Of the three couches shown in the photo at the beginning of the chapter, the slave is kneeling on what is called the lectus īmus, or lowest couch (the order of the couches is shown in the illustration in the margin). This is usually the couch where the host sits, although in our chapter, Julius and Aemilia are sitting on the middle couch, the lectus medius, usually reserved for the guest of honor. The host would sit in the highest position (always on the right side of the couch as you face it) on the lectus īmus (called summus in īmō), and the guest of honor would sit on the lowest position (to the far left of the couch) on the lectus medius (called īmus in mediō)—that is, next to the host.

The cēna (lines 100–103) consists of the three courses described in Cap. XXIV, beginning with eggs for the appetizer (gustātiō), moving on to fish {285} and pork for the cēna proper, and ending with nuts and fruit for the secundae mēnsae. The poet Horace describes a full dinner as ab ōvō ad māla (Sat. 1.3.6)—so Julius’s dinner is typical (as you will see in the next chapter, ll.185–186: Nōnne tē pudet ita ab ōvō ūsque ad māla fābulārī?). Wine was an important component of the cēna and indeed of Roman culture. There were inexpensive everyday wines and aged, expensive wines that Pliny in his Historia Nātūrālis calls vīnum nōbile. Pliny would agree with Julius that Falernum…vīnum Italiae optimum habētur (l.123). Pliny writes, Nec ūllī nunc vīnō māior auctōritās; sōlō vīnōrum flamma accenditur (14.8.62) “no wine today has a greater reputation; a flame can be kindled from it alone.” That is, Falernian wine was the only one with a high enough alcohol content to be flammable. The next best wines, according to Pliny, come from the area around Julius’s farm, the Alban region close to Rome. Cornelius (ll.126–127) is clearly being polite in preferring Julius’s Alban wine to Falernum.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

cēna, -ae

dinner

convīva, -ae (m./f.)

dinner guest

culīna, -ae

kitchen

2nd

argentum, -ī

silver

balneum, -ī

bath

bonum, -ī

blessing, a good

cocus, -ī

cook

convīvium, -ī

dinner party

merum, -ī

unmixed wine

minister, -rī

attendant (cf. magister)

triclīnium, -ī

dining room

3rd

carō, carnis (f.)

meat

famēs, famis (f.)

hunger

genus, generis (n.)

kind, sort

holus, holeris (n.)

vegetable

hospes, hospitis (m./f.)

guest, stranger

iter, itineris (n.)

journey, trip

mel, mellis (n.)

honey

nux, nucis (f.)

nut

sāl, salis (n.)

salt

sitis, sitis (f.; acc. sitim)

thirst

vās, vāsis (n.) (pl. vāsa, -ōrum)

container

{286} Verba

-āre (1)

(accubō) accubāre

recline at the table

(apportō) apportāre, -āvisse, -ātum

carry to

(cēnō) cēnāre, -āvisse, -ātum

dine

(exōrnō) exōrnāre, -āvisse, -ātum

decorate

(gustō) gustāre, -āvisse, -ātum

taste

(līberō) līberāre, -āvisse, -ātum

set free

(nūntiō) nūntiāre, -āvisse, -ātum

announce

(parō) parāre, -āvisse, -ātum

get, prepare

(pōtō) pōtāre, -āvisse, -ātum (or pōtum)

drink

-ēre (2)

(compleō) complēre, -plēvisse, -plētum

fill up

(misceō) miscēre, miscuisse, mixtum

mix

(placeō) placēre, placuisse, placitum (intr. + dat.)

please

(salvēre iubeō)

greet

-ere (3)

(accumbō) accumbere, accubuisse

recline at the table

(aspergō) aspergere, aspersisse, aspersum

sprinkle/strew on

(contrahō) contrahere, -trāxisse, -tractum

contract

(coquō) coquere, coxisse, coctum

cook

(ēligō) ēligere, ēlēgisse, ēlectum

pick out, choose

(fruor) fruī, fructum (+ abl.)

enjoy

(fundō) fundere, fūdisse, fūsum

pour

(recipiō) recipere, recēpisse, receptum

receive

(requiēscō) requiēscere

rest

(sternō) sternere, strāvisse, strātum

spread, strew

(vīsō) vīsere

go to see, visit

-īre (4)

(exhauriō) exhaurīre, exhausisse, exhaustum

drain, drink up

Irregular

(praesum) praeesse, praefuisse (intr. + dat.)

be in charge over

(perferō) perferre, pertulisse, perlātum

carry through

(prōferō) prōferre, prōtulisse, prōlātum

bring forward

{287} Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

acerbus, -a, -um

bitter

acūtus, -a, -um

sharp

argenteus, -a, -um

made of silver

bīnī, -ae, -a

two at a time

calidus, -a, -um

hot

glōriōsus, -a, -um

full of glory

īmus, -a, -um

bottom of

inexspectātus, -a, -um

unexpected

iūcundus, -a, -um

pleasant, agreeable

lībertīnus, -a, -um

freed

medius, -a, -um

middle of

merus, -a, -um

unmixed, pure

molestus, -a, -um

annoying

singulī, -ae, -a

one at a time

tardus, -a, -um

late, tardy

ternī, -ae, -a

three at a time

3rd

dīligēns (gen. dīligentis)

careful, accurate

dulcis, -e

sweet

Adverbia

dēmum

finally

diū

for a long time

equidem

indeed

paulisper

for a short time

prīdem

some time ago, previously

sānē

certainly, truly

Praepositiōnēs

circiter (prp. + acc.)

around, near (adv. approximately)

____________

1. The third variation on the participle’s form is lōtum.

2. In the singular, baths are neuter (baleum); in the plural, usually feminine (balneae), although the neuter plural is also found.

{288} XXXI. Inter Pōcula

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Uses of the Subjunctive

i. Optative Subjunctive

ii. Hortatory Subjunctive (continued)

iii. Jussive Subjunctive

b. ōdisse

c. Semi-deponents

2. Nouns: Case uses

a. Dative of Agent

b. Ablative with the Preposition cōram

c. Ablative with the Preposition super

3. Adjectives

a. Verbal Adjective: Gerundive (gerundīvum)

b. Passive Periphrastic

4. Pronouns: Indefinite Relative Pronouns

An Enthusiastic Dinner Conversation

As the wine flows, the conversation among the guests proceeds more freely. The room echoes with discussions, stories, and the latest gossip.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Indefinite Relative Pronouns

We have seen relative pronouns without an antecedent express the idea of “whoever” and “whatever” (where one might have expected is quī…, id quod), e.g.:

Quī spīrat vīvus est.

Whoever breathes is alive. (Cap. X, ll.48–49)

Quod Mārcus dīcit vērum nōn est.

What (or whatever) Marcus says is not true. (Cap. XV, l.58–59)

{289} The same idea is expressed by the indefinite relative pronouns quis-quis and quid-quid (“whoever” and “whatever”), e.g.:

Quisquis amat valeat! (l.196)

Dabō tibi quidquid optāveris. (l.29)

Quidquid is often changed to quicquid by assimilation.

Future Perfect Tense (continued)

This chapter offers many more examples of the future perfect tense, used to express an action that must be completed before another future action:

Nēmō tibi quidquam scrībet dē rēbus urbānīs, nisi prius ipse epistulam scrīpseris. (ll.7–8)

“Dabō tibi,” inquit, “quidquid optāveris.” Statim Midās. “Ergō dā mihi,” inquit, “potestātem quidquid tetigerō in aurum mūtandī.”[1] (ll.29–31)

Profectō eum verberābō atque omnibus modīs cruciābō, sī eum invēnerō priusquam Italiam relīquerit. Nisi pecūniam mihi reddiderit, in cruce fīgētur! (ll.63–66)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Ōdisse

The defective verb ōdisse (“to hate”) has no present stem, but the perfect has present force: ōdī (“I hate”) is the opposite of amō; ōdisse and its opposite, amāre, are contrasted in Servī dominum clēmentem amant, sevērum ōdērunt (ll.93–94).

Cf. nōvisse (Cap. XXIV), perfect of nōscere (“get to know”), meaning “know”: nōvī, “I know.”

Cōram/Super

The preposition cōram (“in the presence of,” “before”) takes the ablative:

cōram exercitū (l.122)

Super usually takes the accusative (“above”); but when used instead of dē in the sense “about,” “concerning,” super takes the ablative:

super Chrīstiānīs (l.147)

super fēminā falsā et īnfidā (l.200)

{290} Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Gerundive

In Cap. XXVI, you learned about the gerund (Latin gerundium), a verbal noun with forms in the accusative, genitive, dative, and ablative of the neuter singular; it is active in meaning. The gerundive (Latin gerundīvum) is a verbal adjective. Orontes’s “Vīvant omnēs fēminae amandae!” (ll.172–173) offers an example of the gerundive, which:

• is formed like the gerund by adding -nd- or -end- to the present stem

• is an adjective of the 1st/2nd declension (ama|nd|us, -a, -um < amāre)

• is passive in meaning

• expresses what a person or thing is fit for (fēminae amandae, above) or what is to be done to a person or thing

The gerundive can be used as an adjective or with the verb esse to express obligation.

• As an adjective:

fēmina amanda

worthy of being loved; a lovely, charming, or lovable woman

discipulus laudandus

(< laudāre) worthy of praise, a praise-worthy or hardworking pupil

liber legendus

(< legere) worthy of being read, a good book, a must-read

• Most frequently, the gerundive is used with some form of the verb esse to express what must or should happen. This construction is called the passive periphrastic:

Pater quī īnfantem exposuit ipse necandus est! (ll.132–133): “should/must be killed”

Ille servus nōn pūniendus, sed potius laudandus fuit. (ll.161–162): “should not have been punished, but rather praised”

Nunc merum bibendum est! (l.177): “must be drunk”

The gerundive is a passive form; agent (the person by whom the action is to be performed) is expressed by the dative (not ab + ablative):

Quidquid dominus imperāvit servō faciendum est. (ll.159–160): “must be done”

The passive periphrastic can be used without a subject:

Bibendum nōbīs est!

We must drink!

Tacendum est!

It is necessary to be quiet! (l.178)

Dormiendum omnibus est!

Everyone must sleep!

{291} Remember:

• Gerund: active noun used only in the accusative, genitive, dative, and ablative of the neuter singular.

• Gerundive: passive adjective with all forms of 1st/2nd declension; expressing what is suitable/necessary and takes a dative of agent.

Optative, Hortatory, Jussive Subjunctives Compared

Orontes, who has had quite a bit to drink, illustrates three related uses of the subjunctive: optative, hortatory, and jussive. All three are expressions of the will of the speaker.

• Optative: an expression of wish (may he/she/they) (more in Cap. XXXII)

Vīvat fortissimus quisque! Vīvant omnēs fēminae amandae! (ll.172–173)

“Quisquis amat valeat! Pereat quī nescit amāre! Bis tantō pereat quisquis amāre vetat!” (ll.196–197, per-eat is the present subjunctive of per-īre)

• Hortatory (see Cap. XXX): an expression of encouragement or exhortation in the 1st person plural (“let us”)

Gaudeāmus atque amēmus!

Let us rejoice and let us love! (l.173)

Vīvāmus omnēs et bibāmus. (ll.183–184)

Pōcula funditus exhauriāmus. (l.184)

Redeāmus ad meum Mēdum servum.

Let’s get back to my slave Medus.

• Jussive: a command expressed in the 3rd person (“let him/her, let them”)

Quisquis fēminās amat, pōculum tollat et bibat mēcum!

Whoever loves women, let him lift up his cup and drink with me! (ll.176–177)

The optative subjunctive expresses a wish, hortatory an exhortation, jussive a command. For all three, the negative is nē:

Nē pereat!

May he not perish!

Nē pōcula funditus exhauriāmus!

Let us not drain our glasses dry!

Nē bibat!

Let him not drink!

Quisque + Superlative

When quisque and the superlative are used together, the phrase means “all the X.” Cicero spoke of optimus quisque, “all the best men.” Orontes cries:

{292} Vīvat fortissimus quisque!

May all the bravest men live! (l.172: i.e., “everyone according as he is the bravest,” “all the bravest men”)

Semi-Deponents

There are a very few verbs in Latin that are called semi-deponent. The semi-deponent verb audēre, for example, has an active form in the present (audeō, audēre), but its form is passive in the perfect: ausum esse (to have dared):

Ille iuvenis fēminam illam pulcherrimam abdūcere ausus est. (ll.168–169)

Perterritus Quīntus cultrum medicī sentit in bracchiō, nec oculōs aperīre audet. (Cap. XI, ll.97–98)

Conversely, usually revertī is deponent in the present tense (revertor revertī), but has active forms in the perfect: revertisse; thus revertitur (she returns) but revertit (she returned).[2]

Graffiti

The inscription on page 259 is a graffito (Italian for “a scratching”) that a lovesick youth has scratched on a wall in Pompeii. It will help you to decipher the characters when you know that the inscription contains the two verses quoted by Orontes (ll.196–197; only the first syllable is missing).

Studia Rōmāna

Roman attitude toward their slaves varied considerably. Were Seneca the Younger (first century AD) at Julius’s dinner, he would have argued with his host’s view of slaves. Seneca would remind Julius of what he had written to his young friend Lucilius (letter 47): that anyone can become enslaved (through war, kidnapping, etc.) and that he should treat his slaves in a mild and friendly manner. Slaves treated badly will fear and hate their masters. Aemilia reminds Julius of the proverb “Dominō sevērō tot esse hostēs quot servōs.” This proverb comes from Seneca’s letter: Eiusdem arrogantiae prōverbium iactātur, totidem hostēs esse quot servōs: nōn habēmus illōs hostēs sed facimus (47.5).[3]

The mention of crucifixion gives Aemilia the chance to voice her outrage at parents who expose (ēxpōnere) their infants. It was the right of the paterfamilias to decide whether to raise a child or expose it. Although child exposure is a popular theme in literature (particularly the Greek novel), it’s not at all {293} clear how often it happened in real life. There is literary evidence that seriously deformed babies were at greater risk of exposure. But it is clear that, outside of myths like Romulus and Remus, children were not left out in the expectation that they would be eaten by wild beasts, but rather were left in places where they were likely to be picked up and raised by others.

Orontes continues his boorish ignorance, but his tone-deaf responses to the conversation give us the opportunity to explore more myths. There were many sources for and variations of Greek myth, but as it happens, both of the myths that Orontes brings up can be found in Hyginus’s Fābulae, a simplistic compendium of Greek mythology probably from the second century AD.[4] Also thought to be from the second century AD is the Bibliothēkē (or Library) of Apollodorus, another compendium of Greek myth. The existence of many handbooks of, in addition to innumerable literary allusions to, Greek myth attests to the vitality of myth in the ancient world.

Cornelius refers to a historical figure of near-mythical status: Solon, Athenian lawgiver and one of the seven sages (wise men) of Greece, lived in the seventh–sixth century BC. When asked why there was no law against parricides, he responded that he was of the opinion that no one would ever commit the crime (Cicero, dē Rosciō Amerīnō, 70.5: [Solōn] cum interrogārētur cūr nūllum supplicium cōnstituisset in eum quī parentem necāsset, respondit sē id nēminem factūrum putāsse). The Romans, however, did have a law against parricide and (at least during the republic) a gruesome punishment for it: the culprit was tied up in a sack with a dog, a cock, a viper, and an ape (Justinian, Digest 48.9).[5] By the time of our narrative, the emperor Hadrian had decreed if the sea were not available, the murderer would be thrown to beasts.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

iniūria, -ae

injury, injustice

memoria, -ae

memory

nūgae, -ārum

trifles

parricīda, -ae (m./f.)

murderer of a near relative or head of state

poena, -ae

punishment

2nd

praemium, -ī

reward

supplicium, -ī

punishment

{294} 3rd

crux, crucis (f.)

cross

iūs, iūris (n.)

law, right; also gravy, soup

iuvenis, iuvenis (m./f.)

young person (not an i-stem)

lēx, lēgis (f.)

law, motion, bill

mōs, mōris (m.)

custom, habit; pl. behavior, morals

mūnus, mūneris (n.)

service, duty, gift

pōtiō, pōtiōnis (f.)

drink

rūmor, rūmōris (m.)

rumor

scelus, sceleris (n.)

crime, wickedness

senex, senis (m.)

old man (not an i-stem)

5th

fidēs, -eī[6]

loyalty, good faith

Verba

-āre (1)

(cruciō) cruciāre, cruciāvisse, cruciātum

torture

(ēducō) ēducāre, ēducāvisse, ēducātum

train, educate, rear

(fābulor) fābulārī, fābulātum

chat, tell a story

(interpellō) interpellāre, interpellāvisse, interpellātum

interrupt, break in

(optō) optāre, optāvisse, optātum

choose, wish for

(vetō) vetāre, vetuisse, vetitum

forbid

-ēre (2)

(lateō) latēre, latuisse

lie hidden, lurk

-ere (3)

(abdūcō) abdūcere, abdūxisse, abductum

lead away, carry off

(aufugiō) aufugere, aufūgisse

run away, escape

(cōnfīdō) cōnfīdere, cōnfīsum (+ dat.)

trust

(fīdō) fīdere, fīsum (+ dat.)

trust, rely on

(ignōscō) ignōscere, ignōvisse, ignōtum (+ dat.)

forgive

(ōdī) ōdisse, ōsum

hate

(retrahō) retrahere, retrāxisse, retractum

draw back, withdraw

(statuō) statuere, statuisse, statūtum

fix, determine

Irregular

(auferō) auferre, abstulisse, ablātum

carry off

{295} Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

asinīnus, -a, -um

asinine

avārus, -a, -um

greedy

ēbrius, -a, -um

drunk

fīdus, -a, -um

loyal, faithful

fugitīvus, -a, -um

fugitive

īnfīdus, -a, -um

treacherous

iniūstus, -a, -um

unjust

invalidus, -a, -um

weak

iūstus, -a, -um

just

nimius, -a, -um

too big

nōnāgēsimus, -a, -um

ninetieth

scelestus, -a, -um

wicked

3rd

clēmēns (gen. clēmentis)

merciful

crūdēlis, -e

cruel

dēbilis, -e

weak

impatiēns (gen. impatientis)

impatient

īnfēlīx (gen. īnfēlīcis)

unlucky

praesēns (gen. praesentis)

present

sapiēns (gen. sapientis)

wise

vetus (gen. veteris)

old

Prōnōmina

quisquis, quidquid

whoever, whatever, each, all

Adverbia

aliquantum (adv.)

to some extent

funditus

utterly (from the root)

ideō

for that reason

namque

for in fact (strong nam)

nimium/nimis (adv.)

too much

priusquam

before, sooner, rather

quantum (as adv.)

so much as, as much as

quamobrem

why? therefore

Praepositiōnēs

cōram (prp. + abl.)

in the presence of, face to face (with) (also adv.)

super (prp. + abl.)

over (also adv.)

____________

1. The future perfect is here used with a present tense main verb as potestātem mūtandī = poterō mūtāre.

2. Revertere exists in both active and deponent forms (reverto, revertere, revertī and revertor, revertī, reversus sum); in the present the deponent forms are more common, in the perfect, the active forms.

3. Of this same haughty attitude, the proverb, “There are as many enemies as slaves,” is tossed about: we don’t possess them as enemies, but we make them so.

4. The story of Midas is Hyginus 191 and of Paris, 91.

5. Justinian’s Digest 48.9: Poena parricīdiī mōre maiōrum haec īnstitūta est, ut parricīda uirgīs sanguineīs uerberātus deinde culleō īnsuātur cum cane, gallō gallīnāceō et uīperā et sīmiā: deinde in mare profundum culleus iactātur.

6. Like rēs (Cap. XIV) and spēs (Cap. XXIX), fidēs has a short ĕ in the genitive and dative singular (see Cap. XIII for the rules): fidēs, fideī.

{296} XXXII. Classis Rōmāna

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Perfect Subjunctive: Active and Passive

i. Perfect Subjunctive in Indirect Questions

ii. Prohibitions: Perfect Subjunctive in Negative Commands

b. Uses of the Subjunctive

i. Optative Subjunctive (Continued)

ii. Fear Clauses

iii. Noun Clauses: fit/accidit ut + Subjunctive

c. Verbs of Remembering and Forgetting

d. velle: Present Subjunctive

2. Nouns: Cases Uses

a. Ablative of Description

b. Ablative of Separation

c. vīs/vīrēs

d. Partitive Genitive: sēstertius

3. Pronouns: aliquis/aliquid

Medus and Lydia at Sea

The fear of pirates gives rise to a long discussion on board the ship. Medus tells the story of the circumstances in which he was sent to prison and sold as a slave. This story mollifies Lydia, so when finally the danger is over, the two are once more on the best of terms.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Subjunctive with Noun Clauses

You have already seen clauses acting as the objects of verbs (Cap. XXVIII). A clause can also act as the subject of a verb. The impersonal expressions fit and accidit may be followed by an ut-clause with the subjunctive telling what happens; the ut-clause is the subject of fit:

{297} Rārō fit ut nāvis praedōnum in marī internō appāreat. (ll.42–43)

Ablative

of Description

A noun + adjective in the ablative can be used to describe a quality (ablātīvus quālitātis or ablative of description):

tantā audāciā sunt (l.49)

bonō animō esse (Cap. XXIX, ll.122–123)

(cf. genitive of description, Cap. XIX)

of Separation

We saw the ablative of separation with carēre in Cap. XX, and with pellere and prohibēre in Cap. XXVII. With līberāre and with opus esse as well we find the ablative of separation without a preposition:

servitūte līberābantur (l.6)

Quid opus est armīs? (l.78)

…seu pecūniā seu aliā rē mihi opus erit. (l.118)

Quid verbīs opus est? (l.195)

Vīs

The noun vīs (“strength,” “force,” “violence”) has only three forms in the singular:

nom.

vīs

acc.

vim (l.13)

abl.

vī (l.77)

The plural vīrēs, vīrium means physical strength:

Nautae omnibus vīribus rēmigant. (l.53, ll.65–66)

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Verbs of Remembering and Forgetting

In Cap. XXV, you learned oblīvīscī can take a genitive as object:

Nōn facile est amōris antīquī oblīvīscī. (Cap. XXV, l.128)

Numquam beneficiī oblītus sum. (l.26)

Its opposites, reminīscī and meminisse, meaning “to remember,” also can take a genitive as an object:

{298} Nec vērō quidquam difficilius esse vidētur quam beneficiōrum meminisse. (ll.125–126)

Eius temporis reminīscor. (ll.155–156)

Like oblīvīscī, both reminīscī and meminisse can also take accusative objects:

Duōs versūs reminīscor ē carmine. (ll.101–102)

Tūne nōmen eius meministī? (ll.106–107)

Reminīscī and meminisse will take an accusative when they mean “remember” in the literal sense of “retain in memory” but the genitive when they mean “be mindful of,” just as oblīvīscī takes the accusative when “forget” means “remove from memory” (mostly used of things) and the genitive when it means “disregard.”

Note: meminisse is a defective verb which, like ōdisse (Cap. XXXI), has no present stem: the perfect form meminī (“I remember”) is the opposite of oblītus sum (“I have forgotten”).

Velle

The present subjunctive of velle:

Perfect Subjunctive

During the discussion, the merchant quotes two verses without giving the poet’s name. The helmsman does not ask a direct question: “Quī poēta ista scrīpsit?” with the verb in the indicative, but uses an indirect question with the subjunctive:[1] “Nesciō quī poēta ista scrīpserit” (l.106). Scrīps|erit is the perfect subjunctive (Latin coniūnctīvus perfectī) of scrībere.

This tense is formed in the active by inserting -eri-between the perfect stem and the personal endings:

1st sing.

~eri|m

2nd

~eri|s

3rd

~eri|t

1st pl.

~eri|mus

2nd

~eri|tis

3rd

~eri|nt

Notā Bene: The perfect subjunctive looks like the future perfect indicative except for the 1st person singular ~erim (where the future perfect has ~erō).

{299} In the passive, the perfect subjunctive is composed of the perfect participle and the present subjunctive of esse (sim, sīs, sit, etc.):

Iūlius dubitat num Mārcus ā magistrō laudātus sit (= num magister Mārcum laudāverit).

Perfect Subjunctive

active

perfect stem + eri + endings

passive

participle stem + present subjunctive of esse

Recēnsiō: Ferre

For review, compare the present, imperfect, and perfect subjunctives of ferō, ferre, tulisse, lātum:

Tense

Active

Passive

Present

feram

ferās

ferat

ferāmus

ferātis

ferant

ferar

ferāris

ferātur

ferāmur

ferāmini

ferantur

Imperfect

ferrem

ferrēs

ferret

ferrēmus

ferrētis

ferrent

ferrer

ferrēris

ferrētur

ferrēmur

ferrēmini

ferrentur

Perfect

tulerim

tuleris

tulerit

tulerimus

tuleritis

tulerint

lātus, -a sim

lātus, -a sīs

lātus, -a, -um sit

lātī, -ae sīmus

lātī, -ae sītis

lātī, -ae, -um sint

Perfect Subjunctive in Subordinate Clauses

You have learned (Cap. XXVIII) that the present and imperfect subjunctives represent incomplete action in subjunctive subordinate clauses. The present subjunctive is used with a present or future tense main verb and the imperfect with a past tense main verb.

The perfect subjunctive represents completed action in a subjunctive subordinate clause when the main verb is present or future.

{300} Sequence of Tense

Main Verb

Subordinate Verb

Incomplete Action

Completed Action

present future past tense

present subjunctive
imperfect subjunctive

perfect subjunctive
(Cap. XXXIII)

Perfect Subjunctive in Indirect Questions

The perfect subjunctive is used in indirect questions concerning completed actions, when the main verb is in the present, present perfect, or future tense, as in the above examples (scrīpserit, laudātus sit, laudāverit) and the following:

Haud sciō an ego ita dīxerim.     I might say that.[2] (l.84)

Nesciō quī poēta ista scrīpserit. (l.106)

Mīror unde pecūniam sūmpseris ut aliōs redimerēs. (ll.132–133)

Ego mīror cūr id mihi nōn nārrāveris. (l.134)

Sed nesciō cūr hoc vōbīs nārrāverim. (ll.154–155)

Scīsne quantum pīrātae ā Iūliō Caesare captō postulāverint? (ll.168–169)

Mīlitēs ignōrant quī homō sīs et quid anteā fēceris. (ll.215–216)

Iamne oblītus es quid modo dīxeris? (l.82): Here oblītus es is followed by a perfect subjunctive because it represents the present perfect, where the mental focus is the present result of a past action (Cap. XXI).

Nārrābō vōbīs breviter quōmodo amīcum ē servitūte redēmerim atque ipse ob eam grātiam servus factus sim. (l.137)

Sēstertius

After mīlia, the partitive genitive plural of sēstertius has the shorter ending -um in instead of -ōrum:

decem mīlia sēstertium (ll.91, cf. l.170)

Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Perfect Subjunctive in Prohibitions (Negative Command)

With nē, the 2nd person of this tense expresses a prohibition:

Nē timueris! Nē timueritis! (ll.215, 199 = nōlī/nōlīte timēre!)

Nē dēspērāveris! (l.162)

Nē eum abiēceris! (l.182)

Nē oblīta sīs mē servum fugitīvum esse. (ll.211–212)

{301} Remember: As you learned in Cap. XX, prohibitions can also be expressed with nōlī/nōlīte and the infinitive.

Optative Subjunctive (continued)

In Cap. XXXI, we saw that the subjunctive can express a wish (optative subjunctive). Wishes are often introduced by the adverb utinam, e.g.:

Utinam aliquandō līber patriam videam!

May I sometime see my country as a free man! (l.157)

Utinam ille ānulus vītam tuam servet!

May that ring save your life! (ll.182–182)

Utinam salvī in Graeciam perveniant! (l.223)

Utinam can be left untranslated in English (“may I see my country”) or be translated by “I wish that” or similar.

The optative subjunctive to express a wish that something not happen uses nē to negate the clause, e.g.:

Utinam nē pīrātae mē occīdant! (ll.179–180)

Clauses Expressing Fear

An expression of fear that something may happen implies a wish that it may not happen; this is why the construction with verbs expressing fear, timēre, metuere, and verērī might seem counterintuitive:

• A fear that something will happen is expressed by nē + subjunctive, e.g.:

Timeō nē pīrātae mē occīdant.

I fear the pirates may kill me.

• A fear that something will not happen is expressed with ut + subjunctive, e.g.:

Timeō ut ille veniat.

I fear he may not come.

If you separate the two clauses, you can see how the sentences work:

Timeō (I am afraid) nē pīrātae mē occīdant (may the pirates not kill me!) becomes: I fear that the pirates may kill me.

Timeō (I am afraid) ut ille veniat (may he come!) becomes: I fear he may not come.

The Prefix ali-

The prefix ali-serves to make interrogative words indefinite:

quot?

how many?

ali-quot: some, several

quandō?

when?

ali-quandō: at some time or other, once

{302} quantum?

how much?

ali-quantum: a certain amount

quis? quid?

who? what?

ali-quis, ali-quid: someone, something

Recall, however, that quis, quid is used (without ali-) as an indefinite pronoun after sī, nisī, num, and nē (Cap. XXII):

Nihil cuiquam nārrāvī dē eā rē, nē quis mē glōriōsum exīstimāret. (ll.135–136)

Vērum hōc ānulō sī quis servārī potest, nōn ego, sed amīca mea servanda est. (ll.180–181)

Recēnsiō: “Qu” words

aliquī, aliqua, aliquod

some (indefinite adj.)

aliquis, aliquid

someone, something (indefinite pronoun)

quī, quae, quod

who, which, he who (relative pronoun)

quī, quae, quod (…?)

what, which (interrogative adj.)

quia

because (conjunction)

quid

what, anything (n. of quis, below)

quid (…?)

why (adv.)

quīdam, quadam, quoddam

a certain, some (indefinite pronoun)

quidem

indeed, certainly (adv.)

nē…quidem

not even (adv.)

quidnī (…?)

why not (interrogative adv.)

quisquis, quidquid/quicquid

whatever, anything that (indefinite pronoun)

quis, quae, quid (…?)

who, what (interrogative pronoun)

quis, quid (si/num/ne…)

anyone, anything (= aliquis)

quisnam, quidnam (…?)

whoever?/whatever? (strengthened interrogative)

quisquam, quidquam

anyone, anything (indefinite pronoun)

quisque, quaeque, quodque

each (distributive pronoun)

quisquis, quidquid

whoever/whatever, anyone who/anything who (generalizing relative pronoun)

quō

where (to) (adv.)

quod

because, that (= quia) (conjunction)

quod

what, which, that which (n. of relative quī above)

quōmodo

how (adv.)

quoniam

as, since (conjunction)

quoque

also, too (adv.)

quot (…?)

how many (interrogative and relative adj.)

{303} Studia Rōmāna

The story of Caesar and the pirates (ll.6–9), related more fully by the gubernātor (ll.166–177) is told by Plutarch (first–second century), in his biography of Caesar. Piracy (robbery on the sea) was an inveterate problem. According to Thucydides (fifth-century BC Athenian historian), King Minos of Crete (Cap. XXV, l.44) was the first person to establish a navy; he then established colonies around the island, gained control of the waters, and stopped piracy. Rome did not become powerful at sea until the Punic Wars (third century BC). As mentioned briefly in the notes to Cap. XXIX, the Roman navy had made great strides toward policing the seas and keeping them safe from pirates: Pompey in 67 BC (ll.16–41) was granted special military power (māius imperium) to combat the pirates. Augustus set up permanent naval stations at Mīsēnum and Ravenna (Mīsēnum is on the point west of Puteolī on the map on p. 40 of your text; Ravenna is just north of Arīminum on the same map). Under the empire, control of the coastline around the Mediterranean facilitated safe seas.

Medus, as a runaway slave, a fugitīvus, has a lot to worry about. Should he be caught, it would be up to Julius to decide what to do with him—he could indeed, as he had threatened, have him crucified or, as Medus worries, thrown to beasts. We know both from what the Romans wrote and from artifacts that slaves ran away with some frequency. Archaeologists have found shackles, chains, and slave collars that mark the wearer as a slave, with inscriptions with variations of “hold on to me” (tenē mē…tenē mē quia fugiō et revocā mē in…)—the same kind of collars that Romans put on their dogs. Instructions are often included for returning the slave. A runaway slave was a thief (he did not belong to himself but to his master). Someone who finds a runaway slave and does not return him is also a thief and a criminal. During the empire, the Romans employed slave catchers (fugitīvāriī) to help them retrieve their property. During the republic, slave-owners had to rely on their network of friends.

We have a commercium epistulārum (a correspondence of letters) between Cicero and his friends about a runaway slave named Dionysius (an anagnostēs: a slave who read aloud to the master and his guests, so educated with a good voice and therefore expensive, cf. Cap. XVIII). Cicero writes to his friend Publius Sulpicius Rufus, proconsul in Illyria, for help in recovering his Dionysius, who was in charge of Cicero’s (very valuable) library; he stole many valuable books and, knowing he would not get away with it, ran away. Spotted in Illyria by several of Cicero’s friends, Dionysius claimed he had been set free by Cicero. (For a fugitīvus to claim to be līber, according to Justinian’s Digest of Roman Law, was an even more serious offense, Digest 11.4.2.). Cicero pleads with Sulpicius to do all he can to have Dionysius returned—a small matter, he says, but his grief at losing the books is great (Ad Fam. 13.77). At this point, you can read most of it as well! What you can’t yet read is translated in parentheses:

{304} Praetereā ā tē petō in māiōrem modum prō nostrā amicitiā et prō tuō perpetuō (everlasting) in mē studiō ut in hāc rē etiam ēlabōrēs (= labōrēs): Dionȳsius, servus meus, quī meam bibliothēcen[3] multōrum nummōrum tractāvit (= cūrāvit), cum multōs librōs surripuisset (had stolen) nec sē impūnē (without punishment) lāturum putāret, aufūgit. Is est in prōvinciā tuā. Eum et M. Bolānus, familiāris (friend) meus, et multī aliī Narōnae (at Narona) vīdērunt, sed cum sē ā mē manū missum esse dīceret, crēdidērunt. Hunc tū sī mihi rēstituendum (will be restored) cūrāris (you will take care that), nōn possum dīcere quam mihi grātum futūrum sit. Rēs ipsa parva sed animī meī dolor magnus est. Ubi sit et quid fierī possit Bolānus te docēbit. Ego, sī hominem per tē reciperārō (will have regained), summō mē ā tē beneficiō affectum arbitrābor.

From these letters, it is clear that not all slaves wore identifying marks and that some were so integral a part of their master’s homes that visitors to those homes would recognize them elsewhere, so a runaway ran great risks.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

amīcitia, -ae

friendship

audācia, -ae

boldness

grātia, -ae

favor, gratitude, thanks (pl.)

incola, -ae (m./f.)

inhabitant

inopia, -ae

lack

pīrāta, -ae (m.)

pirate

poēta, -ae (m.)

poet

victōria, -ae

victory

2nd

amphitheātrum, -ī

amphitheater

populus, -ī

the people (not a person)

talentum, -ī

a talent (sum of money)

3rd

classis, classis (f.)

fleet

condiciō, condicōnis (f.)

agreement, contract, condition

gēns, gentis (f.)

tribe, nation

servitūs, servitūtis (f.)

slavery

victor, victōris (m.)

victor

vīrēs, vīrium (f. pl.)

strength

vīs (f.)

force, power

voluntās, voluntātis (f.)

will, desire, good will

{305} 4th

cursus, -ūs (m.)

running, forward movement; course

Verba

-āre (1)

(adiuvō) adiuvāre, adiūvisse, adiūtum

help

(armō) armāre, armāvisse, armātum

arm

(minor) minārī, minātum

threaten

(rēmigō) rēmigāre, rēmigāvisse, rēmigātum

row back

(repugnō) repugnāre, repugnāvisse

fight back (mostly intr.)

-ēre (2)

(dissuādeō) dissuādēre, dissuāsisse

dissuade

(tueor) tuērī, tuitum and tūtum

see, watch, protect

-ere (3)

(contemnō) contemnere, contēmpsisse, contēmptum

think little of, scorn

(dēsistō) dēsistere, dēstitisse

leave off, cease

(ēducō) ēdūcere, ēdūxisse, ēductum

lead out

(flectō) flectere, flexisse, flectum

bend

(meminī) meminisse (+ gen. or acc.)

keep in mind, remember

(praepōnō) praepōnere, praeposuisse, praepositum

put (acc.) before (dat.), in charge of

(percurrō) percurrisse, percursum

run through

(redimō) redimere, redēmisse, redēmptum

buy back

(reminīscor) reminīscī (+ gen. or acc.)

call to mind, recollect

(submergō) submergere, -mersisse, -mersum

sink, submerge

Irregular

(offerō) offerre, obtulisse, oblātum

offer, present

(praeferō) praeferre, praetulisse, praelātum

prefer

(referō) referre, rettulisse, relātum

bring back, return

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

adversus, -a, -um

opposed, adverse

cārus, -a, -um

dear

cūnctus, -a, -um

all

ēgregius, -a, -um

outstanding

grātus, -a, -um

grateful, pleasing

īnfēstus, -a, -um

dangerous

internus, -a, -um

internal, domestic

mercātōrius, -a, -um

mercantile

{306} mūtuus, -a, -um

on loan

nūbilus, -a, -um

cloudy

proximus, -a, -um

closest

superbus, -a, -um

lofty, arrogant

3rd

commūnis, -e

shared, common

inermis, -e

(in + arm) unarmed

vīlis, -e

cheap

Adverbia

aliquandō

some time or other, finally

aliquot

some, several

dōnec

until

etiamnunc

even now

intereā

meanwhile

ubīque

anywhere, everywhere

utinam

if that, only that, would that

Coniūnctiōnēs

neu

or not, and not (nēve…nēve)

seu

or if, or (sive…sive)

____________

1. First seen in Cap. XXIX: Modo tē interrogāvī tuane esset pecūnia (ll.127–128) and dubitō num haec fābula vēra sit (ll.116–117).

2. Haud sciō an is an idiom meaning “I think x is probably the case” (the same is true of nesciō an and dubitō an).

3. Bibliothēcen: Greek βιβλιοθήκη, Latin bibliothēcam.

{307} XXXIII. Exercitus Rōmānus

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Pluperfect Subjunctive

b. Uses of the Subjunctive

i. Pluperfect Subjunctive in Subordinate Clauses

ii. Optative Subjunctive: Unfulfilled Wishes

iii. Contrafactual Conditions

c. Passive of Intransitive Verbs

d. Future Imperative

e. velle: Imperfect Subjunctive

2. Nouns: Case Uses

a. Ablative of Respect (continued)

3. Adjectives

a. Gerundive Attraction

b. Distributive Numerals (continued)

Aemilia Writes to Her Brother

The chapter consists mainly of a letter to Aemilia from her brother, who is in Germania on military service. From this letter, you learn more military terms.

Lēctiō Prīma (Section I)

Distributive Numerals (continued)

In Cap. XXX, you learned that distributive numbers are those used repetitively (e.g., in multiplication or groups of certain numbers). Here are more distributive numerals:

10

dēnī, -ae, -a (l.2)

4

quaternī, -ae, -a (l.3)

5

quīnī, -ae, -a (l.3)

6

sēnī, -ae, -a (l.3)

{308} Nouns that occur only in the plural, i.e., pluralia tantum, use distributive numbers, e.g.:

bīna castra

two camps

bīnae litterae

(= duae epistulae)

When distributive numbers are used with nouns that are plūrālia tantum, ūnī, -ae, -a and trīnī, -ae, -a are used instead of singulī, -ae, -a and ternī, -ae, -a, e.g.:

ūnae litterae

(= ūna epistula)

trīnae litterae

(= trēs epistulae)

Quaeris ā mē cūr tibi ūnās tantum litterās scrīpserim, cum interim trīnās quaternāsve litterās ā tē accēperim. (ll.90–92)

Velle, nōlle, mālle (continued)

The imperfect subjunctive of mālle and nōlle follows the (perfectly regular) pattern of velle (margin, p. 274). Review the forms of the present indicative and present and imperfect subjunctive:

Lēctiō Altera (Section II)

Optative Subjunctive: Wishes Unfulfilled in the Present

In Cap. XXXI, you learned that the present subjunctive (with or without utinam) expresses a wish for the future. When we express a wish for the present, it has to be one that isn’t true for the present (e.g., “I wish I weren’t in class right now!”). There are various names for such wishes (which are optative subjunctive): unfulfilled, unrealistic, and contrafactual (contrary to fact). The verb is in the imperfect subjunctive, e.g., Aemilius’s unreal (contrafactual) wishes:

{309} Utinam ego Rōmae essem! (l.67)

Utinam hic amnis Tiberis esset et haec castra essent Rōma! (ll.70–71)

Aemilius is not, in fact, in Rome; the river is not the Tiber and the camp is not Rome. The verb is not in the present, but in the imperfect subjunctive.

Conditions in the Subjunctive: Present Unreal (Contrafactual)

Just as wishes can be unfulfilled (contrafactual), so too can conditions. The following sentences express a condition that can never be realized; here, too, the imperfect subjunctive is used to express unreality:

Sī Mercurius essem ālāsque habērem, in Italiam volārem!

If I were Mercury and had wings, I would fly into Italy (but I’m not Mercury and I don’t have wings). (ll.73–75)

Nisi nōs hīc essēmus fīnēsque imperiī dēfenderēmus, hostēs celeriter Dānuvium et Alpēs trānsīrent atque ūsque in Italiam pervenīrent, nec vōs in Latiō tūtī essētis. (ll.82–85)

Sī mihi tantum esset ōtiī quantum est tibi, in epistulīs scrībendīs nōn minus dīligēns essem quam tū. (ll.93–95)

Gerundive Attraction

A gerund is a verbal noun with an active sense and thus can take an accusative direct object. But in practice, the gerund is usually not found with a direct object. Instead, most writers preferred to substitute a phrase consisting of a noun and the gerundive; the meaning is the same in each case. Some examples:

cupidus sōlem propius aspiciendī

cupidus sōlis propius aspiciendī

(Cap. XXVI, l.108)

cupidus patriam videndī          cupidus patriae videndae (l.80)

fessus longās fābulās audiendō

fessus longīs fābulīs audiendīs

(Cap. XXVI, l.123)

Compare: when adding an object to a gerund prepositional phrase, Latin writers consistently use a gerundive/noun combination (not the gerund plus object), e.g.:

Gerund prepositional phrase ad scrībendum: “for writing”

Gerundive/noun phrase ad epistulam scrībendam: “for writing a letter” (ll.97–98)

in scrībendō: “in writing”

in epistulīs scrībendīs: “in writing letters” (ll.94–95)

ad dēfendendum

ad castra dēfendenda (l.116)

ad persequendum

ad eōs persequendōs. (= ut eōs persequerentur) (l.132)

{310} Lēctiō Tertia (Section III)

Passive of Intransitive Verbs

Intransitive verbs, you have learned, do not take an accusative direct object. Intransitive verbs can still be used in the passive, but only if they are used impersonally (that is, in the 3rd person with no subject: “it”). The intransitive verb pugnāre is used impersonally in the following examples:

ā Rōmānīs fortissimē pugnātum est = Rōmānī fortissimē pugnāvērunt. Mediā nocte in castra nūntiātum est… (l.105)

Cum complūrēs hōrās ita fortissimē ā nostrīs, ab hostibus cōnstanter ac nōn timidē pugnātum esset.

literally: “when there had been fighting by our men … by the enemy,” but more idiomatically, “when our men and the enemy had fought…” (ll.119–121)

Pluperfect Subjunctive

The last remaining tense of the Latin subjunctive is the pluperfect (Latin coniūnctīvus plūsquamperfectī). It is formed in the active by inserting -issē-(shortened -isse-) between the perfect stem and the personal endings. In other words, just as the imperfect subjunctive can be formed by adding the personal endings to the present infinitive, the pluperfect subjunctive can be formed by adding the personal endings to the perfect infinitive:

1st sing.

~isse|m

2nd

~issē|s

3rd

~isse|t

1st pl.

~issē|mus

2nd

~issē|tis

3rd

~isse|nt

The pluperfect subjunctive passive is composed of the perfect participle and the imperfect subjunctive of esse (essem, essēs, esset, etc.).

Pluperfect Subjunctive in Subordinate Clauses

Just as the perfect subjunctive signifies completed action in a subordinate clause after a present or future tense verb, the pluperfect subjunctive signifies completed action after a past tense main verb.

{311} Sequence of Tense

Main Verb

Subordinate Verb

Incomplete Action

Completed Action

present future

present subjunctive

perfect subjunctive

past tense

imperfect subjunctive

pluperfect subjunctive

The pluperfect subjunctive occurs in subordinate clauses such as:

• cum-clauses (where cum + pluperf. subj. = postquam + perf. ind.)

Quī cum arma cēpissent et vāllum ascendissent (= postquam… cēpērunt/ascendērunt), prīmō mīrābantur quamobrem mediā nocte ē somnō excitātī essent… (ll.109–111)

Cum complūrēs hōrās ita fortissimē ā nostrīs…pugnātum esset. (ll.119–121)

• indirect questions concerning completed action in the past, i.e., with the main verb in the preterite (imperfect, perfect, or pluperfect).

Ego quoque dubitāre coeperam num nūntius vērum dīxisset. (ll.112–113)

Optative Subjunctive: Wishes Unfulfilled in the Past

Just as the imperfect subjunctive expresses a wish that is not coming true in the present, the pluperfect subjunctive expresses a wish that didn’t come true in the past, as in Aemilius’s final remarks:

Utinam patrem audīvissem!

If only I had listened to my father (but I didn’t)! (l.166)

Conditions in the Subjunctive: Past Unreal (Contrafactual)

The imperfect subjunctive expresses a condition unfulfilled in the present, while the pluperfect subjunctive expresses a condition unfulfilled in the past, e.g.:

Sī iam tum hoc intellēxissem, certē patrem audīvissem nec bellum profectus essem.
Malus amīcus fuissem, nisi lacrimās effūdissem super corpus amīcī mortuī, cum ille sanguinem suum prō mē effūdisset.

If I had understood…I would have listened and I would not have set out. (ll.181–182)

I would have been a bad friend, had I not shed tears, since he would have shed…. (ll.163–165)

More examples can be found in GRAMMATICA LATINA.

Thus, the imperfect subjunctive expresses a wish/condition that is not true in the present. The pluperfect subjunctive expresses a wish/condition that was not true in the past:

{312} utinam veniat

“may he come” (in the future) or “may he be coming (presently)”

utinam venīret

“would that he were coming” (but he is not)

utinam vēnisset

“would that he had come” (but he did not)

Ablative of Respect (continued)

The ablative of respect (which answers the question “in what respect?”) was introduced in Cap. XI (pede aeger, l.55), Cap. XIX (amōre dignus, ll.111–112), and again in Cap. XXV (nōmine Mīnōtaurus, l.26). In the expression hostēs numerō superiōrēs (l.144), numerō shows in what way the enemy are superior: “in number,” “numerically.”

Future Imperative

Aemilius ends his letter with some requests (ll.187–189). Here he uses what is often called the future imperative. While all imperatives refer to the future, forms in -tō (sing.), -tōte (pl.) do not imply “immediately.” They are often, therefore, used in legal language.

To form the future imperative, the following endings are added to the present stem:

• Vowel Stems

-tō (sing.), -tōte (pl.)

nārrā|tō -tōte

• Consonant Stems

itō -itōte

scrīb|itō -itōte

• Irregular

es|tō, es|tōte from esse

fer|tō, fer|tōte from ferre

Recēnsiō

I. Summary of Conditions

With the indicative

• Present Indicative:

Sī iam hoc intellegis, certē patrem audīs.

If you already understand this, you are certainly listening to your father. (cf. ll.181–182)

Sī aeger est, in lūdum īre nōn potest. (cf. Cap. XV, l.83)

{313} • Future or Future Perfect Indicative:

Sī hoc intellēxeris, certē patrem audiēs.

If you will have understood this, you will certainly listen to your father.

Nōnne laetus eris, sī fīliolam habēbis? (cf. Cap. XX, ll.153–154)

Profectō eum verberābō atque omnibus modīs cruciābō, sī eum invēnerō priusquam Italiam relīquerit. (Cap. XXXI, ll.63–65)

• Past Indicative:

Sī iam tum hoc intellēxistī, certē patrem audīvistī.

If you already at that time understood this, you certainly listened to your father.

Sī quid prāvē feceram, dominus imperābat ut ego ab aliīs servīs tenērer et verberārer. (cf. Cap. XXVIII, ll.160–161)

With the subjunctive

• Present Subjunctive (ideal: “should … would”):[1]

Sī hoc intellegās, certē patrem audiās.

If you should understand this, you would certainly listen to your father.

Sī quid prāvē faciam, dominus imperet ut ego ab aliīs servīs tenear et erberer.

If I should do something wrong, my master would order…

• Imperfect Subjunctive (present unreal: “were…would”):

Sī iam hoc intellegerēs, certē patrem audīres.

If you already understood this (but you clearly don’t), you certainly would be listening to your father (but you aren’t).

• Pluperfect Subjunctive (past unreal):

Sī iam tum hoc intellēxissēs, certē patrem audīvissēs.

If you had already then understood this (but you clearly didn’t), you certainly would have listened to your father (but you didn’t).

II. Some Subjunctive Signals

Ut

• Purpose

incomplete action: present or imperfect subjunctive

{314} • Result

incomplete action: present or imperfect subjunctive

• Optative

present subjunctive for a future wish or a present wish (when the outcome is uncertain)

imperfect subjunctive for a wish unfulfilled in the present

pluperfect subjunctive for a wish unfulfilled in the past

• Indirect command

incomplete action: present or imperfect subjunctive

• Indirect question

main verb refers to present or future:

present subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses incomplete action

perfect subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses completed action

main verb refers to past:

imperfect subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses incomplete action

pluperfect subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses completed action

• Negative fear (i.e., fear that something will not happen/has not happened)

main verb refers to present or future:

present subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses incomplete action

perfect subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses completed action

main verb refers to past:

imperfect subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses incomplete action

pluperfect subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses completed action

Utinam

• Wish (see optative subjunctive)

Nē

• Negative Purpose

incomplete action: present or imperfect subjunctive

• Optative (Negative)

present subjunctive for a future wish

imperfect subjunctive for a wish unfulfilled in the present

pluperfect subjunctive for a wish unfulfilled in the past

{315} • Hortatory (Negative)

present subjunctive

• Indirect command (Negative)

incomplete action: present or imperfect subjunctive

• Prohibition

perfect subjunctive

• Affirmative fear (nē or nē nōn) (i.e., fear that something will happen/has happened

main verb refers to present or future:

present subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses incomplete action

perfect subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses completed action

main verb refers to past:

imperfect subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses incomplete action

pluperfect subjunctive if subordinate verb expresses completed action

Nē…nōn

• Fear (see above, Affirmative fear)

Ut…nōn

• Negative Result

incomplete action: present or imperfect subjunctive

Cum

• Circumstances: subjunctive

• Causal: subjunctive

• (+ ablative: preposition)

• (Pinpointing the time: indicative)

• (Repeated action: “whenever”: indicative [usually])

Studia Rōmāna

It’s not clear exactly what aspect of litterae Aemilius’s father pursued and had in mind for his son. We learned in Cap. XXIX that Aemilius’s family was poor. Generally, a career in literature was beyond the reach of people of lower socioeconomic status. Even writers like Juvenal and Martial who complain constantly of their poverty were poor only in relation to the wealthy elite. He might have been a scrība and as such, one of the appāritōrēs (free-born attendants to Roman magistrates). Such scrībae were public officials; they earned a salary and were part of a collēgium, or society, of men who performed the same role. They mixed with more powerful people who could assist their upward mobility. {316} They were also part of the larger world of letters: the poet Horace (first century BC) was a scrība quaestōrius. There is a good amount of evidence, literary and inscriptional, to show the potential for this kind of studium litterārum.

One Roman senator who combined the life of a statesman, studium litterārum and the military was Sextus Iūlius Frontīnus, who lived in the first century AD. His most famous work is his treatise on aqueducts (dē Aquaeductū Urbis Rōmae) but he also wrote two works that would have been read by Aemilius’s commanders, if not Aemilius himself. Dē Rē Mīlitārī, a treatise on military theory, has not survived, but we do have the Stratēgmata, a collection of useful examples of stratagems as a continuation of his work on military theory. One section offers examples of clever ways generals (both Greek and Roman) have roused dispirited soldiers. The republican general Aulus Postumius, for example, while fighting against the Latins, told his exhausted troops that two men on horseback were the Dioscuri (Cap. XVI); at the sight of the “gods,” his soldiers revived:

Aulus Postumius proeliō quō cum Latīnīs conflīxit, oblātā speciē duōrum in equīs iuvenum animōs suōrum ērexit, Pollūcem et Castōrem adesse dīcens, ac sīc proelium rēstituit.

By Aemilius’s time as a soldier, the Roman army had undergone great changes. In the first century BC, the general Marius began the practice of having soldiers carry all of their weapons and equipment, instead of having baggage mules (thereby greatly speeding up the military march). These soldiers got the nickname “Marius’s mules.” The very efficient practice persisted. The army comprised volunteer soldiers who served for twenty-five years. During this time, they were not allowed to marry (although some had unofficial wives and children). The soldiers’ physical training was extensive and difficult. They had to be able to march fast carrying heavy loads, to move in formation, and to wield weapons skillfully. They built the roads they would march on into new territory; at the end of a long day of marching, they built overnight camps, pitched their tents, cooked their meals, and had to be ready to start all over again the next day. Aemilia’s brother was part of a legion (lēgio, legiōnis, f.), which consisted of ten cohorts (cohors, cohortis, f.), which in turn consisted of six companies, called centuries (centuria, -ae, f.) of about eighty men. Centuries were led by centurions (centuriōnēs). Aemilius was a pedes (foot soldier), but he could in time have been promoted to an eques (cavalryman), which would have meant a new round of training. The constant trouble with the Germans meant a large number of soldiers were needed in Germany.

The emperor Augustus turned the Roman army into a standing, professional force that policed the boundaries of the Roman world. Inscriptional evidence tells us that Augustus’s system stayed remarkably stable for hundreds of years. Soldiers were Roman citizens; auxiliary troops were not. The stīpendium (whence our word “stipend”) referred both to a term of military service and {317} the recompense earned from that service (stīpendia merēre means both “to serve in the military” and “to earn a wage for serving in the military”).

Most of what we know about soldiers on the Roman frontiers comes from inscriptions and archaeology. A recent discovery of a number of letters, written on very thin, folded wooden tablets, has been found at Vindolanda, a fort along Hadrian’s Wall in Northern England. The discovery of these tablets has revised our view of letter writing, adding thin, wooden tablets inscribed with ink to papyrus and wooden tablets covered with wax and inscribed with a stylus. http://vindolanda.csad.ox.ac.uk/

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

rīpa, -ae

riverbank

2nd

gaudium, -ī

joy

lēgātus, -ī

envoy, delegate

legiōnārius, -ī

legionary

proelium, -ī

battle

stipendium, -ī

salary

studium, -ī

interest, study

3rd

aetās, aetātis (f.)

age

agmen, agminis (n.)

army on the march, file

amnis, amnis (m.)

river

caedēs, caedis (f.)

slaughter

cohors, cohortis (f.)

cohort

ēnsis, ēnsis (m.)

sword

imperātor, imperātōris (m.)

general, emperor

legiō, -ōnis (f.)

legion

ōrdō, ōrdinis (f.)

order

pāx, pācis (f.)

peace

ratis, ratis (f.)

raft

valētūdō, valētūdinis (f.)

health

virtūs, virtūtis (f.)

virtue

vulnus, vulneris (n.)

wound

5th

aciēs, -ēī

line of battle

Verba -āre (1)

(circumdō) circumdare, circumdedisse, circumdatum

surround

(commemorō) commemorāre, -āvisse, -ātum

mention

{318} (convocō) convocare, -āvisse, -ātum

call together

(cōpulō) cōpulāre, -āvisse, -ātum

join, connect

(dēsīderō) dēsīderāre, -āvisse, -ātum

long for, miss

(fatīgō) fatīgāre, -āvisse, -ātum

tire out, weary

(hortor) hortārī, hortātum

encourage, urge

(praestō) praestāre, praestitisse

furnish, fulfill

(properō) properāre, -āvisse, -ātum

hasten, hurry

(vulnerō) vulnerāre, -āvisse, -ātum

wound

-ēre (2)

(studeō) studēre, studuisse (+ dat.)

devote oneself to

-ere (3)

(adiungō) adiungere, adiūnxisse, adiūnctum

add to, join

(caedō) caedere, cecīdisse, caesum

beat, fell, kill

(cōgō) cōgere, coēgisse, coāctum

compel, force

(effundō) effundere, effūdisse, effūsum

pour out

(ērumpō) ērumpere, ērūpisse, ēruptum

break out

(excurrō) excurrere, excucurrisse or excurrisse, excursum

run out, rush out

(īnstruō) īnstruere, īnstrūxisse, īnstrūctum

draw up, arrange

(prōcurrō) prōcurrere, prōcucurrisse or procurrisse, prōcursum

run forward, charge

(prōgredior) prōgredī, prōgressum

go forward, advance

-īre (4)

(mūniō) mūnīre, mūnīvisse, mūnītum

fortify

Irregular

fore

= futurum esse

(trānsferō) trānsferre, trānstulisse, trānslātum

transfer, transport

(trānseō) trānsīre, trānsīvisse

cross, pass

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

arduus, -a, -um

steep

dēnī, -ae, -a

ten at a time

dīrus, -a, -um

dreadful

horrendus, -a, -um

dreadful

idōneus, -a, -um

suitable

ōtiōsus, -a, -um

leisured, idle

posterus, -a, -um

next, following

prīvātus, -a, -um

private

pūblicus, -a, -um

public

{319} quaternī, -ae, -a

four at a time

quīnī, -ae, -a

five at a time

rīdiculus, -a, -um

laughable, funny

sēnī, -ae, -a

six at a time

trīnī, -ae, -a

three at a time

ūnī, -ae, -a

one at a time

3rd

citerior, citerius

nearer

incolumis, -e

unharmed, safe

mīlitāris, -e

military

ulterior, ulterius

farther, more distant

Prōnōmina

plērīque, plēraeque, plēraque

most

Adverbia

diūtius

longer (comp. of diū)

etenim

and indeed, for

ferē

about, almost

praecipuē

especially

prīdiē

the day before

quamdiū

how long, as long as

tamdiū

so long, as long

Praepositiōnēs

citrā[2] (prp. + acc.)

on this side

secundum[3] (prp. + acc.)

along

ultrā (prp. + acc.)

on that (the far) side

____________

1. Notā Bene: There are no examples of this type of condition in your text.

2. Although not used so in this book, citrā can also be used as an adverb.

3. Although not used so in this book, secundum can also be used as an adverb.

{320} XXXIV. Dē Arte Poēticā

Rēs Grammaticae Novae

1. Verbs

a. Intransitive Verbs

b. Contraction

2. Nouns

a. “Poetic Plural”

b. Case use: in + Accusative

3. Meter

a. Syllables

i. Quantity

ii. Division

b. Metric Feet

i. Hexameter

ii. Pentameter

iii. Elegiac Couplet

iv. Hendecasyllables

4. Points of Style: Idiom for “to marry”

Latin Poetry

By now you have advanced so far that you can begin to read Latin poetry. In this chapter, you find poems by Catullus (Gāius Valerius Catullus, c. 86–54 BC), Ovid (Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō, 43 BC–AD 17), and Martial (Mārcus Valerius Mārtiālis, c. AD 40–104). At the party, Cornelius starts by quoting a line from Ovid’s Ars Amātōria, which encourages Julius and Cornelius to quote passages from a collection of love poems, Amōrēs, by the same poet. Julius goes on to read aloud some short poems by Catullus and a selection of Martial’s witty and satirical epigrams (epigrammata). These epigrams are short poems in elegaic couplets (see below).[1]

{321} Reading Poetry

When you first start reading poetry in Latin, you may, temporarily, have to disregard the verse form and concentrate on the content. Poetry’s freer word order, in which word groups are often separated can present an obstacle to understanding until you grow accustomed to it. The inflectional endings will show you what words belong together; in some cases, you will find marginal notes to help you, e.g., ut ipsae spectentur (l.57), nōbilium equōrum (l.62), amor quem facis (l.65), meae puellae dīxī (l.71). Some supplementary (implied) words are given in italics. However, the important thing is to visualize the situation and enter into the poet’s ideas. The comments the guests have made on the poems will be useful for this purpose.

Meter

As you grow accustomed to reading verse, you will be better able to understand the meaning and content of the poems as you read. It is also important for you to study the structure of the verses, that is, the meter, which is intrinsic to the poetry. Meter is explained in the GRAMMATICA LATINA section. The following is a summary of the rules:

Syllabic Quantity: The decisive factor in Latin verse structure is the length or quantity of the syllables. Syllables ending in a short vowel (a, e, i, o, u, y) are short and are to be pronounced twice as quickly as long syllables, i.e., syllables ending in a long vowel (ā, ē, ī, ō, ū, ȳ), a diphthong (ae, oe, au, eu, ui), or a consonant. In other words: a syllable is short if it ends in a short vowel; all other syllables are long. A long syllable is marked [–] and a short syllable [∪].

Syllabic Division: For the division into syllables, each verse (versus, “line”) is treated like one long word:

• A consonant at the end of a word is linked with a vowel (or h-) at the beginning of the next. In a word like satis, therefore, the last syllable is short if the next word begins with a vowel or h-, e.g., in the combination satis est, where -s is linked with the following e in est: sa-ti-s∩est–whereas the syllable tis is long in satis nōn est: sa-tis-nō-n∩est.

• A vowel (and -am, -em, -im, -um) at the end of a word is dropped before a vowel (or h-) beginning the next word, e.g., atque oculōs: atqu’oculōs; modo hūc: mod’hūc; passerem abstulistis: passer’abstulistis (in est and es, the e drops, e.g., sōla est: sōla’st; vērum est: vērum’st; bella es: bella’s). This is called elision: the vowel is said to be elided (Latin ē-līdere, “strike out,” “squeeze out”).

{322} Metric Feet: Each verse can be divided into a certain number of feet (Latin pedēs) composed of two or three syllables. The commonest feet are:

• the trochee (Latin trochaeus), consisting of one long and one short syllable [— ∪]

• the iamb (Latin iambus), one short and one long [∪ —]

• the dactyl (Latin dactylus), one long and two short syllables [— ∪∪]

• The two short syllables of the dactyl are often replaced by one long syllable, making a foot consisting of two long syllables [— —], which is called a spondee (Latin spondēus).

Hexameter: The favorite verse with Latin poets is the hexameter, which consists of six feet, the first four of which are dactyls or spondees—the 5th, however, is almost always a dactyl, and the 6th a spondee (or trochee). The last syllable “counts” as long, regardless of its actual length, which is indicated below by an asterisk (*) in the final position:

— ∪∪| — ∪∪| — ∪∪| — ∪∪| — ∪∪| — *

Pentameter: The hexameter often alternates with the slightly shorter pentameter, which can be divided into two halves of 2½ feet, each conforming to the beginning of the hexameter (but there are no spondees in the second half):

— ∪∪| — ∪∪| — || — ∪∪| — ∪∪| —

Elegiac Couplet: The pentameter never stands alone, but always comes after a hexameter (in the text the pentameters are indented). Such a couplet, consisting of a hexameter and a pentameter, is called an elegiac couplet because it was used in elegies, i.e., poems expressing personal sentiments, mainly love poems.

Hendecasyllables: Catullus frequently uses the hendecasyllable (Latin versus hendecasyllabus, “eleven-syllable verse”), which consists of these eleven syllables:

— — — ∪∪ — ∪ — ∪ — *

It can be divided into a spondee, a dactyl, two trochees, and a spondee (or trochee). (Occasionally the first syllable is short.)

Reading Verse Aloud

Latin verse rhythm is marked by the regular alternation of long and short syllables. Just as a long vowel takes twice the time to pronounce as a short vowel (cf. English “ăha!” versus “fāther”), a long syllable is equivalent to two short syllables. As you read Latin verse aloud, the quantity of the syllables is important. But! If you read the Latin naturally (as you have been doing throughout the book, aided by the text’s marking of long vowels with macrons), the rhythm of {323} the verse will emerge. Latin poetry was meant to be heard—so practice reading it aloud. After enumerating the various demands of reading poetry, Quintilian (I.O. 1.8) gives this advice for successfully reading verse: ūnum est igitur quod in hāc parte praecipiam, ut omnia ista facere possit: intellegat (“There is, therefore, one thing that I would advise on this topic, so that he can do all those things: let him understand [what he reads]”).

Plural for Singular

The Roman poets sometimes use the plural (“poetic plural”) instead of the singular, especially forms in -a from neuters in -um, when they are in need of short syllables, e.g., mea colla (l.75 for meum collum) and post fāta (l.180 for post fātum). Like other authors, a Roman poet may also use the 1st person plural (nōs, nōbīs, noster) about himself. You see this when Catullus calls his friend venuste noster (l.152) and when Martial, in his epigram on the response of the public to his books, calls them libellōs nostrōs and concludes with the words nunc nōbīs carmina nostra placent (ll.163, 166).

In + accusative → against

Martial, who himself writes poems in inimīcōs, says about the poet Cinna: versiculōs in mē nārrātur scrībere Cinna (l.172). Here in + accusative has “hostile” meaning (= contrā, cf. the phrase impetum facere in hostēs).

Nominative and Infinitive with Passive Verbs

The passive nārrātur, like dīcitur (Cap. XIII, l.52), is combined with the nom. + inf.: Cinna scrībere nārrātur/dīcitur = Cinnam scrībere nārrant/dīcunt.

Intransitive Verbs

Besides imperāre and pārēre, you have met many other verbs that take the dative:

crēdere

appropinquāre

nocēre

placēre

oboedīre

(cōn)fīdere

impendēre

ignōscere

servīre

resistere

(per)suādēre

minārī

invidēre

studēre

parcere

{324} Several compounds with -esse also take a dative:

prōd-esse

de-esse (“fail”)

prae-esse

ad-esse (“stand by,” “help”)

In this chapter, you find further examples:

favēre (l.40)

nūbere (l.126)

plaudere (l.217)

The impersonal verb libet—like licet—is usually combined with a dative:

mihi libet (l.35, “it pleases me,” “I feel like,” “I want”) cf. mihi licet, “I may,” “I am allowed”

Contractions

• A double i (ii, iī) is apt to be contracted into one long ī, as you have seen in the form dī for diī.

• When h disappears in mihi and nihil, we get the contracted forms mī and nīl (e.g., ll.118, 174).

• You also find sapīstī for sapiistī (l.190)—the latter form being a contraction of sapīvistī; the final v of the perfect stem tends to disappear, so that:
-īvisse becomes -iisse/-īsse
-āvisse becomes -āsse
-āvistī becomes -āstī (Cap. XXVIII, l.106)
nōvisse becomes nōsse
nōverat becomes nōrat

This last form, the pluperfect of nōscere, comes to mean “knew,” e.g.:

Ovidius ingenium mulierum tam bene nōverat quam ipsae mulierēs. (ll.54–55)

suamque nōrat ipsam (: dominam) tam bene quam puella mātrem (ll.93–94)

Points of Style

The idiom for “marry” is gendered in Latin, as is clear from the chapter:

Catullus Lesbiam uxōrem dūcere cupiēbat, nec vērō illa Catullō nūpsit, etsī affīrmābat ‘sē nūllī aliī virō nūbere mālle (l.125–127)

A man “leads a woman (home)” into marriage (in mātrimōnium dūcere), whereas a woman “covers herself” (i.e., veils herself) for her husband (nūbere). In post-classical prose, nūbere can also be used for a man. But in classical Latin, {325} the distinction allows Martial to make the following disparaging joke (in addition to those you read at ll.190–191 and 192–193):

Uxōrem quārē locūplētem dūcere nōlim,

Quaeritis? Uxōrī nūbere nōlo meae.

Inferior mātrōna suō sit, Prisce, marītō:

Nōn aliter fīunt fēmina virque pārēs.

VIII.12

(locūples, -ētis = dīves, -itis)

Studia Rōmāna

Scrībimus indoctī doctīque poēmata passim: Everyone is writing poetry, both hacks and laureates; so says Horace in his verse letter to Augustus (Epist. 2.1.117), written at the close of the first century. The Romans came late to poetry. Livius Andronicus, a Greek slave, gets the credit for first translating Homer into Latin in the middle of the third century (c. 240 BC). He needed texts with which to teach his Roman students, but the Romans had no poetry. Livius adapted Greek plays to Latin, both tragedies (tragoediae) and comedies in Greek dress (fābulae palliātae). The Romans harbored some ambivalence toward Greeks and Greek culture (an ambivalence that persisted, as the comment about Orontes “sed is Graecus est atque lībertīnus” (30.117) shows). But just as Greek myths captivated the Roman imagination (Cap. XXV), so too did Greek literature, art, and philosophy work its way into Roman culture. Many Romans were bilingual in Greek and Latin. For some, bilingual meant knowing as much Greek as they needed to do business (or to live as a soldier abroad in Greek-speaking lands). The well educated might be truly bilingual.

The Romans translated, they adapted, they imitated. Ennius, in the late third or early second century BC, translated the fourth-century BC Greek writer Euhemerus into Latin. Plautus, in the second century BC, adapted Greek comedies for a Roman audience; he jokes that his play, The Twin Menaechmi, imitates Greek—not the highbrow Greek comedy of Athens, but the farcical Greek comedies of Sicily (Menaechmi, 11–12):

Atque adeō hoc argūmentum graecissat, tamen

nōn atticissat, verum sicilicissitat.

Graecissat and atticissat were colloquial speech. Sicilicissitat appears only here; it is a punch line. In Plautus’s plays, we find the exuberance of one culture joyfully playing with the literature of another. Romans quickly became more refined and subtle in their interpretation of Greek literature. Plautus’s younger contemporary Terence (Pūblius Terentius Āfer), a freed slave from North Africa, wrote a smooth and polished Latin, and defended his way of adapting Greek plays in argumentative prologues. By the time of the late {326} republic, Roman writers had learned to look to Greek models as inspiration for a literature that was new, learned, and Roman. The influence of Greek eloquence inspired the Romans to look at Latin with an eye to taking their language to a new level. In the first century BC, Julius Caesar wrote a book on linguistic analogy; Cicero wrote extensively on orators and oratory; Mārcus Terentius Varrō wrote a book on the Latin language. It seemed everyone wrote poetry—just not everyone wrote it well (see the Horace quotation above).

The poets in our chapter cover a long time-span. Aemilia likes Plautus, who would, by the second century AD, be one of the ancients, having lived over three centuries prior to our narrative. Catullus wrote in the middle of the first century BC. A contemporary of Cicero (who also wrote poetry), Catullus greatly admired the poets of Hellenistic Greece (that is, Greece during and after Alexander the Great), as well as the—by his time—ancient Greek poets. Catullus and the other “New Poets” favored closely worked, allusive poetry. The citation of poets at the dinner begins with Ovid, one of the greatest poetic geniuses of the Roman world. Ovid was a much younger and greatly admiring contemporary of Vergil and Horace; he heard Horace read his poetry aloud, but only saw Vergil (Tristia 4.10.49–51: et tenuit nostrās numerōsus Horātius aurēs/dum ferit Ausonia carmina cultā lyrā./Vergilium vīdī tantum). Martial, the final and most quoted poet in the chapter, lived in the first century AD and is the closest to the time of our narrative.

The poets of the late republic and early empire remained unsurpassed in the power and virtuosity of their poetry. By the time of our narrative Vergil and Horace were studied in school as classic texts. The poetry of the first century AD boasted, in addition to Martial and Juvenal, the great epic poet Lucan, who wrote an epic in ten books about the great civil war between Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great. Martial died c. AD 104 and Juvenal c. AD 130; after them, almost no Latin verse from our time period (second century AD) has been preserved. Studium litterārum, however, was by no means finished. Educated Roman amateurs were still writing verse and holding recitations, either at private parties or at larger readings in auditōria. Pliny the Younger (AD 61–113) tells us much about these reading in his letters.

Our friends at the dinner party read the poetry of others, but we know people composed extemporaneous verse at dinner parties. Catullus tells us of playing a game of one-up-manship with his friend Licinius Calvus (another renowned poet of the time whose work—with the exception of a few lines—is unfortunately lost). They took turns writing lines of verse (Catullus 50). The Younger Pliny sends his friend a collection of verse in the hendecasyllabic meter (a favorite of Catullus) that he wrote “while riding in a carriage, while in the bath, while eating dinner, delightfully passing my leisure time” (Epist. 4.14: Accipiēs cum hāc epistulā hendecasyllabōs nostrōs, quibus nōs in vehiculō in balineō inter cānam oblectāmus ōtium temporis).

{327} Cornelius claims he carries a copy of the poet Martial around with him at all times. By the time of our narrative, books in cōdex form (that is, resembling more closely our own books) had become common. In a volume of poetry containing epigrams attached to party favors, known as apophorēta (ἀποφόρητα), or “take away presents,” Martial himself describes several of such small codices. Here’s one (14.186) that claims to contain all of Vergil (Pūblius Vergilius Marō, hence, Marōnem) on its parchment (membrana):

Quam brevis inmensum cēpit membrāna Marōnem!

Ipsīus vultūs prīma tabella gerit.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nomina

1st

arānea, -ae

spider, cobweb

aurīga, -ae (m.)

charioteer, driver

cōmoedia, -ae

comedy

dēliciae, -ārum (f. pl.)

delight, pet

lucerna, -ae

lamp

nota, -ae

mark, sign

opera, -ae

effort, pains

palma, -ae

palm

tenebrae, -ārum (f. pl.)

darkness

2nd

bāsium, -ī

kiss

cachinnus, -ī

laugh, guffaw

circus, -ī

circle, orbit, Circus Maximus

fātum, -ī

fate

gremium, -ī

lap

ingenium, -ī

nature, character

lūdus, -ī

play, game, school

ocellus, -ī

(little) eye

odium, -ī

hatred

prīncipium, -ī

beginning

scalpellum, -ī

scalpel, surgical knife

theātrum, -ī

theatre

3rd

certāmen, certāminis (n.)

contest, fight

gladiātor, -tōris (m.)

gladiator

mēns, mentis (f.)

mind

opēs, opum (f. pl.)

wealth

passer, passeris (m.)

sparrow

ratiō, ratiōnis (f.)

reason

rēte, rētis (n.)

net

{328} spectātor, spectātōris (m.)

spectator

testis, -is (m.)

witness

4th

anus, -ūs (f)

old woman

rīsus, -ūs (m.)

laughter, laugh

sinus -ūs (m.)

fold (of toga)

Indeclinable

nīl

nothing (= nihil)

Grammatica

dactylus, -ī

dactyl

dipthongus, -ī

dipthong

epigramma, epigrammatis (n.)

epigram

hendecasyllabus, -ī

“eleven-syllable verse”

hexameter, hexametrī

having six metrical feet

iambus, -ī

iamb

pentameter, pentametrī

having five metrical feet

spondēus, -ī

spondee

trochaeus, -ī

trochee

versiculus, -ī

a little line of verse (diminuitive of versus, -ūs)

Verba

-āre (1)

(affirmō) affirmāre, affirmāvisse, affirmātum

assert, affirm

(certō) certāre, certāvisse, certātum

contend, fight

(conturbō) conturbāre, conturbāvisse, conturbātum

mix up, confound

(dēvorō) dēvorāre, dēvorāvisse, dēvorātum

swallow up, devour

(excruciō) excruciāre, excruciāvisse, excruciātum

torture, torment

(implicō) implicāre, implicuisse, implicitum

enfold

(ōscitō) ōscitāre, ōscitāvisse, ōscitātum

gape, yawn

(pīpiō) pīpiāre, pīpiāvisse, pīpiātum

chirp

-ēre (2)

(faveō) favēre, fāvisse

favor, support (+ dat.)

(libet) libēre

it pleases (+ dat.)

(lūgeō) lūgēre, lūxisse

mourn

-ere (3)

(accendō) accendere, accendisse, accēnsum

light, enflame

(ēlīdō) ēlīdere, ēlīsisse, ēlīsum

break thoroughly, omit, elide

(ērubēscō) ērubēscere, ērubuisse

blush

{329} (laedō) laedere, laesisse, laesum

injure, hurt

(nūbō) nūbere, nūpsisse (+ dat.)

marry

(plaudō) plaudere, plausisse, plausum (+ dat.)

clap, applaud

(requīrō) requīrere, requīsīvisse, requīsitum

seek, ask

(sapiō) sapere, sapīvisse

be wise, have sense

-īre (4)

(circumsiliō) circumsilīre, circumsiluisse

hop about

(prōsiliō) prōsilīre, prōsiluisse

spring forth

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

bellus, -a, -um

lovely, pretty

dubius, -a, -um

undecided, doubtful

geminus, -a, -um

twin

gladiātōrius, -a, -um

gladiatorial

iocōsus, -a, -um

humorous, funny

mellītus, -a, -um

sweet

misellus, -a, -um

poor, wretched

niveus, -a, -um

snow white

perpetuus, -a, -um

continuous, permanent

poēticus, -a, -um

poetical

scaenicus, -a, -um

theatrical

sērius, -a, -um

serious

tenebricōsus, -a, -um

dark

turgid(ul)us, -a, -um

swollen

ultimus, -a, -um

most distant, last

venustus, -a, -um

charming

3rd

ācer, -cris, -cre

keen, active, fierce

circēnsis, -e

of the circus

Adverbia

dein

afterward, then

interdum

now and then

libenter

with pleasure, gladly

plērumque

mostly

Coniūnctiōnēs

dummodo

provided that, if only

____________

1. Divisions between epigrams are marked in the text by a dash (—).

{330} XXXV. Ars Grammatica

Now that you have worked your way through all the declensions and conjugations of the Latin language, it is time to pause and take a comprehensive look at the grammatical system. To give you an opportunity to do this, we present, in a slightly abbreviated form, a Latin grammar, the Ars Grammatica Minor, written by the Roman grammarian Dōnātus, c. AD 350. This grammar is based on the works of earlier grammarians, rearranged in the form of question and answer, so it gives us an idea of the teaching methods used in antiquity—and much later, for the “Donat” was a favorite schoolbook in Europe throughout the Middle Ages. Now it is up to you to show that you have learned enough to answer the questions on grammar put to schoolchildren in the Roman Empire. Apart from omissions, marked […], the text of Donatus is unaltered (in the examples on p. 303 of LINGUA LATINA, some infrequent words have been replaced by others).

The Latin grammatical terms are still in use. However, the part of speech (pars ōrātiōnis) that the Roman grammarians called nōmina is now divided into nouns (or substantives) and adjectives. The term nōmen adiectīvum dates from antiquity, but it was not till medieval times that the term nōmen substantīvum was coined (in English “noun substantive” as opposed to “noun adjective”). As a matter of fact, several of the Latin grammatical terms are adjectives that are generally used “substantively” with a noun understood, e.g.:

• (cāsus) nōminātīvus

• (numerus) plūrālis

• (modus) imperātīvus

• (gradus) comparātīvus

• (genus) fēminīnum (masculīnum, neutrum, commūne)

Genus is “gender” in English; Donatus counts four genders because he uses the term genus commune about words that may be both masculine and {331} feminine, e.g., sacerdōs -ōtis, “priest/priestess” (other examples are cīvis, incola, īnfāns, testis, bōs, canis).

The hexameter quoted by Donatus (l.212) to illustrate the use of super with the ablative is taken from the end of the first book of the Aeneid, the famous poem in which Vergil recounts the adventures of the Trojan hero Aeneas (Aenēās) during his flight from Troy (Trōia). Driven by a storm to Africa, he is received in Carthage (Carthāgō) by Queen Dīdō, who questions him about the fate of the other Trojans, King Priam (Priamus) and his son Hector.

Vocābula Disposita/Ōrdināta

Nōmina

1st

īra, -ae

anger

mūsa, -ae

a muse (one of the nine daughters of Memory)

2nd

scamnum, -ī

stool

3rd

admīrātiō, admīrātiōnis (f.)

wonder, admiration

ōrātiō, ōrātiōnis (f.)

speech

sacerdōs, sacerdōtis (m./f.)

priest, priestess

4th

affectus, -ūs (m.)

mood, feeling

Grammatica

appellātīvum, -ī (nōmen)

common noun

cāsus, -ūs (m.)

fall, case

causālis (coniūnctiō) (f.)

causal conjunction

comparātiō, comparātiōnis (f.)

a comparison

coniugātiō, coniugātiōnis (f.)

conjugation

coniūnctiō, coniūnctiōnis (f.)

conjunction

cōpulātīva (coniūnctiō) (f.)

copulative conjunction

disiūnctīva (coniūnctiō) (f.)

disjunctive conjunction

explētīva (coniūnctiō) (f.)

exclamatory conjunction

interiectiō, interiectiōnis (f.)

interjection

optātīvus (modus)

optative (wishing) mood

positīvus (gradus)

positive degree[1]

proprium, -ī (nōmen)

proper noun

quālitās, quālitātis (f.)

quality

quantitās, quantitātis (f.)

quantity

ratiōnālis (coniūnctiō) (f.)

conjunction showing the train of thought

significātiō, significātiōnis (f.)

meaning, sense

{332} speciēs, -ēī

appearance, aspect, sort

synonymum, -ī

synonym

Verba

-āre (1)

(explano) explanare, -āvisse, -ātum

make intelligible, explain

(luctor) luctārī, luctātum

wrestle

(ōrdinō) ōrdināre, -āvisse, -ātum

put in order

-ere (3)

(adnectō) adnectere, -nexuisse -nexum,

bind, tie

(dēmō) dēmere, dēmpsisse, dēmptum

take away

(īnflectō) īnflectere, -flexisse, -xum

bend, curve, inflect[2]

mentiōnem facere

mention

Adiectīva

1st/2nd (-us/er, -a, -um)

inconditus, -a, -um

unpolished, rough

3rd

similis, -e

similar

Adverbia

dumtaxat

only, just

forsitan

maybe, perhaps

proptereā

therefore

quāpropter

why

quidnī

why not

sīquidem

seeing that, since

tantundem

just as much

Praepositiōnēs

adversus/-um (prp. +acc.)

toinard, against

cis (prp. +acc.)

on this side of

Interiectiōnēs

attat

exclamation of joy, pain, wonder, fright

eia

exclamation of joy, pleased surprise; also “come on,” “hurry up”

ēn

presents something important and/or unexpected

euax

exclamation of joy

papae

exclamation of wonder and joy

____________

1. Of an adjective or adverb.

2. Inflect: To form the pattern of a word, decline a noun or conjugate a verb.

{333} Grammatica Latina

The Parts of Speech

NOUNS

{334}

{335}

{336}

{337} ADJECTIVES

{338}

{339} ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS

{340} NUMERALS

{341} PRONOUNS

{342}

{343} VERBS

{344}

{345}

{346}

{347}

{348}

{349}

{350}

{351}

{352}

{353}

{354}

{355}

{356}

{357} Alphabetical List of Irregular Verbs

{358}

{359} Index of Nouns, Adjectives and Verbs

{360}

{361}

{362}

{363} Adjectives

{364}

{365} Verbs

{366}

{367}

{368}

{369} Vocabulary by Chapter

I. Imperium Romanum

nōmina

fluvius

imperium

īnsula

ōceanus

oppidum

prōvincia

verba grammatica

capitulum

exemplum

grammatica

littera

numerus

singulāris

pēnsum

plūrālis

syllaba

vocābulum

adiectīva

duo

Graecus

Latīnus

magnus

mīlle

multī

parvus

paucī

prīmus

Rōmānus

secundus

sex

tertius

trēs

ūnus

verba

est

sunt

praepositiō

in

coniunctiōnes

et

sed

quoque

adverba

nōn

vocābula interrogātīva

-ne?

ubi?

num?

quid?

II. Familia Romana

Nōmina

ancilla

domina

dominus

familia

fēmina

fīlia

fīlius

liber

līberī

mâter

pāgina

pater

puella

puer

servus

titulus

vir

verba grammatica

fēminīnum

genetīvus

masculīnum

neutrum

adiectīva

antīquus

centum

cēterī

duae

meus

novus

tria

tuus

coniunctiōnes

-que

vocābula interrogātīva

cuius?

quae?

quī?

quis?

quot?

III. Puer Improbus

nomina

mamma

persōna

scaena

verba grammatica

accūsātīvus

nōminātīvus

verbum

adiectīva

improbus

īrātus

laetus

probus

verba

audit

cantat

dormit

interrogat

plōrat

pulsat

respondet

rīdet

venit

verberat

videt

vocat

pronomina

eam

eum

hīc

mē

quae

quam

{370} quem

qui

tē

adverbia

iam

vocābula interrogātīva

cūr?

coniunctiōnes

neque

quia

alia

ō!

IV. Dominus et Servi

nōmina

baculum

mēnsa

nummus

pecūnia

sacculus

verba grammatica

indicātīvus

vocātīvus

adiectīva

bonus

decem

novem

nūllus

octō

quattuor

quīnque

septem

suus

vacuus

verba

abest

accūsat

adest

discēdit

habet

imperat

numerat

pāret

pōnit

salūtat

sūmit

tacet

pronōmina

eius

is

adverbia

rūrsus

tantum

alia

salvē

V. Villa et Hortus

nōmina

aqua

ātrium

cubiculum

fenestra

hortus

impluvium

līlium

nāsus

ōstium

peristȳlum

rosa

vīlla

verba grammatica

ablātīvus

adiectīva

foedus

pulcher

sōlus

verba

agit

amat

carpit

dēlectat

habitat

pronōmina

is, ea, id

adverbium

etiam

praepositiōnes

ab

cum

ex

sine

VI. Via Latina

nōmina

amīca

amīcus

equus

inimīcus

lectīca

mūrus

porta

saccus

umerus

via

verba grammatica

praepositiō

locātīvus

āctīvum

passīvum

adiectīva

duodecim

fessus

longus

malus

verba

ambulat

intrat

it/eunt

portat

timet

vehit

adverbia

ante

autem

itaque

nam

quam

tam

praepositiōnes

ā

ad

ante

apud

circum

inter

per

post

procul ab

prope

vocābula interrogātīva

unde?

quō?

VII. Puella et Rosa

nōmina

lacrima

mālum

oculus

ōsculum

ōstiārius

pirum

speculum

verba grammatica

datīvus

adiectīva

fōrmōsus

plēnus

verba

adit

advenit

aperit

claudit

currit

dat

es

exit

{371} exspectat

inest

lacrimat

tenet

terget

vertit

pronōmina

cui

eī

haec

hic

hoc

iīs

illīc

sē

adverbia

immō

non…sōlum

praepositiō

ē

coniunctiō

et…et

neque…neque

alia

nōnne?

VIII. Taberna Romana

nōmina

ānulus

collum

digitus

gemma

līnea

margarīta

ōrnāmentum

pretium

prōnōmen

sēstertius

taberna

tabernārius

adiectīva

alius

gemmātus

medius

nōnāginta

octōgintā

pecūniōsus

quantus

quārtus

tantus

vīgintī

verba

abit

accipit

aspicit

clāmat

cōnsistit

cōnstat

convenit

emit

mōnstrat

ōrnat

ostendit

vēndit

pronōmina

ille

adverbia

nimis

satis

coniunctiō

aut

IX. Pastor et Oves

nōmina

arbor

caelum

campus

canis

cibus

clāmor

collis

dēclīnātiō

dēns

herba

lupus

modus

mōns

nūbēs

ovis

pānis

pāstor

rīvus

silva

sōl

terra

timor

umbra

vallis

vestīgium

verba grammatica

dēclīnātiō

adiectīva

albus

niger

ūndēcentum

verba

accurrit

bālat

bibit

dēclīnat

dūcit

errat

ēst edunt

iacet

impōnit

lātrat

lūcet

petit

quaerit

relinquit

reperit

ululat

pronōmina

ipse

adverbia

procul

praepositiō

sub

suprā

coniūnctiōnēs

dum

ut

X. Bestiae et Homines

nōmina

āēr

āla

anima

animal

aquila

asinus

avis

bēstia

cauda

deus

fera

flūmen

folium

homo

lectus

leō

mare

mercātor

nīdus

nūntius

ōvum

pēs

petasus

pila

piscis

pullus

pulmō

rāmus

vōx

verba grammatica

{372} īnfīnītīvus

adiectīva

crassus

ferus

mortuus

perterritus

tenuis

vīvus

verba

ascendere

audēre

cadere

canere

capere

facere

lūdere

movēre

natāre

necesse est

occultāre

parere

potest possunt

spīrāre

sustinēre

vīvere

volāre

vult volunt

pronōmina

nēmō

adverbia

ergō

coniunctiōnes

quod

cum

enim

XI. Corpus Humanum

nōmina

auris

bracchium

capillus

caput

cerebrum

color

cor

corpus

crūs

culter

frons

gena

iecur

labrum

manus

medicus

membrum

ōs

pectus

pōculum

sanguis

vēna

venter

viscera

adiectīva

aeger

hūmānus

noster

ruber

sānus

stultus

verba

aegrōtāre

appōnere

arcessere

dētergēre

dīcere

dolēre

fluere

gaudēre

horrēre

iubēre

palpitāre

posse

putāre

revenīre

sānāre

sedēre

sentīre

spectāre

stāre

tangere

adverbia

bene

male

modo

praepositiōnes

dē

īnfrā

super

coniunctiōnes

atque

nec

XII. Miles Romanus

Nōmina

arcus

arma

avunculus

bellum

castra

cognōmen

dux

eques

equitātus

exercitus

fīnis

fossa

frāter

gladius

hasta

hostis

impetus

lātus

metus

mīles

mīlia

nōmen

pars

passus

patria

pedes

pīlum

praenōmen

pugnus

sagitta

scūtum

soror

vāllum

versus

verba grammatica

adiectīvum

comparātīvus

adiectīva

altus

armātus

barbarus

brevis

fortis

gravis

levis

trīstis

vester

verba

dēfendere

dīvidere

expugnāre

ferre

fugere

iacere

incolere

metuere

mīlitāre

oppugnāre

pugnāre

coniunctiō

ac

{373} praepositiō

contrā

XIII. Annus et Menses

nōmina

aequinoctium

aestās

annus

autumnus

diēs

faciēs

fōrma

glaciēs

hiems

hōra

īdūs

imber

initium

kalendae

lacus

lūna

lūx

māne

mēnsis

merīdiēs

nix

nōnae

nox

saeculum

stēlla

tempus

urbs

vēr

vesper

verba grammatica

indēclīnābilis

superlātīvus

adiectīva

aequus

calidus

clārus

decimus

dīmidius

ducentī

duodecimus

exiguus

frīgidus

nōnus

obscūrus

octāvus

postrēmus

quīntus

septimus

sexāgintā

sextus

tōtus

trecentī

trīgintā

ūndecim

ūndecimus

verba

erat, erant

illūstrāre

incipere

nōmināre

operīre

velle

adverbia

item

māne

nunc

quandō

tunc

coniunctiōnes

igitur

vel

XIV. Novus Dies

nōmina

calceus

gallus

nihil (also adv.)

parentēs

rēgula

rēs

stilus

tabula

toga

tunica

vestīmentum

verba grammatica

participium

adiectiva

alter

apertus

clausus

dexter

neuter

nūdus

omnis

pūrus

sinister

sordidus

togātus

uter

uterque

verba

afferre

cubāre

excitāre

frīgēre

gerere

induere

inquit

lavāre

mergere

poscere

solēre

surgere

valēre

vestīre

vigilāre

pronōmina

mēcum

mihi

sēcum

tēcum

tibi

adverbia

adhūc

deinde

hodiē

nihil (also noun)

prīmum

quōmodo

praepositiō

praeter

coniunctiō

an

interrogatīva

uter?

alia

valē

XV. Magister et Discipuli

nōmina

discipulus

domī

iānua

lectulus

lūdus

magister

sella

tergum

virga

adiectīva

īnferior

malus

posterior

prior

sevērus

tacitus

vērus

verba

cōnsīdere

dēsinere

es

estis

{374} exclāmāre

licēre

pūnīre

recitāre

reddere

redīre

sum

sumus

prōnomina

ego

nōs

tū

vōs

adverbia

quid?

nōndum

statim

tum

praepositiō

antequam

coniunctiōnes

at

nisi

sī

vērum

XVI. Tempestas

nōmina

altum

flūctus

fulgur

gubernātor

merx

nauta

nāvis

occidēns

oriēns

portus

locus

ōra

puppis

septentriōnēs

tempestās

tonitrus

vēlum

ventus

verba grammatica

dēpōnēns

adiectīva

āter

contrārius

īnferus

maritimus

serēnus

situs

superus

tranquillus

turbidus

verba

appellāre

cernere

complectī

cōnārī

cōnscendere

cōnsōlārī

ēgredī

fierī fit fīunt

flāre

gubernāre

haurīre

iactāre

implēre

īnfluere

interesse

intuērī

invocāre

lābī

laetārī

loquī

nāvigāre

occidere

opperīrī

orīrī

proficīscī

sequī

servāre

turbāre

verērī

adverbia

iterum

paulum

praetereā

semper

simul

vērō

vix

coniunctiō

sīve

praepositiō

propter

XVII. Numerī Difficiles

nōmina

as

dēnārius

respōnsum

adiectīva

absēns

centēsimus

certus

difficilis

doctus

duodēvīgintī

facilis

incertus

indoctus

industrius

largus

nōngentī

octingentī

piger

prāvus

prūdēns

quadrāgintā

quadringentī

quattuordecim

quīndecim

quīngentī

quīnquāgintā

rēctus

sēdecim

septendecim

septingentī

septuāgintā

sescentī

trēdecim

ūndēvīgintī

verba

cōgitāre

computāre

dēmōnstrāre

discere

docēre

interpellāre

largīrī

laudāre

nescīre

oportēre

partīrī

prōmere

repōnere

reprehendere

scīre

tollere

pronōmina

quisque

adverbia

aequē

numquam

postrēmō

prāvē

quārē

rēctē

saepe

tot

ūsque

coniunctiōnes

{375} quamquam

XVIII. Litterae Latinae

nōmina

apis

calamus

cēra

charta

epistula

erus

ferrum

māteria

mendum

mercēs

papȳrus

zephyrus

verba grammatica

adverbium

cōnsonāns

sententia

vōcālis

adiectīva

dūrus

frequēns

impiger

mollis

quālis

rārus

tālis

turpis

varius

verba

addere

animadvertere

comparāre

coniungere

corrigere

deesse

dēlēre

dictāre

efficere

exaudīre

imprimere

intellegere

iungere

legere

premere

scrībere

signāre

significāre

superesse

pronōmina

īdem, eadem, idem

quisque, quaeque, quodque

adverbia

bis

deciēs

ita

quater

quīnquiēs

quotiēs

semel

sexiēs

sīc

ter

totiēs

XIX. Maritus et Uxor

nōmina

adulēscēns

amor

columna

coniūnx

dea

domus

dōnum

flōs

forum

marītus

mātrōna

pulchritūdō

signum

tēctum

templum

uxor

virgō

Verba grammatica

praesēns

praeteritum

adiectīva

beātus

dignus

dīves

gracilis

magnificus

māior

māximus

melior

minimus

minor

miser

optimus

pauper

pēior

pessimus

plūrēs

plūrimī

verba

augēre

convenīre

minuere

mittere

opus esse

ōsculārī

possidēre

remittere

pronōmina

mī

ūllus

praepositōnēs

ergā

adverbia

cotīdiē

minus

plūs

tamen

XX. Parentes

nōmina

colloquium

cūnae

domō

fīliola

fīliolus

gradus

īnfāns

lac

mulier

nūtrīx

officium

sermō

silentium

somnus

verba grammatica

adiectīva

aliēnus

futūrus

necessārius

parvulus

ūmidus

verba

advehere

alere

carēre

colloquī

cūrāre

dēbēre

decēre

dīligere

fārī

manēre

nōlle

occurrere

{376} pergere

postulāre

revertī

silēre

vāgīre

adverbia

crās

magis

mox

rārō

XXI. Pugna Discipulorum

nōmina

bōs

causa

cornū

cruor

genū

humī

humus

porcus

pugna

solum

sordēs

tabella

vestis

verba grammatica

imperfectum

perfectum

adiectīva

angustus

candidus

falsus

indignus

mundus

validus

verba

āiō

cognōscere

cōnspicere

crēdere

dubitāre

excūsāre

fallere

fuisse

mentīrī

mūtāre

nārrāre

vincere

pronōmina

aliquid

aliquis

adverbia

interim

coniunctiōnes

postquam

XXII. Cave Canem

nōmina

aurum

cardō

catēna

faber

foris

iānitor

imāgō

lignum

līmen

pallium

tabellārius

verba grammatica

supīnum

adiectīva

aureus

ferōx

ferreus

ligneus

verba

accēdere

admittere

arbitrārī

cavēre

cēdere

cūstōdīre

dērīdēre

fremere

monēre

mordēre

pellere

prehendere

prōcēdere

recēdere

removēre

resistere

retinēre

rogitāre

rumpere

salīre

scindere

sinere

solvere

terrēre

tremere

vincīre

pronōmina

iste, ista, istud

adverbia

anteā

forās

forīs

nuper

posteā

prius

quīn

scīlicet

sīcut

tandem

XXIII. Epistula Magistrī

nōmina

clāvis

comes

factum

laus

litterae

prōmissum

pudor

signum

verbera

vultus

adiectīva

integer

pallidus

plānus

superior

verba

āvertere

comitārī

continēre

dēbēre

dīmittere

fatērī

inclūdere

īnscrībere

merēre

negāre

pallēre

perdere

prōmittere

pudēre

rubēre

salūtem dīcere

solvere

trādere

pronōmina

quidnam?

quisnam?

adverbia

antehāc

fortasse

herī

hinc

illinc

posthāc

{377} umquam

praepositiō

ob

XXIV. Puer Aegrōtus

nōmina

dolor

latus

os

sonus

strepitus

tumultus

verba grammatica

plūsquam perfectum

adiectīva

aegrōtus

cruentus

impār

laevus

pār

subitus

verba

convertere

cupere

flēre

frangere

ignōrāre

mīrārī

nōscere

patī

percutere

recumbere

coniunctiōnes

etsī

praepositiōnes

iūxtā

adverbia

aliter

certō

cēterum

continuō

dēnuō

intus

prīmō

subitō

valdē

XXV. Theseus et Minotaur

nōmina

aedificium

agnus

auxilium

cīvis

cōnspectus

cupiditās

currus

exitus

expugnātiō

fābula

fīlum

glōria

labyrinthus

lītus

moenia

mōnstrum

mora

mors

nārrātiō

nex

rēx

saxum

taurus

adiectīva

complūrēs

cupidus

humilis

mīrābilis

parātus

saevus

terribilis

timidus

verba

aedificāre

coepisse

cōnstituere

dēscendere

dēserere

interficere

maerēre

necāre

oblīvīscī

occīdere

patēre

pollicērī

prōspicere

regere

trahere

vorāre

adverbia

brevī

forte

hūc

ibi

illūc

ōlim

quotannīs

XXVI. Daedalus et Icarus

nōmina

ars

carcer

cōnsilium

fuga

ignis

lacertus

lībertās

multitūdō

nātūra

opus

orbis

paenīnsula

penna

verba grammatica

cāsus

gerundium

adiectīva

audāx

cautus

celer

īnfimus

ingēns

līber

propinquus

reliquus

studiōsus

summus

temerārius

verba

aberrāre

accidere

cōnficere

cōnsequī

cōnsūmere

dēspicere

effugere

ēvolāre

excōgitāre

figere

imitārī

invenīre

iuvāre

levāre

mollīre

perficere

persequī

quatere

revocāre

suspicere

ūrere

vidērī

pronōmina

quisquam

coniunctiōnes

sīn

praepositiōnes

trans

{378} adverbia

deorsum

haud

paene

quidem

quoniam

sūrsum

tamquam

vērum

XXVII. Rēs Rūsticae

nōmina

ager

agricola

arātrum

calor

colōnus

cōpia

cūra

falx

frīgus

frūgēs

frūmentum

grex

īnstrūmentum

labor

lāna

negōtium

ōtium

pābulum

patientia

pecus

praedium

precēs

regiō

rūs

sēmen

ūva

vīnea

vīnum

vītis

adiectīva

amoenus

fertilis

gravidus

immātūrus

inhūmānus

mātūrus

neglegēns

nēquam

patiēns

rudis

rūsticus

siccus

suburbānus

trīcēsimus

urbānus

verba

arāre

cēnsēre

cingere

colere

crēscere

exīstimāre

invehere

labōrāre

metere

neglegere

nocēre

ōrāre

pāscere

prōdesse

prohibēre

prōicere

quiēscere

rapere

rigāre

serere

spargere

ūtī

pronōmina

quīdam

praepositiōnēs

abs

circā

prae

prō

coniunctiōnēs

nē

-ve

adverbia

dēnique

parum

tantum

XXVIII. Pericula Maris

nōmina

animus

dictum

fāma

fretum

libellus

mundus

nāvicula

pecūlium

perīculum

phantasma

potestās

praedō

prīnceps

tībīcen

tranquillitās

turba

vigilia

vorāgō

adiectīva

attentus

caecus

claudus

cōnstāns

immortālis

mortālis

mūtus

perīculōsus

quadrāgēsimus

salvus

surdus

tūtus

ūniversus

verba

admīrārī

adōrāre

apprehendere

cessāre

disiungere

ēicere

ēvolvere

extendere

habērī

impendēre

mālle

memorāre

morī

nāscī

oboedīre

perīre

persuādēre

pervenīre

rēgnāre

rogāre

salvāre

servīre

spērāre

suscitāre

tumultuārī

versārī

vītāre

coniunctiōnēs

velut

adverbia

potius

utrum

XXIX. Nāvigāre Necesse Est

nōmina

beneficium

{379} cantus

carmen

delphīnus

dīvitiae

dorsum

fēlīcitās

fidēs

fidicen

fortūna

fundus

fūr

fūrtum

iactūra

invidia

laetitia

lucrum

maleficium

nāvigātiō

piscātor

rēmus

salūs

spēs

trīstitia

tyrannus

vīta

adiectīva

celsus

fallāx

fēlīx

ignārus

ignōtus

maestus

mīrus

nōbilis

nōtus

pretiōsus

rapidus

vēlōx

verba

abicere

abstinēre

adicere

aestimāre

afficere

allicere

āmittere

appārēre

appropinquāre

cōnfitērī

dēsilīre

dēspērāre

dēterrēre

dētrahere

dōnāre

ēripere

expōnere

fīnīre

invidēre

parcere

permittere

permovēre

perturbāre

precārī

querī

recognōscere

redūcere

remanēre

secāre

stupēre

suādēre

subīre

surripere

pronōmina

nōnnūllī

sēsē

adverbia

frūstrā

inde

nōnnumquam

prōtinus

quasi

repente

XXX. Convīvium

nōmina

argentum

balneum

bonum

calida

carō

cēna

cocus

convīva

convīvium

culīna

famēs

genus

holus

hospes

iter

lībertīnus

medium

mel

merum

minister

nux

sāl

sitis

triclīnium

vās

adiectīva

acerbus

acūtus

argenteus

bīnī

dīligēns

dulcis

glōriōsus

īmus

inexspectātus

iūcundus

merus

molestus

singulī

tardus

ternī

verba

accubāre

accumbere

apportāre

aspergere

cēnāre

complēre

contrahere

coquere

ēligere

exhaurīre

exōrnāre

fruī

fundere

gustāre

līberāre

miscēre

nūntiāre

parāre

perferre

placēre

pōtāre

praeesse

prōferre

recipere

requiēscere

salvēre iubēre

sternere

vīsere

praepositiōnēs

circiter

adverbia

dēmum

diū

equidem

paulisper

prīdem

sānē

{380} XXXI. Inter Pōcula

nōmina

crux

fidēs

iniūria

iūs

iuvenis

lēx

memoria

mōs

mūnus

nūgae

parricīda

poena

pōtiō

praemium

rūmor

scelus

senex

supplicium

adiectīva

asinīnus

avārus

clēmēns

crūdēlis

dēbilis

ēbrius

fīdus

fugitīvus

impatiēns

īnfēlīx

īnfīdus

iniūstus

invalidus

iūstus

nōnāgēsimus

praesēns

sapiēns

scelestus

vetus

verba

abdūcere

auferre

aufugere

cōnfīdere

cruciāre

ēducāre

fābulārī

fīdere

ignōscere

interpellāre

latēre

ōdisse

optāre

retrahere

statuere

vetāre

pronōmina

quidquid

quisquis

praepositiōnēs

cōram

super

adverbia

aliquantum

funditus

ideō

namque

nimium/nimis

priusquam

quamobrem

quantum

XXXII. Classis Rōmāna

nōmina

amīcitia

amphitheātrum

audācia

classis

condiciō

cursus

gēns

grātia

incola

inopia

pīrāta

poēta

populus

servitūs

talentum

victor

victōria

vīrēs

vīs

voluntās

adiectīva

adversus

cārus

commūnis

cūnctus

ēgregius

grātus

inermis

īnfēstus

internus

mercātōrius

mūtuus

nūbilus

proximus

superbus

vīlis

verba

adiuvāre

armāre

contemnere

dēsistere

dissuādēre

ēdūcere

flectere

meminisse

minārī

offerre

percurrere

praeferre

praepōnere

redimere

referre

rēmigāre

reminīscī

repugnāre

submergere

tuērī

coniunctiōnes

neu

seu

adverbia

aliquandō

aliquot

dōnec

etiamnunc

intereā

ubīque

utinam

XXXIII. Exercitus Rōmānus

nōmina

aciēs

aetās

agmen

amnis

caedēs

cohors

ēnsis

gaudium

imperātor

lēgātus

legiō

legiōnārius

ōrdō

pāx

proelium

ratis

rīpa

stipendium

{381} studium

valētūdō

virtūs

vulnus

adiectīva

arduus

citerior

dēnī

dīrus

horrendus

idōneus

incolumis

mīlitāris

ōtiōsus

posterus

prīvātus

pūblicus

quaternī

quīnī

rīdiculus

sēnī

trīnī

ulterior

ūnī

verba

adiungere

caedere

circumdare

cōgere

commemorāre

convocāre

cōpulāre

dēsīderāre

effundere

ērumpere

excurrere

fatīgāre

fore

hortārī

īnstruere

mūnīre

praestāre

prōcurrere

prōgredī

properāre

studēre

trānsferre

trānsīre

vulnerāre

pronōmina

plērīque

praepositiōnēs

citrā

secundum

ultrā

adverbia

diūtius

etenim

ferē

praecipuē

prīdiē

quamdiū

tamdiū

ultrā

XXXIV. De Arte Poēticā

nōmina

anus

arānea

aurīga

bāsium

cachinnus

certāmen

circus

cōmoedia

dēliciae

fātum

gladiātor

gremium

ingenium

lucerna

lūdus

mēns

nīl

nota

ocellus

odium

opera

opēs

palma

passer

prīncipium

ratiō

rēte

rīsus

scalpellum

sinus

spectātor

tenebrae

testis

theātrum

verba grammatica

dactylus

dipthongus

epigramma

hendecasyllabus

hexameter

iambus

pentameter

spondēus

trochaeus

versiculus

adiectīva

ācer

bellus

circēnsis

dubius

geminus

gladiātōrius

iocōsus

mellītus

misellus

niveus

perpetuus

poēticus

scaenicus

sērius

tenebricōsus

turgidus

ultimus

venustus

verba

accendere

affirmāre

certāre

circumsilīre

conturbāre

dēvorāre

ēlīdere

ērubēscere

excruciāre

favēre

implicāre

laedere

libenter

libēre

lūgēre

nūbere

ōscitāre

pīpiāre

plaudere

prōsilīre

requīrere

sapere

adverbia

dein

interdum

plērumque

coniunctiō

dummodo

XXXV. Ars Grammatica

nōmina

admīrātiō

affectus

īra

mūsa

{382} ōrātiō

sacerdōs

scamnum

verba grammatica

appellātīvum (nōmen)

cāsus

causālis (coniūnctiō)

comparātiō

coniugātiō

coniūnctiō

cōpulātīvus (coniūnctiō)

disiūnctīvus (coniūnctiō)

explētīvus (coniūnctiō)

īnflectere

interiectiō

optātīvus (modus)

positīvus (gradus)

proprium (nōmen)

quālitās

quantitās

ratiōnālis (coniūnctiō)

significātiō

speciēs

synōnymum

adiectīva

inconditus

similis

verba

adnectere

dēmere

explānāre

luctārī

mentiōnem facere

ōrdināre

adverbia

dumtaxat

forsitan

proptereā

quāpropter

quidnī

sīquidem

tantundem

praepositiōnēs

adversum

cis

interiectiōnēs

attat

eia

ēn

euax

papae

{383} Latin–English Vocabulary

A

ā/ab/abs prp +abl from, of, since, by

ab-dūcere take away, carry off

ab-errāre wander away, stray

ab-esse ā-fuisse be absent/away/distant

ab-icere throw away

ab-īre -eō -iisse go away

abs v. ā/ab/abs

absēns -entis adi absent

abs-tinēre keep off

ac v. atque/ac

ac-cēdere approach, come near

accendere -disse -ēnsum light, inflame

ac-cidere -disse happen, occur

ac-cipere receive

ac-cubāre recline at table

ac-cumbere -cubuisse lie down at table

ac-currere -rrisse come running

accūsāre accuse

ācer -cris -cre keen, active, fierce

acerbus -a -um sour, bitter

aciēs -ēī f line of battle

acūtus -a -um sharp

ad prp +acc to, toward, by, at, till

ad-dere -didisse -ditum add

ad-esse af-fuisse (+dat) be present, stand by

ad-hūc so far, till now, still

ad-icere add

ad-īre -eō -iisse -itum go to, approach

ad-iungere join to, add

ad-iuvāre help

ad-mīrārī admire, wonder at

admīrātiō -ōnis f wonder, admiration

ad-mittere let in, admit

ad-nectere -xuisse -xum attach, connect

ad-ōrāre worship, adore

adulēscēns -entis m young man

ad-vehere carry, convey (to)

ad-venīre arrive

adversus/-um prp +acc toward, against

adversus -a -um contrary, unfavorable

aedificāre build

aedificium -ī n building

aeger -gra -grum sick, ill

aegrōtāre be ill

aegrōtus -a -um sick

aequē equally

aequinoctium -ī n equinox

aequus -a -um equal, calm

āēr -eris m air

aestās -ātis f summer

aestimāre value, estimate

aetās -ātis f age

affectus -ūs m mood, feeling

af-ferre at-tulisse al-lātum bring (to, forward, about)

af-ficere affect, stir

af-fīrmāre assert, affirm

age -ite +imp come on! well, now

ager -grī m field

agere ēgisse āctum drive, do, perform

agmen -inis n army on the march, file

agnus -ī m lamb

agricola -ae m farmer, peasant

ain’ you don’t say? really?

āiō ais ait āiunt say

āla -ae f wing

albus -a -um white

alere -uisse altum feed

aliēnus -a -um someone else’s

ali-quandō sometimes

ali-quantum a good deal

ali-quī -qua -quod some

ali-quis -quid someone, something

ali-quot indēcl some, several

aliter otherwise

alius -a -ud another, other

aliī…aliī some…others

allicere -iō -ēxisse -ectum attract

alter -era -erum one, the other, second

altum -ī n the open sea

altus -a -um high, tall, deep

amāns -antis m lover

amāre love

ambulāre walk

amīca -ae f girlfriend

amīcitia -ae f friendship

amīcus -ī m friend

amīcus -a -um friendly

ā-mittere lose

amnis -is m river

amoenus -a -um lovely, pleasant

amor -ōris m love

amphitheātrum -ī n amphitheater

an or

ancilla -ae f female slave, servant

angustus -a -um narrow

{384} anima -ae f breath, life, soul

anim-ad-vertere notice

animal -ālis n animal, living being

animus -ī m mind, soul

annus -ī m year

ante prp +acc, adv in front of, before

anteā before, formerly

ante-hāc formerly

ante-quam before

antīquus -a -um old, ancient, former

ānulus -ī m ring

anus -ūs f old woman

aperīre -uisse -rtum open, disclose

apertus -a -um open

apis -is f bee

ap-pārēre appear

appellāre call, address

ap-pōnere place (on), serve

ap-portāre bring

ap-prehendere seize

ap-propinquāre (+dat) approach, come near

Aprīlis -is (mēnsis) April

apud prp +acc beside, near, by

aqua -ae f water

aquila -ae f eagle

arānea -ae f spider, cobweb

arāre plow

arātor -ōris m plowman

arātrum -ī n plow

arbitrārī think, believe

arbor -oris f tree

arcessere -īvisse -ītum send for, fetch

arcus -ūs m bow

arduus -a -um steep

argenteus -a -um silver, of silver

argentum -ī n silver

arma -ōrum n pl arms

armāre arm, equip

armātus -a -um armed

ars artis f art, skill

as assis m as (copper coin)

a-scendere -disse climb, go up, mount

asinīnus -a -um ass’s

asinus -ī m ass, donkey

a-spergere -sisse -sum sprinkle, scatter (on)

a-spicere look at, look

at but

āter -tra -trum black, dark

atque/ac and, as, than

ātrium -ī n main room, hall

attentus -a -um attentive

audācia -ae f boldness, audacity

audāx -ācis adi bold, audacious

audēre ausum esse dare, venture

audīre hear, listen

au-ferre abs-tulisse ablātum carry off, take away

au-fugere run away, escape

augēre -xisse -ctum increase

Augustus -ī (mēnsis) August

aureus -a -um gold-, m gold piece

aurīga -ae m charioteer, driver

auris -is f ear

aurum -ī n gold

aut or

aut…aut either…or

autem but, however

autumnus -ī m autumn

auxilium -ī n help, assistance

auxilia -ōrum n pl auxiliary forces

avārus -a -um greedy, avaricious

ā-vertere turn aside, avert

avis -is f bird

avunculus -ī m (maternal) uncle

B

baculum -ī n stick

bālāre bleat

balneum -ī n bath, bathroom

barbarus -a -um foreign, barbarian

bāsium -ī n kiss

beātus -a -um happy

bellum -ī n war

bellus -a -um lovely, pretty

bene well

beneficium -ī n benefit, favor

bēstia -ae f beast, animal

bēstiola -ae f small animal, insect

bibere -bisse drink

bīnī -ae -a two (each)

bis twice

bonum -ī n good, blessing

bonus -a -um good

bōs bovis m/f ox

bracchium -ī n arm

brevī adv soon

brevis -e short

C

cachinnus -ī m laugh, guffaw

cadere cecidisse fall

caecus -a -um blind

caedere cecīdisse caesum beat, fell, kill

caedēs -is f killing, slaughter

caelum -ī n sky, heaven

calamus -ī m reed, pen

calceus -ī m shoe

calidus -a -um warm, hot, f hot water

calor -ōris m warmth, heat

campus -ī m plain

candidus -a -um white, bright

canere cecinisse sing (of), crow, play

canis -is m/f dog

cantāre sing

cantus -ūs m singing, music

capere -iō cēpisse captum take, catch, capture

capillus -ī m hair

capitulum -ī n chapter

caput -itis n head, chief, capital

carcer -eris m prison

cardō -inis m door pivot, hinge

carēre +abl be without, lack

carmen -inis n song, poem

carō carnis f flesh, meat

carpere -psisse-ptum gather, pick, crop

cārus -a -um dear

{385} castra -ōrum n pl camp

cāsus -ūs m fall, case

catēna -ae f chain

cauda -ae f tail

causa -ae f cause, reason gen (/meā) +causā for the sake of

cautus -a -um cautious

cavēre cāvisse cautum beware (of)

cēdere cessisse go, withdraw

celer -eris -ere swift, quick

celsus -a -um tall

cēna -ae f dinner

cēnāre dine, have dinner

cēnsēre -uisse -sum think

centēsimus -a -um hundredth

centum a hundred

cēra -ae f wax

cerebrum -ī n brain

cernere crēvisse discern, perceive

certāmen -inis n contest, fight

certāre contend, fight

certē certainly, at any rate

certō adv for certain

certus -a -um certain, sure

cessāre leave off, cease

cēterī -ae -a the other(s), the rest

cēterum adv besides, however

cēterus -a -um remaining

charta -ae f paper

cibus -ī m food

cingere cīnxisse cīnctum surround

-cipere -iō -cēpisse -ceptum

circā prp +acc round

circēnsēs -ium m pl games in the circus

circēnsis -e of the circus

circiter about

circum prp +acc round

circum-dare surround

circum-silīre hop about

circus -ī m circle, orbit, circus

cis prp +acc on this side of

citerior -ius comp nearer

citrā prp +acc on this side of

cīvis -is m/f citizen, countryman

clāmāre shout

clāmor -ōris m shout, shouting

clārus -a -um bright, clear, loud

classis -is f fleet

claudere -sisse -sum shut, close

claudus -a -um lame

clausus -a -um closed, shut

clāvis -is f key

clēmēns -entis adi mild, lenient

cocus -ī m cook

coep- v. incipere

cōgere co-ēgisse -āctum compel, force

cōgitāre think

cognōmen -inis n surname

cognōscere -ōvisse -itum get to know, recognize

cohors -rtis f cohort

colere -uisse cultum cultivate

collis -is m hill

col-loquī talk, converse

colloquium -ī n conversation

collum -ī n neck

colōnus -ī m (tenant-) farmer

color -ōris m color

columna -ae f column

comes -itis m companion

comitārī accompany

com-memorāre mention

commūnis -e common

cōmoedia -ae f comedy

com-parāre compare

com-plectī -exum embrace

com-plēre -ēvisse -ētum fill, complete

com-plūrēs -a several

com-putāre calculate, reckon

cōnārī attempt, try

condiciō -ōnis f condition

cōn-ficere make, accomplish

cōn-fīdere +dat trust

cōn-fitērī -fessum confess

con-iungere join, connect

coniūnx -iugis m/f consort, wife

cōn-scendere -disse mount, board

cōn-sequī follow, overtake

cōn-sīdere -sēdisse sit down

cōnsilium -ī n advice, decision, intention, plan

cōn-sistere -stitisse stop, halt

cōn-sōlārī comfort, console

cōnsonāns -antis f consonant

cōnspectus -ūs m sight, view

cōn-spicere catch sight of, see

cōnstāns -antis adi steady, firm

cōn-stāre -stitisse be fixed, cost

cōnstāre ex consist of

cōn-stituere -uisse -ūtum fix, decide

cōn-sūmere spend, consume

con-temnere -mpsisse -mptum despise, scorn

con-tinēre -uisse -tentum contain

continuō adv immediately

contrā prp +acc against

con-trahere draw together, wrinkle

contrārius -a -um opposite, contrary

con-turbāre mix up, confound

con-venīre come together, meet

convenīre (ad/+dat) fit, be fitting

con-vertere turn

convīva -ae m/f guest

convīvium -ī n dinner-party

con-vocāre call together

cōpia -ae f abundance, lot

cōpulāre join, connect

coquere -xisse -ctum cook

cor cordis n heart

cōram prp +abl in the presence of

cornū -ūs n horn

corpus -oris n body

{386} cor-rigere -rēxisse -rēctum correct

cotīdiē every day

crās tomorrow

crassus -a -um thick, fat

crēdere -didisse +dat believe, trust, entrust

crēscere -ēvisse grow

cruciāre torture, torment

crūdēlis -e cruel

cruentus -a -um blood-stained, bloody

cruor -ōris m blood-stained, bloody

crūs -ūris n leg

crux -ucis f cross

cubāre -uisse -itum lie (in bed)

cubiculum -ī n bedroom

culīna -ae f kitchen

culter -tri m knife

cum prp +abl with

cum coniūnctiō when, as

cum prīmum +perf as soon as

cūnae -ārum f pl cradle

cūnctus -a -um whole, pl all

cupere -iō -īvisse desire

cupiditās -ātis f desire

cupidus -a -um (+gen) desirous (of), eager (for)

cūr why

cūra -ae f care, anxiety

cūrāre care for, look after, take care

currere cucurrisse run

currus -ūs m chariot

cursus -ūs m race, journey, course

cūstōdīre guard

D

dare dedisse datum give

dē prp +abl (down) from, of, about

dea -ae f goddess

dēbēre owe, be obliged

dēbilis -e weak

decem ten

December -bris (mēnsis) December

decēre be fitting, become

deciēs ten times

decimus -a -um tenth

dēclīnāre decline, inflect

de-esse dē-fuisse (+dat) be missing, fail

dē-fendere -disse -ēnsum defend

de-inde/dein afterward, then

dēlectāre delight, please

dēlēre -ēvisse -ētum delete, efface

dēliciae -ārum f pl delight, pet

delphīnus -ī m dolphin

dēmere -mpsisse -mptum remove

dē-mōnstrāre point out, show

dēmum adv at last, only

dēnārius -ī m denarius (silver coin)

dēnī -ae -a ten (each)

dēnique finally, at last

dēns dentis m tooth

dē-nuō anew, again

deorsum adv down

dē-rīdēre laugh at, make fun of

dē-scendere -disse go down, descend

dē-serere -uisse -rtum leave, desert

dēsīderāre long for, miss

dē-silīre -uisse jump down

dē-sinere -siisse finish, stop, end

dē-sistere -stitisse leave off, cease

dē-spērāre lose hope, despair (of)

dē-spicere look down (on), despise

dē-tergēre wipe off

dē-terrēre deter

dē-trahere pull off

deus -ī m, pl deī/diī/dī god

dē-vorāre swallow up, devour

dexter -tra -trum right, f the right (hand)

dīcere -xisse dictum say, call, speak

dictāre dictate

dictum -ī n saying, words

diēs -ēī m (f) day, date

dif-ficilis -e, sup -illimus difficult, hard

digitus -ī m finger

dignus -a -um worthy

dīligēns -entis adi careful, diligent

dīligere -ēxisse -ēctum love, be fond of

dīmidius -a -um half

dī-mittere send away, dismiss

dīrus -a -um dreadful

dis-cēdere go away, depart

discere didicisse learn

discipulus -ī m pupil, disciple

dis-iungere separate

dis-suādēre advise not to

diū, comp diūtius long

dīves -itis adi rich, wealthy

dīvidere -īsisse -īsum separate, divide

dīvitiae -ārum f pl riches

docēre -uisse doctum teach, instruct

doctus -a -um learned, skilled

dolēre hurt, feel pain, grieve

dolor -ōris m pain, grief

domī loc at home

domina -ae f mistress

dominus -ī m master

domum adv home

domus -ūs f, abl -ō house, home

dōnāre give, present with

dōnec as long as

dōnum -ī n gift, present

dormīre sleep

dorsum -ī n back

dubitāre doubt

dubius -a -um undecided, doubtful

du-centī -ae -a two hundred

dūcere -xisse ductum guide, lead, draw, trace

uxōrem dūcere marry

dulcis -e sweet

dum while, as long as, till

dum-modo provided that, if only

dumtaxat only, just

duo -ae -o two

{387} duo-decim twelve

duo-decimus -a -um twelfth

duo-dē-trīgintā twenty-eight

duo-dē-vīgintī eighteen

dūrus -a -um hard

dux ducis m leader, chief, general

E

ē v. ex/ē

ēbrius -a -um drunk

ecce see, look, here is

ēducāre bring up

ē-dūcere bring out, draw out

ef-ficere make, effect, cause

ef-fugere escape, run away

ef-fundere pour out, shed

ego mē mihi/mī I, me, myself

ē-gredī -ior -gressum go out

ēgregius -a -um outstanding, excellent

ē-icere throw out

ē-līdere -sisse -sum omit, elide

ē-ligere -lēgisse -lēctum choose, select

emere ēmisse ēmptum buy

ēn look, here is

enim for

ēnsis -is m sword

eō adv to that place, there

epigramma -atis n epigram

epistula -ae f letter

eques -itis m horseman

equidem indeed, for my part

equitātus -ūs m cavalry

equus -ī m horse

ergā prp +acc toward

ergō therefore, so

ē-ripere -iō -uisse -reptum snatch away, deprive of

errāre wander, stray

ē-rubēscere -buisse blush

ē-rumpere break out

erus -ī m master

esse sum fuisse futūrum esse/fore be

ēsse edō ēdisse ēsum eat

et and, also

et…et both…and

et-enim and indeed, for

etiam also, even, yet

etiam atque etiam again and again

etiam-nunc still

et-sī even if, although

ē-volāre fly out

ē-volvere -visse -lūtum unroll

ex/ē prp +abl out of, from, of, since

ex-audīre hear

ex-citāre wake up, arouse

ex-clāmāre cry out, exclaim

ex-cōgitāre think out, devise

ex-cruciāre torture, torment

ex-currere -rrisse -rsum run out, rush out

ex-cūsāre excuse

exemplum -ī n example, model

exercitus -ūs m army

ex-haurīre drain, empty

exiguus -a -um small, scanty

ex-īre -eō -iisse -itum go out

ex-īstimāre consider, think

exitus -ūs m exit, way out, end

ex-ōrnāre adorn, decorate

ex-plānāre explain

ex-pōnere put out/ashore, expose

ex-pugnāre conquer

ex-pugnātiō -ōnis f conquest

ex-spectāre wait (for), expect

ex-tendere -disse -tum stretch out, extend

extrā prp +acc outside

F

faber -brī m artisan, smith

fābula -ae f story, fable, play

fābulārī talk, chat

facere -iō fēcisse factum make, do, cause

faciēs -ēī f face

facile adv easily

facilis -e, sup -illimus easy

factum -ī n deed, act

fallāx -ācis adi deceitful

fallere fefellisse falsum deceive

falsus -a -um false

falx -cis f sickle

fāma -ae f rumor, reputation

famēs -is f hunger, famine

familia -ae f domestic staff, family

fārī speak

fatērī fassum admit, confess

fatīgāre tire out, weary

fātum -ī n fate, destiny, death

favēre fāvisse +dat favor, support

Februārius -ī (mēnsis) February

fēlīcitās -ātis f good fortune, luck

fēlīx -īcis adi fortunate, lucky

fēmina -ae f woman

fenestra -ae f window

fera -ae f wild animal

ferē about, almost

ferōx -ōcis adi fierce, ferocious

ferre tulisse lātum carry, bring, bear

ferreus -a -um of iron, iron

ferrum -ī n iron, steel

fertilis -e fertile

ferus -a -um wild

fessus -a -um tired, weary

-ficere -iō -fēcisse -fectum

fīdere fīsum esse +dat trust, rely on

fidēs -eī f trust, faith, loyalty

fidēs -ium f pl lyre

fidicen -inis m lyre-player

fīdus -a -um faithful, reliable

fierī factum esse be made, be done, become, happen

{388} fīgere -xisse -xum fix, fasten

fīlia -ae f daughter

fīliola -ae f little daughter

fīliolus -ī m little son

fīlius -ī m son

fīlum -ī n thread

fīnīre limit, finish

fīnis -is m boundary, limit, end

flāre blow

flectere -xisse -xum bend, turn

flēre -ēvisse cry, weep (for)

flōs -ōris m flower

flūctus -ūs m wave

fluere -ūxisse flow

flūmen -inis n river

fluvius -ī m river

foedus -a -um ugly, hideous

folium -ī n leaf

forās adv out

foris -is f leaf of a door, door

forīs adv outside, out of doors

fōrma -ae f form, shape, figure

fōrmōsus -a -um beautiful

forsitan perhaps, maybe

fortasse perhaps, maybe

forte adv by chance

fortis -e strong, brave

fortūna -ae f fortune

forum -ī n square

fossa -ae f ditch, trench

frangere frēgisse frāctum break, shatter

frāter -tris m brother

fremere -uisse growl

frequēns -entis adi numerous, frequent

fretum -ī n strait

frīgēre be cold

frīgidus -a -um cold, chilly, cool

frīgus -oris n cold

frōns -ontis f forehead

frūgēs -um f pl fruit, crops

fruī +abl enjoy

frūmentum -ī n corn, grain

frūstrā in vain

fuga -ae f flight

fugere -iō fūgisse run away, flee

fugitīvus -a -um runaway

fulgur -uris n flash of lightning

fundere fūdisse fūsum pour, shed

funditus adv to the bottom, utterly

fundus -ī m bottom

fūr -is m thief

fūrtum -ī n theft

futūrus -a -um (v. esse) future

tempus futūrum future

G

gallus -ī m cock, rooster

gaudēre gavīsum esse be glad, be pleased

gaudium -ī n joy, delight

geminus -a -um twin

gemma -ae f precious stone, jewel

gemmātus -a -um set with a jewel

gena -ae f cheek

gēns gentis f nation, people

genū -ūs n knee

genus -eris n kind, sort

gerere gessisse gestum carry, wear, carry on, do

glaciēs -ēī f ice

gladiātor -ōris m gladiator

gladiātōrius -a -um gladiatorial

gladius -ī m sword

glōria -ae f glory

glōriōsus -a -um glorious, boastful

gracilis -e slender

gradus -ūs m step, degree

Graecus -a -um Greek

grammatica -ae f grammar

grātia -ae f favor, gratitude

gen (/meā) + grātiā for the sake of

grātiam habēre be grateful

grātiās agere thank

grātus -a -um pleasing, grateful

gravida adi f pregnant

gravis -e heavy, severe, grave

gremium -ī n lap

grex -egis m flock, herd, band

gubernāre steer, govern

gubernātor -ōris m steersman

gustāre taste

H

habēre have, hold, consider

habitāre dwell, live

hasta -ae f lance

haud not

haurīre -sisse -stum draw (water), bail

herba -ae f grass, herb

herī yesterday

heu o! alas!

heus hey! hello!

hic haec hoc this

hīc here

hiems -mis f winter

hinc from here, hence

hodiē today

holus -eris n vegetable

homō -inis m human being, person

hōra -ae f hour

horrendus -a -um dreadful

horrēre bristle, stand on end, shudder (at)

hortārī encourage, urge

hortus -ī m garden

hospes -itis m guest, guest-friend

hostis -is m enemy

hūc here, to this place

hūmānus -a -um human

humī loc on the ground

humilis -e low

humus -ī f ground

I

iacere -iō iēcisse iactum throw, hurl

iacēre lie

iactāre throw, toss about

iactūra -ae f throwing away, loss

iam now, already

iānitor -ōris m doorkeeper

iānua -ae f door

Iānuārius -ī (mēnsis) January

ibi there

-icere -iō -iēcisse -iectum

{389} īdem eadem idem the same

id-eō for that reason

idōneus -a -um fit, suitable

īdūs -uum f pl 13th/15th (of the month)

iecur -oris n liver

igitur therefore, then, so

ignārus -a -um ignorant, unaware

ignis -is m fire

ignōrāre not know

ignōscere -ōvisse +dat forgive

ignōtus -a -um unknown

ille -a -ud that, the one, he

illīc there

illinc from there

illūc there, thither

illūstrāre illuminate, make clear

imāgō -inis f picture

imber -bris m rain, shower

imitārī imitate

im-mātūrus -a -um unripe

immō no, on the contrary

im-mortālis -e immortal

im-pār -aris adi unequal

im-patiēns -entis adi impatient

im-pendēre +dat threaten

imperāre +dat command, order, rule

imperātor -ōris m (commanding) general

imperium -ī n command, empire

impetus -ūs m attack, charge

im-piger -gra -grum active, industrious

im-plēre -ēvisse -ētum fill, complete

im-plicāre -uisse -itum enfold

impluvium -ī n water basin

im-pōnere place (in/on), put

im-primere -pressisse -pressum press (into)

im-probus -a -um bad, wicked

īmus -a -um sup lowest

in prp +abl in, on, at prp +acc into, to, against

in-certus -a -um uncertain

in-cipere -iō coepisse coeptum begin

in-clūdere -sisse -sum shut up

incola -ae m/f inhabitant

in-colere inhabit

incolumis -e unharmed, safe

inconditus -a -um unpolished, rough

inde from there, thence

index -icis m list, catalogue

in-dignus -a -um unworthy, shameful

in-doctus -a -um ignorant

induere -uisse -ūtum put on (clothes)

indūtus +abl dressed in

industrius -a -um industrious

in-ermis -e unarmed

in-esse be (in)

in-exspectātus -a -um unexpected

īnfāns -antis m/f little child, baby

īn-fēlīx -īcis adi unlucky, unfortunate

īnferior -ius comp lower, inferior

īnferus -a -um lower

Īnferī -ōrum m pl the underworld

īnfēstus -a -um unsafe, infested

īn-fīdus -a -um faithless

īnfimus -a -um sup lowest

īn-fluere flow into

īnfrā prp +acc below

ingenium -ī n nature, character

ingēns -entis adi huge, vast

in-hūmānus -a -um inhuman

in-imīcus -ī m (personal) enemy

in-inimīcus -a -um unfriendly

initium -ī n beginning

iniūria -ae f injustice, wrong

in-iūstus -a -um unjust, unfair

inopia -ae f lack, scarcity

inquit -iunt (he/she) says/said

inquam I say

īn-scrībere write on, inscribe

īnscrīptiō -ōnis f inscription

īn-struere -ūxisse -ūctum draw up, arrange

īnstrūmentum -ī n tool, instrument

īnsula -ae f island

integer -gra -grum undamaged, intact

intellegere -ēxisse -ēctum understand, realize

inter prp +acc between, among, during

inter sē (with) one another

inter-dum now and then

inter-eā meanwhile

inter-esse be between

inter-ficere kill

interim meanwhile

internus -a -um inner, internal

inter-pellāre interrupt

inter-rogāre ask, question

intrā prp +acc inside, within

intrāre enter

intuērī look at, watch

intus adv inside

in-validus -a -um infirm, weak

in-vehere import

in-venīre find

in-vidēre +dat envy, grudge

invidia -ae f envy

in-vocāre call upon, invoke

iocōsus -a -um humorous, funny

ipse -a -um himself

īra -ae f anger

īrātus -a -um angry

īre eō iisse itum go

is ea id he, she, it, that

iste -a -ud this, that (of yours)

ita so, in such a way

ita-que therefore

item likewise, also

iter itineris n journey, march, way

iterum again, a second time

{390} iubēre iussisse iussum order, tell

iūcundus -a -um pleasant, delightful

Iūlius -ī (mēnsis) July

iungere iūnxisse iūnctum join, combine

Iūnius -ī (mēnsis) June

iūs iūris n right, justice

iūre justly, rightly

iūstus -a -um just, fair

iuvāre iūvisse iūtum help, delight

iuvenis -is m young man

iūxtā prp +acc next to, beside

K

kalendae -ārum f pl the 1st (of the month)

kalendārium -ī n calendar

L

lābī lāpsum slip, drop, fall

labor -ōris m work, toil

labōrāre toil, work, take trouble

labrum -ī n lip

labyrinthus -ī m labyrinth

lac lactis n milk

lacertus -ī m (upper) arm

lacrima -ae f tear

lacrimāre shed tears, weep

lacus -ūs m lake

laedere -sisse -sum injure, hurt

laetārī rejoice, be glad

laetitia -ae f joy

laetus -a -um glad, happy

laevus -a -um left

lāna -ae f wool

largīrī give generously

largus -a -um generous

latēre be hidden, hide

Latīnus -a -um Latin

lātrāre bark

latus -eris n side, flank

lātus -a -um broad, wide

laudāre praise

laus laudis f praise

lavāre lāvisse lautum wash, bathe

lectīca -ae f litter, sedan

lectulus -ī m (little) bed

lectus -ī m bed, couch

lēgātus -ī m envoy, delegate

legere lēgisse lēctum read

legiō -ōnis f legion

legiōnārius -a -um legionary

leō -ōnis m lion

levāre lift, raise

levis -e light, slight

lēx lēgis f law

libellus -ī m little book

libenter with pleasure, gladly

liber -brī m book

līber -era -erum free

līberāre free, set free

libēre: libet +dat it pleases

līberī -ōrum m pl children

lībertās -ātis f freedom, liberty

lībertīnus -ī m freedman

licēre: licet +dat it is allowed, one may

ligneus -a -um wooden

lignum -ī n wood

līlium -ī n lily

līmen -inis n threshold

līnea -ae f string, line

lingua -ae f tongue, language

littera -ae f letter

lītus -oris n beach, shore

locus -ī m place

loca -ōrum n pl regions, parts

longē far, by far

longus -a -um long

loquī locūtum speak, talk

lūcēre lūxisse shine

lucerna -ae f lamp

lucrum -ī n profit, gain

luctārī wrestle

lūdere -sisse -sum play

lūdus -ī m play, game, school

lūgēre -xisse mourn

lūna -ae f moon

lupus -ī m wolf

lūx lūcis f light, daylight

M

maerēre grieve

maestus -a -um sad, sorrowful

magis more

magister -trī m schoolmaster, teacher

magnificus -a -um magnificent, splendid

magnus -a -um big, large, great

māior -ius comp bigger, older

Māius -ī (mēnsis) May

male adv badly, ill

maleficium -ī n evil deed, crime

mālle māluisse prefer

malum -ī n evil, trouble, harm

mālum -ī n apple

malus -a -um bad, wicked, evil

mamma -ae f mummy

māne indēcl n, adv morning, in the morning

manēre mānsisse remain, stay

manus -ūs f hand

mare -is n sea

margarīta -ae f pearl

maritimus -a -um sea, coastal

marītus -ī m husband

Mārtius -ī (mēnsis) March

māter -tris f mother

māteria -ae f material, substance

mātrōna -ae f married woman

mātūrus -a -um ripe

māximē most, especially

māximus -a -um biggest, greatest, oldest

medicus -ī m physician, doctor

medium -ī n middle, center

medius -a -um mid, middle

mel mellis n honey

melior -ius comp better

mellītus -a -um sweet

membrum -ī n limb

meminisse +gen/acc remember, recollect

memorāre mention

memoria -ae f memory

mendum -ī n mistake, error

mēns mentis f mind

mēnsa -ae f table

mēnsa secunda dessert

{391} mēnsis -is m month

mentiō -ōnis f mention

mentīrī lie

mercātor -ōris m merchant

mercātōrius -a -um merchant-

mercēs -ēdis f wage, fee, rent

merēre earn, deserve

mergere -sisse -sum dip, plunge, sink

merīdiēs -ēī m midday, noon, south

merum -ī n neat wine

merus -a -um pure, neat, undiluted

merx -rcis f commodity, pl goods

metere reap, harvest

metuere -uisse fear

metus -ūs m fear

meus -a -um, voc mī my, mine

mīles -itis m soldier

mīlitāre serve as a soldier

mīlitāris -e military

mīlle, pl mīlia -ium n thousand

minārī +dat threaten

minimē by no means, not at all

minimus -a -um sup smallest, youngest

minister -trī m servant

minor -us comp smaller, younger

minuere -uisse -ūtum diminish, reduce

minus -ōris n, adv less

mīrābilis -e marvelous, wonderful

mīrārī wonder (at), be surprised

mīrus -a -um surprising, strange

miscēre -uisse mixtum mix

misellus -a -um poor, wretched

miser -era -erum unhappy, miserable

mittere mīsisse missum send, throw

modo only, just

modo…modo now…now

modus -ī m manner, way

nūllō modō by no means

moenia -ium n pl walls

molestus -a -um troublesome

mollīre make soft, soften

mollis -e soft

monēre remind, advise, warn

mōns montis m mountain

mōnstrāre point out, show

mōnstrum -ī n monster

mora -ae f delay

mordēre momordisse -sum bite

morī mortuum die

mors mortis f death

mortālis -e mortal

mortuus -a -um (< morī) dead

mōs mōris m custom, usage

movēre mōvisse mōtum move, stir

mox soon

mulier -eris f woman

multī -ae -a many, a great many

multitūdō -inis f large number, multitude

multō +comp much, by far

multum -ī n, adv much

mundus -ī m world, universe

mundus -a -um clean, neat

mūnīre fortify

mūnus -eris n gift

mūrus -ī m wall

Mūsa -ae f Muse

mūtāre change, exchange

mūtus -a -um dumb

mūtuus -a -um on loan

mūtuum dare/sūmere lend/borrow

N

nam for

-nam …ever?

namque for

nārrāre relate, tell

nārrātiō -ōnis f narrative

nāscī nātum be born

nāsus -ī m nose

natāre swim

nātūra -ae f nature

nātus -a -um (< nāscī) born

XX annōs nātus 20 years old

nauta -ae m sailor

nāvicula -ae f boat

nāvigāre sail

nāvigātiō -ōnis f sailing, voyage

nāvis -is f ship

-ne …? if, whether

nē that not, lest, that

nē…quidem not even

nec v. ne-que/nec

necāre kill

necessārius -a -um necessary

necesse est it is necessary

negāre deny, say that…not

neglegēns -entis adi careless

neglegere -ēxisse -ēctum neglect

negōtium -ī n business, activity

nēmō -inem -inī no one, nobody

nēquam adi indēcl, sup nēquissimus worthless, bad

ne-que/nec and/but not, nor, not

n…n. neither…nor

ne-scīre not know

neu v. nē-ve/neu

neuter -tra -trum neither

nē-ve/neu and (that) not, nor

nex necis f killing, murder

nīdus -ī m nest

niger -gra -grum black

nihil/nīl nothing

nimis too, too much

nimium too much

nimius -a -um too big

nisi if not, except, but

niveus -a -um snow-white

nix nivis f snow

nōbilis -e well known, famous

nocēre +dat harm, hurt

nōlī -īte +īnf don’t…!

nōlle nōluisse be unwilling, not want

nōmen -inis n name

nōmināre name, call

nōn not

{392} nōnae -ārum f pl 5th/7th (of the month)

nōnāgēsimus -a -um ninetieth

nōnāgintā ninety

nōn-dum not yet

nōn-gentī -ae -a nine hundred

nōn-ne not?

nōn-nūllī -ae -a some, several

nōn-numquam sometimes

nōnus -a -um ninth

nōs nōbīs we, us, ourselves

nōscere nōvisse get to know, perf know

noster -tra -trum our, ours

nostrum gen of us

nota -ae f mark, sign

nōtus -a -um known

novem nine

November -bris (mēnsis) November

nōvisse (< nōscere) know

novus -a -um new

nox noctis f night

nūbere -psisse +dat marry

nūbēs -is f cloud

nūbilus -a -um cloudy

nūdus -a -um naked

nūgae -ārum f pl idle talk, rubbish

nūllus -a -um no

num …? if, whether

numerāre count

numerus -ī m number

nummus -ī m coin, sesterce

numquam never

nunc now

nūntiāre announce, report

nūntius -ī m messenger, message

nūper recently

nūtrīx -īcis f nurse

nux nucis f nut

O

ō o!

ob prp +acc on account of

oblīvīscī -lītum +gen/acc forget

ob-oedīre +dat obey

obscūrus -a -um dark

occidēns -entis m west

oc-cidere -disse fall, sink, set

oc-cīdere - disse -sum kill

occultāre hide

oc-currere -rrisse +dat meet

ōceanus -ī m ocean

ocellus -ī m (little) eye

octāvus -a -um eighth

octin-gentī -ae -a eight hundred

octō eight

Octōber -bris (mēnsis) October

octōgintā eighty

oculus -ī m eye

ōdisse hate

odium -ī n hatred

of-ferre ob-tulisse oblātum offer

officium -ī n duty, task

ōlim once, long ago

omnis -e all, every

opera -ae f effort, pains

operīre -uisse -ertum cover

opēs -um f pl resources, wealth

oportēre: oportet it is right, you should

opperīrī -ertum wait (for), await

oppidum -ī n town

op-pugnāre attack

optāre wish

optimus -a -um sup best, very good

opus -eris n work

opus est it is needed

ōra -ae f border, coast

ōrāre pray, beg

ōrātiō -ōnis f speech

orbis -is m circle, orbit

orbis terrārum the world

ōrdināre arrange, regulate

ōrdō -inis m row, rank, order

oriēns -entis m east

orīrī ortum rise, appear

ōrnāmentum -ī n ornament, jewel

ōrnāre equip, adorn

os ossis n bone

ōs ōris n mouth

ōscitāre gape, yawn

ōsculārī kiss

ōsculum -ī n kiss

ostendere -disse show

ōstiārius -ī m door-keeper, porter

ōstium -ī n door, entrance

ōtiōsus -a -um leisured, idle

ōtium -ī n leisure

ovis -is f sheep

ōvum -ī n egg

P

pābulum -ī n fodder

paene nearly, almost

paen-īnsula -ae f peninsula

pāgina -ae f page

pallēre be pale

pallidus -a -um pale

pallium -ī n cloak, mantle

palma -ae f palm

palpitāre beat, throb

pānis -is m bread, loaf

papyrus -ī f papyrus

pār paris adi equal

parāre prepare, make ready

parātus -a -um ready

parcere pepercisse +dat spare

parentēs -um m pl parents

parere -iō peperisse give birth to, lay

pārēre (+dat) obey

parricīda -ae m parricide

pars -rtis f part, direction

partīrī share, divide

parum too little, not quite

parvulus -a -um little, tiny

parvus -a -um little, small

pāscere pāvisse pāstum pasture, feed, feast

passer -eris m sparrow

passus -ūs m pace (1.48 m)

pāstor -ōris m shepherd

pater -tris m father

patēre be open

patī passum suffer, undergo, bear

patiēns -entis adi patient

patientia -ae f forbearance, patience

patria -ae f native country/town

paucī -ae -a few, a few

paulisper for a short time

{393} paulō +comp, ante/post a little

paulum a little, little

pauper -eris adi poor

pāx pācis f peace

pectus -oris n breast

pecūlium -ī n money given to slaves

pecūnia -ae f money

pecūniōsus -a -um wealthy

pecus -oris n livestock, sheep, cattle

pedes -itis m foot-soldier

pēior -ius comp worse

pellere pepulisse pulsum push, drive (off)

penna -ae f feather

pēnsum -ī n task

per prp +acc through, by, during

per-currere -rrisse -rsum run over, pass over

per-cutere -iō -cussisse -cussum strike, hit

per-dere -didisse -ditum destroy, ruin, waste

per-ferre carry, endure

per-ficere complete, accomplish

pergere -rexi, -rectum proceed, go on

perīculōsus -a -um dangerous, perilous

perīculum -ī n danger, peril

per-īre -eō -iisse perish, be lost

peristylum -ī n peristyle

per-mittere allow, permit

per-movēre move deeply

perpetuus -a -um continuous, permanent

per-sequī follow, pursue

persōna -ae f character, person

per-suādēre -sisse +dat persuade, convince

per-territus -a -um terrified

per-turbāre upset

per-venīre get to, reach

pēs pedis m foot

pessimus -a -um sup worst

petasus -ī m hat

petere -īvisse -ītum make for, aim at, attack, seek, ask for, request

phantasma -atis n ghost, apparition

piger -gra -grum lazy

pila -ae f ball

pīlum -ī n spear, javelin

pīpiāre chirp

pīrāta -ae m pirate

pirum -ī n pear

piscātor -ōris m fisherman

piscis -is m fish

placēre +dat please

plānē plainly, clearly

plānus -a -um plain, clear

plaudere -sisse (+dat) clap, applaud

plēnus -a -um (+gen/abl) full (of)

plērī-que plērae- plēra- most, most people

plērumque mostly

plōrāre cry

plūrēs -a comp more

plūrimī -ae -a sup most, a great many

plūs plūris n, adv more

pōculum -ī n cup, glass

poena -ae f punishment, penalty

poēta -ae m/f poet

poēticus -a -um poetical

pollicērī promise

pōnere posuisse positum place, put, lay down

populus -ī m people, nation

porcus -ī m pig

porta -ae f gate

portāre carry

portus -ūs m harbor

poscere poposcisse demand, call for

posse potuisse be able

possidēre -sēdisse possess, own

post prp +acc, adv behind, after, later

post-eā afterward, later

posterior -ius comp back-, hind-, later

posterus -a -um next, following

posthāc from now on, hereafter

post-quam after, since

postrēmō adv finally

postrēmus -a -um sup last

postulāre demand, require

pōtāre drink

potestās -ātis f power

pōtiō -ōnis f drinking, drink

potius rather

prae prp +abl before, for

praecipuē especially, above all

praedium -ī n estate

praedō -ōnis m robber, pirate

prae-esse (+dat) be in charge (of)

prae-ferre prefer

praemium -ī n reward, prize

prae-nōmen -inis n first name

prae-pōnere +dat put before/in charge of

praesēns -entis adi present

prae-stāre -stitisse furnish, fulfill

praeter prp +acc past, besides, except

praeter-eā besides

praeteritus -a -um past

prāvus -a -um faulty, wrong

precārī pray

precēs -um f pl prayers

prehendere -disse -ēnsum grasp, seize

premere pressisse pressum press

pretiōsus -a -um precious

pretium -ī n price, value

prīdem long ago

prī-diē the day before

prīmō adv at first

prīmum adv first

prīmus -a -um first

prīnceps -ipis m chief, leader

prīncipium -ī n beginning

prior -ius first, former, front-

prius adv before

prius-quam before

prīvātus -a -um private

prō prp +abl for, instead of

probus -a -um good, honest, proper

prō-cēdere go forward, advance

procul far (from), far away

{394} prō-currere -rrisse -rsum run forward, charge

prōd-esse prō-fuisse +dat be useful, do good

proelium -ī n battle

profectō indeed, certainly

prō-ferre bring forth, produce

proficīscī -fectum set out, depart

prō-gredī -ior -gressum go forward, advance

pro-hibēre keep off, prevent

prō-icere throw (forward)

prōmere -mpsisse -mptum take out

prōmissum -ī n promise

prō-mittere promise

prope prp +acc, adv near, nearly

properāre hurry

propinquus -a -um near, close

proprius -a -um own, proper

propter prp +acc because of

propter-eā therefore

prō-silīre -uisse spring forth

prō-spicere look out, look ahead

prōtinus at once

prōvincia -ae f province

proximus -a -um sup nearest

prūdēns -entis adi prudent, clever

pūblicus -a -um public, State-

pudēre: pudet mē (+gen) I am ashamed (of)

pudor -ōris m (sense of) shame

puella -ae f girl

puer -erī m boy

pugna -ae f fight

pugnāre fight

pugnus -ī m fist

pulcher -chra -chrum beautiful, fine

pulchritūdō -inis f beauty

pullus -ī m young (of an animal)

pulmō -ōnis m lung

pulsāre strike, hit, knock (at)

pūnīre punish

puppis -is f stern, poop

pūrus -a -um clean, pure

putāre think, suppose

Q

quadrāgēsimus -a -um fortieth

quadrāgintā forty

quadrin-gentī -ae -a four hundred

quaerere -sīvisse -sītum look for, seek, ask (for)

quālis -e what sort of, (such) as

quālitās -ātis f quality

quam how, as, than

quam +sup as…as possible

quam-diū how long, (as long) as

quam-ob-rem why

quamquam although

quandō when, as

quantitās -ātis f quantity, size

quantum -ī n how much, (as much) as

quantus -a -um how large, (as large) as

quā-propter why

quā-rē why

quārtus -a -um fourth

quārta pars fourth, quarter

quasi as, like, as if

quater four times

quatere -iō shake

quaternī -ae -a four (each)

quattuor four

quattuor-decim fourteen

-que and

querī questum complain, grumble

quī quae quod who, which, he who

quī quae quod (…?) what, which

quia because

quid n (v. quis) what, anything

quid adv why

quī-dam quae- quod- a certain, some

quidem indeed, certainly

nē quidem not even

quidnī why not

quid-quam anything

neque/nec quidquam and nothing

quid-quid whatever, anything that

quiēscere -ēvisse rest

quiētus -a -um quiet

quīn why not, do…!

quīn-decim fifteen

quīn-gentī -ae -a five hundred

quīnī -ae -a five (each)

quīnquāgintā fifty

quīnque five

quīnquiēs five times

Quīntīlis -is (mēnsis) July

quīntus -a -um fifth

quis quae quid who, what

quis quid (sī/num/nē…) anyone, anything

quis-nam quid-nam who/what ever?

quis-quam anyone

neque/nec quisquam and no one

quis-que quae- quod- each

quis-quis whoever, anyone who

quō adv where (to)

quod (= quia) because, that

quod n (v. quī) what, which, that which

quō-modo how

quoniam as, since

quoque also, too

quot indēcl how many, (as many) as

quot-annīs every year

quotiēs how many times

R

rāmus -ī m branch, bough

rapere -iō -uisse -ptum tear away, carry off

rapidus -a -um rushing, rapid

rārō adv rarely, seldom

rārus -a -um rare

ratiō -ōnis f reason

ratis -is f raft

re-cēdere go back, retire

re-cipere receive, admit

recitāre read aloud

{395} re-cognōscere recognize

rēctus -a -um straight, correct

rēctā (viā) straight

re-cumbere -cubuisse lie down

red-dere -didisse -ditum give back, give

red-imere -ēmisse -ēmptum ransom

red-īre -eō -iisse -itum go back, return

re-dūcere lead back, bring back

re-ferre rettulisse bring back, return

regere rēxisse rēctum direct, guide, govern

regiō -ōnis f region, district

rēgnāre reign, rule

rēgula -ae f ruler

re-linquere -līquisse -lictum leave

reliquus -a -um remaining, left

re-manēre remain, stay behind

rēmigāre row

re-minīscī +gen/acc recollect

re-mittere send back

re-movēre remove

rēmus -ī m oar

repente suddenly

reperīre repperisse repertum find

re-pōnere put back

re-prehendere blame, censure

re-pugnāre fight back, resist

re-quiēscere rest

re-quīrere -sīvisse -sītum seek, ask

rēs reī f thing, matter, affair

re-sistere -stitisse +dat halt, resist

re-spondēre -disse -sum answer

respōnsum -ī n answer

rēte -is n net

re-tinēre -uisse -tentum hold back

re-trahere pull back, bring back

re-venīre come back

revertī -tisse -sum return, come back

re-vocāre call back, revoke

rēx rēgis m king

rīdēre -sisse -sum laugh, make fun of

rīdiculus -a -um ridiculous

rigāre irrigate

rīpa -ae f bank

rīsus -ūs m laughter, laugh

rīvus -ī m brook

rogāre ask, ask for

rogitāre ask (repeatedly)

Rōmānus -a -um Roman

rosa -ae f rose

ruber -bra -brum red

rubēre be red, blush

rudis -e crude, rude

rūmor -ōris m rumor

rumpere rūpisse ruptum break

rūrī loc in the country

rūrsus again

rūs rūris n the country

rūsticus -a -um rural, rustic, farm-

S

sacculus -ī m purse

saccus -ī m sack

sacerdōs -ōtis m/f priest, priestess

saeculum -ī n century

saepe often

saevus -a -um fierce, cruel

sagitta -ae f arrow

sāl salis m salt, wit

salīre -uisse jump

salūs -ūtis f safety, well-being

salūtem dīcere +dat greet

salūtāre greet

salvāre save

salvē -ēte hallo, good morning

salvēre iubēre greet

salvus -a -um safe, unharmed

sānāre heal, cure

sānē certainly, quite

sanguis -inis m blood

sānus -a -um healthy, well

sapere -iō -iisse be wise, have sense

sapiēns -entis adi wise

satis enough, rather

saxum -ī n rock

scaena -ae f scene, stage

scaenicus -a -um theatrical

scalpellum -ī n scalpel, surgical knife

scamnum -ī n stool

scelestus -a -um criminal, wicked

scelus -eris n crime

scīlicet of course

scindere scidisse scissum tear, tear up

scīre know

scrībere -psisse -ptum write

scūtum -ī n shield

sē sibi himself

secāre -uisse -ctum cut

secundum prp +acc along

secundus -a -um second, favorable

sed but

sē-decim sixteen

sedēre sēdisse sit

sella -ae f stool, chair

semel once

sēmen -inis n seed

semper always

senex senis m old man

sēnī -ae -a six (each)

sententia -ae f opinion, sentence

sentīre sēnsisse sēnsum feel, sense, think

septem seven

September -bris (mēnsis) September

septen-decim seventeen

septentriōnēs -um m pl north

septimus -a -um seventh

septin-gentī -ae -a seven hundred

septuāgintā seventy

sequī secūtum follow

serēnus -a -um clear, cloudless

serere sēvisse satum sow, plant

sērius -a -um serious

sermō -ōnis m talk, conversation

servāre preserve, save

servīre +dat be a slave, serve

servitūs -ūtis f slavery

{396} servus -ī m slave, servant

ses-centī -ae -a six hundred

sēsē himself

sēstertius -ī m sesterce (coin)

seu v. sī-ve/seu

sevērus -a -um stern, severe

sex six

sexāgintā sixty

sexiēs six times

Sextīlis -is (mēnsis) August

sextus -a -um sixth

sī if

sīc in this way, so, thus

siccus -a -um dry

sīc-ut just as, as

signāre mark, seal

significāre indicate, mean

significātiō -ōnis f meaning, sense

signum -ī n sign, seal, statue

silentium -ī n silence

silēre be silent

silva -ae f wood, forest

similis -e similar, like

simul together, at the same time

simul atque +perf as soon as

sīn but if

sine prp +abl without

sinere sīvisse situm let, allow

singulī -ae -a one (each), each

sinister -tra -trum left, f the left (hand)

sinus -ūs m fold (of toga)

sī-quidem seeing that, since

sitis -is f thirst

situs -a -um situated

sī-ve/seu or, or if

s. … s. whether…or

sōl -is m sun

solēre -itum esse be accustomed

solum -ī n soil, ground, floor

sōlum adv only

sōlus -a -um alone, lonely

solvere -visse solūtum untie, discharge, pay

nāvem solvere cast off, set sail

somnus -ī m sleep

sonus -ī m sound, noise

sordēs -ium f pl dirt

sordidus -a -um dirty, mean, base

soror -ōris f sister

spargere -sisse -sum scatter

speciēs -ēī f appearance, aspect, sort

spectāre watch, look at

spectātor -ōris m spectator

speculum -ī n mirror

spērāre hope (for)

spēs -eī f hope

-spicere -iō -spexisse -spectum

spīrāre breathe

stāre stetisse stand

statim at once

statuere -uisse -ūtum fix, determine

stēlla -ae f star

sternere strāvisse strātum spread

stilus -ī m stylus

stipendium -ī n soldier’s pay, service

strepitus -ūs m noise, din

studēre +dat devote oneself to

studiōsus -a -um (+gen) interested (in)

studium -ī n interest, study

stultus -a -um stupid, foolish

stupēre be aghast

suādēre -sisse +dat advise

sub prp +abl/acc under, near

sub-īre -eō -iisse go under, undergo

subitō adv suddenly

subitus -a -um sudden

sub-mergere sink

sub-urbānus -a -um near the city

sūmere -mpsisse -mptum take

summus -a -um sup highest, greatest

super prp +acc on (top of), above

prp +abl on, about

superbus -a -um haughty, proud

super-esse be left, be in excess

superior -ius comp higher, upper, superior

superus -a -um upper

supplicium -ī n (capital) punishment

suprā prp +acc, adv above

surdus -a -um deaf

surgere sur-rēxisse rise, get up

sur-ripere -iō -uisse -reptum steal

sūrsum up, upward

suscitāre wake up, rouse

su-spicere look up (at)

sus-tinēre support, sustain, endure

suus -a -um his/her/their (own)

syllaba -ae f syllable

T

tabella -ae f writing-tablet

tabellārius -ī m letter-carrier

taberna -ae f shop, stall

tabernārius -ī m shopkeeper

tabula -ae f writing-tablet

tacēre be silent

tacitus -a -um silent

talentum -ī n talent

tālis -e such

tam so, as

tam-diū so long, as long

tamen nevertheless, yet

tam-quam as, like

tandem at length, at last

tangere tetigisse tāctum touch

tantum -ī n so much

alterum tantum twice as much

tantum adv so much, only

tantun-dem just as much

tantus -a -um so big, so great

tardus -a -um slow, late

tata -ae m daddy

taurus -ī m bull

tēctum -ī n roof

temerārius -a -um reckless

tempestās -ātis f storm

templum -ī n temple

{397} tempus -oris n time

tenebrae -ārum f pl darkness

tenebricōsus -a -um dark

tenēre -uisse -ntum hold, keep (back)

tenuis -e thin

ter three times

tergēre -sisse -sum wipe

tergum -ī n back

ternī -ae -a three (each)

terra -ae f earth, ground, country

terrēre frighten

terribilis -e terrible

tertius -a -um third

testis -is m/f witness

theātrum -ī n theater

tībiae -ārum f pl flute

tībīcen -inis m flute-player

timēre fear, be afraid (of)

timidus -a -um fearful, timid

timor -ōris m fear

titulus -ī m title

toga -ae f toga

togātus -a -um wearing the toga

tollere sus-tulisse sublātum raise, lift, pick up, remove, take away

tonitrus -ūs m thunder

tot indēcl so many

totiēs so many times

tōtus -a -um the whole of, all

trā-dere -didisse -ditum hand over, deliver

trahere -āxisse -actum drag, pull

tranquillitās -ātis f calmness

tranquillus -a -um calm, still

trāns prp +acc across, over

trāns-ferre transfer, transport

trāns-īre -eō -iisse -itum cross, pass

tre-centī -ae -a three hundred

trē-decim thirteen

tremere -uisse tremble

trēs tria three

trīcēsimus -a -um thirtieth

triclīnium -ī n dining-room

trīgintā thirty

trīnī -ae -a three

trīstis -e sad

trīstitia -ae f sadness

tū tē tibi you, yourself

tuērī tūtum guard, protect

tum then

tumultuārī make an uproar

tumultus -ūs m uproar

tunc then

tunica -ae f tunic

turba -ae f throng, crowd

turbāre stir up, agitate

turbidus -a -um agitated, stormy

turgid(ul)us -a -um swollen

turpis -e ugly, foul

tūtus -a -um safe

tuus -a -um your, yours

tyrannus -ī m tyrant

U

ubi where

ubi prīmum +perf as soon as

ubī-que everywhere

ūllus -a -um any

nec/neque ūllus and no

ulterior -ius comp farther, more distant

ultimus -a -um sup most distant, last

ultrā prp +acc beyond

ululāre howl

umbra -a f shade, shadow

umerus -ī m shoulder

ūmidus -a -um wet, moist

umquam ever

nec/neque umquam and never

ūnā adv together

unde from where

ūn-dē-centum ninety-nine

ūn-decim eleven

ūndecimus -a -um eleventh

ūn-dē-trīgintā twenty-nine

ūn-dē-vīgintī nineteen

ūnī -ae -a one

ūniversus -a -um the whole of, entire

ūnus -a -um one, only

urbānus -a -um of the city, urban

urbs -bis f city

ūrere ussisse ustum burn

ūsque up (to), all the time

ut like, as

ut + coni that, in order that, to

uter utra utrum which (of the two)

uter-que utra- utrum- each of the two, both

ūtī ūsum +abl use, enjoy

utinam I wish that, if only…!

utrum…an …or…? whether…or

ūva -ae f grape

uxor -ōris f wife

V

vacuus -a -um empty

vāgīre wail, squall

valdē strongly, very (much)

valē -ēte farewell, goodbye

valēre be strong, be well

valētūdō -inis f health

validus -a -um strong

vallis -is f valley

vāllum -ī n rampart

varius -a -um varied, different

vās vāsis n, pl -a -ōrum vessel, bowl

-ve or

vehere vēxisse vectum carry, convey, pass ride, sail, travel

vel or

velle volō voluisse want, be willing

vēlōx -ōcis adi swift, rapid

vēlum -ī n sail

vel-ut like, as

vēna -ae f vein

vēn-dere -didisse sell

venīre vēnisse ventum come

venter -tris m belly, stomach

ventus -ī m wind

venustus -a -um charming

vēr vēris n spring

verbera -um n pl lashes, flogging

verberāre beat, flog

verbum -ī n word, verb

verērī fear

{398} vērō really, however, but

neque/nec vērō but not

versārī move about, be present

versiculus -ī m short verse

versus -ūs m line, verse

versus: ad…versus toward

vertere -tisse -sum turn

vērum but

vērus -a -um true, n truth

vesper -erī m evening

vesperī adv in the evening

vester -tra -trum your, yours

vestīgium -ī n footprint, trace

vestīmentum -ī n garment, clothing

vestīre dress

vestis -is f clothes, cloth

vestrum gen of you

vetāre forbid

vetus -eris adi old

via -ae f road, way, street

vīcēsimus -a -um twentieth

victor -ōris m, adi conqueror, victorious

victōria -ae f victory

vidēre vīdisse vīsum see, pass seem

vigilāre be awake

vigilia -ae f night watch (I-IV)

vīgintī twenty

vīlis -e cheap

vīlla -ae f country house, villa

vincere vīcisse victum defeat, overcome, win

vincīre -nxisse -nctum tie

vīnea -ae f vinyard

vīnum -ī n wine

vir -ī m man, husband

vīrēs -ium f pl strength

virga -ae f rod

virgō -inis f maiden, young girl

virtūs -ūtis f valor, courage

vīs, acc vim, abl vī force, violence, power

viscera -um n pl internal organs

vīsere -sisse go and see, visit

vīta -ae f life

vītāre avoid

vītis -is f vine

vīvere vīxisse live, be alive

vīvus -a -um living, alive

vix hardly

vocābulum -ī n word

vōcālis -is f vowel

vocāre call, invite

volāre fly

voluntās -ātisf will

vorāgō -inis f abyss, whirlpool

vorāre swallow, devour

vōs vōbīs you, yourselves

vōx vōcis f voice

vulnerāre wound

vulnus -eris n wound

vultus -ūs m countenance, face

Z

zephyrus -ī m west wind

Grammatical Terms

LATIN

ABBREVIATIONS

ENGLISH

ablātīvus (cāsus)

abl

ablative

accūsātīvus (cāsus)

acc

accusative

āctīvum (genus)

āct

active

adiectīvum (nōmen)

adi

adjective

adverbium -ī n

adv

adverb

appellātīvum (nōmen)

appellative

cāsus -ūs m

case

comparātiō -ōnis f

comparison

comparātīvus (gradus)

comp

comparative

coniugātiō -ōnis f

conjugation

coniūnctiō -ōnis f

coni

conjunction

coniūnctīvus (modus)

coni

subjunctive

datīvus (cāsus)

dat

dative

dēclīnātiō -ōnis f

dēcl

declension

dēmōnstrātīvum (prōnōmen)

demonstrative

dēpōnentia (verba)

dēp

deponent

{399} fēminīnum (genus)

f, fēm

feminine

futūrum (tempus)

fut

future

futūrum perfectum (tempus)

fut perf

future perfect

genetīvus (cāsus)

gen

genitive

genus (nōminis/verbī)

gender/voice

gerundium -ī n gerundīvum -ī n

gerund/gerundive

imperātīvus (modus)

imp, imper

imperative

imperfectum (tempus praeteritum)

imperf

imperfect

indēclīnābile (vocābulum)

indēcl

indeclinable

indēfīnītum (prōnōmen)

indefinite

indicātīvus (modus)

ind

indicative

īnfīnītīvus (modus)

īnf

infinitive

interiectiō -ōnis f

interjection

interrogātīvum (prōnōmen)

interrogative

locātīvus (cāsus)

loc

locative

masculīnum (genus)

m, masc

masculine

modus (verbī)

mode

neutrum (genus)

n, neutr

neuter

nōminātīvus (cāsus)

nōm

nominative

optātīvus (modus)

optative

pars ōrātiōnis

part of speech

participium -ī n

part

participle

passīvum (genus)

pass

passive

perfectum (tempus praeteritum)

perf

perfect

persōna -ae f

pers

person

persōnāle (prōnōmen)

personal

plūrālis (numerus)

pl, plūr

plural

plūsquamperfectum (tempus praet.)

plûsqu

pluperfect

positīvus (gradus)

pos

positive

possessīvum (prōnōmen)

possessive

praepositiō -ōnis f

prp, praep

preposition

praesēns (tempus)

praes

present

praeteritum (tempus)

praet

preterite, past tense

prōnōmen -inis n

prōn

pronoun

proprium (nōmen)

proper name

relātīvum (prōnōmen)

rel

relative

singulāris (numerus)

sg, sing

singular

superlātīvus (gradus)

sup

superlative

supīnum

supine

tempus (verbī)

tense

verbum

vb

verb

vocātīvus (cāsus)

voc

vocative

{400} Index

Page number citations refer to the print edition.

ablative. See also preposition

of agent, 47

absolute (ablātīvus absolūtus) (see participle)

expressions of time 110, 114, 179

of attendant circumstances, 122, 140

of comparison, 218

of degree of difference, 142, 171

of description, 297

with locus, 163

of manner, 84, 229

of means/instrument, 47, 59, 247

of price (ablātīvus pretiī), 63

of respect 92, 171, 197, 228, 312

of separation, 45, 139, 178, 251, 297

of time when (ablātīvus temporis), 110, 113

review: 3rd declension sing. in –ī

and -e, 103; expressions of time and space, 114

accusative. See also preposition

acc. and inf. construction, 83, 91

double, 113

expressions of time, 111, 114, 179

of exclamation, 130

of extent of space, 130

review: expressions of time and space, 114

adjective

and substantive, 4, 189

2nd declension, 4; in -er, 37, 158

3rd declension: adjectives of two

terminations, 98; adjectives of one

termination, 170; adjectives of

three terminations, 239; summary

of 3rd declension forms, 239

as substantive, 4, 189

comparison, 100, 112, 160, 166, 218

interrogative (see under interrogative)

irregular, 166

nūllus, ūllus, tōtus, solus, 167

numerical, 148

participle as an adjective: perfect, 188; present, 122

possessive, 29, 51, 93

vs. pronouns, review, 30 158

reflexive possessive, 29

review: adjectives and pronouns, 23; comparison with adverbs, 160

superlative, 112; + partitive genitive, 167; absolute, 167; in -er, 158; irregular, 158; quisque +, 291

uter, neuter, alter, uterque, 120

adverb

comparative degree, 159

correlative, 44

forās, forīs, 201

from 1st/2nd declension adjectives, 150, 159

from 3rd declension adjectives, 159

in -ō, 217

interrogative, 12, 21, 43

nihil, 127n2

numerical, 161

of place, 227

minus, magis 177

parum, 251

{401} positive degree, 159

review, 233; comparison with adjectives, 158, 160

superlative degree, 160

āēr, 240

antonym, 3

apposition. See points of style: idioms

assimilation, 73

cardinal directions, 138. See also locus

cognōmen. See tria nōmina

comparative

of adjectives (Caps. XII, XIII, XXIV)

of adverbs (Cap. XVIII)

summary of adjective comparison, 218

conditions

with indicative, 312

with subjunctive, 309, 312

summary, 312

conjunction, 11, 21, 72, 79, 92, 113, 157, 218, 250, 269

temporal, 73, 79

convenit, 133. See also Points of Style

correlative

tam/quam, 44

tantus/quantus, 62

talis/qualis (Cap. XVIII)

cum. See conjunction; preposition

review, 282

subordinate clauses, 269

dative, 52

of indirect object, xvii, 63

of interest, 82, 121

of possession, 96

with intransitive verbs, xxiv, 100, 189, 250

declension, 11, 15, 69, 72, 74, 90, 99, 109, 110, 334

decline, 15, 69

deliberative questions, 268

domus, 170, 177

ecce, 14

enclitic, 5, 11, 15

esse

perfect stem, 187

subjunctive present, 253

subjunctive imperfect, 263

summary, 179

ēst/edunt, 71

expressions of time and space. See ablative; accusative

facere/fierī, 143

fear clauses, 301

ferre

imperatives, 98

review, 299

fruī, 279

gender, xxi, 10

genitive, 11

archaic, 167

objective/subjective, 230

of quality/description, 168

of the charge, 272

of value, 269

partitive, 101, 142, 272; with mīlia, 103; with plēnus, 43; with sēstertium, 300; with superlatives, 167

gerund, 237

uses and cases of, 238

gerundive, 290

attraction, 309

glides. See semi-vowels

imperative, xxii, 28, 38

future, 241, 312

of agere, 39

of esse, 52

of salvēre, 53

irregular, 98

implied subject, 21

impersonal verbs. See verbs: impersonal

indeclinable adjective, 5, 31, 103

indefinite pronouns. See pronouns: indefinite

indicative, xxii, 28, 32

{402} indirect commands (verba postulandī), 249

vs. indirect statement, 262

indirect questions, 270, 300

indirect statement. See also accusative:

acc. and inf. construction; infinitive:

acc. and inf. construction

vs. verba postulandī, 262

reflexive pronoun in, 132

infinitive, xxii

acc. and inf. construction, 83, 91, 209

construed with: audēre, 83; dīcitur + nom. and inf., 114; iubēre, 91, 230; necesse est + the inf. and dat. of interest, 67; oportēre, 151; velle, 83, 228

deponent, 140

tenses of:

—future: active, 209; passive, 209; summary, 210

—perfect: active, 187; passive, 188

—present: active, 80; in -se, 81; passive, 81

relative time of, 196, 201

review, 210

inquit, 124

interrogative, 2, 4, 55

adjective, 60

adverb, 12, 21, 44

pronoun, 12, 21

review: pronoun vs. adjective, 60

intervocalic -s-, 81

īre, 44, 142

present participle, 212

ita…ut/ut…ita. See Points of Style: idioms

lexical entry, 24, 79

licet, 134

locative, 45, 170, 178, 185, 229

summary 247

locus, 139, 247

mālle, 263, 308. See also velle

māne, 110

meter, 321

hendecasyllables, 322

hexameter, 322

metric feet, 321

pentameter, 322

syllabic division, 321

syllabic quantity, 321

mīlle/mīlia, 102

mood (modī), 28, 31, 248, 343

-ne. See interrogative

nēmō, 83

neuter, xxi, 10

nōlle, 177, 263, 308. See also velle

nominative

dīcitur + nom. and inf., 114

predicate nom./adj. xxiii

nostrum/nostri vs. vestrum/vestri, 272

noun

1st declension, summary of endings, 53

2nd declension, summary of endings, 53; in -er, 14

3rd declension, 69; ablative in, 103; i-stems, 71, 90; masculine and feminine, 71, 78; neuter, 82, 89; pure i-stems, 139

4th declension, 99

5th declension, 109

vocative, 30; for nouns in -īus, 170

nūllus, 124, 167

num. See interrogative

number

cardinal, 31, 103, 111, 148

distributive, 280, 307

fractions, 111

numerical adverbs, 161

ordinals, 111, 149

orthography, xvi

participle

ablative absolute (ablātīvus absolūtus), 140, 200

future, 208; summary, 210

{403} perfect, 184, 188; as adjective, 146; vs. the supine, 152

present (participium praesēns), 122,

relative time of, 201

review, 206; participles and infinitives, 210, 223

vs. supine, 197

parts of speech, xxi

perfect. See verbs

place constructions, 45, 229

pluperfect. See verbs

points of style

alius…alius, cauda movet/movētur, 84

bene/male velle, 231

concision, 5

convenit, 63

enumerations, 13

et…et/neque….neque/nōn sōlum… sed etiam, 54

hyperbaton, 221

idiom, to marry, 324

idiom suum ciuque, 158

idioms, 171

participles, 241

posse, 221

quī = et is, 231

quid agis, 221

relative sentences, 22

sē hābēre, 124

word order, 143

posse, 80, 93, 133, 157, 221

possessive. See adjective; pronoun

praenōmen. See tria nōmina

predicate, xxiii

nom./adj., xxiii

preposition, xxiii

with compound verbs, 273

principal parts, 195

pronoun, xxi, 20

demonstrative, 54; hic, haec, hoc, 54; īdem, eadem, idem, 156; ille, illa, illud, 61; ipse, ipsa, ipsum, 73; is, ea, id, 53; iste, ista, istud, 200; review, 65, 200

indefinite: aliquis, aliquid, 187, 199; quīdam, quaedam, quoddam, 302; quisquis, quidquid, 289; quisquam, quidquam, 240; quisque, quaeque, quodque, 147, 156

indefinite relative, 288

interrogative, 21,

nūllus, ūllus, tōtus, solus, 167

personal: review, 273

possessive: adjective vs. pronoun, 29, 30

reflexive, 50, 218, 261

relative, 21; quī = is quī, 59, 231

uter, neuter, alter, uterque, 120

vs. possessive adjectives, review, 134

pronunciation, xvi

pudēre, 207

purpose and result. See subjunctive

qu- words, 302

quam. See points of style: idioms; correlative

with tam, 44

in exclamations, 62

review, 62, 171

quantus. See correlative

with tantus, 62

quid. See interrogative

quis, quid. See pronoun: indefinite; interrogative

quod. See conjunction; pronoun: relative; interrogative: adjective

reflexive. See pronoun

relative. See pronoun

sentences (see points of style)

relative time of participles and infinitives, 201

Roman calendar (Julian calendar), 108

divisions/names of the months, 113

salvē/salvēte. See Imperative

semi-vowels (glides), viii

sōlus, 167

{404} subject, xviii, 19, 23. See also noun implied, 21, 23

subjunctive, 248

contrafactual, 309, 311

posse: with indicative, 221; with cum, 269, 283

deliberative questions, 268

fear clauses, 301

horatatory, 281, 291

imperfect, 258; esse, 263; velle, nōlle, malle, 308

indirect questions, 270, 300

jussive, 291

optative, 291, 301, 311

pluperfect in subordinate clauses, 239

prohibitions, 300

purpose, 262

result, 261

review, 211

signals of the subjunctive, 313

subordinate clauses, 263, 299, 310; indicative vs. subjunctive, 273

summary, 272

tenses of:

—perfect, 298

—pluperfect, 310

—present, 248; esse, 253; īre, 203; velle, nōlle, malle, 308

—sequence of tenses, 261, 300, 311

verba postulandī, 249

verba curandī, 252

wishes, 308

superlative, 112, 158, 160

absolute, 160, 167

with partitive genitive, 167

with quam, 253

with quisque, 291

supine Stem, 196. See also verbs: supine

tam, 44. See also correlative

tantus, 62. See also correlative

tantum (adv.), 62

totus, 167

time, expressions of, 110

transitive. See verbs

tria nōmina, 104

ut, 250

ūllus, 167

ūtor, 247

verbs

compound, 54, 273

deponent (verba dēpōnentia), 139, 218; imperative, 232; perfect participle, 230; semi-deponent, 292

impersonal: convenit, 133; decet, 181;

licet, 134; necesse est, 82; oportet, 151; opus est, 171; with ablative, 297

inquit, 124

intransitive, xxvi, 20; sative with, 100; passive of, 310

irregular, 352; alphabetical List, 357; ūtor, 247

of remembering and forgetting, 297; meminisse, 297; oblīvīscī, 232; reminīscī, 297; ōdisse, 223

passive voice, 46, 150; indicative, 219; subjunctive, 307

principal parts, or the three verbal stems, 195,

supine, 196; ablative, 197; accusative, 196; vs. the perfect passive participle, 197

tenses of:

—imperfect (preterite), 87, 111; of all conjugations, active & passive, 168

—future, 175; imperative, 241, 312; infinitive, 209

—future perfect, 280

—perfect (tempus praeteritum perfectum), 141, 143; infinitive active, 145; infinitive passive, 146; passive, 142, 148; reduplicated perfects, 166; root perfects, 166; stem, 143, 150; summary, 189

—pluperfect, 170

{405} —transitive/intransitive, 15; velle, 83, 177, 263; + acc. and inf., 228; bene/male, 231; mālle, 263, 308; nōlle, 177, 263, 308

—subjunctive: present subjunctive, 298; imperfect subjunctive, 308

vel, 113. See also conjunction

velle, 177, 263, 308

verba cūrandī, (verbs of effecting), 252

verba postulandi, (indirect commands), 249

complements in, 250

vs. indirect statement, 262

vidērī, 241

vocative, 30, 32, 130, 170, 399