18.03.24: sentence building

A technique used in language teaching is sentence building. It’s particularly effective when, for example, working with non-native speakers of English (or any other foreign language) and designed to encourage the student to expand on what (s)he is saying so that they use a wider range of vocabulary and / or reinforce certain structures. Here’s an example used with younger students.

[What do you drink at breakfast time?]

> coffee [pretty standard one-word response]

[What do you drink at breakfast time?]

> I drink coffee.

[Do you drink a glass of coffee?]

> I drink a cup of coffee.

[Hot or cold?]

> I drink a cup of hot coffee.

[Do you drink coffee every day? Is it a small cup? Do you like milk and sugar?]

> I usually have a big cup of hot coffee with milk but I don’t like sugar.

Those kinds of stimulus questions in brackets push a youngster further. But, as an IELTS trainer, I still use that basic technique even with very advanced, but sometimes shy or uncertain students so that they can express their opinion. That same building method is used in essay writing; if the essay title is “Do you think smoking should be banned in public places?”, and the student is staring at a blank piece of A4, you need to start at the “shallow end” with simple questions on the topic upon which you build and elicit more detailed response.

In developing confidence in, here, case endings, don’t jump in at the “deep end” because the deep end is Cicero, Virgil, Ovid, Horace etc. Just start with some elementary concepts. The examples below illustrate use of two cases – accusative and genitive - working together in the same sentence. A technique similar to the “coffee” question above is being used.

(1) [i] amphora [ii] vīnum; [i] amphora [ii] wine

> [i] amphora [nominative] ¦ [ii] vīnī [genitive]

• an amphora ¦ of wine

> Vinārius ¦ [i] amphoram [accusative] ¦ [ii] vīnī [genitive] vēndit.

• The wine-merchant is selling ¦ an amphora ¦ of wine.

+ optimus, -a, -um: very good; (the) best

> vinum optimum: very good wine

> Vinārius [i] amphoram ¦ [ii] vīnī optimī vēndit.

• The wine-merchant is selling ¦ an amphora ¦ of very good wine.

> Vinārius ¦ [i] amphorās ¦ [ii] vīnī optimī vēndit.

• The wine-merchant sells ¦ amphoras ¦ of very good wine.

+ multi, -ae, -a: many

> Hic vinārius ¦ [i] multās amphorās ¦ [ii] vīnī optimī vēndit.

• This wine-merchant sells many amphoras ¦ of very good wine.

(2) [i] situla [ii] aqua; [i] bucket [ii] water

> [i] situla ¦ [ii] aquae

• a bucket of water

> Ancilla ¦ [i] situlam ¦ [ii] aquae portat.

• The maid-servant is carrying ¦ a bucket ¦ of water

+ frīgida, -a, -um: cold

> aqua frīgida: cold water

> Ancilla ¦ [i] situlam ¦ [ii] aquae frīgidae portat.

• The maidservant is carrying a bucket of cold water.

+ duo [masc.], duae [fem.], duo [neut.]

> Servus ancillaque [ī] duās situlās [iī] aquae frīgidae portant.

• The slave and slave-girl are carrying two buckets of cold water.

Below are some sample sentences. How would you translate them? What cases are being used and how are they working together? The vocabulary is either listed immediately below, or in the image posted.

• afferō, afferre [irr.] bring
• dēfessus, -a, -um: tired; exhausted
• merus, -a, -um: pure; undiluted (of wine)
• oleum: oil; olive oil

[1] Agricola ¦ cum corbulā ¦ ūvārum ¦ venit.

[2] Agricola ¦ cum corbulā ¦ ūvārum nigrārum ¦ venit.

[3] Fēmina ¦ olīvās ¦ emit.

[4] Fēmina ¦ ōllam ¦ olīvārum ¦ emit.

[5] Fēmina Rōmāna ¦ ūnam ōllam ¦ olīvārum ¦ in macellō ¦ emit.

[6] Ancilla ¦ urceum ¦ aquae affert.

[7] Ancillae ¦ urceōs ¦ vīnī optimī afferunt.

[8] Dominus ¦ vīnum ¦ bibit.

[9] Dominus ¦ pōculum ¦ vīnī ¦ bibit.

[10] Dominus ¦ pōculum ¦ vīnī merī ¦ bibit.

[11] In mēnsā ¦ sunt ¦ ōva.

[12] In mēnsā ¦ sunt ¦ multa ōva.

[13] In mēnsā ¦ est ¦ patella ōvōrum.

[14] Servus ¦ saccum ¦ portat.

[15] Servus ¦ saccum ¦ frūmentī ¦ portat.

[16] Servī dēfessī ¦ duōs saccōs ¦ frūmentī portant.

[17] Quantī cōnstat ¦ hoc oleum?

[18] Tabernārius ¦ fēminae ¦ guttum ¦ oleī ¦ dat.

 

18.03.24: storing dormice

Tōta mihi dormītur hiems et pinguior illō

Tempore sum, quō mē nīl nisi somnus alit.

(Martial 13.59)

"I sleep through the whole winter, and have become fatter during the time, with nothing but sleep to nourish me."

Martial describes a dormouse (glis) although our understanding of a dormouse is not what they were referring to in Ancient Rome. The fat, edible dormouse from Southern Europe is a tree-dweller and the size of a rat. While you might not like to include one – and, yes, sometimes honey-dipped – in your kid’s lunch box, they were a favourite of the Romans.

Below is a recipe for stuffed dormouse from Dē rē coquīnāriā (On the Subject of Cooking), a 5th century collection of Roman recipes:

“…stuffed with a forcemeat of pork and small pieces of dormouse meat trimmings, all pounded with pepper, nuts, laser, broth. Put the dormouse thus stuffed in an earthen casserole, roast it in the oven, or boil it in the stock pot.”

The glirarium was the vessel used to keep the dormice. Normally of terracotta, it was perforated to allow air and polished inside to stop the dormouse from escaping with the added security of a sealed lid. The glirarium would induce hibernation, thereby causing the dormouse to fatten.

Below are images of a luckier mouse than the one in the glirarium, and one of an actual "Roman" dormouse.

Glirarium: not the most useful word in Latin, but it is a type of storage and, in the next post, we'll look at a few more and, using them, we'll do some more practice in cases.

 

18.03.24: quiz question!

We're going to be looking at some vocabulary related to food storage and presentation, and so here's the (theoretical) $1,000,000 question: this is a glirarium used temporarily to store and fatten up a particular Roman delicacy, but which delicacy?

17.03.24: practice in the 4th conjugation

Some simple exercises to practise the 4th conjugation; all the verbs were given in previous posts

[1]

First of all, [i] translate the verbs and then [ii] change the Latin verbs into the equivalent plural forms and give a translation, for example:

• audiō [i] I hear > [ii] audīmus: we hear

1. ēsūrīs
2. feriō
3. fīnīmus
4. impedītis
5. nescit
6. oboedit
7. saeviunt
8. saliō
9. scīs
10. sentīmus
11. sepelītis
12. sitiunt

[2] Look at the images posted and put the verbs into their appropriate forms.

[3] Translate

1. Captīvōs cūstōdītis.
2. Castra mūnīmus.
3. Illam fēminam nōn audiō.
4. Iānuam aperīs.
5. Discipulae magistrum semper audiunt.
6. Discipulum pigrum pūnīs.
7. Iam duās hōrās dormit.
8. Cūr in aquam salītis, puerī?
9. Mortuum noctū sepeliunt.
10. Nōmen magistrī meī nesciō.
11. Nūntius Rōmānus in oppidum venit.
12. Puerī in scholā numquam dormiunt.

• captivus: captive; prisoner
• mortuus, -a, -um: dead; mortuus (noun): dead man / person; corpse

17.03.24: how to wage war in Latin

This text is particularly useful from the point of view of vocabulary. If you’re aiming to read the literature, then you will certainly encounter detailed descriptions of armies waging war, battles, armed soldiers attacking towns and burning them, or people fortifying their cities, Romans conquering their enemies, commanders leading their troops and making deals with allies, soldiers conquering the foe …or abandoning their positions. It’s useful to begin compiling a list of vocabulary that is related to this topic because the same words come up again and again.

[The Road to Latin (Chesnutt) 1932]

Dē Equō Ligneō

Multī dominī Rōmānī servōs Graecōs habent. Servī Graecī saepe sunt paedagogī puerōrum Rōmānōrum. Dominī paedagōgōs cum fīliīs ad lūdum mittunt. Paedagōgus Lūcī et Aulī est Graecus. Puerīs fābulās dē Graeciā saepe nārrat. Fābula dē equō ligneō Lūcium et Aulum dēlectat. “Graecī sunt īrātī quod Troiānī pulchram fēminam Graecam Troiae tenent. Itaque multī armātī ōrās Graeciae relinquunt et Troiam nāvigant. Interim Troiānī arma et frūmentum cōgunt et mūrōs Troiae dīligenter mūniunt. Posteā Graecī mūrōs oppugnant et longum bellum cum Troiānīs gerunt. Sunt multa proelia in ōrīs Troiae sed deī neque Graecīs neque Troiānīs victōriam dant. “Tandem Graecī magnum equum ligneum aedificant. Noctū multī armātī in equum ascendunt. Tum reliquī Graecī ad īnsulam parvam nāvigant sed equum extrā mūrōs Troiae relinquunt. Māne Troiānī ā Troiae mūrīs equum magnum vident. Portās celeriter aperiunt et ad equum properant. Multī clāmant, ‘est certē dōnum deōrum!’ Troiānī equum nōn timent sed dēsīderant; itaque equum intrā mūrōs trahunt. Noctū armātī ex equō veniunt. Troiānī Graecōs nōn impediunt quod armātōs nōn audiunt. Ab īnsulā parvā ad Troiae portās reliquī Graecī properant. Tum armātī ad portās veniunt et sociōs intrā mūrōs dūcunt. Sīc Graecī Troiānōs vincunt et Troiam incendunt.”

Vocabulary

aedificō, aedificāre [1] build

armātus, -a, -um: armed, but used here as a noun i.e. “armed (men / soldiers)"

ascendō, ascendere [3]: climb

celeriter: quickly

cōgō, cōgere [3]: collect; compel, force

dōnum, ī, n. gift, offering

dūcō, dūcere [3]: lead, guide

extrā (preposition + accusative): outside

gerō, gerere [3]: carry on; wear

• bellum gerere: wage war

incendō, incendere [3]: burn, set fire to

interim: meanwhile; in the meantime

intrā (preposition + accusative): within; inside

mūniō, mūnīre [4]: fortify; defend

oppugnō, oppugnāre [1]: assault; besiege; storm

also:

pugnō, pugnāre [1]: fight

• ex¦pugnō, ex¦pugnāre [1]: take by assault; storm; plunder; pillage
• re¦pugnō, re¦pugnāre [1]: fight against; resist; defend oneself

porta: gate

proelium: battle

relinquō, relinquere [3]: leave; abandon

reliquus, -a, -um: remaining; rest of

sīc: thus; in this way

socius: companion; comrade; ally

trahō, trahere [3]: drag; draw

Troia: Troy

Troiānus, -a, -um: Trojan; a Trojan

victōria: victory

vincō, vincere [3]: conquer; subdue; overcome

Notes

[1] dē: in a previous post it was mentioned that prepositions may refer to physical position or to abstract concepts; dē can mean (physically) down from somewhere, but here it has the abstract meaning of ‘about; concerning’

[2] Itaque multī armātī … Troiam nāvigant. With the names of towns and cities, expressing movement to the place is expressed by the accusative alone; no preposition is needed: “And so, many armed soldiers sail to Troy.”

[2] extrā + accusative: outside; think of the English derivative extra­curricular activities i.e. those activities done by students outside the regular academic curriculum

[3] intrā + accusative: inside; a nice way of remembering this one is the name Intramuros (‘inside the walls’), which is an area of Manila surrounded by fortifications. The term is actually from Spanish, but you can see its derivation.

 

17.03.24: examples of fourth conjugation verbs

1. Note the verb nesciō, -īre meaning ‘to not know’ e.g. Nōmen nesciō: I don’t know the name.
2. A camera has an aperture.
3. School classrooms often have audio-visual equipment.
4. A criminal is taken into custody.
5. Students sleep in a dormitory, from Latin dormītōrium (a sleeping room) < dormiō, dormīre (sleep)
6. Impediment is derived from Latin impedimentum (hindrance) < impediō, impedīre (hinder)
7. The term munitions as in, for example, a munitions factory, is derived from muniō, munīre (fortify e.g. a city against an enemy).
8. If you have a dog, then you’ll pleased if it's obedient.
9. Science is derived from Latin scientia (knowledge) < sciō, scīre (know)
10. Although perhaps not immediately obvious, the ‘scent’ of a flower is derived from sentiō, sentīre (feel; sense)
11. Sepluchre, a type of tomb, is derived from Latin sepulc(h)rum(tomb) < sepeliō, sepelīre (bury)
12. If you give the salient points in a document, those are the main points i.e. those that ‘spring to mind’.
13. Province is derived from Latin prōvincia (province; command) < vinciō, vincīre (bind) and so, in the original Latin, refers to those territories that were ‘bound’ to Roman rule.
14. What’s the purpose of an advent calendar?
15. Invention is derived from in¦veniō, invenīre: find; come upon something
16. The concepts of hunger and thirst are not derived from Latin; the Anglo-Saxons were hungry (hungriġ) and thirsty (þurstiġ) long before the Norman Conquest!

Watch out for:

• vincō, vincere [3]: conquer
• vinciō, vincīre [4]: bind; fetter

These two frequently occur in military descriptions. 

17.03.24: 4th conjugation; reading

In this little text you will see the three verb conjugations already discussed, plus a new conjugation: the fourth. The fourth is indicated in bold, and will be introduced in the notes.

[The Road to Latin (Chesnutt) 1932]

Peristȳlum līberōs Tulliae dēlectat. Puellae statuās saepe ōrnant. Aulus et Lūcius ibi student. Puerī parvī in peristȳlō libenter lūdunt quod in peristȳlō est aqua. Puerī parvī nāviculās ligneās habent. Tullia in peristȳlō saepe sedet et lūdōs līberōrum spectat. Interdum Tullia cum līberīs lūdit. Hodiē Publius et Servius domī sunt sed Lūcius et Aulus in lūdō sunt. Ā domiciliō Tullia clāmat, “ubi es, Pūblī? Quid agis?” Pūblius respondet, “lūdō in peristȳlō, Tullia.” Tum Tullia clāmat, “ubi tū lūdis, Servī?” “ego quoque in peristȳlō lūdō,” respondet Servius. “num in aquā lūditis?” Rogat Tullia. “in aquā nōn lūdimus sed nāviculae nostrae sunt in aquā. Nāviculās ad Graeciam et ad Crētam mittimus,” respondent puerī parvī. “Quid audīs, Pūblī? Quis venit?” Subitō rogat Servius. “Lūcius et Aulus in domicilium veniunt,” respondet Pūblius. “venitne paedagōgus cum puerīs, Pūblī?” “puerī cum paedagōgō veniunt.” “cūr, Lūcī, ā lūdō mātūrē venis?” Clāmat Pūblius. “veniō quod magister est aeger,” respondet Lūcius. “nōnne tū et Aulus in peristȳlum venītis?” Clāmat Servius. “in peristȳlum nōn venīmus. Ad Tulliam venīmus,” puerī respondent.

Vocabulary

ibi there: in that place

mātūrē: early

subitō: suddenly

paedagōgus: Generally of Greek origin, a paedagōgus was an educated slave or freedman who educated Roman children; a ‘governor’

1st conjugation verbs

Many of the verbs listed here you have already seen, but the list is here to show how verb forms, at this stage, should be noted. After this, only new verbs will be included in the vocabulary.

• clāmō, clāmāre [1]: shout (If you’re already confident with the principal parts, you can shorten them to clāmō, -āre [1], or even simply clāmō [1])
• dēlectō, dēlectāre [1]: delight
• ornō, ornāre [1]: decorate
• rogō, rogāre [1]: ask
• spectō, spectāre [1]: look at

2nd conjugation verbs

• habeō, habēre [2]: have (habeō, -ēre [2] or habeō [2])
• respondeō, respondēre [2]: reply
• sedeō, sedēre [2]: sit
• studeō, studēre [2]: ‘study’ (see notes)

3rd conjugation verbs

• agō, agere [3]: do, drive (agō, -ere [3] or agō [3])
• lūdō, lūdere [3]: play
• mittō, mittere [3]: send

irregular

• sum, esse [irr.]: to be

And the new conjugation: take a close look at the stem vowel of the first person singular and the ending of the infinitive; these are the two markers of the 4th conjugation

• audiō, audīre [4]: hear, listen to
• veniō, venīre [4]: come

Notes:

[1] peristȳlum (or peristȳlium): inner courtyard surrounded by columns

[2] studeō, -ēre [2]: although used to convey ‘study’ in the text, the verb has a much wider meaning, for example, to dedicate oneself to something, busy oneself with something, show zeal or enthusiasm for something, and is followed by the dative case; by Mediaeval times, the verb certainly has the distinct meaning of ‘study’: agricultūra > agricultūrae studeō: I devote myself to agriculture; Discipulī litterīs Graecīs student: The students apply themselves to Greek literature, but, depending upon context, ‘study’ will work.

[3] Ā domiciliō Tullia clāmat: Tullia shouts from the dwelling (house)

[4] "Ubi es, Pūblī?"; "Ubi tū lūdis, Servī?” “Where are you, Publius?”; “Where are you playing, Servius?” Note the vocative case of nouns in -ius: Publius > Publī; Servius > Servī

[5] Quid agis? You already know this phrase from a very early post meaning “How are you?” but you see that it can have a more general meaning of “What are you doing?”

[6] A reminder:

[i] Nōnne tū et Aulus in peristȳlum venītis?” You are Aulus are coming into the courtyard, aren’t you?

[ii] Num in aquā lūditis? You’re not playing in the water, are you?

Nōnne introduces a question that expects a positive answer, whereas num introduces a question that expects a negative answer – even if the answers are not what you expected.

The fourth conjugation

The text introduces one fourth conjugation verb in full:

1. Veniō quod magister est aeger. I’m coming because the teacher is ill.
2. Cūr, Lūcī, ā lūdō mātūrē venīs? Why are you coming early from school, Lucius?
3. Venitne paedagōgus cum puerīs, Pūblī?” Is the governor coming with the boys, Publius?
4. In peristȳlum nōn venīmus. We’re not coming into the courtyard.
5. “Nōnne tū et Aulus [plural] in peristȳlum venītis? You and Aulus are coming into courtyard, aren’t you?
6. Puerī cum paedagōgō veniunt. The boys are coming with the governor.

So, here is the verb:

veni¦ō, venīre [4]: come; note [i] the stem vowel in -i- and [ii] the infinitive in -īre

In all parts of the 4th conjugation the personal endings are added, just like in the other conjugations, but there is a stem vowel in -i- or -ī- [again, the accent mark (ʹ) is only showing you where the stress is on the verb when you pronounce it]

vén-i-ō: I come

vén-ī-s: you (sg.) come

vén-i-t: he / she / it comes

ven-ī́-mus: we come

ven-ī́-tis: you (pl.) come

vén-iu-nt : they come

One of the images shows the same endings for the verb audiō, audīre [4]: hear; listen to

The next post gives further examples of 4th conjugation verbs.

16.03.24: eō, īre [irregular]: go; compounds of eō, īre

If you learned French as a non-native speaker you may remember with rolling eyes the term “irregular verbs” i.e. those verbs which do not follow the usual conjugation pattern, and the irregularities of which can appear completely random: je fais, tu fais, il fait, nous faisons, vous faites, ils font. Latin is much kinder because it has very few irregular verbs and those verbs which are classified as irregular are far less “shots in the dark” than irregular verbs in other languages. You already know one:

esse: to be; no, there is no way of working out how that verb is conjugated based upon its infinitive alone, but the personal endings remain clearly marked:

• sum [/m/ is also a personal ending referring to the first person singular ‘I’; it does not appear often in the present tense, but it does occur in other tenses]
• es
• est
• sumus
• estis
• sunt

The irregular verb introduced in the previous unit on daily routine is eō, īre: to go [mark as irregular: irr.]:

• eō: I go
• īs: you (sg.) go
• it: he / she / it goes
• īmus: we go
• ītis: you (pl.) go
• eunt: they go

compound verbs

a compound verb is one that is made of two or more parts e.g. over¦eat, black¦mail, under¦estimate etc. In Latin, compound verbs are often created with prefixes, many of which also function as prepositions. With eō, īre you can add prefixes that, in fact, you aready know as prepositions. Here are a few examples although other compounds with eō exist.

ā / ab [(away) from] > ab¦eō, abīre: go away; depart

ad [towards] > ad¦eō, adīre: go to; approach

circum [around] > circum¦eō, circumīre: go around; surround

ē / ex [out of] > ex¦eō, exīre: go out

in [in(to) > on] in¦eō, inīre: go into

trāns [across] > trāns¦eō, trānsīre: go across

The prefix re- in English in, for example, reread and renew is derived from Latin re(d)- with the same original idea of ‘again’ or ‘back’: redeō, redīre: go back; return

Another commonly found example is: praeter (preposition + accusative): past > praeter¦eō, praeterīre: go past

The slightly odd one is per¦eō, perīre, using the preposition per (through) as a prefix: its meaning is ‘to perish; pass away; die’

You might want to remember this Mediaeval line:

Novus, novus amor est quō pereō!

It’s a new, new love by which I perish!

A word of advice / warning: Latin verbs can have multiple meanings which, while still rooted in the basic sense of the verb, are used to convey many abstract concepts e.g.

domum inīre: to go into a house, but bellum inīre (begin a war), consilium inīre (take a resolution)

You can fall into the trap of becoming too involved in what can be lists of definitions. When reading Latin, the best approach is to look at the use of a word in context (many good publications will provide notes) while bearing in mind the root meaning of the word.

13.03.24: daily routine [2]

The images show what you might do …

• interdiū: during the day
• vespere / vesperī: in the evening
• interdum: sometimes
• noctū / nocte: at night

Notes

[1] to teach [i] someone [ii] something involves two accusatives:

[i] discipulōs ¦ [ii] historiam doceō: I teach [i] the students [ii] history.

[2] aeger, aegra, aegrum: sick; ill; the verb aegrōtō, aegrōtāre [1] means ‘to be ill’

[3] to invite someone to lunch, dinner etc. use ad + accusative

[4] amīcum salvēre iubeō: I greet a friend; iubeō, iubēre [2] means ‘to command’ and a lot of commanding goes on in the literature, but here the literal meaning is “I bid (my friend) to be well”; salveō, salvēre [2]: be well; healthy. It’s in English: “I bid you good day / farewell.” If you don’t want to do any bidding or commanding, you can also use the verb salūtō, salūtāre [1] (to greet), from which, of course, we have the English derivative ‘salute’.

[5] dōnum: gift

[6] fābula: you have already seen the word meaning ‘story; tale; narrative’ but the Romans also used it to refer to any dramatic performance e.g. a play.

[7] pila: ball; when you play at something, you use the ablative:

• pilā lūdō

[8] cubitum eō: I go to bed. This is a good example of why not to go too far too fast. It’s an essential phrase for expressing part of your daily routine, but don’t become embroiled in the grammar: cubitum is actually one of the principal parts of the verb cubō, cubāre [1]: to lie down. This part is called the supine and involves areas of grammar that are still quite far down the road. For now, all you need to know is that it is used with verbs of motion (here eō: I go) to express purpose: I go to lie down / to sleep.

Principal parts

[1] Again, they are colour coded, and, following on from the previous post, here are two of the principal parts of each verb (all you need for now):

1st conjugation

• dēambulō, dēambulāre [1]: go for a walk
• dō, dare [1]: give (note: no long /ā/ in the infinitive)
• invītō, invītāre [1]: invite
• labōrō, labōrāre [1]: work
• obsōnō, obsōnāre [1]: buy provisions
• parō, parāre [1]: prepare
• vīsitō, vīsitāre [1]: visit

2nd conjugation

• doce¦ō, docēre [2]: teach (/e/ in the stem)
• iubeō, iubēre [2]: command
• placeō, placēre [2]: please

3rd conjugation

• ascend¦ō, ascendere [3]: go up (no /e/ in the stem)
• bibō, bibere [3]: drink
• edō, edere [3]: eat
• emō, emere [3]: buy
• exuō, exuere [3]: take off (e.g. clothes)
• lēgō, legere [3]: read
• lūdō, lūdere [3]: play
• quiēscō, quiēscere [3]: rest
• scrībō, scrībere [3]: write
• sūmō, sūmere [3]: take

But what are the red ones? See the next post! You should, however, already be able to work out what they mean.