29.06.25: Level 1; Road to Latin [2]; Schola Americāna I; Schola Americāna II: notes and exercises

Exercise [1]

Quid est? │ What is this?

Exercise [2]

Quis est? │ Who is this?

1. Quis est fēmina ?
2. Quis stat?
3. Quis est Iūlia?
4. Quis est discipula bona?

Exercise [3]

Quālis? │ of what kind?; used when an adjective or some form of description is needed in the answer

1. Quālis est sella?
2. Quālis est mēnsa?
3. Quālis est fenestra?
4. Quālis est iānua?
5. Quālis est schola?

Notes: Schola Americāna I

A noun which is used as the subject of a verb (the person / thing performing the action) is said to be in the Nominative Case. The nouns in the story above, when used as the subject of a verb, end in -a. 

The words which describe nouns are adjectives. These adjectives, like the nouns, end in -a and are in the Nominative Case. They are said to agree with the nouns which they describe. 

The verb est is often used to connect the subject with a noun or adjective, as in fēmina est magistra (the woman is a teacher) or sella est parva (the chair is small). Such a noun or adjective is also in the Nominative Case and is called the predicate nominative or predicate adjective. 

Nouns that refer to one person or thing are singular in number. The ending of the Nominative Singular is -a. Nouns that end in -a in the Nominative Singular are in a group call the first declension. There are nouns with other endings in the Nominative Singular, but we will cover them later. 

Quid? and Quis? are also used as subjects and therefore are in the Nominative Case. 

There is no Latin word for a, an (the indefinite article) or the (definite article). Therefore fēmina means woman, the woman, or a woman. Use whichever article works best for your translation.​

Schola Amēricana II

Exercise [4]

Quālēs? What kind of (when referring to something or someone in the plural)

1. Quis est Iūlia?
2. Quis est Cornēlia?
3. Quālēs discipulae sunt Iūlia et Cornēlia?  
4. Quis stat?
5. Quālēs sunt scholae Americānae?
6. Quālēs sunt fenestra?
7. Quālēs sunt iānuae?

Notes: Schola Americāna II

In the sentences (1) Iūlia est discipula and (2) Puellae Amēricanae sunt discipulae, ‘Iūlia’ and ‘Puellae’ are the subjects, and are in the Nominative Case.

Nouns that refer to one person or thing are singular in number.

Nouns that refer to more than one person or thing are plural in number.

The ending of the Nominative singular for the 1^st Declension is -a

The ending of the Nominative Plural for the 1^st Declension is -ae

The verb ends in -t if the subject is singular:

Magistra stat │the teacher stands / is standing

The verb ends in -nt if the subject is plural:

Discipulae stant │the pupils stand / are standing

Unit 01: Grammar Exercise

1. Mēnsa est magn___; sellae sunt parv____.
2. Schol_____ sunt magn_____.
3. Iānu_____ sunt apert_____.
4. Fenestr_____ est apert_____.
5. Discipul_____ bōn_____ stat.
6. Quid est? Sell_____ parv_____ est.
7. Iūlia et Cornēlia sunt puell_____ parv_____.
8. Quālis discipul_____ Iūlia est? Iūlia bōn_____ discipul_____ est.
9. Discipul_____ est puell_____ American_____.
10. Quis stat? Magistr_____ stat; discipul_____ nōn stant.