Latin for Learners: 01/11/26

Sunday, January 11, 2026

28.03.26: Level 3; Subjunctive [8] independent uses [2] jussive [ii] practice

Translate: Let him / her / them …; (s)he / they should …; may you / you should …

Ab oppidō abeās │ May you depart from the town / You should depart from the town / Depart from the town.

[i] Tullia domō veniat.

[ii] Cum deīs labōrēs.

[iii] Per Galliam currātis.

[iv] Fīlius pauperem līberet.

[v] In Graeciā maneat.

[vi] Trōiae habitētis.

[vii] Illa ā curiā iter faciat.

[viii] Per Āsiam fugiās.

[ix] Ille cōnsulēs timeat.

[x] Ad urbem veniās.

[xi] Mātrēs cum ducibus ambulent.

[xii] Adsītis.

[xiii] Illī effugiant.

[xiv] Fabulam mihi narrēs.

[xv] Rēgīnam dēcipiās.

____________________

[i] Let Tullia come away from home. / Tullia should come away from home.

[ii] (May you) work with the gods. / You should work with the gods.

[iii] You should all run through Gaul.

[iv] Let the son free the poor man. / The son should free …

[v] May he / he should stay in Greece.

[vi] Live in Troy / You should (all) live in Troy.

[vii] Let her journey from the Senate House.

[viii] (You should) flee through Asia.

[ix] Let him / he should fear the consuls.

[x] (You should) come to the city.

[xi] Let the mothers walk with the leaders / the mothers should walk …

[xii] Be / You should (all) be present.

[xiii] Let them escape.

[xiv] You should tell the story to me.

[xv] You should deceive the queen.

28.03.26: Level 3; Subjunctive [7] independent uses [2] jussive [i]

The term jussive subjunctive is from La: iubeō, -ēre [2]: command

(1) The jussive subjunctive is generally interpreted as a form of command or strong suggestion. It translates as or “Let him / her / them (do something) or, dependent upon context, should (do something)” and is used with the 3^rd person singular or plural:

dīcat │ Let him (her) say.

discēdant │ Let them depart.

discipulus discat aut discēdat │ Let the student learn or leave / the student should learn or leave.

Habeat cōnsul cōnsilia cōnsilia senātōrum │ Let the consul have the advice of the senators / The consul should have …

[i] Vulgate: What God commanded

Dīxitque Deus: Fīat lūx │ And God said: Let there be light.

Fīat firmāmentum in mediō aquārum: et dīvidat aquās ab aquīs. │ Let there be / become / be made an expanse in the middle of the waters: and let it separate the waters from the waters.

Germinet terra herbam virentem │ Let the earth bring forth green vegetation.

Fīant lūmināria in firmāmentō caelī, et dīvidant diem ac noctem, et sint in signa et tempora, et diēs et annōs │ And God said: Let there be lights in the firmament of the sky, and let them divide the day and the night, and let them be for signs and seasons and for days and years.

Prōdūcat terra animam vīventem in genere suō │ And God also said: Let the land produce the living creature (living creatures), each according to its own kind

Prōdūcant aquae rēptile animae vīventis, et volātile super terram sub firmāmentō caelī. │ Let the waters bring forth a crawling creature of living breath, and a flying creature above the earth beneath the firmament of the sky

[ii] Cēdant arma togae, concēdat laurea linguae (Cicero) │ Let arms give way to the toga, let the laurel be granted to eloquence.

[iii] Ēmittat ad mē Pūblius (Cicero) │ Let Publius send (someone) to me

[iv] Hoc tantum sciat (Livy) │ Let him know only this.

[v] Sit fūr, at est bonus imperātor (Cicero) │ Let him be a thief [he may be a thief], at least he is a good general.

(2) The jussive subjunctive can also be 2^nd person singular or plural:

Taceās, Antonī! │ Be quiet, Antony! [Literally: May you be quiet / you should be quiet]

[i] Abeās! (Plautus) │ Be off!

[ii] From the student song Gaudeāmus igitur:

Abeās ad īnferōs, │ May you go away to the underworld,

Trānseās ad superōs │ May you cross over to the heavens

The translations could equally work as “You should go away / cross over”

[iii] Doceās iter et sacra ōstia pandās (Vergil) │ (May you) show us the way and lay open the sacred portals.

[iv] Si nihil habēbis, tamen scrībās aliquid (Cicero) │ If you have nothing (to write about / no news), write something anyhow.

[v] Iniūriās fortūnae … dēfugiendō relinquās (Cicero) │ The wrongs of fortune … (you should) leave behind by flight.

[vi] Sī vultis, habeātis (Cicero) │ If you want, (you may) have it (go ahead and take it).

Image #2: From three into one –shows the Latin translation of a three word title of a Beatles’ song. What’s the original title?

Image #3: Latin legal advice

KEY POINTS: jussive subjunctive [i]

from iubeō, -ēre [2]: command
expresses a command or strong suggestion
usually translated as “let …”, or sometimes “should …” depending on context.
3rd person singular or plural: let him / her / them …; (s)he should …
2nd person singular or plural: may you; you should …
typically present subjunctive

27.03.26: Describing objects [5]; wood

[i] lignum, -ī [2/n]: wood; this is the more general word

wood (the material); (pl: firewood): also: tree, club / staff

ē / ex lignō: made of wood

ligneus, -a, -um: wooden

ponticulus ligneus: a little wooden bridge

Careful: the term lignātus does not, unlike the other words listed, refer to anything made of wood or covered with wood; lignor, lignārī, lignātus sum [1/deponent]: to fetch (fire)wood i.e. lignātus means ‘having gone to collect wood’; it cannot be used in the description of an object

(1) sīc ē lignō et ferrō, ut plostra [= plaustra] maiōra tria, arātra cum vōmeribus sex (Varro) │ thus (implements) made of wood and iron, as three large carts, six ploughs and ploughshares

(2) Quod superest, nec ipse sum nescius quōsdam circumstantium cupere audīre, cūr nōn argentō vel aurō, sed potissimum ex lignō simulācrum fierī voluerim (Apuleius Madaurensis) │ As for what remains, I myself am not unaware that some of those standing around wish to hear why I have wanted a statue to be made not of silver or gold, but rather of wood.

(3) Used in the plural

Ignem ex lignīs viridibus atque ūmidīs in locō angustō fierī iussit (Cicero) │ He ordered a fire to be made from green and damp wood in a confined place.

(4) Transferred meanings; examples from the Vulgate:

Et erit tamquam lignum trānsplantātum iuxtā rīvulōs aquārum (Vulgate) │ And he shall be like a tree which is planted near the running waters
germinet terra herbam virentem et facientem sēmen et lignum pōmiferum faciēns frūctum (Vulgate) │ Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit
et adhūc eō loquente vēnit Iūdās Scarioth ūnus ex duodecim et cum illō turba cum gladiīs et lignīs ā summīs sacerdōtibus et ā scrībīs et ā seniōribus (Vulgate) │ Immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, came – and with him a multitude with swords and clubs, from the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders

(5) equus ligneus plēnus armātīs (Augustine) │ the wooden horse full of its armed soldiers

(6) Tantisper quidem ut sīs apud mē ligneā in cūstōdiā (Plautus) │ On condition, then, that you shall be in wooden custody [ = in the stocks] at my house.

[ii] materia, -ae [1/f]: [i] timber, lumber i.e. wood used for building; Tacitus (Annalēs 1.35) distinguishes between materia (wood for building) and ligna (pl: firewood); [ii] material; matter; substance i.e. the meaning goes beyond simply ‘wood’

pōns ex māteriā │ a wooden bridge / a bridge made from timber

… ut ferē sunt quae ex vīminibus et māteriā rūsticā fīunt ut corbēs, fiscinae (Varro) │ … in genereal things which are made from wicker and of ‘country / rustic’ wood [i.e. natural / coarse] such as hampers, baskets …

Et vellem, herculēs, māteriam repperīrem aliquam quam deus tantus affluenter indueret (Apuleius) │ And, by Hercules, I would like to find [clothing] material that such a great god could wear in flowing folds.

27.03.26: Level 2; Vincent (Latin Reader); LIV; The Conquest of Anglesey

Translate:

Inde Agricola, lēgātus Rōmānus, quī ad Britanniam vēnerat, īnsulam Monam oppugnāre īnstituit. Prīmō cōpiās contrā Silurēs dūxit, sed hōc tempore nūllās nāvēs habēbat, nec īnsulam facile superāre poterat. Itaque mīlitēs dēlēctōs convocāvit, quī vada cognōvērunt. Illī cum equīs ad īnsulam Monam natāvērunt. Incolae, territī, nūntiōs ad Agricolam dē pāce mīsērunt. Annō proximō exercitum comparāvit, loca castrīs idōnea* cēpit, itinera per silvās et loca impedīta fēcit.

*Note: idōneus, -a, -um: suitable; what something is suitable for is in the dative case

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gnaeus_Julius_Agricola

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silures

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglesey

Prīmō cōpiās contrā Silurēs dūxit.

Illī cum equīs ad īnsulam Monam natāvērunt.

Agricola among Roman generals and emperors in this frieze from the Great Hall of the National Galleries Scotland by William Brassey Hole 1897

____________________

Then Agricola, the Roman ambassador, who had come to Britain, decided to attack the island of Anglesey. At first he led his forces against the Silures, but at that time he had no ships and was unable to overcome the island easily. And so he summoned chosen soldiers who were familiar with the shallows. They swam to the island of Anglesey with their horses. The inhabitants, frightened, sent messengers to Agricola about peace. In the following year he prepared an army, seized places suitable for camps, and made routes through forests and difficult terrain [loca impedīta: (literally) hindered / obstructed places].

26.03.26: Level 1; topic (review); pets [2]; accusative case

Latin has two ways of expressing ‘I have’; [1] is a “no-brainer” because it doesn’t affect any other word:

[1] Mihi est … │ Literally: to me (there) is … + whatever it is you have; the noun does not change

mihi est canis │ I have a dog

mihi est hippopotamus

mihi est crocodīlus

And if (sensibly) you don’t have a crocodile …

mihi nōn est crocodīlus

mihi est frāter / soror │ I have a brother / sister

mihi est liber │ I have a book

This is not unlike Russian which, although it does have a verb ‘to have’ (used in very specific contexts), it uses the phrase u menya ¦ jest’ [literally: by me / at my place ¦ there is …] to express ‘I have’

[2] If you’re new to Latin, then please don’t try to run before you can walk:

[i] habeō │ I have

habēs │ You (singular i.e. talking to one person) have

habēsne …? │ Do you have …?

-ne can be added to a verb to turn it into a question

habet │ (s)/he / it has

[ii] Nouns which are used with habeō – and thousands of other verbs – are in the accusative case, which expresses the direct object of a sentence.

You see below that I have divided this into three groups:

[1] First declension

luscinia

> lusciniam habeō │ I have a nightingale

> lusciniam audiō │ I hear / listen to the nightingale

sīmia

> sīmiam habeō │ I have a monkey

> sīmiam timeō │ I fear / I’m afraid of the monkey

[1] Second declension

cattus

> cattum habeō │ I have a cat

> cattum videō │ I see a cat

psittacus

> psittacum habeō │ I have a parrot

> psittacum cūrō │ I take care of the parrot

It is these two – the first and second declension – where you should start in understanding how nouns work in Latin. The links below are for key posts in the group that discuss these.

23.02.24: Declensions and cases [1] (nominative; vocative)

https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/posts/396107356333872/

23.02.24: declensions [1] first and second declension

https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/posts/396459352965339/

26.02.24: nominative plural of first and second declension nouns [1]; hī / hae

https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/posts/397673796177228/

26.02.24: nominative plural of first and second declension nouns [2]; quot?

https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/posts/397675569510384/

28.02.24: the accusative case (singular and plural) of first declension nouns

https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/posts/398913862719888/

29.02.24: accusative case singular of first declension nouns

https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/posts/399267342684540/

29.02.24: accusative singular and plural of second declension nouns in -us

https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/posts/399454222665852/

29.02.24: leaving the easiest to last; the accusative singular and plural of 2nd declension neuter nouns in -um

https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/posts/399534969324444/

01.03.24: summary of the nominative and accusative singular and plural of 1st / 2nd declension nouns

https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/posts/399755895969018/

[iii] The other nouns in the list of pets are third declension; you may already be familiar with this, but if you’re not, I would simply note what’s below before going on that journey because the third declension involves a lot of learning and it’s far better first to be familiar the first and second declensions, what declensions are and how they work.

Key points:

(1) 3^rd declension nouns can end in different ways:

avis

canis

piscis

fēlēs

passer

mūs

serpēns

testūdō

(2) they can be any gender; check the vocabulary list in the previous post and you will see them marked m(asculine) and f(eminine); none of the words listed are neuter

(3) Those which are masculine and feminine have an accusative in -em but note that, when endings are added, some nouns change.

(1) to (3) above are the reasons why I would recommend to leave the 3^rd declension at the early stages:

avem habeō │ I have a bird

canem habeō│ I have a dog

piscem habeō│ I have a fish

fēlem habeō│ I have a cat

passerem habeō│ I have a sparrow

Now see what happens:

mūs

> mūrem habeō│ I have a mouse; mūrem timeō │ I’m scared of the mouse

serpēns

> serpentem habeō│ I have a snake; serpentem teneō │ I’m holding the snake

testūdō

> testūdinem habeō│ I have a tortoise; testūdinem spectō │ I’m looking at / watching the tortoise

Link to all files on the 3^rd declension:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/permalink/750844210860183/

26.03.26: Level 1; topic (review); pets [1]

[1] Habēsne animālia domestica? │ Do you have pets? [literally: domestic animals]; the term animālia domestica was used in Ancient Rome to refer more to farm animals, but the adjective domesticus literally means ‘pertaining to the house’ and so it can encompass pets or animals that were kept in the house to perform functions e.g. as guard dogs or for pest control.

Compare:

animālia fera: wild animals i.e. the ones you would fight in the Colosseum

bestia: beast

bēlua: wild beast; monster

[2]

cattus, -ī [2/m] (Late Latin)*: cat

cricētus, -ī [2/m]: (Neo-Latin)* hamster

luscinia, -ae [1/f]: nightingale

psittacus, -ī [2/m]: parrot

sīmia, -ae [1/f]: ape; monkey; cercopithēcus, -ī [2/m]: long-tailed monkey

avis, -is [3/f]: bird

canis, -is [3 m/f]: dog

fēlēs, -is [3/f]: cat

mūs, mūris [3 m/f]: mouse

passer, -is [3/m]: sparrow

piscis, -is [3/m]: fish

serpēns, serpentis [3 m/f]: snake

testūdō, testūdinis [3/f]: tortoise; turtle

*See vocabulary notes

02.03.25: Comenius XXVI; Apes, long-tailed monkeys … and forest men!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/posts/635336292410976/

[3] The presentation video shows two different ways of expressing ‘have’ and will be reviewed in the next post:

[i] habeō │ I have

[ii] mihi est │ [literally: to me there is …] I have

[i] Some words that are in Classical Latin may have referred to a particular type of animal; Pliny the Elder who wrote The Natural History refers to certain animals but it isn’t always clear what he specifically had in mind. The word hippūrus, -ī [2/m], according to several – but not all – online sources, may have referred to a golden carp, gold fish:

https://logeion.uchicago.edu/hippurus

https://neolatinlexicon.org/latin/goldfish/