11.03.27: Level 1; First Latin Lessons (8); adjectives with the dative case

I: Epistula mea agricolae⁠ grāta est. Agricola mihi pecūniam dat. Pecūniam nautae dō. Pecūnia nautae grāta est.

II: Fīlia tua parvae puellae benigna est. Parva puella fīliam tuam amat. Fīlia tua parvae puellae rosam dat. Rosa puellae grāta est.

III: Poētae Italiam saepe laudant. Italia poētīs cāra est. Sed patria mea mihi cāra est.

IV: Epistulam fīliae tuae nōn laudō. Epistula longa est, sed mihi nōn grāta est. Fīlia tua nōn bene scrībit. Sed epistula tibi grāta est.

V: Fenestram casae tuae videō. Fenestra parva est. Casa agricolae multās fenestrās habet.

VI: America multās silvās habet. Silvae Americae magnae sunt. Hibernia magnās silvās nōn habet.

VII: Pecūnia agricolae grāta est. Italia poētae cāra est. Soror mea fīliae tuae benigna est. Epistulae tuae mihi nōn grātae sunt. Rosae parvīs puellīs grātae  sunt. Rosam parvae puellae dō.

(1) vocabulary

• bene: well
• fenestra: window
• rosa: rose
• silva: forest
• tibi: to you

(2)

• benigna: kind (to …)
• cāra: dear (to …)
• grāta: pleasing (to …)

These adjectives are used with nouns and pronouns in the dative case:

Fīlia tua parvae puellae benigna est. | Your daughter is kind to the little girl.

Patria mea mihi cāra est. | My homeland is dear to me.

Italia poētīs cāra est. | Italy is dear to the poets.

Not all languages express an idea the same way. A literal translation is one which exactly conveys the original words:

Pecūnia agricolae grāta est.

[Literally: The money is pleasing to the farmer.]

That is not wrong. At the early stages, it is better to stay as close as possible to the original language in order to see how a construction works, i.e. step one.

As you gain in confidence, you can then move on to step two, i.e. a more fluent rendering, for example:

The farmer likes the money [or: The farmer is pleased with the money].

Epistula tibi grāta est.

[Literally: The letter is pleasing to you.]

• You like the letter [or: You are pleased / happy with the letter].

Similarly:

Italia poētīs cāra est.

[Literally: Italy is dear to the poets.]

• The poets are fond of Italy.

Note also that these adjectives normally follow the noun / pronoun to which they refer:

Fīlia tua [A] parvae puellae [B] benigna est. | Your daughter is [B] kind [A] to the little girl.

Patria mea [A] mihi [B] cāra est. | My homeland is [B] dear [A] to me.

____________________

I: My letter is pleasing to the farmer (The farmer likes my letter.) The farmer gives me money. I give the money to the sailor. The money is pleasing to the sailor (The sailor likes the money.)

II: Your daughter is kind to the little girl. The little girl loves your daughter. Your daughter gives a rose to the little girl. The rose is pleasing to the girl (The girl likes the rose.)

III: The poets often praise Italy. Italy is dear to the poets (The poets are fond of Italy.) But my country is dear to me (I am fond of my country.)

IV: I do not praise your daughter's letter. The letter is long, but it is not pleasing to me (I do not like it.) Your daughter does not write well. But the letter is pleasing to you (You like the letter.)

V: I see the window of your cottage. The window is small. The farmer's cottage has many windows.

VI: America has many forests. The forests of America are large. Ireland does not have large forests.

VII:  Money is pleasing to the farmer (The farmer likes money.) Italy is dear to the poet (The poet is fond of Italy.) My sister is kind to your daughter. Your letters are not pleasing to me (I do not like your letters.) Roses are pleasing to little girls (Little girls like roses.) I give a rose to the little girl.

26.02.27: Level 1; First Latin Lessons (6); dative case: 1st declension; singular and plural [ii]; expressing the subject of a verb

I: Māter tua Cornēliae dōnum dat. Cornēlia fīliae agricolae dōnum ostendit. Fīlia agricolae quoque dōnum cupit, sed māter tua fīliae agricolae dōnum nōn dat.

II: Agricolae epistulās dō, et agricola mihi pecūniam dat. Agricola epistulās legit. Agricola epistulās fīliae ostendit, sed fīlia epistulās nōn legit.

III: Puella mihi casam poētae mōnstrat. Casa est parva. Poētam nōn videō, sed fīliam poētae interdum videō. Fīlia poētae parvam casam amat.

IV: Poēta fīliae pictūram dat. Fīlia poētae mihi pictūram ostendit. Pictūram laudō et poētam laudō. Fīlia poētae est laeta puella.

V: Nauta mihi fābulam narrat. Māter mea quoque mihi interdum fābulās narrat. Soror mea multās fābulās legit et saepe parvīs puellīs fābulās narrat. Parvae puellae fābulās amant.

VI: Māter mea fīliae tuae dōnum dat. Epistulās saepe nautīs dō. Agricola poētae pecūniam dat. Poēta agricolae epistulam meam ostendit. Puella nautae casam meam mōnstrat. Soror tua agricolae epistulās ostendit.

(1) vocabulary

laudō: I praise

videō: I see

cupit: (he / she / it) wishes; desires

mōnstrat: (he / she / it) points out

narrat: (he / she / it) tells, e.g. a story

ostendit: (he / she / it) shows

fābula: story

pictūra: picture

(2) expressing the subject of a verb

The subject of the verb tells you who or what is performing the action. A subject can be:

[i] a noun e.g. The farmer tells stories.

[ii] a pronoun e.g. He tells stories. ‘He’ is an example of a subject pronoun; the other English subject pronouns are I, you, he / she / it, we, they.

Latin also has subject pronouns, but they are often omitted because the ending of the verb tells you who / what the subject is. Here are examples from this and earlier passages. At this stage look for the endings:

[a]

Īnsulam amō | I love the island.

Dōnum puellīs dō. | I give a gift to the girls.

Poētam laudō. | I praise the poet.

Poētam nōn videō. | I do not see the poet.

Cūr patriam meam nōn amās? | Why do you not love my homeland?

Eurōpam saepe laudāmus, sed Americam amāmus. | We often praise Europe, but we love America.

[b] he, she, it and they are known specifically as third person pronouns; these pronouns are used when talking about someone or something; most often, they refer to a person / thing already mentioned:

I see the farmer. He is telling stories to the girls.

Again, although Latin does have 3^rd person pronouns, they are not required:

[i]

Agricolam videō. | I see the farmer.

> Fabulās puellīs narrat. | He is telling stories to the girls.

> Parvam fīliam habet. | He has a small daughter.

[ii]

Agricola parvīs puellīs fābulās narrat. | The farmer is telling stories to the little girls.

> Fābulās amant et laudant. | They love and praise the stories.

____________________

I: Your mother gives a gift to Cornelia. Cornelia shows the gift to the farmer’s daughter. The farmer’s daughter also wants the gift, but your mother does not give the gift to the farmer’s daughter.

II: I give letters to the farmer, and the farmer gives money to me. The farmer reads the letters. The farmer shows the letters to his daughter, but the daughter does not read the letters.

III: The girl shows me the poet’s house. The house is small. I do not see the poet, but I sometimes see the poet’s daughter. The poet’s daughter loves the small house.

IV: The poet gives a picture to his daughter. The poet’s daughter shows me the picture. I praise the picture and I praise the poet. The poet’s daughter is a happy girl.

V: The sailor tells me a story. My mother also sometimes tells me stories. My sister reads many stories and often tells stories to little girls. The little girls love stories.

VI: My mother gives a gift to your daughter. I often give letters to sailors. The farmer gives money to the poet. The poet shows my letter to the farmer. The girl shows my house to the sailor. Your sister shows letters to the farmer.

21.02.27: Level 1; First Latin Lessons (5); dative case: 1st declension; singular and plural [i]

I: Māter mea epistulam scrībit et epistulam parvae puellae dat. Parva puella epistulam agricolae dat. Agricola epistulam legit. Agricola mihi epistulam dat. Pecūniam agricolae dō. Agricola parvae puellae pecūniam dat. Parva puella pecūniam Cornēliae dat. Cornēlia est māter parvae puellae.

II: Māter mea dōnum parvīs puellīs dat. Parvae puellae laetae sunt. Māter mea parvās puellās amat.

III: Nautae epistulās dō. Nauta epistulās incolīs īnsulārum dat. Incolae īnsulārum pecūniam nautae dant.

IV: Agricola epistulam poētae dat. Poēta pecūniam agricolae dat. Dōnum puellīs dō. Parvae puellae mihi epistulam dant. Fīlia tua pecūniam nautae dat. Nauta mihi pecūniam dat.

(1) vocabulary

• dō: I give
• dat: (he / she / it) gives
• dant: they give
• dōnum: gift
• laeta: happy
• legit: (he / she / it) reads
• māter: mother
• mihi: to me (dative case)

(2) The dative case expresses the indirect object, the person to whom, for example, something is given or said.

Poēta [A] pecūniam ¦ [B] agricolae ¦ dat.

• The poet gives [A] money ¦ [B] to the farmer.

[A] pecuniam: the direct object [accusative]

[B] agricolae: the indirect object [dative]

English can change the word order by putting the indirect object first:

The poet gives ¦ [B] the farmer [indirect object] ¦ [A] money [direct object].

At the early stages of studying Latin it is better to use the translation with to so that the Latin dative case is clearly identified.

Nauta ¦ mihi ¦ pecūniam dat.

• The sailor gives ¦ me [indirect object] ¦ money [direct object] = The sailor gives money [direct object] ¦ to me [indirect object].

Dōnum puellīs dō.

• I give the girls [indirect object] ¦ a gift [direct object] = I give a gift [direct object] ¦ to the girls [indirect object].

(3) This text deals with the dative case of 1^st declension nouns:

1^st declension: nouns end in -a

Nominative singular: puella

[i] Dative singular: puellae

Nominative plural: puellae

[ii] Dative plural: puellīs

(4)

[i] dative case singular: -ae

Parva puella epistulam agricolae dat.

[ii] dative case plural: -īs

Dōnum puellīs dō.

(5) The same endings apply to 1^st / 2^nd declension adjectives:

Māter mea … epistulam ¦ parvae puellae ¦ dat.

• My mother … gives a letter ¦ to the little girl.

Māter mea dōnum ¦ parvīs puellīs ¦ dat.

• My mother gives a gift ¦ to the little girls.

LINKS

06.03.24: introduction to the dative case

https://adckl.blogspot.com/2024/04/060324-introduction-to-dative-case.html

06.03.24: further practice in the dative case of first declension nouns

https://adckl.blogspot.com/2024/04/060324-further-practice-in-dative-case.html

all posts:

https://adckl.blogspot.com/search/label/dative%20case

____________________

I: My mother writes a letter and gives the letter to the little girl. The little girl gives the letter to the farmer. The farmer reads the letter. The farmer gives the letter to me. I give money to the farmer. The farmer gives money to the little girl. The little girl gives money to Cornelia. Cornelia is the mother of the little girl.

II: My mother gives a gift to the little girls. The little girls are happy. My mother loves the little girls.

III: I give letters to the sailor. The sailor gives letters to the inhabitants of the islands. The inhabitants of the islands give money to the sailor. The sailor gives money to me.

IV: The farmer gives a letter to the poet. The poet gives money to the farmer. I give a gift to the girls. The little girls give a letter to me. Your daughter gives money to the sailor.

06.03.24: more practice with the dative case

Translate these simple sentences, all of which use the dative case. The word order is that the indirect object will come before the direct object:

[i] Fīliae meae ¦ [ii] fābulam nārrō. I tell [i] my daughter ¦ [ii] a story = I tell a story ¦ to my daughter.

Magister [i] discipulō suō ¦ [ii] fābulam nārrat. The teacher tells [i] his pupil ¦ [ii] a story = The teacher tells a story ¦ to his pupil.

Although English can translate the dative in two different ways, it is a good idea, at this stage, to use the translation with to so that the dative case is always clear.

Look again at the dative case of personal pronouns discussed in an earlier post.

1. Fīliō meō fābulās nārrō.
2. Magistrī discipulīs suīs fābulās antīquās nārrant.
3. Argentārius mihi pecūniam dat.
4. Argentāriō pecūniam dō.
5. Haec magistra discipulīs pictūram pulchram dēmōnstrat.
6. Nūntius Rōmānus nōbīs litterās dat.
7. Incolīs aquam frīgidam dāmus.
8. Rēx virīs aurum argentumque dat.
9. Puellae agricolīs aquam saepe dant.
10. Nōlō vōbīs auxilium dare.
11. Lūna stēllaeque eīs viam dēmōnstrant.

auxilium: help (noun)

frīgidus, -a, -um: cold

nōlō: I do not want

06.03.24: introduction to the dative plural of 1st and 2nd declension nouns

7. In angulō hortī sunt ulmī. In ulmīs corvī nīdificant. Corvōs libenter spectō, cum circum nīdōs suōs volitant. Magnus est numerus corvōrum in hortō patruī meī; multī mergī super ōceanum volitant. Vōs, mergī,ter spectō, cum super ōceanum volitātis et praedam captātis. Ōceanus mergīs cibum dat. Patruum meum hortus et agellus dēlectant; in agellō sunt equī et vaccae et porcī et gallī gallīnaeque. Lȳdia gallōs gallīnāsque cūrat. Nōn procul ab agellō est vīcus, ubi rusticī habitant. Nōnnullī ex rusticīs agellum cum equīs et vaccīs et porcīs cūrant.

Vocabulary

angulus: angle, corner

ulmus: elm; although the noun ends in -us, it is feminine

corvus: crow

nīdificāre: to make nests

nīdus: nest

volitāre: to fly

mergus: sea gull

super: preposition + accusative; over

ōceanus: ocean; sea

praeda: prey

captāre: to catch

gallus: cock; rooster

gallīna: hen

rūsticus, -a, -um: pertaining to the country / rustic / rural; here the adjective is being used as a noun i.e. rusticī: people who live in the country

nōnnullī: some; Nōnnullī ex rusticīs: some of the country folk

Notes

[1] The dative plural of all 1st and 2nd declension nouns ends in -īs i.e. the same ending as the ablative plural

2nd declension

Ōceanus ¦ mergīs ¦ cibum dat. The ocean gives food ¦ to the seagulls.

1st declension

Magister ¦ puellīs ¦ fābulās narrat. The teacher tells stories ¦ to the girls.

Therefore, in this sentence - Magister ¦ discipulīs ¦ librōs dat (The teacher gives books to the pupils) - the reference could be to male pupils, female pupils or a mixed gender group. Only context will determine, if necessary, which gender is being referred to.

[2] Note again [i] the use of suus (see previous post) when the possessor is the subject of the sentence and [ii] cum used to mean ‘when’:

Corvōs libenter spectō, cum circum nīdōs suōs volitant.

I gladly watch the crows when they fly around their (own) nests.

Here is some more practice in identifying cases and their uses:

1. [i] In angulō ¦ [ii] hortī sunt [iii] ulmī.
2. Magnus est numerus ¦ corvōrum
3. Patruum meum hortus et agellus dēlectant.
4. Lȳdia gallōs gallīnāsque* cūrat.
5. Nōn procul ¦ ab agellō est vīcus

*Can you remember what the function is of -que attached to the end of a word?

06.03.24: introduction to the dative singular of 2nd declension nouns and the dative of personal pronouns

[Ora Maritima: Sonnenschein (1902)]

6. Patruus meus agellō suō operam dat. Agellus patruī meī nōn magnus est. Circum villam est hortus. Mūrus hortī nōn altus est. Rīvus est prope hortum, unde aquam portāmus, cum hortum irrigāmus. In hortō magnus est numerus rosārum et violārum. Rosae et violae tibi, mī patrue, magnam laetitiam dant. Tū, Lȳdia, cum patruō meō in hortō saepe ambulās.

Vocabulary

patruus: uncle: Latin has two words for 'uncle' [i] patruus is a paternal uncle i.e. a father's brother [ii] avunculus is a maternal uncle i.e. a mother's brother

agellus: small piece of ground; little field

suus, -a, um: his / her(s) / its; their(s) (see notes below)

mūrus: wall

altus, -a, -um: high

rīvus: stream

unde: from which / where

irrigāre: to water

rosa: rose

viola: violet

tibi: to you (sg.) [dative of tū]

Notes:

[1] Dative singular of 2nd declension nouns

The dative of all second declension nouns is -ō i.e. the same as the ablative singular

Patruus meus ¦ agellō suō operam dat. My uncle gives attention ¦ to his small plot of land.

[2] Dative of personal pronouns

Rosae et violae tibi … magnam laetitiam dant. The roses and violets give great happiness to you.

Here, it is being used, as in English, as an indirect object pronoun.

You have already seen tibi and other dative pronouns in constructions expressing ‘have’:

Quid est tibi nōmen?

[Literally: What is the name to you; What is the name you have?] = What is your name?

Estne tibi fīlius?

[Literally: Is there a son to you?] = Do you have a son?

Mihi est ūnus fīlius.

[Literally: To me there is one son.] = I have one son

Nōmen eī Mārcus est.

[Literally: To him is the name Marcus.] = His name is Marcus.

Mihi est ūna fīlia.

[Literally: To me there is one daughter.] = I have one daughter.

Nōmen eī Flāvia est.

[Literally: To her is the name Flavia.] = Her name is Flavia.

We will look at the dative pronouns in more detail in a later post. However, you have already seen three of them, and the plurals are also given here for reference.

mihi: to me

tibi: to you

eī: to him / her / it (no gender distinction)

The plural forms are:

nōbis: to us

vōbis: to you (pl.)

eīs: to them (no gender distinction)

[3] suus, sua, suum is a possessive adjective and pronoun meaning [i] his / her(s) / its ; their(s) own and is used when the subject of the sentence (he, she, it, they) is the possessor. Here is an example:

He loves his garden. But, does he love his own garden or somebody else's? English would need to add 'own' if that distinction were to be made. Latin, however, uses suus, sua, suum.

Hortum suum amat. He loves his own garden.

Hortum eius amat. He loves his (i.e. somebody else's) garden.

In the example from the text, the writer's uncle is tending to his (own) garden. Therefore:

Patruus meus agellō suō operam dat.

There is no need to add 'own' in the translation unless that point has to be emphasised.

[4] Note the example of the vocative case as if the writer is addressing his uncle directly:

mī patrue: my uncle

06.03.24: further practice in the dative case of first declension nouns

[The Road to Latin (Chesnutt) 1932]

Read the text for understanding and note the words which are in the dative case. Pay particular attention to fīliābus: this is the dative plural of fīlia (daughter); the ending is used to distinguish between the dative plural of fīlius (son) which is, as is to be expected, fīliīs. A similar distinction occurs in the nouns deus (god) > dat. plur. deīs and dea (goddess) > dat. plur. deābus. Note that these are not endings used normally in the dative plural and are only there to make it clear whether males or females are being referred to. The dative plural is -īs.

GALBAE TABERNA

Galba magnam tabernam habet. Taberna est plēna statuārum et amphorārum. Taberna fēminās Rōmānās dēlectat. Hodiē, Tullia, Claudia, et Camilla tabernam Galbae intrant. Galba fēminās videt. Quid Tulliae dēmōnstrat? Tulliae parvam statuam dēmōnstrat, sed Tullia statuam nōn dēsīderat. Galba Claudiae statuam dēmōnstrat. Claudia statuam spectat et dēsīderat. Itaque fēmina Galbae pecūniam dat. Camilla quoque statuam deae dēsīderat. Galba Camillae rubram Diānae statuam dēmōnstrat. Statua Camillam dēlectat; Camilla Galbae pecūniam dat. Tum Galba fēminīs Rōmānīs amphoram dēmōnstrat; amphora pulchra fēminās dēlectat. Tullia fīliās vocat. Tum Galba fīliābus Tulliae amphoram dēmōnstrat. Amphora puellās quoque dēlectat. Cornēlia et Secunda tabernam Galbae amant. Interdum Galba fīliabus Tulliae parvam statuam dat. Galba puellīs fābulās saepe nārrat. Cornēlia et Secunda fābulās amant. Itaque fēminae et puellae tabernam Galbae saepe intrant.

DIANA

Camilla fīliābus rubram Diānae statuam dēmōnstrat. Puellae statuam spectant; tum Camilla fīliābus fābulam nārrat: “Diāna est dea silvārum et lūnae. Et agricolae et nautae Diānam laudant. Agricolae Diānae corōnas saepe dant quod dea silvās cūrat. Diāna, dea lūnae, nautās dēlectat quod lūna nautīs viam dēmōnstrat. Itaque nautae quoque corōnās dant.” Fīliae Camillae fābulam amant. Quod lūna et silvae fīliās dēlectant, puellae deam laudant et statuam deae ōrnant.

demonstrāre: to show

intrāre: to enter; go into

You are now seeing all the cases being used in the same text. At the early stages, you should keep thinking about what cases are being used, and why. As your fluency increases, this process will become more fluent.

Here are some examples of the dative case from the text:

Quid Tulliae dēmōnstrat? What does he show to Tullia?

Tulliae [dative] ¦ parvam statuam [accusative] dēmōnstrat. He shows a small statue ¦ to Tullia.

Camilla Galbae [dative] ¦ pecūniam [accusative] dat. Camilla gives money ¦ to Galba.

Agricolae Diānae [dative] ¦ corōnas [accusative] saepe dant. The farmers often give garlands ¦ to Diana.

Galba fēminīs Rōmānīs [dative] ¦ amphoram [accusative] dēmōnstrat. Galba shows the amphora ¦ to the Roman women.

lūna nautīs [dative] viam [accusative] dēmōnstrat. The moon shows the way ¦ to the sailors.

Galba puellīs [dative] ¦ fābulās [accusative] saepe nārrat. Galba often tells stories ¦ to the girls.

Camilla fīliābus [dative] ¦ fābulam [accusative] nārrat. Camilla tells a story ¦ to the daughters.

Look at the notes from previous posts; identify the cases in each of these extracts from the text and explain why these cases are being used.

1. Galba magnam tabernam habet.
2. Taberna est plēna statuārum et amphorārum.
3. Taberna fēminās Rōmānās dēlectat.
4. puellae ... [i] statuam ¦ [ii] deae ōrnant.
5. Diāna est dea silvārum et lūnae.
6. [i] Fīliae [ii] Camillae [iii] fābulam amant.

06.03.24: introduction to the dative case

[Ora Maritima: Sonnenschein (1902); note: you have read the first three parts of this text, the fourth part is omitted and we move to part 5]

Note the endings in bold.

5. Lȳdia quoque, consōbrīna mea, apud amitam meam nunc habitat. Lȳdia columbās cūrat: cūra columbārum Lȳdiae magnam laetitiam dat. Tū, Lȳdia, cum apud magistram tuam es, linguae Francogallicae et linguae Anglicae operam dās; sed ego linguīs antiquīs Romae et Graeciae operam dō. Saepe cum Lȳdiā ad silvam vel ad ōram maritimam ambulō. Interdum cum nautā in scaphā nāvigāmus. Quantopere nōs undae caeruleae dēlectant! Lȳdia casās agricolārum cum amitā meā interdum vīsitat. Vōs, fīliae agricolārum, Lȳdiam amātis, ut Lȳdia vōs amat. Ubi inopia est, ibi amita mea inopiam levat.

Vocabulary

apud: preposition + accusative case; it has several meanings depending upon context, one of which is, literally, in the presence of (a person); it often translates as ‘at the house of’ i.e like French chez

apud amitam meam habitat: She is living with my aunt i.e. at my aunt’s house (Fr. chez ma tante)

apud magistram tuam es: You are at your teacher’s house; you are with your teacher (i.e. in the same place as the teacher is)

columba: dove

cūrāre: to care for; take care of; look after

cūra: care (noun)

laetitia: happiness

lingua (Francogallica; Anglica): (French; English) language

operam dāre: give attention

inopia: want (noun); poverty; need (noun); scarcity

levāre: to relieve; alleviate

Notes

[1] cum: this word deserves careful attention; it has two meanings: [i] as a preposition + ablative meaning ‘(together) with’ and [ii] as a conjunction meaning ‘when’; you need to check whether …

[i] ‘cum’ is followed by a noun e.g. Interdum cum nautā in scaphā nāvigāmus. Sometimes we sail with the sailor in the small boat

[ii] ‘cum’ is working with a verb: Tū, Lȳdia, cum apud magistram tuam es. You, Lydia, when you are at your teacher’s house …

[2] Dative case

There is one other case to deal with, namely the locative case. However, the locative case is only used in special circumstances and is not listed as a main case unless it applies to a particular noun. The dative case is, effectively, the last case to be introduced.

Look at this extract from the text:

Cūra columbārum Lȳdiae magnam laetitiam dat: Taking care of the doves gives Lydia great happiness = ... gives great happiness to Lydia

The proper noun ‘Lydia’ is the indirect object of the sentence. You are not giving Lydia to anyone, but happiness is being given to Lydia.

I give the girl a book = I give a book to the girl. In Latin, ‘to the girl’ is in the dative case and you have already seen the endings elsewhere because they are used in other cases.

[i] The dative case singular of 1st declension nouns is -ae

Nominative: puella

> Dative: puellae i.e. it is the same as [a] the nominative plural and [b] the genitive singular

Magister puellae [dative] ¦ librum [accusative] dat. The teacher gives (to) the girl [indirect object = dative]¦ a book [direct object = accusative]; The teacher gives a book to the girl.

Tū … linguae Francogallicae et linguae Anglicae operam dās. You … give attention to the French language and (to) the English language.

[ii] The dative case plural of all 1st and 2nddeclension nouns is -īs

Nominative plural: puellae

> Dative plural: puellīs i.e. it is the same as the ablative plural

Ego linguīs antiquīs [dative plural] ¦ Romae et Graeciae [genitive singular] operam dō. I give attention to the ancient languages ¦ of Rome and Greece.

Do not be influenced by English usage: ‘to’ in the sense of, for example, going to a place is expressed by ad + accusative e.g. Ad macellum properat. He hurries to the market. The dative case is used when, for example, you give something to somebody or you say something to somebody.