21.10.24: Level 1; review; practice in the verbs [4]; 1st conjugation; present tense

amāre [1] │ to love

amō │I love

amās │you (sg.) love

amat │he / she / it loves

amāmus │we love

amātis │you (pl.) love

amant │they love

[A] “In Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s The Golden Legend, the bells of Strasbourg Cathedral explain their religious and political office, even while under attack by Lucifer and his demons”

https://blogs.hope.edu/belltower/bell-tower-volume-1-issue-1/the-bells-of-our-lives/

Complete the Latin text with the verbs listed below

__________ deum vērum! │ I praise the true God

Plēbem  __________! │ I call the people

__________ clērum! │ I gather the clergy

Dēfūnctōs __________! │I weep for the dead

Nimbum __________! │ I chase away the storm cloud

Fēsta __________! │ I adorn feasts

__________ lentōs! │ I rouse the lazy

Dissipō __________! │ I scatter the winds

__________ cruentōs! │I pacify bloodshed

congregō; decorō; dissipō; excitō; fugō; laudō; pacō; plōrō; vocō

[B] Motto on a church bell; complete the Latin with the verbs listed below:

Patrem  nostrum  __________ │ We celebrate our Father

Chrīstum  fīlium  __________ │ We greet Christ the Son

Sānctum spīritum __________  │ We praise the Holy Spirit

Carōs mortuōs __________ │ We weep for the dear departed

Vīvōs ad precēs __________ │ We call the living to prayers

vocāmus; salūtāmus; plōrāmus; laudāmus; celebrāmus

[C] A statement can be turned into a question by the addition of -ne at the end of the word at the beginning of the sentence; the word is not necessarily a verb. Complete the Latin with the verbs listed below.

[i] Questions to Caesar …

__________ oppidum, Caesar?  │ Are you occupying the town, Caesar?

__________ mūrum, Caesar?  │ Are you storming the wall, Caesar?

__________ signum,  Caesar? │ Are you giving the signal (to attack), Caesar?

Victōriamne  __________, Caesar? │ Are you announcing the victory, Caesar?    

[ii] Questions to a Roman soldier …

__________ne  barbarum? │ Are you wounding the barbarian?

__________ne barbarōs? │ Are you alarming the barbarians?

__________ne in Britanniā? │ Are you spending the winter in Britain?

__________ne  oppidum vāllō? │ Are you surrounding the town with a fortification?

__________ne prōvinciam?  │ Are you pacifying the province?

[iii] Questions to a Barbarian soldier …

__________ agrōs Rōmānōrum?  │ Are you laying waste to / destroying the fields of the Romans?

__________ Rōmānum?  │ Are you overcoming the Roman?

circumdās; dāsne; expugnāsne; hiemās; nūntiās; occupāsne; pācās; perturbās; superāsne; vastāsne; vulnerās

20.10.24: Level 2; reading; dē porculō [2]

Dē porculō [2]

Itaque senex sēcum reputāvit, “Cum ignis baculum usserit, fortasse baculum canem pulsābit.” Itaque senex ignem baculum ūrere iussit, sed ignis nōluit. Senex igitur iam īnsānus sibi dīxit, “Cum aqua ignem exstīnxerit, fortasse ignis baculum ūret.” Itaque aquam ignem exstinguere iussit, sed aqua hoc facere recūsāvit. Senex igitur īnsānior sibi dīxit. “Cum bōs aquam biberit, fortasse aqua ignem exstinguet.” Bovem igitur aquam bibere iussit, quod bōs facere recūsāvit. Senex igitur īnsānissimus sibi dīxit, “Cum fīlius meus bovem interfēcerit, fortasse bōs aquam bibet.” Fīlium igitur bovem interficere iussit, quī senī “Ō senex,” inquit, “abī in malam rem!”

Vocabulary and notes

exstinguō, -ere, exstīnxī [3]: put out (e.g. a fire)

recūsō, -āre, -avī [1]: refuse

ūrō, -ere, ussī [3]: burn

Notes

[i] bōs, bovis [3 m/f]: ox, cow, bull; a head of cattle; this is a rare occurrence of a noun that has multiple possiblities for certain forms; Wiktionary lists them all, but some of them are very infrequent, one of them only appearing once in a Latin inscription. However, if it exists (even once), it will be listed.

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/bos#Noun_13

Posted is the declension with the most common endings.

[ii] The text shows you the three degrees of an adjective

positive: insānus, -a, -um │ mad; demented

comparative: insānior [masc. / fem.], insānius [neut.] │crazier; more demented

superlative: insānissim¦us, -a, -um │craziest; most demented; also: very mad

The comparative and superlative will be the next topic.

[iii]

senex sēcum reputāvit │ the old man thought to himself [literally: ‘together with himself’]

senex … sibi dīxit │ the old man said to himself

[iv]

Abi in malam rem! Literally: go into the bad thing = get knotted, take a hike, get lost … and possibly other more “colourful” phrases

A nice 1912 translation:

Abi in malam rem, ludis me. (Plautus) │ Away with you to utter perdition! You are trifling with me.

crux, crucis [3/f]: wooden frame for crucifixion, especially a cross

ī / abī in malam crucem! │ Literally: go / go away onto the evil / bad cross = go and be hanged, go to the devil etc.  

The Victorians liked ‘perdition’ in their translations; here’s an 1895 translation of Plautus:

ī in malam crucem │ Away with you to utter perdition!

Vah, apage tē ā mē! (Plautus) │ Get away with you from me!

And, my favourite, an absolutely priceless one from Suetonius …

Abī Morbōviam! │ Go away to disease land!

Questions

[A] Who said what? Fill in the blanks with the word listed below.

Quid dīxit senex ignī? │ “__________ baculum!”

Quid dīxit baculum? │ “__________”

Quid dīxit senex aquae? │ “__________ ignem!”

Quid dīxit aqua? │ “__________”

Quid dīxit senex bovī? │ “__________ aquam!”

Quid dīxit bōs? │ “Aquam __________ nōlō.”

Quid dīxit senex fīliō suō? │ “__________ bovem!”

Quid dīxit fīlius patrī suō? │“__________ in malam rem!”

abī; bibe; bibere; exstingue; interfice; nōlō; recūsō; ūre

[B] In which order are the following first referred to?

The old man thought that perhaps …

his son would kill the ox

the fire would burn the stick

the ox would drink the water

the stick would beat the dog

the water would put out the fire

[C] Take a look at these sentences from the text and complete the translations using the words listed below. Don’t think about the Latin verb forms – not yet; once the whole text is completed, we will look at these in detail. The main aim at this point is to understand meaning rather than be side-tracked by grammar.

[i] Senex sēcum reputāvit:

“Cum ignis baculum usserit, fortasse baculum canem pulsābit.”

When the fire __________ the stick, perhaps the stick __________ the dog.

[ii] Senex iam īnsānus sibi dīxit:

“Cum aqua ignem exstīnxerit, fortasse ignis baculum ūret.”

When the water __________ the fire, perhaps the fire __________ the stick.

[iii] Senex īnsānior sibi dīxit.  

“Cum bōs aquam biberit, fortasse aqua ignem exstinguet.”

When the ox __________ the water, perhaps the water __________ the fire.

[iv] Senex igitur īnsānissimus sibi dīxit:

“Cum fīlius meus bovem interfēcerit, fortasse bōs aquam bibet.”

When my son __________ the ox, perhaps the ox __________ the water.

has burned; has drunk; has killed; has put out; will beat; will burn; will drink; will put out

20.10.24: Level 2; reading; dē porculō [1]

Dē porculō [1]

Ōlim senex quīdam Rōmam īvit, ubi porculum pinguem emit. Deinde domum porculum redūxit, quī per portam īre nōluit. Senex igitur porculum baculō vehementer pulsāvit, sed porculus nihilōminus per portam īre nōlēbat. Nihil enim faciēbat nisi humī sedēbat. Senex tandem sēcum putāvit, “Cum canis porculum momorderit, fortasse porculus per portam intrābit.” Canem igitur mordēre iussit, sed canis nōluit. Senex igitur sēcum reputāvit, “Cum baculum canem pulsāverit, fortasse canis porculum mordēbit.” Baculum igitur canem pulsāre iussit, sed baculum nōluit.

Vocabulary and notes

pinguis, -e: fat; plump

nihilōminus: nevertheless

mordeō, -ere, momordī [2]: bite

iubeō, -ere, iussī [2]: order; command i.e. tell somebody to do [+ infinitive] something

canem igitur mordēre iussit

humī < humus, -ī [2/f]: ground

Note: this is one of a very small group of nouns that has a locative case; all the necessary information on this is at:

https://adckl.blogspot.com/2024/04/290324-locative-case.html

The locative case was originally a separate case in Latin that merged with the ablative case; it is used primarily with the names of towns, cities and small islands when stating that you are in that place:

• Rōmae: in / at Rome
• Pompeiīs: in Pompeii
• Brundisiī: in Brundisium

There are, however, a handful of nouns that have retained a locative ending:

• humus (ground) > humī: on the ground
• domus (house) > domī: at home
• rūs (countryside) > rūrī: in the countryside

Questions

1. Where was the old man going? [1]
2. What did he want to buy? (a) a large fat pig (b) a small, fat pig (c) a Roman pig [1]
3. The pig refused to (a) go home (b) go to Rome (c) go through the gate [1]
4. How do we know the pig was determined not to move? [2]
5. What did the pig do instead? [2]
6. What did the farmer want the dog to do? (a) bite the pig (b) chase the pig (c) murder the pig [1]
7. How did the dog react to this? [1]
8. What did he tell the stick to do and how did it react? [2]

19.10.24: Level 1; review; practice in the verbs [3]; sum, esse; present, imperfect, future; online practice

https://linguaclassica.com/LatinVerbDrill.html

19.10.24: Level 1; review; practice in the verbs [2]; sum, esse; present, imperfect, future; further practice

[A] Complete  the  following  with  the appropriate form of the verb.

(1) Ego [a] sunt [b] sum [c] sumus fessus. 

(2) [a] Esne [b] Estne [c] Estisne vōs vulnerātī? 

(3) Tū nōn [a] es [b] est [c] esse vulnerātus. 

(4) Cūr [a] estis [b] est [c] es vōs captivī? 

(5) Mox vōs [a] estis [b] erātis [c] eritis magistrī. 

(6) Ōlim nōs [a] sumus [b] erāmus [c] erimus servī. 

(7) [a] Esne [b] Estne [c] Estisne tū servus? 

(8) Ubi [a] erās [b] estis [c] erit, Carole? 

(9) Ubi [a] erās [b] es [c] erat Carolus? 

(10) Ubi  [a] erās [b] eritis [c] est, sociī?

(11) Ubi [a] sunt [b] sumus [c] sum sociī  nostrī? 

(12) Nōs [a] sunt [b] sumus [c] sum parātī? 

(13) Cūr vōs nōn parātī  [a] erātis [b] est [c] es? 

(14) Sociī nostrī  ibi  [a] erant [b] erat [c] estis. 

(15) Nōs in  scholā  [a] erat [b] eris [c] erāmus, vōs in oppidō [a] estis [b] eram [c] erimus.

(16) Nunc nōs agricolae  [a] sunt [b] sum [c] sumus,  ōlim vōs nautae [a] estis [b] erātis [c] eritis. 

(17) Carolus [a] est [b] es [c] erant tūtus, amīcī  [a] sumus [b] sunt [c] erat captīvī. 

(18) Ōlim Barbarī in Ītaliā [a] sunt [b] erunt [c] erant,  nunc Caesar in oppidō [a] est [b] erat [c] es.

[B] Complete the following with the proper tense; look out for

• ōlim: in the past; formerly
• heri: yesterday
• hodiē: today
• nunc: now
• crās: tomorrow
• mox: soon
• nunquam: never

Note also the punctuation:

• Romānī, … / Puerī, … i.e. addressing the Romans / the boys directly
• Crasse, … i.e. addressing Crassus directly

1. Crās ego in oppidō __________ ; ubi tū __________ ?
2. Cūr tū in oppidō heri nōn __________ ?
3. Ōlim in Britanniā __________ Rōmānī.
4. Rōmānī, ōlim __________ in Britanniā.
5. Nunc nōs __________ puerī, ōlim vōs __________ puerī.
6. Hodiē ego prīmus __________ , heri Carolus prīmus __________ , crās tū prīmus __________ .
7. Heri barbarī in silvīs __________ , crās in oppidō __________ .
8. Rōmānī, cūr heri in agrīs __________ ?
9. Crasse, cūr nunc in mūrō nōn __________?
10. Puerī, mox virī __________ .
11. Britannī nunquam servī __________ .
12. Ōlim ego prīmus __________ , hodiē tū prīmus __________ .
13. Crās nōs in scholā __________ , vōs in oppidō __________ .
14. Nunc dux in oppidō __________ , mox in castrīs __________ .

____________________

[A]

1. Ego  [b] sum fessus. 
2. [c] Estisne vōs vulnerātī? 
3. Tū  nōn [a] es vulnerātus. 
4. Cūr  [a] estis vōs captivī? 
5. Mox vōs   [c] eritis magistrī. 
6. Ōlim nōs [b] erāmus servī. 
7. [a] Esne tū servus? 
8. Ubi  [a] erās,  Carole? 
9. Ubi  erat Carolus? 
10. Ubi  [b] eritis [c] est,  sociī?
11. Ubi [a] sunt sociī  nostrī? 
12. Nōs [b] sumus parātī? 
13. Cūr  vōs  nōn  parātī [a] erātis ? 
14. Sociī nostrī  ibi  [a] erant . 
15. Nōs in scholā [c] erāmus, vōs  in  oppidō [a] estis .
16. Nunc nōs  agricolae  sumus, ōlim vōs  nautae [b] erātis. 
17. Carolus [a] est tūtus,  amīcī  [b] sunt captīvī. 
18. Ōlim Barbarī in Ītaliā [c] erant,  nunc Caesar in  oppidō [a] est.

[B]

1. Crās ego in oppidō erō; ubi tū eris?
2. Cūr tū in oppidō heri nōn erās?
3. Ōlim in Britanniā erant Rōmānī.
4. Rōmānī, ōlim erātis in Britanniā.
5. Nunc nōs sumus puerī, ōlim vōs erātis puerī.
6. Hodiē ego prīmus sum, heri Carolus prīmus erat, crās tū prīmus eris.
7. Heri barbarī in silvīs erant, crās in oppidō erunt.
8. Rōmānī, cūr heri in agrīs erātis?
9. Crasse, cūr nunc in mūrō nōn es?
10. Puerī, mox virī eritis .
11. Britannī nunquam servī erant.
12. Ōlim ego prīmus eram, hodiē tū prīmus es.
13. Crās nōs in scholā erimus, vōs in oppidō eritis.
14. Nunc dux in oppidō est, mox in castrīs erit.

19.10.24: Level 1; review; practice in the verbs [1]; sum, esse; present, imperfect, future

Nunc puer sum │ Now I am a boy.

Ōlim īnfāns eram │ At one time (formerly; in the past) I was an infant.

Mox vir erō │ Soon I shall be a man.

[A]

[1] Ōlim agricola eram.

[2] Ōlim agricolae erāmus.

[3] Nunc mīles sum.

[4] Nunc mīlitēs sumus.

[5] Mox lēgātus erō.

[6] Ōlim in oppidō eram.

[7] Nunc in scholā sum.

[8] Mox erō in agrō.

[9] Ōlim captīvus eram.

[10] Nunc līber sum.

[11] Mox līberī erimus.

[12] Mox in Ītaliā erō.

[13] Ōlim in Ītaliā erāmus.

Note the number:

[a] Who was …

formerly a prisoner?

in the town at one time?

once a farmer?

[b] Who were …

farmers at one time?

in Italy in the past?

[c] Who is now …

a freedman?

a soldier?

in school?

[d] Who are now soldiers?

[e] Which person will soon be …

an ambassador?

in Italy?

in the field?

[f] Who will soon be freedmen?

[B] Image #2: match up; Are you ready?!

You can try the exercise here or have a go online:

https://puzzel.org/matching-pairs/play?p=-O6UyNAFfarZFBjVe15Z

18.10.24: Level 2; Practice in reading the perfect tense; a First Latin Reader (Vincent) [27]

A Storm

Dum Rōmānī contrā Britannōs pugnant, lūna erat plēna atque magna erat tempestās. Itaque XVIII nāvēs Rōmānae, quae equitēs trānsportābant, propter tempestātem ad īnsulam pervenīre nōn poterant, sed ad Galliam iterum nāvigāverant. Interim in Britanniā tempestās nāvēs multās Caesaris adflīctāvit*. Prīncipēs Britannōrum, ubi dē tempestāte audīvērunt, rebelliōnem contrā Caesarem parābant. Sed Caesar, quod impetum hostium timēbat, frūmentum comparābat atque nāvēs multās reparābat.

*adflīctō: alternative form of afflīctō, -āre, -āvī [1] (here) damage

Note:

Dum Rōmānī contrā Britannōs pugnant [present tense], lūna erat plēna atque magna erat tempestās. │ While the Romans were fighting against the Britons, the moon was full and there was a great storm.

Dum (while) regularly appears in the present tense, even though the narrative in the past, to emphasise that these events were happening at the same time.

Questions

1. How many ships are referred to? [1]
2. What were those ships doing? [1]
3. Why could the ships not reach the island? [1]
4. What had they done instead? [1]
5. What happened to the ships in Britain? [2]
6. What did the Britons decide to do? [2]
7. What did Caesar fear? [1]
8. What did he do? [2]

Grammar review: parsing nouns

Parsing has never been done in the group. However, if you’re now well on your way at Level 2, it’s good to have some practice in it because it helps to reinforce not only the meanings of words but to be precise in what those words are actually doing in a sentence. To parse a word means to analyse the form of the word. In Latin, when parsing a noun, there are usually three pieces of information you need to give:

[i] case (nominative, accusative etc.)  [ii] number (singular / plural) [iii] gender (masculine / feminine / neuter); they don’t have to be in that order

Example:

puellam

[i] accusative

[ii] singular

[iii] feminine

____________________

[iv] You may also need to give the nominative singular: puella

All of that can be abbreviated:

puellam: acc. sg. fem. < puella

I mention the inclusion of the nominative singular because some Latin examinations ask for the nominative singular of the noun rather than details of the parsing. Here are some examples from UK examination papers where the candidate is expected to be able to parse to some extent i.e. to identify the case.

(a) cum Latinis (line 1): identify the case of Latinis and explain why this case is used here.

(c) Identify an example of the accusative case in line 2.

(e) in alia parte Italiae (line 2): identify the case of Italiae.

[OCR GCSE 2022]

(g) e manibus (line 5): identify the case of manibus and explain why this case is used here.

(h) e manibus Volscorum (line 5): identify the case of Volscorum.

[OCR GCSE 2021]

State and explain the case of the following, using a translation if you think it is helpful:

(a) aliis (line 1)

(b) Alexandriae (line 4)

(c) agentis (line 11)

(d) cui (line 11)

[OCR A Level 2023]

Note also that, in questions of this type, you are asked to explain why the case is being used. We’ll do more practice on that in a later post.

Images #1 and #2: Try parsing these nouns from the text; use the image file since the line numbers match and remember that, even if a noun has the same ending for more than one case, it is the case in context that you need to give. Therefore, in an examination, look at the line number references because the word may appear more than once.

The table with the answers is given at the end of the post.

____________________

While the Romans were fighting against the Britons, the moon was full and there was a great storm. And so the 18 Roman ships, which were transporting the horsemen, could not reach the island because of the storm, but had sailed again to Gaul. Meanwhile in Britain the storm damaged many of Caesar's ships. The chiefs of the Britons, when they heard about the storm, prepared a rebellion against Caesar. But Caesar, because he was afraid of an enemy attack, procured corn and repaired many ships.

____________________

17.10.24: Level 1; review; practice in the cases; 1st / 2nd declension adjectives; adjectives in -er [3]

Match the Latin adjectives with the images

aeger, aegra, aegrum

ater, atra, atrum

glaber, glabra, glabrum

macer, macra, macrum

niger, nigra, nigrum

piger, pigra, pigrum

pulcher, pulchra, pulchrum

ruber, rubra, rubrum

noster, nostra, nostrum

vester, vestra,vestrum

dexter, dextra, dextrum

sinister, sinistra, sinistrum

miser, misera, miserum

tener, tenera, tenerum

16.10.24: Level 2; Ordinal numbers – all forms [6]; rapid reading [3]; documents

ANNO DOMINI │ [1] MILLESIMO [2] QUADRAGESIMO [3] QUINQUAGESIMO [4] NONO

In the │ [1] one thousandth [2] four hundredth [3] fiftieth [4] ninth │ year of the Lord = AD 1459

Here are some years from documents, inscriptions and books. Match the Latin with the numerical year. The day and month are also given for some of them. All the years and dates are given at the end - you just need to choose the right ones for each document.

[1] Extract from a birth certificate:

Boy or girl?

What year, month and day was the birth registered?

What day and month was the child born?

What information is omitted from this extract?

Anno domini millesimo nongentesimo decimo primo │ die nona mensis Julii │ puer natus │die quinta mensis Julii │ hora _____

[2] Published in Warsaw: year, month and day?

Varsaviae Anno Domini, Milleſimo Sexcenteſimo Quadrageſimo Tertio │ Die Octava Menſis Novembris. [ſ = s]

[3] On what day, month and year did Constancia die?

“HIC IACET EGREGIA DO/MINA CONSTANCIA DE SA/LVCIIS OLIM IVDICESSA/ARBOREE QVE OBIIT DIE/XVIII.MENSIS FEBRVARII │ ANNO DOMINI MILLESIMO/CCC.QVADRAGESI/MO OCTAVO”

[4] The online transcript of this certificate of baptism contains errors; it is difficult to know - owing to the handwriting - whether errors were actually made by the person who wrote the document, or the person who transcribed it. Below is the version with the correct spelling.

The year, date and month are given in the first three lines:

Anno D[omi]ni millesimo sexcentesimo sexagesimo septimo │ decima sexta mensis decembris

[5] The handwriting is almost impossible to read, but the transcription has been well done.

IN DEI NOMINE AMEN VICESIMO DIE MENSIS MARCII ANNO DOMINI MILLESIMO CCCC^MO LXX^MO

Ego Egidius Bregge de parochia de Hedecrone compos mentis saneque memorie condo testamentum in hunc modum

In the name of God Amen the __________ day of the month of __________ AD __________

I Giles Bregge of the parish of Headcorn being composed of mind and of sound memory make my testament in this fashion.

Note the abbreviation ‘mo’ attached to CCCC and LXX which refers to the ablative of the ordinal e.g. quadringentesimo (400^th). An ordinal may also be indicated by a small ^o after it.

[6] Two years given in this one i.e. ab: from [a certain year] ad: to [a certain year]; note the spelling of octuagesimo

AB ANNO DOMINI Millesimo, Quingentesimo, Octuagesimo Quinto usq́ [= usque]; ad Annum Millesimum, Sexcentesimum Octuagesimum Septimum inclusivè.

[7] What do you notice about the year given [i] in full in Latin and [ii] in Roman numerals?

[i] ANNO DOMINI MILLESIMO OCTINGENTESIMO VIGESIMO QUINTO

[ii] MDCCCXXVI

[8]

Anno Domini millesimo octingentesimo sexagesimo sexto

[9]

Anno Domini Millesimo Sexcentesimo Nonagesimo Quarto │ Die Primo Aprilis

[10]

Anno Domini Millesimo Sexcentestimo Nonagesimo Septimo

1348; 1470; 1585; 1643; 1667; 1687; 1694; 1697; 1825; 1826; 1866; 1911

February 18th; March 20th; April 1st; July 5th; July 9th; November 8th; December 16th

15.10.24: Level 1; review; practice in the cases; 1st / 2nd declension adjectives; adjectives in -er [2]

14.10.24: Level 2; Practice in reading the perfect tense; a First Latin Reader (Vincent) [26]

Inde Rōmānī et Britannī ācriter pugnābant. Sed Rōmānī hostem fugāre nōn poterant, quod ōrdinēs nōn servābant atque altitūdō maris impediēbat. V ada Britannis erant nōta, equōs suōs contrā Rōmānōs incitābant, multī Britannī cum Rōmānīs paucīs pugnābant. Tandem mīlitēs Rōmānī, ubi in ōram āridam pervēnērunt, impetum magnum fēcērunt et hostēs fugāvērunt. Victōria nōn erat magna, quod equitēs cursum tenēre atque īnsulam capere* nōn potuērunt.

*capere: (here) reach rather than capture

Vocabulary

cursus, -ūs [4/m]: course; cursum tenēre: maintain a direct course

impetus, -ūs [4/m]: attack

ōrdō, ōrdinis [3/m]: (here) rank or line of soldiers; ōrdinēs nōn servābant: They didn’t maintain / keep in their ranks

Questions

1. How is the fighting described between the Britons and the Romans? [1]
2. For what two reasons were the Romans unable to make the Britons flee? [3]
3. What did the Britons know about? [1]
4. What did the Britons do with their horses? [2]
5. What sentence tells you that there were more Britons than Romans in the battle? [1]
6. When were the Romans able to make an attack? [1]
7. “Victōria nōn erat magna”: what two reasons are given for this statement? [3]

Grammar review

Give the first person singular present tense of these verbs from the text:

• capere
• erant
• fēcērunt
• fugāre
• impediēbat
• pervēnērunt
• poterant
• tenēre

____________________

Then the Romans and the Britons fought fiercely. But the Romans could not put the enemy to flight, because they did not keep order [= keep in ranks], and the depth of the sea hindered them. The shallow waters were known to the Britons, and they spurred on their horses against the Romans, and many Britons fought with a few Romans. At last the Romans, when they reached a dry place, made a great attack and put the enemy to flight. The victory was not great, because the horsemen were unable to maintain a direct course and reach the island.

13.10.24: Level 1; review; practice in the cases; 1st / 2nd declension adjectives; adjectives in -er [1]

§47: colloquium

BARBARUS

Rōmānī, summō in perīculō estis. Cōpiae barbarōrum magnae sunt. Barbarī multōs sagittāriōs habent. Sagittāriī multās sagittās habent. Hastae barbarōrum acūtae sunt. Pila barbarōrum longa sunt. Scūta barbarōrum lāta sunt, Rōmānī summō in perīculō estis !

RŌMĀNUS

Summō in perīculō! mehercule. Mūrus noster altus est, portae nostrae firmae sunt. Nec arma nec cōpiae barbarōrum nōs terrent. Nostrae hastae acūtae sunt. Nostra scūta lāta sunt. Nostrae cōpiae magnae sunt. Nostrī sagittāriī multās sagittās habent. Oppidum nostrum tūtum est. Barbarī, nōs tūtī sumus, vōs summō in perīculō estis!

[A] vocabulary

acūtus, -a,-um: sharp

altus, -a, -um: high

firmus, -a, um: strong

lātus, -a, -um: wide

longus, -a, -um: long

magnus, -a, -um: big; great

multus, -a,  -um: much (plural: many)

summus, -a, -um: the greatest

tūtus, -a, -um: safe

noster, nostra, nostrum: our

[B] Find the Latin and focus on the words in bold:

our ¦ wall is ¦ high

our ¦ town is ¦ safe

in the ¦ greatest ¦ danger

we are ¦ safe

our ¦ troops are ¦ large

our ¦ gates are ¦ strong

the barbarians’ spears are ¦ sharp

our ¦ spears are ¦ sharp

the barbarians’ shields are ¦ wide

our ¦ shields are ¦ wide

the barbarians’ javelins are ¦ long

the barbarians’ shields are ¦ wide

the barbarians have many ¦ archers

our ¦ archers have ¦ many ¦ arrows

[C] adjectives in -er

Adjectives that end in -er in the masculine nominative singular decline in the same way as nouns ending in -er i.e. many common adjectives will lose the /e/ before the ending is added and some don’t; that isn’t entirely random but, at this stage, it is better to note those that change as you go along.

The two most common adjectives ending in -er that you will come across and which don’t change are:

miser, misera, miserum: miserable; wretched

tener, tenera, tenerum: [i] delicate; soft; tender [ii] youthful

However, we focus here on common adjectives which do change:

aeg¦er, aeg¦ra, aeg¦rum: sick

ater, atra, atrum: black i.e. dull black (think of matt black paint)

glaber, glabra, glabrum: smooth; hairless

macer, macra, macrum: skinny

niger, nigra, nigrum: black i.e. shining black (think of gloss black paint)

piger, pigra, pigrum: lazy

pulcher, pulchra, pulchrum: beautiful

ruber, rubra, rubrum: red

The same applies to these two possessive adjectives:

noster, nostra, nostrum: our

vester, vestra, vestrum: your (plural)

The short text below practises [i] dexter, dextra, dextrum: right and [ii] sinister, sinistra, sinistrum: left

§48: MEMBRA CORPORIS

lacertus dexter │ lacertus sinister

palma dextra │ palma sinistra

bracchium dextrum │ bracchium sinistrum

Hīc est palma dextra — hīc est bracchium dextrum — hīc est lacertus dexter — hīc est palma sinistra — hīc est bracchium sinistrum — hīc est lacertus sinister — hīc est gena dextra — hīc est gena sinistra — hic est oculus dexter — hīc est oculus sinister — hīc est humerus dexter.

§49

Hīc est oculus dexter │ Here is the right eye.

> Oculum dextrum tangō │ I touch the right eye

Hic est oculus sinister │ Here is the right eye.

>  Oculum sinistrum tangō │ I touch the left eye

Hīc est gena sinistra │ Here is the left cheek

>  Genam sinistram tangō │ I touch the left cheek

Hīc est bracchium dextrum │ Here is the right (fore-)arm

>  Bracchium dextrum tangō │ I touch the right (fore-)arm