04.08.24: Level 2; Practice in reading the perfect tense; A First Latin Reader (Vincent) [7]

Gāius Marcius Coriolōs, oppidum Volscōrum, superāvit. Inde Rōmānī Marcium Coriolānum appellāvērunt. Sed populus Rōmānus Coriolānum, quia erat superbus, cōnsulem nōn creāvit et posteā ex oppidō expulit. Coriolānus et Attius Tullius, quī erat rēx Volscōrum, Rōmae appropinquābant et agrōs Rōmānōrum vastābant. Rōmānī nūntiōs multōs ad Coriolānum frūstrā mīsērunt. Sed, ubi Veturia et Volumnia et puerī ad Coriolānum vēnērunt, lacrimae fēminārum superāvērunt. Coriolānus cōpiās redūxit et oppidum erat tūtum.

Sentence structure: the sentence structure in these texts is fairly simple but they do give practice in identifying key words that break up a long sentence into clauses:

principal / main clause: part of the sentence that can stand alone and make sense:

• Sed populus Rōmānus Coriolānum ... cōnsulem nōn creāvit. │ But the Roman people ... did not make Coriolanus a consul.

subordinate clause: a clause that cannot stand alone and must be connected to another part of the sentence:

• ...quia erat superbus ... │ ...because he was arrogant ...

• ...ubi Veturia et Volumnia et puerī ad Coriolānum vēnērunt ... │ ...when Veturia and Volumnia and the children came to Coriolanus ...

relative / adjectival clause: this is also a subordinate clause in that it cannot stand alone, but has the specific name of relative clause because it relates / refers to / describes a previously mentioned person / thing

• Attius Tullius, quī erat rēx Volscōrum ... │ Attius Tullius, who was the king of the Volsci ...

[i] Sed populus Rōmānus Coriolānum, ¦  [ii] quia erat superbus [subordinate clause of reason], ¦ [i] cōnsulem nōn creāvit [principal clause #1]  ¦ [i] et posteā ex oppidō expulit [principal clause #2].

[i] Coriolānus et Attius Tullius, ¦ [ii] quī erat rēx Volscōrum [relative / adjectival clause], ¦ [i] Rōmae appropinquābant [principal clause #1] ¦ [i] et agrōs Rōmānōrum vastābant [principal clause #2].

[i] Sed, ¦ [ii] ubi Veturia et Volumnia et puerī ad Coriolānum vēnērunt [subordinate clause of time], ¦ [i] lacrimae fēminārum superāvērunt [principal clause].

____________________

Gaius Marcius overcame Coriolos, a town of the Volsci. Then the Romans called Marcius Coriolanus. But the Roman people did not make Coriolanus a consul because he was arrogant, and afterwards expelled him from the town. Coriolanus and Attius Tullius, who was king of the Volsci, approached Rome and laid waste the fields of the Romans. The Romans sent many messengers to Coriolanus in vain. But when Veturia and Volumnia and the children came to Coriolanus, the women's tears overcame (them). Coriolanus brought back his troops, and the town was safe.

____________________

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

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

04.08.24: Level 2; Participles: the present active participle [1]

A participle is a word formed from a verb and is used as an adjective e.g. walking, shouting.

Here are examples of present active participles from the previous text “Dē Crocodīlō”:

1. Rōbertus igitur, vidēns ¦ hunc stultum puerum ¦ ad flūmen ambulantem … │ Robert, therefore, seeing this foolish boy [who was] walking towards the river
2. … et fīlium tertium ¦ in rīpā stantem ¦ longō baculō pulsāvit. │ …and, with a long stick, he beat the third son ¦ [who was] standing on the bank.
3. Rōbertus … puerum ululantem audīvit. │ Robert … heard the boy howling.

Latin makes extensive use of participles and they are a major component in being able to read the Roman authors.

[A]

The man ¦ who is working in the garden ¦ is my friend. = [i] The man working in the garden is my friend.

• In the second sentence ‘working’ describes the man.

Did you see that man ¦ who was working in the garden? = [ii] Did you see that man working in the garden?

• In the second sentence ‘working’ still describes the man but does not change even though the action being referred to is in the past.

‘working’ in [i] and [ii] is expressed in Latin by the present active participle. The term ‘present’ does not refer to when the action is / was performed but that the action happens / happened at the same time as the main action.

I can hear a barking dog. / I can hear a dog barking. = I can hear a dog that’s barking.

I could hear a barking dog. / I could hear a dog barking. = I could hear a dog that was barking.

[B]

While he was sitting on the riverbank, │ the boy completely forgot about the time.

= While sitting on the riverbank │ the boy …

= Sitting on the riverbank │ the boy …

Here, the English -ing can convey ‘as’ ‘while’ or ‘when’ somebody is / was doing something. Again, the Latin present active participle can convey this idea.

__________

Note! What Classical Latin does not do is use these to convey the English progressive tenses i.e. I am going, I was working, I shall be leaving. The present, imperfect and future tense in Latin are only ever used:

labōrō: I work or I am working

labōrābam: I was working

labōrābō: I shall work or I shall be working.

Mediaeval Latin can use participles to convey this idea, but not in the Classical Language.

Similarly, there are other constructions which use -ing in English but are not expressed by a Latin present participle and will be covered later e.g. [i] By giving him food, we saved him. [ii] Seeing is believing.’ Neither [i] nor [ii] are participles in Latin since they do not describe a noun.

__________

Here are other examples that show [A] and [B] above; translations can be flexible provided they convey the idea of two actions happening at the same time.

• Puellam lacrimantem videō. │ I see a girl ¦ crying / … who is crying.
• Puella ¦ multa carmina canēns ¦ cēnam parat. │ The girl ¦ [while] singing many songs ¦ prepares dinner.
• In silvā ambulāns ¦ mīles corpus vīdit. │[While] walking / as he was walking in the forest ¦ the soldier saw the body.

Image #1: The 15^th century Christmas carol ‘The Boar’s Head Carol’ describes the ancient tradition of presenting a boar’s head at the Yuletide banquet.

reddō, -ere [3]: give back; deliver > reddēns, -entis: giving back; delivering

Caput aprī dēferō │ The boar’s head I bear

Reddēns laudēs Dominō │ While giving back / As I give back praises to the Lord.

Because participles are adjectives, they agree in gender, number and case with the noun. The examples below show this.

[1]

• Rōbertus igitur, vidēns ¦ hunc stultum puerum ¦ ad flūmen ambulantem …
• Robert [nominative], therefore, seeing [nominative] ¦ this foolish boy [accusative] walking [accusative] towards the river …

[2]

• … et fīlium tertium ¦ in rīpā stantem ¦ longō baculō pulsāvit.
• …and, with a long stick, he beat the third son [accusative] ¦ standing [accusative] on the bank.

[3]

• Rōbertus … puerum ululantem audīvit.
• Robert … heard the boy [accusative] howling [accusative].

Over the next few posts we’ll look at what endings are used. 

03.08.34: follow-up on member's post; spotting the numbers: numbers 1 – 900

Many posts have looked at the topic of numbers. More posts, which will discuss numbers in greater detail, will be coming soon. As a way of preparing for that, take a look at the word cloud. At first sight it seems quite challenging! However, like the declension tables, you need to take it all apart and see what is actually happening when numbers are formed.

There are six key points you need to know to be able to handle numbers – all of them. Here’s a summary:

[1] 1 – 10

[2] vīgintī; centum; mīlle

[3] -decim

[4] ūnde- / duodē-

[5] -gintā

[6] -centī / -gentī

Point [1]

Almost every number in Latin is formed from the base numbers 1 – 10.

ūnus (1); duo (2); trēs (3); quattuor (4); quīnque (5); sex (6); septem (7); octō (8); novem (9); decem (10)

Point [2]

The only numbers beyond that which are not formed from 1- 10 are: vīgintī (20), centum (100) and mīlle (1000)

So, what is it you need to know to be able to recognise the numbers without getting dragged down by spelling changes and / or declensions (because some numbers do decline)?

In the same way that English has thirteen and thirty and three hundred, so too does Latin.

Point [3] teens: -decim (decim < decem [10])

The base number may change a little in its spelling but it’s still recognisable:

ūnus > ūndecim (11)

sex > sedecim (16)

Point [4] duodē- / ūndē-

These can catch you out!

Take them apart:

duo (2) dē (from)

ūn (1) dē (from)

These two are used in compound numbers ending in 8 and 9 e.g. 28, 49 etc. with the next multiple to come and are known as subtractive forms i.e. taking away from the next number rather than adding to it which the other compound numbers do.

ūndecim (11); duodecim (12); tredecim (13); quattuordecim (14); quīndecim (15); sēdecim (16); septendecim (17)

Now …

duo ¦ dē ¦ vīgintī = two from twenty = 18

ūndēvīgintī = one from twenty = 19

Point [5] Multiples of ten: -gintā

vīgintī (20) is the only multiple of ten that does not end in -gintā and cannot be deduced from the numbers 1 - 10. La. vīgintī > Fr, vingt; Sp. veinte; It. venti; Port. vinte.

Again, don’t be concerned by spelling changes; the base number is still obvious.

trīgintā (30); quadrāgintā (40); quīnquāgintā (50); sexāgintā (60); septuāgintā (70); octōgintā (80); nōnāgintā (90)

Compound numbers are straightforward since they are most often two (or more) parts of the number placed side-by-side. You may see other ways of expressing the compounds but the meaning is always clear.

vīgintī ūnus (21); ūnus et vīgintī (compare Gmn: einundzwanzig and older style English one and twenty)

trīgintā duo (32); duo et trīgintā

quadrāgintā sex (46)

quīnquāgintā quīnque (55)

septuāgintā trēs (73)

octōgintā septem (87)

nōnāgintā quattuor (94)

Note again the compounds ending in 8 and 9:

duo ¦ dē ¦ septuāgintā [2 from 70] = 68 i.e. don’t ‘skim read’ the main number; look at what comes before it

ūndēnōnāgintā [1 from 90] = 89

Combinations like vīgintī novem and vīgintī octō are also possible, but less common than the forms shown above.

Point [6] Multiples of 100: -centī / -gentī

Those endings have been formed from centum (100)

duo > ducentī (200)

quīnque > quīngentī (500)

sex > sēscentī (600)

novem > nongentī (900)

Take a good look at:

[2] -gintā: the marker for multiples of ten

[3] -gentī: a marker for the multiples of 100

Both have a /g/ and /nt/ and they can be misread, but the vowels are different.

-gIntā

-gEntī (remember it comes from centum)

Match the numerals with the Latin numbers; there are three base numbers in this exercise - trēs quīnque septem - and so look for [i] the "markers" and [ii] duodē- / ūndē-

3; 5; 7; 13; 15; 17; 28; 30; 49; 50; 70; 300; 500; 700

03.08.24: Level 1; Ora Maritima [6](4)

2^nd declension neuter nouns

02.08.24: Level 1; Maxey (8)

https://www.usu.edu/markdamen/latin1000/Chapters/02ch.htm

Hīc non habitat vir. Ibi habitat vir. Hic vir est poēta clārus et benignus. Casam habet et cūrat. Nunc fēminae in silvā ambulant. Nunc poēta iānuam aperit et feminās videt. Fēminae rosās portant. Poētae rosās ostendunt et poēta est laetus quod rosae fēminārum sunt grātae et rosās nōn habet. Fēminae poētae rosās dant. Poēta fēminīs grātiās agit. Hoc dōnum est poētae grātum. Nunc iānuam claudit. Rosās cūrat et laudat.

Interdum poēta est in scholā quod amīcus magistrae est. Saepe fābulās nārrat. In silvā cum discipulīs ambulat quoque. Saepe discipulī cum poētā ambulāre cupiunt. Poēta est discipulīs cārus. Est benignus quoque. Suntne poētae tibi benignī? Poētae sunt mihi benignī, sed ego sum magistra. Esne tū poēta? Pater meus est poēta et in Britanniā habitat. Epistulās patris meī legere cupiō. Interdum in epistulīs patris sunt dōna. Bene est. Patrī grātiās agō, quod dōna sunt pecūnia et pictūrae. Ē multīs terrīs pater pictūrās portat. Pater meus est poēta clārus. Fāma est magna.

Find the Latin; again, take a look at the endings of the nouns and how those nouns are working in the sentences and phrases:

SINGULAR

[1] Nominative

[i] the noun is peforming the action in the sentence

• The poet opens the door.
• The poet is in school.

[ii] the noun is the predicate e.g. He is a soldier

• This man is a poet.
• I am a teacher.
• Are you a poet?

[2] Genitive: the ‘possessor’ the person, and many other expressions which translate into English with ‘of’

• The poet is a friend of the teacher.

[3] Dative: the indirect object, the person / thing to whom / which, for example something is given or for whom / which something is done

• They show the roses to the poet
• This gift is pleasing to the poet = The poet likes the gift

[4] Accusative: the direct object of the sentence i.e. the person/ thing that is experiencing the action

• He has a cottage.
• He looks after the cottage.
• The poet opens the door.
• He closes the door.

[5] Ablative: many uses but is often found with prepositions e.g. in (in / on), cum (with) ē / ex (out of), all of which appear in the text

• He walks …. in the forest.
• The pupils wish to walk with the poet.

PLURAL

[1] Nominative

• The women are walking

[2] Genitive

• The roses of the women [= the women’s roses] are pleasing

[3] Dative

• The poet thanks (is grateful to) the women.

[4] Accusative

• He sees the women.

[5] Ablative

• There are gifts in the letters.
• My father brings pictures from (out of) many countries.

 

01.08.24: Level 2; Dē crocodīlō [3]

aperiō, aperīre, aperuī [4]: open

cadō, cadere, cecidī [3]: fall

extrahō, extrahere, extrāxī [3]: drag / pull out

haereō, haerēre, haesī [3]: stick

obeō, obīre, obiī [irr.]: go to meet; mortem obeō: die

Iēiūnus, -a, -um: hungry

quamquam: although

[A]

1. How did the crocodile describe the third son? [1 point]
2. Here is an example where a test question may want a lot of detail in an answer. Identify ‘blocks’ of information: Describe what happened when the crocodile wanted to eat the boy. [9 points] (Answer in the comments): [1] Ad porcī cadāver celeriter natāvit, │ [2] ōs aperuit, │ [3] porcum dēvorāvit. │ Sed [4] hāmus │ [5] in ōre eius │ [4] haesit │ et [6] senex │ [7] Rōbertum │ [8] fūne │ [9] ē flūmine Nīlō │ [6] extrāxit.*
3. What did the man think it was not right for the crocodile to do? [1 point]
4. What did he do to the crocodile? [1 point]
5. Where was the crocodile kept? [1 point]
6. What did the emperor’s slave do? [2 points]
7. How do we know that the crocodile died happily? [2 points]

[B] Find the Latin

1. He heard the boy wailing …
2. He thought to himself …
3. It isn’t proper ¦ for you (to eat…)
4. … filled with sleep and food…

 ____________________

[1] He quickly swam to the the body of the pig │ [2] opened (his) mouth │ and [3] devoured the pig. But [4] the hook stuck │ [5] in his mouth │ [6] and the old man dragged │ [7] Robert / the crocodile │ [8] with the line │ [9] out of the river Nile.

31.07.24: Level 1; Ora Maritima [6](3)

 

Agellus patruī meī in Cantiō est, inter Dubrās et Rutupiās situs. Dubrae et Rutupiae oppida antīqua sunt. Multa sunt monumenta antīqua in Britanniā, multa vestīgia Rōmānōrum. Reliquiae villārum, oppidōrum, amphitheātrōrum Rōmānōrum hodiē exstant. Multae viae Rōmānae in Britanniā sunt.

In Cantiō est via Rōmāna inter Rutupiās et Londinium. Solum Britannicum multōs nummōs aureōs, argenteōs, aēneōs et Britannōrum et Rōmānōrum occultat. Rusticīs nummī saepe sunt causa lucrī, cum arant vel fundāmenta aedificiōrum antīquōrum excavant. Nam nummōs antīquōs magnō pretiō vēnumdant. Patruō meō magnus numerus est nummōrum Rōmānōrum.

Vocabulary

Dubrae, -ārum [1/f/pl]: Dover

Rutupiae, -ārum [1/f/pl]: Richborough

exstō, -āre [1]: exist

occultō, -āre [1]: hide

reliquiae, -ārum [1/f/pl]: remains

vēnumdō, -āre [1]: sell

Notes

[1] The text reviews neuter nouns in the 2^nd declension:

lucrum, -ī [2/n]: profit

monumentum, -ī [2/n]: monument

oppidum, -ī [2/n]: town

solum, -ī [2/n]: soil

aedificium, -ī [2/n]: building

amphitheātrum, -ī [2/n]:

Cantium, -ī [2/n]: promontory in England; now Kent

Londinium, -ī [2/n]: London

pretium, -ī [2/n]: price

vestigium, -ī [2/n]: trace

[2] The use of the dative to express:

[i] to whom something is of benefit

• Rusticīs nummī saepe sunt causa lucrī │ The coins are often a source of profit for the countryfolk.

[ii] possession

• Patruō meō magnus numerus est ¦ nummōrum Rōmānōrum. │[Literally: To my uncle (there is a large number) = My uncle has a large number ¦ of Roman coins.

[3] The use of the ablative to express the price for which something is sold.

• Nam nummōs antīquōs magnō pretiō vēnumdant. │ For they sell the ancient coins for / at a high price.

[4] A number of towns in Latin are in the plural:

• Dubrae: Dover
• Rutupiae: Richborough

Therefore, they will decline as plural nouns:

• inter Dubrās et Rutupiās

The most well-known of these types of plural place names is Athēnae (Athens).

30.07.24: Level 1; Maxey (7)

Haec est casa Americāna. Haec casa iānuam habet. Iānua est clausa. Multās fenestrās quoque habet. Fenestrae sunt magnae. Fenestra Americāna mihi grāta est. Estne tibi grāta?

Haec est casa Rōmāna. Casa nōn est magna; est parva.

Iānuam habet. Iānua est aperta. Fenestrās habet sed nōn multās fenestrās. Fenestrae Rōmānae nōn sunt magnae; sunt parvae. Fenestrae Rōmānae sunt altae. Nōn sunt clārae. Fenestrās Rōmānās nōn amō. Fenestrās Americānās laudō. Americānī fenestrās apertās saepe habent. Fenestrae Rōmānae nōn sunt apertae; sunt clausae. Fenestrās apertās laudō.

The door is closed.

The house / cottage isn’t big.

The windows are large.

__________

This house has a door.

It also has many windows.

__________

Nominative plural: fenestrae

Accusative plural: fenestrās

 

29.07.24: Level 2; Dē crocodīlō [2]

adligō, adligāre, adligāvī [1]: bind / tie (to)

dolus, -ī [2/m]: trick

excōgitō, excōgitāre, excōgitāvī [1] devise; think up

fūnis, -is [3/m]: line; rope; cord

hāmus, -ī [2/m]: hook

omnīnō: entirely; utterly

ululō, ululāre, ululāvī [1]: howl

venter, ventris [3/m]: belly; stomach

[A]

1. What did the man think would happen to the second son? [1 point]
2. Why did the second son not see the body of his brother? [2 points]
3. What did the third son feel about the crocodile? [2 points]
4. What did the father think up? [1 point]
5. What did he carry to the river bank? [2 points]
6. What did the father do with the hook? [4 points]: Hāmum quoque habēbat, quem │[i] in porcī │[ii] cadāvere cēlāvit │ et [iii] ad fūnem │ [iv] adligāvit.

[B] What case are the nouns in bold and why is that case being used?

1. Deinde senex secundō fīliō … exclāmāvit.
2. Spectā cadāver frātris tuī!
3. Nōlī ad flūmen Nīlum adīre!
4. Namque in Nīlō habitat crocodīlus …
5. … frātrem tuum dēvorāvit…
6. … namque iam [1] in ventre [2] Rōbertī iacēbat
7. …vidēns hunc stultum puerum

Notes:

[1] … et fīlium tertium ¦ in rīpā stantem ¦ longō baculō pulsāvit. │ …and, with a long stick, he beat the third son ¦ standing on the bank; again, ‘stantem’ is an example of a present active participle which will be discussed after these texts.

[2] magnā vōce ¦ ululāvit │ he howled ¦ in a loud voice; ablative case to indicate the manner in which an action is performed 

28.07.24: Level 1; Ora Maritima [6](2); cloze

book: https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/permalink/445400638071210/

Agellus patruī meī in __________ est, inter Dubrās et Rutupiās situs. Dubrae et Rutupiae __________ antīqua sunt. Multa sunt __________ antīqua in Britanniā, multa __________ Rōmānōrum. Reliquiae villārum, __________, __________ Rōmānōrum hodiē exstant. Multae viae Rōmānae in Britanniā sunt. In Cantiō est via Rōmāna inter Rutupiās et Londinium. __________ Britannicum multōs nummōs aureōs, argenteōs, aēneōs et Britannōrum et Rōmānōrum occultat. Rusticīs nummī saepe sunt causa lucrī, cum arant vel __________ __________ antīquōrum excavant. Nam nummōs antīquōs magnō __________ vēnumdant. Patruō meō magnus numerus est nummōrum Rōmānōrum.

aedificiōrum; amphitheātrōrum; Cantiō; fundāmenta; monumenta

oppida; oppidōrum; pretiō; solum; vestīgia

27.07.24: Level 1: Maxey (6)

Epistulam habeō. Epistulam nautae ostendō. Nauta epistulam videt. Epistulam spectat. Est epistula nautae. Nauta epistulam cupit. Nautae epistulam dō. Nunc epistulam habet et laetus est. Mihi grātiās agit. Epistulam legit. In epistulā est pictūra. Nunc mihi pictūram mōnstrat.

[1] Find the noun in the text.

[2] What ending does the noun have?

[3] Why is that ending being used?

a.      The sailor sees the letter.

b.      I have a letter.

c.      I show [i] the letter [ii] to the sailor.

d.      It’s the sailor’s letter [= the letter ¦ of the sailor]

e.      It’s the letter of the sailor.

f.        I give [i] the letter [ii] to the sailor.

g.       There is a picture in the letter.

h.      There is a picture in the letter.

__________

Nominative: epistula

Genitive: epistulae

Dative: epistulae

Accusative: epistulam

Ablative: epistulā

__________

Match the case name with its use

Nominative:

Genitive:

Dative:

Accusative:

Ablative:

The ‘owner’ of something e.g. This is my brother’s friend.

Many uses including with prepositions such as ‘in’.

The direct object of a sentence e.g. I read a book.

The subject of the sentence or after the verb ‘to be’: The book belongs to me. It’s a book about history.

The indirect object of a sentence e.g. I give a book to a friend.

26.07.24: Level 2; Dē crocodīlō [1]

hiō, hiāre, hiāvī [1]: yawn
līmus, -ī [2/m]: mud
mōs, mōris [3/m]: manner / way of behaving
namque: for; since i.e. because
pāreō, pārēre [2]: obey; the verb is followed by a noun in the dative case
pūrgō, purgāre, pūrgāvī [1]: clean
sapiēns, sapientis: wise

[A] In the next three posts which cover this text, I’ve added a number of ‘points’ after each question. If anybody is preparing for a Latin examination, reading comprehension questions will often be followed by a number in brackets, the bigger the number, the more detailed the examiners want the answer to be.

1.      Where exactly did the crocodile live? [2 points]
2.      What did the crocodile do when the sun was shining? [3 points]
3.      How did the bird help the crocodile? [4 points]
4.      What two good characteristics did the crocodile have, and which bad one? [4 points]
5.      Who also lived in the same place? [1 point]
6.      How many sons did he have? [1 point]
7.      Why is the man described as wise? [1 point]
8.      What did he advise his first son not to do, and why? [3 points]
9.      How did the son react to his father’s advice? [2 points]
10.  What did the crocodile do when he saw the boy? [2 points]

[B]
1.      What case is ‘O mī fīlī!’
2.      What is the meaning of ‘que’ in benevolusque?

Notes:

[1] quīdam, quaedam, quoddam: a certain (person / thing); some (person / thing)

• Olim crocodīlus quīdam in Aegyptō habitābat. │ There once lived a certain crocodile in Egypt i.e. quīdam makes the reference non-specific
• Senex quīdam │ a certain old man
• Avis quaedam sapiēns │ a certain wise bird

Many examples of this occur in the Mediaeval text Gesta Rōmānōrum

• Rēx quīdam rēgnāvit, in cuius imperiō erat quīdam iuvenis. │ There ruled a certain emperor in whose empire was a certain young man.
• Imperātrīx quaedam erat, in cuius imperiō erat quīdam mīles │ There was a certain empress in whose empire was a certain soldier
• Perrexit ad quendam philosophum … │ He proceeded / went (on) to a certain philosopher …
• Ad quandam cīvitātem … vēnit │ He came to a certain city.
• Accidit quōdam diē …  │ It happened on a certain day …

The declension of quīdam can be found at:

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/quidam#Latin

[2] crocodīlus … cui nōmen Rōbertus erat. │ Literally: a crocodile to whom was the name Robert = a crocodile … whose name was Robert / … who had the name Robert.

[3] dum sōl lūcet [present], Rōbertus …dormiēbat [imperfect] │ While the sun was shining, Robert … used to sleep

Although the sentence is in the past tense, dum (while) is regularly used with the present tense to indicate that the action was happening at the same time. English would translate it with a past tense.

Dum hiat [present], avis quaedam sapiēns ad eum advolābat [imperfect] … │ While he was yawning, a certain wise bird used to fly to him …

Hoc dum nārrat [present], forte audīvī [perfect] (Terence) │ I happened to hear this while she was telling it.

[4] Rōbertus igitur, vidēns ¦ hunc stultum puerum ¦ ad flūmen ambulantem … │ Robert, therefore, seeing ¦ this foolish boy ¦ walking towards the river …; ‘vidēns’ and ‘ambulantem’ are examples of present active participles describing what the nouns are doing. Detailed information on this important aspect of Latin grammar is coming up after the text has been covered.

25.07.24: Level 1; Ora Maritima [6](1)

book: https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/permalink/445400638071210/

In which order [1-8] does the author first refer to the following:    

• a personal coin collection
• description of the towns
• gold coins
• location of his uncle’s plot of land
• making money (careful!)
• ploughing
• remains of Roman buildings                                   
• Roman roads                                                           

OM_06

9.      Agellus patruī meī in Cantiō est, inter Dubrās et Rutupiās situs. Dubrae et Rutupiae oppida antīqua sunt. Multa sunt monumenta antīqua in Britanniā, multa vestīgia Rōmānōrum. Reliquiae villārum, oppidōrum, amphitheātrōrum Rōmānōrum hodiē exstant. Multae viae Rōmānae in Britanniā sunt. In Cantiō est via Rōmāna inter Rutupiās et Londinium. Solum Britannicum multōs nummōs aureōs, argenteōs, aēneōs et Britannōrum et Rōmānōrum occultat. Rusticīs nummī saepe sunt causa lucrī, cum arant vel fundāmenta aedificiōrum antīquōrum excavant. Nam nummōs antīquōs magnō pretiō vēnumdant. Patruō meō magnus numerus est nummōrum Rōmānōrum.

____________________

[1] My uncle's plot of land is in Kent, between Dover and Richborough. [2] Dover and Richborough are ancient towns. There are many ancient monuments in Britain, many traces of the Romans. [3] Remains of Roman villas, towns, and amphitheatres exist today. There are many [4] Roman roads in Britain. In Kent there is a Roman road between Richborough and London. The British soil hides many [5] gold, silver, and bronze coins of both the Britons and the Romans. The coins are often a [6] source of profit for people living in the countryside when they’re [7] ploughing or excavating the foundations of ancient buildings. For they sell ancient coins at a great price. [8] My uncle has a large number of Roman coins.

24.07.24: level 1; 4th conjugation verbs

Match the verbs with the images. The list isn’t entirely random; the first two are obvious, but take a look at the derivatives of most of the others (in bold) in the word cloud.

fīniō, -īre [4]

pūniō, -īre [4]

____________________

aperiō, -īre [4]

audiō, -īre [4] 

cūstōdiō, -īre [4] 

dormiō, -īre [4] 

impediō, -rē [4] 

mūniō, -īre [4]

oboediō, -īre [4]

sciō, -īre [4] 

sentiō, -īre [4]

sepeliō, -īre [4]

veniō, -īre [4]

____________________

ēsuriō, -īre [4]

feriō, -īre [4]

nesciō, -īre [4]

saeviō, -īre [4]

saliō, -re [4]

sitiō, -īre [4]

vinciō, īre [4]

23.07.24: Level 2; Practice in reading the perfect tense; A First Latin Reader (Vincent) [6]

Translation and answer in the comments

In which order are the following statements first referred to?

• defending the bridge
• destroying the bridge
• fighting alone
• Horatius’ comrades
• swimming across the river
• the Etruscans
• the name of a river

Posteā Tarquinius et Lars Porsenna, quī erat rēx Etrūscōrum, ad oppidum appropinquābant. Tiberis, fluvius longus et lātus, erat inter Rōmānōs et Etrūscōs. Horātius et Lartius et Herminius pontem contrā cōpiās Porsennae dēfendēbant; intereā Rōmānī pontem dēlēbant. Inde Horātius, ubi Lartium et Herminium remīsit, sōlus contrā Etrūscōs pugnābat. Ubi Rōmānī pontem dēlēvērunt, Horātius trāns fluvium natāvit tūtus.

Posteā Tarquinius ¦ et Lars Porsenna, ¦ quī erat rēx Etrūscōrum, ¦ … │ Afterwards Tarquinius ¦ and Lars Porsenna ¦ who was the king of the Etruscans …

[1] Lars Porsenna: the antecedent i.e. the person(s) / thing(s) to which the relative pronoun (quī) refers in the relative clause (quī erat rēx Etrūscōrum)

[2] quī: [i] masculine singular agreeing with Lars Porsenna (masculine singular) [ii] nominative case because it refers to the subject: Lars Porsenna ¦ who was king …

____________________

Afterwards Tarquinius and Lars Porsenna, who was king of the [1] Etruscans, approached the town. [2] The Tiber, a long and broad river, was between the Romans and the Etruscans. Horatius and [3] Lartius and Herminius were [4] defending the bridge against the forces of Porsenna; Meanwhile the Romans were [5] destroying the bridge. Then Horatius, when he sent back Lartius and Herminius, [6] fought alone against the Etruscans. When the Romans destroyed the bridge, Horace [7] swam safely across the river. 

____________________

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

Map showing Etruria and Etruscan colonies as of 750 BC and as expanded until 500 BC

By NormanEinstein - Based on a map from The National Geographic Magazine Vol.173 No.6 June 1988., CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=241378

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

By SBAUmbria - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=33249416

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

By Sailko - Own work, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1464437

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