Questions tagged [adverb]

For questions about adverbs.

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3 votes
0 answers
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Understanding the idea of "also" (I am ready if you are)

Like my previous question about "once," another English concept that can be tricky and have multiple means is "also". So, for example, something can also happen (subsequent action),...
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3 votes
1 answer
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Ancient Greek - Adverb functions as Noun

Aristotle's Metaphysics, 994a,26-7: ἀεὶ γάρ ἐστι μεταξύ, ὥσπερ τοῦ εἶναι καὶ μὴ εἶναι γένεσις, οὕτω καὶ τὸ γιγνόμενον τοῦ ὄντος καὶ μὴ ὄντος Reeve's translation: for there is always an intermediate,...
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12 votes
2 answers
450 views

Can -que be used with adverbs?

If I wanted to say something like "I love you now and forever", can I use -que with one of the adverbs like I would with nouns? Nunc perpetuoque te amo. I tried searching various adverbs ...
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5 votes
1 answer
359 views

What does the word "numquid" literally mean?

I have come across this word a few times in more later Latin texts. Would this word be merely synonymous with 'num' and 'quid' or is there a different shade of meaning that can be explained through a ...
5 votes
3 answers
628 views

Is "necesse" an adjective or an adverb

Introduction My enquiry arrises from a passage in “Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata: Familia Romana” in its tenth chapter which is entitled “BESTIAE ET HOMINES” on its fifty-ninth line which is as ...
4 votes
1 answer
272 views

Is there a difference in meaning between "reliquiis in locis" and "alibi"?

Caesar wrote in De Bello Gallico: "Ea nascuntur alces, animalia quae reliquis in locis visa non sint.". Why didn't he simply write "alibi" there? Is there a difference in meaning? ...
1 vote
2 answers
96 views

Are usquam, alicubi and uspiam synonyms?

Are usquam, alicubi and uspiam synonyms or are there differences between these words, for example in how they are used?
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6 votes
1 answer
284 views

What does the adverb 'eò' in 'Surge modò, licebit vesperi eò maturiùs lectum petere' mean?

I found this passage in the colloquy 'Surrectio Matutina' from an old book containing colloquies by Erasmus, Vives and some Schottenius Hassus. The book is titled 'Familiaria colloquia, operâ ...
5 votes
4 answers
556 views

How to say "in a certain respect" in Latin?

How does one say the adverbial phrase "in a certain respect" or "in certain respects" in Latin? For example, would whatever under a certain condition is such-and-such, is such-and-...
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5 votes
1 answer
43 views

adhuc + negative clause: inclusive or exclusive of present?

Cdl. Cajetan's early 16th cen. commentary on an article of St. Thomas Aquinas's Summa Theologica: adhuc Romana Ecclesia coram Summo Pontifice non utitur [organum]. until now the Roman Church does not ...
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4 votes
2 answers
715 views

What is the difference in meaning between `nil` and `non` in "Primum non nocere"?

The wikipedia entry for "Primum non nocere" mentions that it's sometimes written as "Primum nil nocere". I realize the shade of difference is probably pretty fine, but is one of ...
5 votes
2 answers
158 views

Is "evidenter" the correct translation for "obviously!"?

I've searched the forum but found no answer to my question. How would one say obviously in Latin? As in answering a question with a "it's option b, obviously!" Online dictionaries have given ...
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4 votes
1 answer
136 views

Can intus be the object of a preposition?

In the following sentence from Wisdom 17:12, intus appears to be used as the object of a preposition: dum ab intus minor est exspectatio, maiorem computat inscientiam eius causae, quae tormentum ...
4 votes
2 answers
148 views

Why would adhuc be used at the beginning of a situation?

My knowledge of adhuc is that it is typically used in the context of some continuing action. For example, in the story of Perseus, it reads: [Acrisius] autem ubi Perseum vīdit, magnō terrōre affectus ...
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3 votes
1 answer
434 views

The difference between "ante" and "antequam"

Not sure I can discern the crux of the difference between antequam and ante (According to L&S (II.B.1.a vs II.B.2), ante might be used with verbs, like antequam). In other words, in what occasions ...
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7 votes
2 answers
630 views

Subjunctive with adverb “quam”

Passage: “Quam autem civitati carus fuerit, maerore funeris indicatum est.” Cic. Amic. 11 My translation in English: «Moreover, how dear he was to the citizenry was indicated by the grief of his ...
10 votes
2 answers
434 views

Is it "bene videtur" or "bonum videtur"? Adjective or adverb with verbs/copulae meaning "seem"

With verbs like "seem, appear", one sometimes uses an adverb to express how something appears ("she looked well"), at other times an adjective ("he seemed angry"). How did the Romans do it, ...
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5 votes
1 answer
434 views

Could an adjective be used like an adverb in Latin?

As a general rule, could an adjective be used like an adverb in Latin? What would be some exceptions?
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4 votes
1 answer
161 views

Grammatical analysis of comparative parts (i.e. "tam … quam", etc.)

I have the following sentence from Seneca, epistula 1, §2: "Cum placuerit fieri, toto illum pectore admitte; tam audaciter cum illo loquere quam tecum." However, I'm not sure what the "tam audaciter ...
5 votes
3 answers
542 views

"Semper" in the beginning of a sentence

This is my first attempt at a translation for a motto. My intent is to convey "Always be good" as an advice. I think it is "Semper bonus esto". A quick digression on the motto I'm ...
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4 votes
2 answers
519 views

Is *digne* an adverb in the "Munda cor meum" prayer?

Below is one of the prayers which the priest says before reading the Gospel in the Tridentine Mass. Munda cor meum, ac labia mea, omnípotens Deus, qui labia Isaíæ Prophétæ cálculo mundásti igníto: ...
6 votes
1 answer
436 views

Latin etymology of Spanish "tarde"

In Spanish, the word "tarde" has two different meanings: The part of the day between noon and dusk. Equivalent to the English noun "afternoon". Happening after the due, usual, or proper time. ...
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5 votes
2 answers
330 views

How often is "et" used as an adverb, and what might distinguish that usage?

The conjunction et, in addition to its common use as a coordinating conjunction meaning and, can also be used adverbially, encompassing similar meanings as those found in words like etiam, item, etc. ...
12 votes
1 answer
192 views

Ūtāturne linguā Latīnā aliquis adverbō «ferē» velut linguā Anglicā verbō «almost» ūtimur?

Linguā Anglicā, saepe cum multīs adverbīs atque adiectīvīs, plūrima quōrum significātiōnēs absolūtās habent (exempla sunt «always» vel «everything» vel «nothing» vel «never», et cētera), adverbō «...
4 votes
1 answer
1k views

How do extra and ultra compare?

The adverbs (and prepositions) extra and ultra are somewhat similar but not identical. While I can read the two dictionary entries and get an idea what they mean, I don't feel that I fully grasp how ...
9 votes
1 answer
186 views

Which adverbs of possibility and probability warrant the subjunctive?

On my previous question (thus begins the chain) I wrote a comment saying "Illa est bona idea. Fortasse rogem cras." I used the subjunctive because I take "fortasse" to mean "maybe", which to me ...
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3 votes
3 answers
131 views

Does this adverb phrase apply to one or both verbs separated by 'vel'?

The quote below is from the Instituta Patrum de modo psallendi, an anonymous Carolingian or more likely High Medieval document on singing psalms in Gregorian chant. (I've seen one commenter on this ...
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22 votes
4 answers
2k views

Why do some Latin adverbs have accent on the last syllable?

In the opening chapter of De Musica (written 387-391), St. Augustine gives an example of a Latin oxytone, i.e. a word with accentual stress on the ultimate syllable: MASTER: Now when we pronounce ...
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12 votes
3 answers
2k views

What is an Adverbial Accusative?

In book II, line 141 of Vergil's Aeneid (shown at the end of the question), my notes describe the first word 'quod' as an 'adverbial accusative', but no explanation as to what that means. So my ...
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5 votes
1 answer
170 views

zelotypos quam Karus

From this question, I'm curious what the poet is doing with quam Karus: Sic fugiens, dux, zelotypos quam Karus haberis. Thus fleeing, O leader, you are regarded with jealousy like Karus. Imagery ...
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5 votes
1 answer
91 views

Which case to use with posthinc?

L&S mentions that abhinc can be used with either accusative or ablative. But no use guidance is given for posthinc. Can I use both accusative and ablative to express the length of time, or only ...
12 votes
1 answer
3k views

How do you say "perhaps" or "maybe"?

I have a very good guess about how to say "perhaps" or "maybe". But I suspect there are several ways of saying it, with varying degrees of certainty. I wanted to get a better idea. ...
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7 votes
1 answer
146 views

Do adverbs derived from iste have a pejorative tone?

I would call the pronoun iste a "second person demonstrative pronoun"1, meaning roughly "that thing near you". It can also have a pejorative tone, implying that the speaker does not approve of the ...
5 votes
1 answer
97 views

Adverb for approximate numbers

In classical Latin, what is the best adverb for describing approximate numbers? If several work well, are there any differences? I mean saying things like "I have about ten euros". I would translate ...
8 votes
1 answer
323 views

What is the exact translation of 'solummodo'?

What is the exact meaning of 'solummodo'? I take it is an adverb, perhaps? Encountered this in new Latin, more precisely in Spinoza's Ethics. It is translated as 'only', but it is not in my dictionary,...
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3 votes
1 answer
170 views

When did plus and minus start to mean mathematical operations?

The Latin adverbs plus and minus mean "more" and "less". They are also neuter compatative adjectives. In all languages I know these two words are used for mathematical the operations of addition and ...
9 votes
1 answer
1k views

What is the difference between plus and magis?

The dictionaries I have checked give translations for both plus and magis, and they seem to have a different tone. However, I have found no comparison between the two. They both mean "more" one way or ...
6 votes
1 answer
151 views

A few questions on a sentence from Thucydides (Peloponnesian War 6.68)

I'm having trouble with this short passage from Thucydides: παραστήτω δέ τινι καὶ τόδε, πολύ τε ἀπὸ τῆς ἡμετέρας αὐτῶν εἶναι καὶ πρὸς γῇ οὐδεμιᾷ φιλίᾳ, ἥντινα μὴ αὐτοὶ μαχόμενοι κτήσεσθε. ...
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6 votes
1 answer
156 views

Can the adverb nunc be used in apposition?

For a textbook exercise, I translated this sentence from English into Latin. The terrified Callisto, now a wild animal, avoided men and beasts (animals). (Latin via Ovid) Here's my ...
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7 votes
2 answers
539 views

What do the words "tunc tantum" mean together?

Pope Francis tweeted on September 21st, Sermonem confero cum aliquo sincerum tunc tantum agnosco illum esse donum Dei mihique aliquid pretiosum dicturum. Here is my translation. (Credits to Keith ...
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14 votes
3 answers
2k views

How to use immo?

What does the word immo really mean and how can I use it? I read this and this dictionary entry, and I was left confused. Some of the uses I can understand, but some I cannot. Either I do not have ...
8 votes
2 answers
676 views

Choosing -ter or -iter for adverbs from third declension adjectives

The typical suffix to derive an adverb from a third declension adjective is -iter, but sometimes the -i- is dropped: dulciter but audacter. I am not asking for a rule for choosing -iter or -ter —...
7 votes
1 answer
2k views

Sīc erat scriptum equivalent for spoken information?

From Wikipedia The Latin adverb sic ("thus"; in full: sic erat scriptum, "thus was it written") inserted after a quoted word or passage, indicates that the quoted matter has been transcribed ...
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6 votes
1 answer
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Using "sānē" v. "certē" v. "profectō"?

The dictionary definitions of these three words aren't particularly helpful in figuring out when to use which one. Lewis Elementary's definition of sānē includes indeed, doubtless, by all means, ...
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11 votes
2 answers
306 views

Did grammarians consider the adverbial -e a case ending?

For adjectives of the first and second declension, the corresponding adverb is formed with the ending -e. For example, pulchre (beautifully) comes from pulcher (beautiful). Canonically this -e is ...
6 votes
1 answer
516 views

Latin adverbs ending in -us

There is a small but noticeable subset of Latin positive adverbs that end in -us. (By "positive," I am excluding the standard comparative adverb form of -ius, e.g. citius.) Some examples that come ...
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