Questions tagged [grammar-identification]
Use this tag when asking about a grammatical structure you cannot name and want explained.
87
questions
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“Tu quoque, Brutus, mi fili?” Grammar question
Someone told me these were Caesar's actual last words. Google confirms this. But I can't find an explanation for what looks to me like weird grammar.
First of all, shouldn't "Brutus" be &...
6
votes
2answers
113 views
Confusing syntax in two sentences
I seem to be confused by the constructions of these two sentences from a Medieval Latin text:
Unde vocum alia suavis est illa, scilicet quae subtilis, spissa, clara et acuta est.
and
Multiplicem ...
7
votes
1answer
60 views
Why “decorem indutus est” instead of “decore indutus est”?
Psalm 92 v. 1
Dóminus regnávit, decórem indútus est: * indútus est Dóminus fortitúdinem, et præcínxit se.
The Lord hath reigned, he is clothed with beauty: * the Lord is clothed with strength, and ...
5
votes
1answer
180 views
How to say: “X differs from Y by(in) Z”
I want to say something of this sort:
The word "res" differs from the word "rex" by one letter.
In "Lexicon totius Latinitatis" I saw under the term "dama":
"[Dama] differt a capreis solis ...
3
votes
1answer
100 views
Partitive genitive in Spinoza
Spinoza, Ethics, De Deo, Propositio 15, Scholium:
Sane rerum quae realiter ab invicem distinctae sunt, una sine alia esse et in suo statu manere potest
Is rerum partitive genitive and is it ...
3
votes
1answer
183 views
The usage of present passive infinitive
In Augustine confessions we read:
"quid tibi sum ipse, ut amari te iubeas a me et, nisi faciam, irascaris mihi et mineris ingentes miserias?" (book I, cap. V)
I can't understand the usage of the ...
4
votes
1answer
117 views
How does one express adjectives in the present tense in Latin which aren't everlasting?
Exempli gratia, how would one say 'I am perturbed' in Latin opposed to 'I am human'? The state of being perturbed can change, but the state of being a human being cannot change, so how does one write ...
3
votes
1answer
51 views
Should one use the singular or plural when the number is unknown?
It just occurred to me (I'm that guy maybe starting the YouTube channel) that I don't know whether to use the singular or plural to address my audience in Latin.
My thinking goes like this: plural ...
6
votes
3answers
327 views
grammar of “sapientiae tuae non est numerus”
in Confessions we read:
magnus es, domine, et laudabilis valde. magna virtus tua et sapientiae tuae non est numerus.
while the meaning is quite clear, I can't clearly resolve the literal ...
4
votes
2answers
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Is “ante a priori” correct?
As I understand it, "a posteriori" means "from the latter," and "a priori" means "from the former."
Suppose there was something predating the former in the context above. How would that be expressed ...
5
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0answers
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“Renegatus”: an active perfect participle from a non-deponent verb?
Several dictionaries' etymologies of English "renegade" trace it to Medieval Latin renegatus, an apostate, one who has denied his religion and gone back to another. Renegatus in turn is the ...
5
votes
1answer
74 views
How do I name the individual parts of the lumbricals muscle of the foot in latin?
As we can see, Wikipedia lists the lumbricals muscle and tells us that the muscle contains four parts.
I need to name all four individual parts of the muscle and their respective side in the body. I ...
8
votes
2answers
588 views
Where is the correct position to set right or left of muscle names for anatomical names?
Muscles and bones have Latin names as can be found on wikipedia.
I need to name muscles and bones with their Latin name and I also need to specify if it's the left or the right muscle in the human ...
4
votes
0answers
61 views
Any material on so-called “inverse analysis” and “minimal pairs” to practice Latin grammar?
I was wondering if anyone could provide me with references on any online material (pdf, links, etc.) of Latin Grammar which can contain exercises based on so-called "inverse analysis" and "minimal ...
3
votes
1answer
362 views
The grammar of the expression “mihi cordi est”
Recently I encountered the phrase "mihi cordi est", after googling it I saw it is quite common phrase that seem to mean "it pleases me". For example: "vita horrida, arida, atque dura, mihi cordi est".
...
4
votes
2answers
274 views
Occasus nescius
In the first line of this 12th-century conductus:
Sol oritur occasus nescius
what does nescius refer to? Maybe diagramming the sentence is all I need, because I don't follow the grammar.
If the ...
5
votes
2answers
755 views
The Purpose of “Natu”
Following on from the question "Using Genitive & Infinitive To Describe Characteristics"; Joonas (26/6/19): "adulescentis est maiores natu revereri." = "It is of a young person to respect his/ her ...
3
votes
2answers
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Using genitive and infinitive to describe characteristics
Answering this question, I recalled a somewhat rare construction used to express that an action is characteristic of someone.
Pekkanen's Ars Grammatica (§77.1) gives two examples:
Cuiusvis hominis ...
4
votes
1answer
52 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 ...
4
votes
1answer
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μετὰ τοῦτο ἄκουε (Symposion.215)
I have a question about the following extract (Platon's Symposion, 215)
[Alcibiades describes Socrates as a Silenus's statue and as Marsyas, a satyr.] ὅτι μὲν οὖν τό γε εἶδος ὅμοιος εἶ τούτοις, ὦ ...
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2answers
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What does “enim et” mean?
A couple days ago, a friend sent me an excerpt from a new game, asking about a Latin phrase in it:
Contra Diabolus enim et alii Daemones
(In the game, this is the motto of a group of Catholic ...
3
votes
1answer
86 views
Syntax of Ille: “numquam est ille miser cui facile est mori”
What is the syntax of ille in the sentence: "numquam est ille miser cui facile est mori"? I get that cui is indirect object, but what is the function of the demonstrative pronoun ille in the sentence?
8
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2answers
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What sort of grammatical construct is ‘Quod per sortem sternit fortem’?
In the poem ‘O Fortuna’ (anon., 13th c., but made famous by Carl Orff’s setting), there is this verse:
Quod per sortem
sternit fortem
mecum omnes plangite!
This is typically translated as ‘...
3
votes
2answers
67 views
On the use (or not) of genitive in some verses of the Vulgata
I'm a bit puzzled with some verses of the Vulgata, regarding the use or not of genitive. Consider 3 Regnum (1 Kings in non LXX-based bibles). Verses 13-15 in Chapter 10 go as follows:
[13] Rex ...
5
votes
2answers
3k views
What does “Dominus providebit” mean?
Does "Dominus providebit" mean "The Lord will provide" or "The Lord provides"?
I once had a bit of an argument with a guy who studied Latin over that. It's an inscription that appears on the rim of ...
5
votes
2answers
257 views
On the (typical?) ambiguity of “Porta clausa est”
It is often said that Porta clausa est can have two readings depending on the categorial nature of the participle: verbal (cf. clauditur/clausa est) or adjectival (cf. clausa est/clausa fuit), which ...
7
votes
2answers
534 views
How was the “elliptical dual” used?
In a comment on this answer, TKR brought up an interesting point of grammar I'd never heard of.
Αἴαντε [Ajax-DUAL] is an interesting case. Though readers of Homer since antiquity have interpreted ...
6
votes
1answer
104 views
Parsing Priapea 31
Intermediate here. I am having a hard time parsing this poem (Carmina Priapea 31). Apologies for the tawdry material, by the way :)
Donec proterva nil mei manu carpes,
licebit ipsa sis pudicior ...
3
votes
1answer
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«θύων τε γὰρ φανερὸς ἦν πολλάκις μὲν οἴκοι» (Xenophon, Memorabilia, 1.1.2)
Xenophon, Memorabilia, 1.1.2:
πρῶτον μὲν οὖν, ὡς οὐκ ἐνόμιζεν οὓς ἡ πόλις νομίζει θεούς, ποίῳ ποτ᾽ ἐχρήσαντο τεκμηρίῳ; θύων τε γὰρ φανερὸς ἦν πολλάκις μὲν οἴκοι, πολλάκις δὲ ἐπὶ τῶν κοινῶν τῆς ...
5
votes
2answers
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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. ...
6
votes
2answers
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Agreement in “medio tutissimus ibis”
Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book II, line 137 gives us the aphorism
(in) medio tutissimus ibis
The English translation for this is typically given as "In the middle, you will go most safe."
How does "...
6
votes
1answer
75 views
On Declensions and Gender
after advancing on German gramatically as my second foreign language, I wanted to pursue my interest in Latin. Grammar seemed to me pretty straightforward, yet so many to memorize. I'm self-teaching ...
5
votes
1answer
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Three (very similar) mottoes and a general grammar question
Hope you guys don't mind helping me.
I'm looking to translate three mottoes into Latin, and I think these are beyond my capability to naturally translate:
Do not be too kind; do not be too angry; ...
5
votes
1answer
110 views
What do the future active participle “editurus” and the gerundive or gerund “scribendum” mean in this sentence?
When I was trying to find information to answer ktm5124's question about
“anticipātiō, anticipātiōnis”, I came across a passage that I am not advanced enough to understand fully. I'd like to ask for ...
5
votes
1answer
116 views
Parsing a subphrase of an ablative absolute
I can't figure out how the phrase "et audito eo multa faciebat" in the following sentence should be parsed:
Herodes enim metuebat Ioannem, sciens eum virum iustum et sanctum, et
custodiebat eum: ...
8
votes
1answer
73 views
Use of subjunctinve in a North & Hillard translation exercise
North & Hillard Ex. 228 includes:
Next day Caesar had again an army which, though diminished, was prepared to face all dangers manfully.
A footnote states: "Of the concessive conjunctions ...
5
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2answers
276 views
Why is there “is” in “… dīcitur is locus…”?
Why is there is (it) in the following phrase from Ørberg's Lingua Latina per se Illustrata, page 118?
Ōstium sīve ōs flūminis dīcitur is locus quō flumen in mare īnfluit.
Literally: By Ostium or ...
5
votes
1answer
86 views
What is the meaning of the phrase “solitō māiōre”?
A fellow member of a Latin Discord server I participate in posted this link to an article with a question regarding how one would interpret the phrase "solitō māiōre". Despite our efforts to interpret ...
7
votes
2answers
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“Veni, O Sapientia…”
I could use a little help with parsing the second verse of this famous Advent hymn:
Veni, O Sapientia,
Quae hic disponis omnia,
Veni, viam prudentiae,
Ut doceas et gloriae.
I ...
4
votes
1answer
227 views
Relative Clause of Purpose with Quo
Moreland has this sentence in Relative Clause of Purpose (Unit 14):
Properatis quo celerius adveniatis.
which it translates as:
You hasten by which you may arrive more quickly.
The adjective '...
5
votes
1answer
81 views
Future-Perfect?
In North & Hillard, Ex 215, the following sentence:
There can be little doubt that the guides, whether through treachery or ignorance, were mainly responsible for the disaster.
is translated ...
3
votes
1answer
123 views
Did I translate and understand this optative correctly? (Greek)
In book X of his Republic, Plato is talking about the prizes and rewards made out to good men. Once again, I have the gist of the sentence, but I'm a little unsure of a minor detail.
καὶ ἀνθρώπων ...
2
votes
1answer
84 views
What construction is used with φάθι εἶναι? (Plat. Rep. 6.508e)
I think I have the gist of this short sentence, but I would like a little more clarity on one detail. What construction is governing the phrase φάθι εἶναι? I have parsed φάθι as the 2nd singular ...
2
votes
2answers
234 views
Origin and explanation of memoriae
For an assignment, I have been translating several Latin inscription (on tombstones) from 400–600 AD and one phrase that occurs quite often is memoriae (sometimes with an adjective such as ...
3
votes
1answer
84 views
The (implied) meaning of “Et” in “Et in medio…” of Ubi Caritas
Here is a passage in Ubi Caritas:
Simul ergo cum in unum congregamur: Ne nos mente dividamur, caveamus. Cessent iurgia maligna, cessent lites. Et in medio nostri sit Christus Deus.
The English ...
4
votes
1answer
49 views
grammar perplexity in Ficīnus
I'm reading Ficīnus's Latin translation of Plato's Apology and came across the following passage, two things in which baffle me. (They're unrelated, so I'm making them two separate questions.)
...
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4answers
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“Et in terra pax hominibus bona voluntas” [sic!]
I have a German Christmas song of the 16th century, which is bilingual, German–Latin. The lyrics go as follows (I translated the German parts into English):
O how beautiful the group of ...
2
votes
2answers
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Is the sentence “omnis res est” (“every thing is”) grammatical?
Is the sentence omnis res est ("every thing is") grammatical?
Likewise, are sentences like aliqua res est and nulla res est grammatical?
12
votes
2answers
295 views
Understanding the stem(s) of 'struere'
The present, perfect, and participle stems1 of the verb struere are stru-, strux-, and struct-.
The -s- in the perfect stem and the -t- in the participle stem are nothing unusual, but they seem to ...
3
votes
2answers
151 views
“Stantes erant” vs. “stabant”
Triggered by this question.
What's the difference in meaning between:
Stantes erant pedes nostri, in atriis tuis, Jerusalem.
and
Stabant pedes nostri, in atriis tuis, Jerusalem.
and does this ...
