Questions tagged [grammar-identification]
Use this tag when asking about a grammatical structure you cannot name and want explained.
116
questions
4
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1answer
311 views
Why Does Cicero use the Third-Person Singular Instead of the Plural Form?
Cicero, de Oratore (2.25.108):
"...in quibus hoc praecipit ratio et doctrina ut vis eius rei, quam definias sic exprimatur ut neque absit quicquam neque supersit,"
"...on which ...
5
votes
2answers
262 views
When using the verb *to be* do you always use nominative for subject and object?
When using the verb to be do you always use nominative for subject and object?
For example:
FEMINAE DOMINAE VIRORUM SUNT.
Or
FEMINA EST PULCHRA
4
votes
1answer
102 views
If a demonstrative is not modifying a noun, is it called a demonstrative pronoun?
I was confused on this since aren't demonstrative adjectives phrases like , "this fast" or "this large". If they are, then demonstrative adjectives not necessarily modifying nouns ...
13
votes
1answer
1k views
Why is it “nomen mihi est” for “my name is”, but it's “tibi nomen est” for “your name is”?
I understand that there is no strict order, but why is it that this specific order is preferable over something like "mihi nomen est" or "nomen tibi est".
The image below is from ...
5
votes
4answers
553 views
“gerund + genitive” vs “gerund+accusative” (“scribendo epistulas” vs “scribendo epistularum”)
So far I was thinking the way of saying "He spends time in writing letters" (example from A&G) might be terit tempus scribendo epistulas or terit tempus scribendis epistulis.
But can ...
3
votes
3answers
391 views
Is “dentibus” ablative in “Lupus collum ovis petit dentibus…”
In Cap. IX of LLPSI Pars I, Ørberg tells the story of a black sheep wandering into the forest where it's confronted by a wolf. The wolf finds the sheep alone in the darkness of the forest, and the ...
6
votes
1answer
94 views
What role does “municipatum” play in this sentence?
The abbot Berno of Reichenau, in the opening sentence of his Prologus in Tonarium, some time between 1021 and 1036, called himself the following:
licet parvus meritis, servus tamen Dei Genitricis ...
27
votes
4answers
6k views
ATM in Vatican City: “Inserito scidulam quaeso ut faciundam cognoscas rationem”
The automated teller machines in Vatican City show this screen when awaiting a card:
Could someone, quaeso, break this down word by word? There are a number of things here that I find puzzling or ...
4
votes
1answer
128 views
Plural for Succubus and Incubus
Succubus & incubus don't show up in the Latin dictionaries I've searched. I'm wondering what the plurals would be. I did find succuba, 1st decl fem. Could it be that it didn't morph into a 2nd ...
8
votes
1answer
295 views
How to say indirect speech + “there is/are” in latin?
I only know to say the "there is/are" in latin we use "est/sunt" , but how about when it is part of indirect speech?
E.g
" He/she said that there is (something) "
I'm ...
4
votes
2answers
514 views
Quem quaeritis?
Different versions of the Visitatio sepulchri, have different line endings. Some use Christicole whereas elsewhere I have seen Christicolae.
What is the difference between Christicole/Christicoles/...
6
votes
1answer
115 views
Can valeo be used transitively?
Looking through the entry in Lewis & Strong, I couldn't find any mention of the accusative being used with valeo, except as the object of certain prepositions. However, the following use of magna ...
3
votes
1answer
59 views
What are the Roles of “Quin” and “Sit” in “fieri non potest quin sit”?
In the question on Sherlockian logic, Batavulus, in his answer gave an alternative translation of the clause "it must be believed"/ "one must believe it", which is:
"fieri ...
4
votes
1answer
105 views
Is this Gerundive-Based Quote from Seneca A Direct or Indirect Question?
Introduction
In his answer to Q: What is the difference in meaning/usage between "nasciturus" and "nascendus"?, Mitomino provided some interesting examples of the use of the ...
5
votes
1answer
111 views
“nec sit terris ultima Thule” - how should terris be interpreted?
Seneca's Medea:
Venient annis saecula seris,
quibus Oceanus vincula rerum
laxet, et ingens pateat tellus,
Tethysque novos detegat orbes
nec sit terris ultima Thule.
I have my doubts with respect to ...
3
votes
1answer
85 views
“Multi quidem facilius se abstinent ut non utantur, quam temperent ut bene utantur” (the usage of comparatives)
From Augustine De Bono Coniugali:
Multi quidem facilius se abstinent ut non utantur, quam temperent ut bene utantur.
While the meaning of the sentence is clear, I'm not sure about the grammatical ...
4
votes
0answers
109 views
Can a finite verb modify another verb as if it were a gerund? (De manibus delapsa arma ceciderunt)
How should we interpret the connection between delapsa and ceciderunt in the following:
de manibus audacissimorum civium delapsa arma ipsa ceciderunt (Cic. De Officiis)
Naturally I could not see ...
6
votes
1answer
410 views
How does “quid causae” work grammatically?
I do not understand the grammar of quid causae = "[for] what cause", as in
Nescio quid causae fuerit, cur nullas ad me litteras dares
I do not know what the reason was why you sent me no ...
5
votes
1answer
176 views
Is this double accusative or hyperbaton or something else?
I've only been learning Latin for a month or so, but I'm specifically learning so that I can read scientific and mathematical texts from the 17th-19th centuries. It's slow going, of course- I'm only ...
6
votes
3answers
356 views
Grammatical structure of “Obsidibus imperatis centum hos Haeduis custodiendos tradit”
@Mitomino points out in this comment that my understanding of what modifies what in the sentence shown below from De Bello Gallico (VI.4.3) is mistaken. I'll diagram my understanding below. Can you ...
2
votes
1answer
120 views
Translating a sentence with “virisque”
'Res Romana stat moribus antiquis virisque'
Please, help me to translate it, especially I have trouble understanding the grammar in the second part, virisque is from vir – 'man', so why here is ...
7
votes
1answer
142 views
Is “rogamur ab eo ut veniamus” grammatically correct?
It is grammatically correct if I turn any Main active verb in the Indirect commands into passive ones?
Active - rogat nos ut veniamus - He asks us to come.
Passive - " rogamur ab eo ut veniamus &...
3
votes
1answer
115 views
What is the term for this particular use of the ablative?
I am currently doing a comprehension on the destruction of Numantia (Florus I.34). The comprehension question I am stuck on is as follows: 'State and explain the case of the word fossa'. The sentence ...
4
votes
0answers
73 views
Determining the difference between ambiguous nouns and verb forms without macrons
Salvete omnes,
As I've mentioned a couple times on here, I am working on adding macrons to a specific text, I can't really use an auto-macronizer (nor will I, or do I want to). But there is a bit of a ...
5
votes
1answer
106 views
Genitive case: why “litterarum vetustatem” and not “litteras vetustatis”
From time time I encounter a pair of nouns; one noun is in a genitive case, apparently modifies the other, but where I expect them to behave differently. examples:
memoriae tradere litterarum ...
6
votes
1answer
268 views
The function of “quo” in “Quō quisque est sollertior, hōc docet īrācundius”
In A&G on indefinite pronouns there are two sentences of a similar structure:
Bonus liber melior est quisque quō mâior. (The larger a good book is, the better.)
Quō quisque est sollertior, hōc ...
1
vote
1answer
52 views
Carpe sciurum (sieze/harvest the squirrel?)
Would 'carpe sciurum' be a functional translation of 'seize the squirrel'?
(As in to 'harvest' or 'pluck' the squirrel?)
6
votes
1answer
112 views
Nepos' Themistocles: ut ingratis omnes ad depugnandum cogerentur?
I am reading the biography of Themistocles by Cornelius Nepos. He recounts the story of how Themistocles used a deceit to bring about the naval engagement that went down in history as the famous ...
10
votes
2answers
3k views
“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
148 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
81 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
193 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
113 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
252 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
133 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 ...
4
votes
1answer
87 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
386 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 ...
6
votes
1answer
244 views
What does “Filiane” mean?
I am learning Latin from Collar and Daniell's FIRST YEAR LATIN. In LESSON IV: THE GENITIVE CASE TO DENOTE POSSESSION, an exercise is given (sentence translation).
Some examples:
Līberatne? Līberō, ...
4
votes
2answers
100 views
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
votes
0answers
89 views
“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
81 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
671 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
67 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
523 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".
...
6
votes
2answers
400 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
788 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
99 views
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
70 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
90 views
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 ...
7
votes
2answers
3k views
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 ...
