14
votes
Accepted
Did grammarians consider the adverbial -e a case ending?
In a recent paper (included in The Latin of the Grammarians), I have made the point that Latin grammarians, unlike their Greek predecessors, did not expressly stress the uninflectional nature of ...
- 266
12
votes
Why do some Latin adverbs have accent on the last syllable?
This seems to be a mystery. I haven't found any good explanation yet; I don't know if this is because the subject has been neglected so far, or if it's because the very occurrence of the phenomenon is ...
- 25.3k
11
votes
Accepted
How do you say "perhaps" or "maybe"?
forte (from fors, fortis, chance, luck etc.) simply means 'by chance'.
fortasse (sometimes fortassis) is a contraction from forte an sit, 'as it might chance to be', usually translated as 'perhaps', '...
- 17.9k
10
votes
Accepted
Choosing -ter or -iter for adverbs from third declension adjectives
I have run a quick analysis using data from latinlexicon.org. I included adverbs ending in -ter (about 820). Most end in -iter (the rule). A good number end in -nter (which as you know are formed with ...
- 216
10
votes
Can -que be used with adverbs?
Sure! Pretty much anything can be conjoined with -que. Here are some PHI searches: saepeque, semperque, beneque, maleque.
- 30.4k
9
votes
Why do some Latin adverbs have accent on the last syllable?
An important note about my sources:
A question has been raised by another user re: sources in my answer. Anyone can easily check the accuracy of my statements and sources. Dr. Stotz is an expert in ...
- 11.5k
9
votes
Accepted
What is the exact translation of 'solummodo'?
You can find it under the solus dictionary entry in Lewis and Short:
Strengthened by modo, and joined with it in one word, sōlummŏdo (only late Lat., for the true reading, Plin. 34, 8, 19, § 92, ...
cmw♦
- 47.8k
9
votes
What is the difference in meaning between `nil` and `non` in "Primum non nocere"?
It's possible that nil is a noun here, but it's more likely that it's the adverbial nil, which would translate to something like "not at all."
B. Adverb. 1. Not (as a strengthened non), in ...
cmw♦
- 47.8k
9
votes
What does the adverb 'eò' in 'Surge modò, licebit vesperi eò maturiùs lectum petere' mean?
This is the same eo which is usually coupled with quo in the following pattern:
Quo [a comparative], eo [a comparative].
This patterns translates in English with compr + compr ("the higher the ...
- 9,085
9
votes
Is "necesse" an adjective or an adverb
Lewis & Short, Gaffiot, Georges and Forcellini agree that it is an adjective. Oxford appears to be alone with its opinion that it is an adverb, and I wonder if the entry itself has anything to say ...
- 29.4k
8
votes
How to use immo?
(will add examples later)
Obviously, immo had several different uses in Classical Latin. Hannah Rosén (Rosén 2009) classifies it as a connective particle used for juncture and separation. She ...
- 11.5k
8
votes
Did grammarians consider the adverbial -e a case ending?
As far as I can see, the Roman grammarians did not consider the adverbial -e to be a case ending. On the other hand, from the standpoint of historical linguistics most Latin adverbs are indeed ...
- 17k
8
votes
Accepted
Sīc erat scriptum equivalent for spoken information?
The word sic means "thus" and is not tied to written contexts.
If you want to say "thus it was said", a simple and analogous option is to say sic erat dictum.
The underlying verbs are scribere (to ...
- 109k
8
votes
Accepted
What is the difference between plus and magis?
Magis is a comparative adverb (of magnopere?) meaning in higher degree, as seen in such expressions as magis magisque, more and more.
Plus is the comparative of the adjective multus, much, and ...
- 17.9k
8
votes
Accepted
Could an adjective be used like an adverb in Latin?
There are three main ways to turn an adjective into an adverb in Latin. In decreasing order of popularity:
Use a special adverb-forming suffix: first/second adjectives get -ē, while third adjectives ...
- 59.9k
7
votes
Accepted
A few questions on a sentence from Thucydides (Peloponnesian War 6.68)
You're right that there are some tricky sections in this passage, but your translation captures the sense very well. Concerning your questions:
1. What are the syntactic functions of τινι καὶ in the ...
- 37.9k
7
votes
Accepted
Using "sānē" v. "certē" v. "profectō"?
Ramshorn's Dictionary of Latin Synonyms, pg. 113, has a helpful entry on the four related terms certe, certo, profecto, and sane:
Certe: certainly, of a thing; at least, if it applies to a given ...
- 37.9k
7
votes
Accepted
Latin adverbs ending in -us
Lewis & Short say -tus in intus is an old ablative ending or suffix, related to the Greek adverbial ending -τός as in ἐντός:
intus, adv. [1. in and the abl. termination -tus; Sanscr. -tas; cf. ...
- 19.6k
7
votes
What is an Adverbial Accusative?
First of all I have to point out that the word “quod” in book II, line 141 of Vergil's Aeneid is not an adverbial accusative, but simply a causal conjunction introducing the causal clause with the ...
- 159
7
votes
Accepted
Is it "bene videtur" or "bonum videtur"? Adjective or adverb with verbs/copulae meaning "seem"
To express the (apparent) quality of something, only adjectives can be coupled with videri.
A few examples from Cicero, respectively De Officiis and Brutus:
Cum igitur id, quod utile videtur in ...
- 4,418
7
votes
Accepted
Is there a difference in meaning between "reliquiis in locis" and "alibi"?
The difference is the same as the difference between "elsewhere" and "in other places" in English. Latin is a language, it has multiple ways to express a given concept.
Single-...
- 8,128
7
votes
Accepted
Chosing between the different ways to make an adverb
It looks like aeternē was rarely used in Classical Latin. The PHI corpus shows only three matches, two of which are in grammatical discussions explaining that aeternum means aeternē.
The third is in ...
- 25.3k
6
votes
Why do some Latin adverbs have accent on the last syllable?
It seems that Saint Augustine in your quote is describing the same phenomenon that we can see consistently marked in later Latin.
While trying to read Marracci's 'Refutatio Alcorani' (https://books....
- 1,166
6
votes
Accepted
Subjunctive with adverb “quam”
This is an indirect question and indirect questions always use the subjunctive (also known as conjunctive) mood.
If you want more examples and details, please the linked discussion in Allen and ...
- 109k
6
votes
Accepted
What is the difference in meaning between `nil` and `non` in "Primum non nocere"?
Prīmum nōn nocēre means "first, to not cause harm". Nōn negates the verb.
Prīmum nīl nocēre means "first, to cause harm to nothing". Nīl is the object of the verb.
(Note that both ...
- 59.9k
6
votes
How to say "in a certain respect" in Latin?
Without more context, it's difficult to know precisely what you need to say. However, quodam modo means "in a certain manner", which could correspond to "in a certain respect" ...
- 2,904
6
votes
Accepted
How to say "in a certain respect" in Latin?
An extremely common term in medieval Latin, often used in a philosophical context, is secundum quid, i.e. "with respect to something." Obviously, secundum is used as a preposition here.
It ...
- 37.9k
6
votes
Is "necesse" an adjective or an adverb
Spīrā-re necesse est homin-ī
breathe-INF necessary be.3SG.PRES human-DAT.SG
Breathing is necessary for a human.
I would call it an adjective without a qualm. It's linked to a nominal (an ...
- 59.9k
6
votes
Is quam an adjective or adverb?
The first thing to understand is that quam ob rem is a fossilized prepositional phrase.
The preposition ob takes an accusative object and means “on account of.”
The object of ob is rem (accusative ...
- 5,894
5
votes
Accepted
Which case to use with posthinc?
As a first note, I have been unable to find a classical work where posthinc is treated as one word. The two Vergil citations in the L&S entry you mentioned actually have post hinc:
post hinc ...
- 37.9k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible