22
votes
To what extent are Koine and modern Greek mutually intelligible?
It's anecdotal, but whenever I taught ancient Greek, my modern Greek students were usually the first to drop. It is not at all what they expected, and they were not happy about the ancient ...
cmw♦
- 52.2k
20
votes
To what extent are Koine and modern Greek mutually intelligible?
Quite difficult. The pronunciation has changed significantly from Koine to Modern Greek, and anecdotally, my Modern-Greek-speaking friends and I usually have to write out words when discussing them: ...
- 65.1k
12
votes
Accepted
Is this Latin statement idiomatic? (Can't quite link it to the English translation)
Rather that being idiomatic, it's just a question of style. The Vulgate's translation is simply a little more verbose than the English or even the original Greek.
It can be translated from the ...
- 10.7k
11
votes
Accepted
Why does "Hominem unius libri timeo" use comparativus unius instead of positivus unum?
It looks like a comparative (cf. facilius, melius, and many others) but it is in fact a genitive.
Thus unius libri is "of one book".
The word unus has an unusual declension:
nom: unus, una, ...
- 111k
10
votes
Accepted
How are the objects of comparatives handled grammatically?
Asteroides's answer is spot-on, but since the comments express confusion with it, I'll try explaining it a different way.
Lac, as a mass noun, has no plural.
Much like you wouldn't say *"the boy ...
- 65.1k
10
votes
Accepted
Jenney's First Year Latin, Lesson 37, comparatives with "quam"
I think I understand the root of your confusion, and the simple answer to your question:
Why don't both sides of the quam agree?
Is this: They do agree.
I am more like you than he.
A first point ...
- 39.4k
10
votes
Accepted
Are there many irregular adjectives for the Latin comparison?
Let me mention some things to complement your and TKR's lists.
First, the adjectives iuvenis and senex have the irregular comparatives iunior and senior.
These comparatives are rarely (if ever) used ...
- 111k
9
votes
Are there many irregular adjectives for the Latin comparison?
Allen and Greenough list three more, but they are rare:
nequam, nequior, nequissimus "worthless"
frugi, frugalior, frugalissimus "useful"
dexter, dexterior, dextimus "on the right, handy"
- 30.9k
8
votes
How are the objects of comparatives handled grammatically?
Plus is used as an adverb, adjective and noun. The adjective is used only with plural nouns, so the difference between your sentences is because milk (lac, lactis) is singular and so cannot be used ...
- 27.3k
7
votes
To what extent are Koine and modern Greek mutually intelligible?
@Draconis pointed out that Homer is apparently a particularly hard to read example, and instead pointed me to what I believe is an example of Koine Greek (here) which I find relatively easy to read. ...
- 173
6
votes
Accepted
In the sentence "Glory is better than fame", is "fame" a predicate nominative?
In your title you ask if "fame" is a predicate nominative, and the answer to that question is no. A predicate nominative involves the linking of a noun with the subject via a copula (usually a form of ...
- 39.4k
6
votes
Accepted
Comparative applied to things other than adjectives or adverbs
There are two constructions you may use. The first is this. The comparative adjective plus (plural: plures, plura), which means "more", combined with quam ("than"). The two things being compared are ...
- 12k
6
votes
Comparison of participles
We can semantically distinguish an adjective or adverb from a participle. Adjectives and adverbs have no dynamic or temporal force. They cannot take an accusative or clause as their object. They ...
- 6,279
6
votes
Comparison of participles
I used corpus searches to constrain the possibility of participle comparison.
Here are the observations:
Superlative of future participle:
The only words with -turissim- are forms of maturissimus.
No ...
- 111k
5
votes
Jenney's First Year Latin, Lesson 37, comparatives with "quam"
The two parts of the exercise are two different statements.
The first holds the speaker (the subject) to be more like the addressee than someone else is. This becomes obvious if you add ‘is’ to the ...
- 18k
5
votes
Why is the comparative adjective of "clarus" not "clariusis"?
This phenomenon is not unique to comparatives.
For example, the genitives of tempus and lepus are temporis and leporis, while you might expect tempusis and lepusis.
You can simply learn and accept ...
- 111k
5
votes
Why is the comparative adjective of "clarus" not "clariusis"?
Th neuter adjective clarius is of the third declension, just like words such as praeceps (gen. praecipitis) and vetus (gen. veteris). As you can see, the genitive is often quite different from the ...
- 19.8k
5
votes
multo/magno in comparative adjectives
The question should rather be, "can magno substitute for multo," and the answer is nullo modo. It is multo that modifies comparatives, magno is not used in that way.
multo melior is correct ...
- 32.8k
4
votes
Accepted
Ablative of Comparison w/ Relative Pronoun?
According to Gildersleeve and Lodge, Latin grammar §296, Remark 1.b.2:
The Abl. [of comparison] is very common in negative sentences, and is used exclusively in negative relative sentences.
So, ...
- 19.3k
4
votes
Accepted
When did plus and minus start to mean mathematical operations?
The following extract from the Oxford English Dictionary, art. "plus", is perhaps of interest:
The prepositional use (sense A. 1), from which all the other English
uses developed, did not exist ...
- 17.5k
4
votes
Accepted
Optimus and the comparative and superlative uses of adjectives in Latin
This is a bunch of questions, so I will give only a short answer to each.
If you want more details, please ask a follow-up question with a narrower focus to dig deeper.
What are the superlative and ...
- 111k
4
votes
Accepted
"Multi quidem facilius se abstinent ut non utantur, quam temperent ut bene utantur" (the usage of comparatives)
The two basic options that come to mind are:
Ille facilius legit quam scribit.
Illi facilius est legere quam scribere.
The second one corresponds with the typical English phrasing.
The first one is &...
- 111k
4
votes
Accepted
How do you say "5 times easier than" or "x times easier" in Latin?
In the English "5 times easier than" the number 5 doesn't usually seem to refer to anything concrete or easily measurable.
Therefore I'd regard it as an idiom rather than an actual numerical ...
- 111k
3
votes
To what extent are Koine and modern Greek mutually intelligible?
I actually am greek (and my mother language is greek and I've lived in Greece all my life) and was taught ancient greek for some years in high school. The conclusion? It was like a foreign language.
...
- 131
3
votes
Translating "venustiorum" in Catullus 3
The Latin comparative and superlative are often translated as "more/-er" and "most/-est" in English, but not always. Sometimes it's a matter of absolute degree, what in English are ...
cmw♦
- 52.2k
3
votes
What is a list of 2 or 3 english words which somtimes make good substitutes for the word "quam"?
The usual English way to express that would be "I am happier than him".
- 65.1k
3
votes
Accepted
Are "ἑκάτερος" and "ἕκαστος" different degrees of the same adjective?
Beekes covers this:
ETYM The solution of Wackernagel KZ 29 (1888): 144ff. is probably correct (see also Schwyzer: 6304): viz., that the word is from *ἑκάς τις 'every one for himself (cf. εἴς τις '...
cmw♦
- 52.2k
3
votes
Is this Latin statement idiomatic? (Can't quite link it to the English translation)
It is a matter of style. Reginaldus Foster in Ossa Latinitatis Sola mentions this on Page 43 and following.
Contact with Latin literature will convince anyone and everyone of how the Romans loved ...
- 4,448
3
votes
Comparison of participles
Pliny, writing of the pyramids of Gizeh in Naturalis Historia XXXVI: sed multo spectatior [comparative degree of positive spectatus, specto's perfect passive participle], "but much more splendid&...
3
votes
Comparison of participles
It seems to be difficult to distinguish participles from nouns/adjectives. This is a problem, because it seems clear that some adjectives with the form of participles have comparative forms.
The idea ...
- 27.3k
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