Latin Lesson #204: More -sum- sayings

The focus for today's lesson is more sayings with sum, including one of the most famous Latin sayings of all time: Descartes' Cogito ergo sum. Check it out here in this cartoon by one of my all-time favorite cartoonists, Grant Snider: 

And here is the slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before:

And here are today's proverbs:

1. Cogito, ergo sum.
I-think, therefore I-am.
CO-gito, ergo sum.

You know all the words in this saying already! And it's so famous that it has its own article at Wikipedia: Cogito ergo sum.


2. Rideo, ergo sum.
I-laugh, therefore I-am.
RI-deo, ergo sum.

And you know all the words in this saying too! This is what the proverb scholar Wolfgang Mieder would call an "anti-proverb," because it is a joke on the very respectable Cogito ergo sum of Descartes. You can read more about antiproverbs at Wikipedia.

3. Sum, ergo bibo; bibo, ergo sum.
I-am, therefore I-drink; I-drink, therefore I-am.
sum, ergo bibo; bibo, ergo sum.

And... you know these words too! This is another antiproverb inspired by Cogito ergo sum, and it features one of my all-time favorite rhetorical devices: chiasmus. 

Not surprisingly, this is the name of a bar in Hollywood: Bibo Ergo Sum.

4. Oneratus sum magis quam honoratus.
I-am burdened more than honored.
one-RA-tus sum magis quam hono-RA-tus.

The new words here make a play on words together: honoratus means "honored" and oneratus "burdened." Remember that many Latin speakers did not pronounce the initial "h" which means these words sounded even more similar!

The word oneratus is related to the English word "onerous."

You have seen honoratus before, but you have seen the verb that it comes from: honorat. This adjective is the passive participle of that verb in fact.

The words come from the Roman historian Livy; the speaker is Minucius, addressing Fabius.


5. Ego sum rex Romanus et supra grammaticam.
I am (the) Roman king and above grammar.
ego sum rex Ro-MA-nus et supra gram-MA-ticam.

Here you see for the first time ego, the pronoun that means "I" in English... and which gives us the English word "ego." This is the nominative form of the pronoun, so it is the subject of the verb: Ego sum. Because sum by itself already means "I am," the ego is just added here for emphasis.

The adjective Romanus means "Roman," and it is masculine nominative singular, agreeing with rex. You haven't seen this adjective before, but of course you have seen the name of the city itself: Roma.

The word grammaticam is the accusative form of grammatica, "grammar," as in English "grammatical," etc. This is a word the Romans borrowed from the Greeks; gramma means "letter" in Greek (like a letter of the alphabet), and it also means "writing," from the verb grapho, "write."
The story behind this saying is a fun one: during the Council of Constance, the Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund made a mistake speaking Latin; when on the cardinals corrected the emperor's mistake, this is what he said! Find out more at Wikipedia: Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, which includes this anecdote. 

Here's a recap:

• Cogito, ergo sum.
• Rideo, ergo sum.
• Sum, ergo bibo; bibo, ergo sum.
• Oneratus sum magis quam honoratus.
• Ego sum rex Romanus et supra grammaticam.

And here is today's audio:



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Latin Lesson #203: Sum — I am

You've learned the 1st-person endings for the regular verbs of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th conjugations. Today you'll learn the 1st-person form for one of the most irregular verbs in Latin: "to be." You already know est, "is," and today you're ready for "I am" — sum. 

You might know that from the famous saying Cogito ergo sum, which you will have later this week. You're going to start off this week with a palindrome: Sum summus mus. It reads the same both backwards and forwards! You can find some more Latin palindromes at the Wiktionary.

And here is the slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before:

And here are today's proverbs:

1. Sum summus mus.
I-am (the) mightiest mouse.
sum summus mus.

The word summus means "highest" or "mightiest." It is the superlative form of the adjective superus.

You can see how this palindrome works: the word summus is a palindrome word by itself, and it is made up of the two other words you need: sum...mus, "I am (the) mouse."

Another famous Latin palindrome from the Middle Ages is Ave, Eva! "Hail, Eve!" It's a play on the famous Ave Maria, "Hail, Mary!" spoken by the angel to Mary, announcing the birth of Jesus.


2. Meo contentus sum.
I-am content with-my-own.
meo con-TEN-tus sum.

The word meo is the ablative form of the neuter adjective meum, "my,  mine," which is being used substantively here, "my thing, what is mine," etc. You haven't seen this form before, but you have seen the masculine form of this adjective: meus.
The ablative case here is being used to complement contentus: being content "with" something, or satisfied "by" something. In English, we use a prepositional phrase, but in Latin, the ablative can be used by itself to express the same idea.

The idea is that it's good to be satisfied with what you have instead of being jealous of what others have.


3. Faber sum meae fortunae.
I-am (the) maker of-my fortune.
faber sum meae for-TU-nae.

The word fortunae is the genitive form of fortuna, and the word meae is also genitive, agreeing with fortuna in gender: feminine.

The genitive is being used here to complement the word faber: the maker OF my own fortune or fate.

This saying protests the traditional role of Fortuna, often understood as a force so powerful that even the gods could not escape her sway.


4. Primus non sum nec imus.
I-am not first nor last.
primus non sum nec imus.

The word imus means "last" or "lowest," and you can tell this is a medieval proverb, playing with the rhyme between primus and imus.

It's been a while since you have seen the word nec, so remember it is a shortened form of neque, meaning "and not," just as if the saying said et non, like this: Primus non sum, et non (sum) imus.

This is another one of the many Latin sayings in praise of the Golden Mean, not too much, not too little. Here are some of the other "happy medium" sayings you've seen before: Mediocritas optima est, In medio stat virtus, and Locus medius tutus est, just to choose a few.


5. Num custos fratris mei sum?
Am-I my brother's keeper?
num custos fratris mei sum?

The word num is what's called a particle: it doesn't have a real meaning of its own, but it tells you how to interpret the other words; specifically, num is used to indicate a question, usually implying that the answer should be negative.

You can see that the expected answer is "no" from the context of this famous saying: these words are spoken by Cain to God when God asks Cain what happened to his brother Abel. Cain has killed his brother Abel, but he does not want to admit it, so when God asks Cain where Abel is, Cain answers with a non-answer, implying that he is not his brother's keeper. And indeed, he was not! Just the opposite. You can read this Biblical scene in Latin here: Genesis:

Et ait Dominus ad Cain:  /  And God said to Cain:

Ubi est Abel frater tuus?  /  Where is Abel your brother?

Qui respondit:  /  Who answered:

Nescio:  /  I don't know:

num custos fratris mei sum ego?  /  am I my brother's keeper?

Here's a recap:

• Sum summus mus.
• Meo contentus sum.
• Faber sum meae fortunae.
• Primus non sum nec imus.
• Num custos fratris mei sum?

And here is today's audio:



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Week 66 Catch-Up Day

Below is this week's catch-up post to help you review any lesson(s) you missed over the past two weeks of lessons and/or to work on whatever kind of practice is most useful to you as you review these new 1st-person forms for the 3rd and 4th conjugations, plus a few 1st and 2nd-conjugation verbs too:

• #199: 1st-person 3rd-conjugation verbs
• #200: More -o and -io verbs
• #201: 4th conjugation -io verbs
• #202: Wrapping up -o/-io across conjugations

And this is the slideshow with all the sayings from the week. You can read out loud, first with the English to remind you of the vocabulary... and then read out loud again with the cat!

I also made a printable crossword PDF as usual, focusing on the verb forms; screenshots below. 

And here's a random cat:

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Latin Lesson #202: Wrapping up -o/-io across conjugations

The focus for today's lesson is a look back over the 1st-person endings for all four conjugations. Some end in -o, some in -eo, and some in -io. Here's a quick review showing the 1st-person form and the infinitive; those are the two items you will see for each verb in a Latin dictionary entry, and those two forms allow you to identify the conjugation:

• 1st: amo ~ amare
• 2nd: habeo ~ habere
• 3rd-o: vivo ~ vivere
• 3rd-io: capio ~ capere
• 4th: audio ~ audire

See how that works? If a 1st-person verb ends just in -o it could be 1st conjugation or 3rd conjugation; you need to see the infinitive to tell the difference. And if a 1st-person verb ends in -io it could be 3rd conjugation or 4th conjugation; the infinitive tells you which one. The only conjugation that is unambiguous in the 1st-person form is the 2nd conjugation: -eo tells you without a doubt that it is a 2nd-conjugation verb.

To get ready for the sayings, here is the slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before, and you have seen almost all of them before!

And here are today's proverbs:

1. Cunctando propero.
I-hurry by-going-slowly.
cunc-TAN-do PRO-pero.

The verb propero is the 1st-person form of properat; infinitive properare.

The cunctando is the ablative form of cunctandum, "delaying, going slowly." 

The idea is that by going slowly you actually hurry up because you don't rush down blind alleys, you don't take wrong turns, you don't have to backtrack.

You can see this motto expressed visually with a winged turtle: the turtle is the cunctando part, and the wings are the propero part!

2. Audio, sed taceo.
I-hear, but I-am-silent.
AU-dio, sed TA-ceo.

The verb audio is the 1st-person form of audit; infinitive audire, while the verb taceo is the 1st-person form of tacet; infinitive tacere.
You can see this motto in a family crest here:

3. Pareo, non servio.
I-obey, I-serve not.
PA-reo, non SER-vio.

The verb pareo, "I obey," is the 1st-person form of paret; infinitive parere, while the verb servio is the 1st-person form of servit; infinitive servire. The idea is "I obey (of my free will)," "I do not serve (like a slave)."
This is the motto of the Jenkinson family. 

4. Quietae aquae non credo.
I-believe not (in) quiet water.
qui-E-tae aquae non credo.

The verb credo is the 1st-person form of credit; infinitive credere.

The word aquae is the dative form of aqua, and that's because the verb takes a dative complement. The adjective quietae, "quiet," is also dative feminine, agreeing with aquae. You haven't seen the feminine quieta before, but you have seen the neuter form: quietum.

Compare the English saying, "Still waters run deep." The idea is that water might look still, smooth, and quiet on the surface, but you don't know what currents lurk below. That's literally true about water, and it's also metaphorically true about people: just because someone is quiet on the outside, you don't know what lurks inside. So... be careful!

5. Deo fortunaeque committo.
I-trust (in) God and-luck.
deo fortu-NAE-que com-MIT-to.

The verb committo is the 1st-person form of committit; infinitive committere.

Like credo, the verb committo takes a dative complement: Deo is the dative form of the noun Deus, and fortunae is the dative form of fortuna.

The word -que goes after a word, and it is equivalent to et before the word, so Deo fortunaeque means the same thing as Deo et fortunae.


Here's a recap:

• Cunctando propero.
• Audio, sed taceo.
• Pareo, non servio.
• Quietae aquae non credo.
• Deo fortunaeque committo.

And here is today's audio:



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Latin Lesson #201: 4th conjugation -io verbs

The focus for today's lesson is the last of the four conjugations like audit. These 4th-conjugation verbs have -io for the 1st-person ending, so here is audit:

• audio: I hear
• audit: she/he hears
• audire: to hear
• audi! hear!

There are not a lot of 4th-conjugation verbs, but there are a few common ones that you have met before. All of today's sayings contain 4th-conjugation verbs!

And here is the slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before:

And here are today's proverbs:

1. Nil scio nisi nescio.
I-know nothing except (that) I-don't-know.
nil scio nisi NE-scio.

You already know all the words in this saying.

The verb scio is from the verb scit, and the verb nescio is from the verb nescit. They are both 4th-conjugation verbs.

This is a paradoxical point of view associated with the Greek philosopher Socrates; find out more at Wikipedia: I know that I know nothing. This particular Latin saying was used by the archaic Roman playwright Plautus in one of his comedies.


2. Nihil nimium cupio.
I-desire nothing too-much.
nihil NI-mium CU-pio.

You already know all the words in this saying too.

The verb cupio is from the verb cupit, a 4th-conjugation verb.
This is one of many sayings that you have seen about the dangers of desire, for example: Est servitus cupidinis durissima and Effugere cupiditatem regnum est vincere.

3. Nec cupio nec metuo.
I-desire not nor do-I-fear.
nec CU-pio nec ME-tuo.

The verb metuo, "I fear," is from the verb metuit, a 3rd-conjugation verb. You haven't seen this verb before, but you have seen the related noun, metus.

The idea is that if you don't desire anything (don't desire to get anything, don't desire to keep what you have), then you have nothing to fear! This is the motto


4. Moneo et munio.
I-advise and I-defend
MO-neo et MU-nio.

The verb munio, "I defend," is from the verb munit, as in English "munitions" and "ammunition." This is another 4th-conjugation verb. 

The verb moneo is from monet, a 2nd-conjugation verb.

This is the motto of the British Mining Institute, as you can see in this wooden plaque at the entrance to their headquarters in Newcastle-upon-Tyne:

5. Quo plus in vita dormio, vivo minus.
By-how-much more in life I sleep, I-live (that much) less.
quo plus in vita DOR-mio, vivo minus.

The verb dormio is from the verb dormit, a 4th-conjugation verb.

The verb vivo is from the verb vivit, a 3rd-conjugation verb.
The word quo means "by how much." 

Of course, we do need to sleep; there is no getting around it! But it's sometimes frustrating to think about how we spend one-third of our lives... asleep! (Or we should.)

The saying appears in one of the Latin distichs of the neo-Latin poet John Owen.


Here's a recap:

• Nil scio nisi nescio.
• Nihil nimium cupio.
• Nec cupio nec metuo.
• Moneo et munio.
• Quo plus in vita dormio, vivo minus.

And here is today's audio:



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Week 65 Vocabulary Review

After a week of 1st-person forms for the 3rd conjugation, I thought I'd use the quiz-slideshow this week to practice some more 3rd-conjugation forms: active forms with the it ending, passive forms in with the itur ending, plus imperatives that end in e and infinitives that end in ere. 

Using the quiz-slideshow, you can check yourself by looking at the cat slide that follows the slide with the missing word(s). You can also begin at the end and work backwards, giving yourself a different kind of quiz: seeing the slide without English and trying to supply the English, checking your answer on the next slide, reviewing with the cat slide, and then seeing if you can fill in the blank.

Plus don't forget: on the slides that contain the English translation, the English is linked to the original blog post if you want some help in understanding the grammar of the saying.

Here is a link to the full-size quiz-show, and the show is embedded in the blog post here too: 

If you want to do even more reviewing (you cannot review too much!), here are the vocabulary review slideshows from previous weeks.

And here is the Week 65 Crossword for you to download and print. Screenshots:

And... here's a random cat (with a new cat when you reload the page):

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Latin Lesson #200: More -o and -io verbs

Can you believe this is already lesson number 200? That means there are almost 1000 Latin LOLcats too!

The focus for today's lesson is more practice with those 3rd-declension verbs in the 1st person: some end in -o and some end in -io. You'll see examples of both below! 

To get started, here is the slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before, and you've seen all but two of the words in today's sayings before.

And here are today's proverbs:

1. Dum vivo, spero.
While I-live, I-hope.
dum vivo, spero.

The verb vivo is the 1st-person form of the verb vivit.

You also have a 1st-conjugation verb here: spero, the 1st-person form of the verb sperat.

This saying reminds me of my personal favorite Latin saying: Spes ultima dea, "Hope is the last goddess." As long as you are alive, the goddess Hope might still come to your rescue, no matter what.


2. Contentus vivo parvo.
I-live, content with-a-little.
con-TEN-tus vivo parvo.

The word parvo is the ablative form of parvum, an adjective being used as a noun here, completing the adjective contentus. Notice how that adjectival phrase wraps around the verb: contentus...parvo, "content with a little."

You've seen other sayings that praise the simple, modest life; for example: Ex parvo satis and Parva domus, parva cura.


3. Respicio sine luctu.
I-look-back without grief.
re-SPI-cio sine luctu.

The verb respicio is the 1st-person form of the verb respicit.

The word luctu is the ablative form of the noun luctus, "grief." You haven't seen this noun before, but you have seen the verb that it comes from: lugeo. It's in the ablative case with the preposition sine.

This is the Dendy family motto.

4. Auream mediocritatem diligo.
I-cherish the-golden mean.
AU-ream mediocri-TA-tem DI-ligo.

The verb diligo, "I love, I cherish, I choose," is the 1st-person form of the verb diligo. This verb is the origin of English "diligent" and you can also see it in "predilection."

The word mediocritatem is the accusative form of mediocritas, a feminine noun, so the adjective is also feminine accusative: auream.

While "mediocrity" in English has negative connotations, in Latin mediocritas is very much a "happy medium," safely in the middle, avoiding extremes. You can read more about the Golden Mean at Wikipedia.


5. Facio de necessitate virtutem.
I-make a-virtue from necessity.
FA-cio de necessi-TA-te vir-TU-tem.

The verb facio is the 1st-person form of the verb facit.

The word necessitate is the ablative form of the noun necessitas. It's in the ablative case because of the preposition de.

The word virtutem is the accusative form of the noun virtus. It's in the accusative case because it's the object of the verb.

This phrase appears in the writings of Saint Jerome. Compare the English saying "making a virtue of necessity." In other words, if you have to do something anyway, you can try to turn it to your benefit.

Here's a recap:

• Dum vivo, spero.
• Contentus vivo parvo.
• Respicio sine luctu.
• Auream mediocritatem diligo.
• Facio de necessitate virtutem.

And here is today's audio:



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