Here's another Latin cantilena to wrap up the week: it's my version of "Ring around the Rosie," Rosam Ite Circum. You can read about this song at Wikipedia.
Here is one English version:
Ring around the rosie,
A pocket full of posies.
Ashes! Ashes!
We all fall down!
And here is my Latin version:
Rosam ite circum,
Cum sacco pleno florum.
Cinis! Cinis!
Iam cadimus!
Go around the rose,
With a bag full of flowers.
Ash! Ash!
We're falling down now.
And now I have a recording of the Latin, thanks to Genesis Staple, a recent graduate of the UT Music School here in Austin. You can hear more of Genesis's Latin recordings at this work-in-progress wiki: Cantilenae.
The focus for today's lesson is the plural ending for 3rd-conjugation verbs: the ending is -unt or, sometimes, -iunt. The sayings today all feature -unt endings, but we'll do some -iunt verbs next week.
How can you tell the difference? Just look at the 1st-person form of the verb! Remember how some 3rd-conjugation verbs have -o for the 1st person, but some have -io...? That's how you can tell which 3rd-person plural ending to use: the -o verbs have -unt for the ending, and the -io verbs have -iunt for the ending.
So, for example, here are today's verbs, and they all have -o endings in the 1st person (dictionary) form:
1. Alii serunt, alii metunt. Some sow, others reap.
A-lii serunt, A-lii metunt.
The word alii is the plural of alius, "other." So, literally, the saying says "Others sow, others reap." But in English, we use a different idiom: alii...alii... is "some... others..."
The verb serunt is the plural form of serit, "sows," while metunt is the plural of metit, "reaps."
The idea is that some people do all the work ("sowing"), while others get all the profit ("reaping").
This is a variation on a saying that saw before with a singular subject: Mulus mulum scabit, "Mule scratches mule."
The word muli is the plural of mulus, while scabunt is the plural of scabit.
The word mutuum is an adverb: "mutually, one another." You can see this Latin root in English "mutual."
Compare the English saying, "You scratch my back; I'll scratch yours." The difference is that mules were not held in high regard in ancient Rome, so the Latin saying refers more to how one low-life helps another low-life.
3. Litterae non erubescunt. Letters don't blush.
LIT-terae non eru-BES-cunt.
You've already seen a version of this saying before: Epistola non erubescit, "A letter does not blush."
The word litterae is the plural of littera, while erubescunt is the plural of erubescit. In the plural, litterae can mean "letters" but it can also mean "a letter" (singular), so you could also translate this saying as "A letter does not blush," just as if it were Epistola non erubescit.
The idea is that people might say things in writing that they would never say out loud, a phenomenon that has taken on new relevance in the digital world.
The word curae is the plural of cura, and inducunt is the plural of inducit = in+ducit, "on-lead, lead on, induce, bring on."
The word canitiem is the accusative form of canities, and it is the object of the verb.
The idea is that someone with lots of worries gets grey hair early, bringing on old age prematurely.
5. Semper bene cadunt Iovis tesserae. Jupiter's dice always fall nicely.
semper bene cadunt Iovis TES-serae.
The word tesserae, "dice," is the plural of tessera. This is a Greek word that the Romans borrowed, meaning "four," which can also refer to dice (cubes), making it a synonym of Latin alea.
The word Iovis is the genitive of Iuppiter, so this is a saying about Jupiter's dice.
The verb cadunt is the plural of cadit.
Both semper and bene are both adverbs, so the idea is that Jupiter's dice always, semper, fall nicely, bene cadunt. In other words: the king of the gods is always lucky... unlike mere mortals.
To pick up again after a week off, I thought I would repeat the focus from the last lesson: -ent plural verbs of the 2nd conjugation. The verbs for today are: docent, "they teach" / implent, "they fill" / latent, "they hide" / silent, "they are silent."
So, here is the slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before — you have seen all the words in today's sayings except for one!
The word exempla is the plural of exemplum, which you can see in English "exemplary," "example," and "sample."
The verb docent is the plural of docet.
This was one of the functions of Aesop's fables, providing memorable examples, both positive exempla of models to be imitated, along with negative exempla of mistakes to avoid.
2. Dolia plena silent. Full jars make-no-noise.
DO-lia plena silent.
You know all the words in this saying.
The verb silent is the plural of silet.
The subject is dolia, the plural of dolium. This plural noun is modified by a plural adjective: plena.
This is literally true, and metaphorically it applies to talkative people, who are actually "empty," having nothing of substance to say. But they keep on making noise!
Compare the English saying, "Empty vessels make the most sound."
3. Diu non latent scelera.
Crimes do-not hide for-long.
diu non latent SCE-lera.
These words are all familiar as well!
The verb latent is the plural of latet.
The subject is scelera, the plural of scelus. Remember that to make the plural of a 3rd-declension noun, you need to know the actual stem of the word, which you may or may not be able to see in the nominative form. So, for example, the word scelus has the genitive form sceleris, which gives you the stem, sceler-. Then, because it is a neuter noun, you add the neuter plural ending for the 3rd declension: scelera.
The word diu is an adverb, modifying the verb.
Compare the English saying, "The truth will out."
4. Latent sub melle venena.
Poisons lurk under the-honey.
latent sub melle ve-NE-na.
All words that you know, and the verb is latent once again.
The subject is venena, the plural of venenum.
The word melle is the ablative form of mel; it's ablative because the preposition sub takes the ablative. This is another 3rd-declension noun, so you need to know the stem to make the ablative form. The genitive of mel is mellis, which gives you the stem, mell-. Then you can add the ablative ending: -e.
The idea is that something might seem very sweet and appealing, but it can actually be dangerous or even deadly. The warning comes from the poet Ovid in his Amores.
5. Multae guttae implent flumen.
Many drops fill the-stream.
multae guttae implent flumen.
And this saying is also made up of words you have seen before.
The verb implent is the plural of implet.
The subject is guttae, the plural of gutta. The adjective multae is also plural, agreeing with guttae.
The word flumen is one of those sneaky neuter nouns of the 3rd declension: it could be nominative or it could be accusative. But since the sentence already has a subject, then this is the accusative subject of the verb: guttae (subject) implent (verb) flumen (object).
Compare the English saying, "Little by little does the trick."
Here's a recap:
Exempla docent.
Dolia plena silent.
Diu non latent scelera.
Latent sub melle venena.
Multae guttae implent flumen.
NOTE: I'll be off next week... and I'm excited to say that I will be meeting face-to-face for the first time the very nice person who prompted the Vergil project, which is still going strong: A New Beginner's Latin: THE AENEID. Take a look if you are curious! Then, I'll be back with more Latin cats the week of October 5.
Meanwhile, here is the catch-up day for the past two weeks of plural verbs: sunt, plus -ant verbs in the 1st conjugation and -ent verbs in the 2nd conjugation. As usual, there is a cat-show of those sayings, plus a link to the downloadable crossword and the self-quiz.
And here's the slideshow with all the sayings. 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, and the same prompts for the crossword are used in the quiz questions below. Enjoy!
Carmina non ______ panem. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerdantUbi sunt ______, ibi est invidia. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerdivitiaeMultae manus onus ______. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerlevantMulti sunt ______ bipedes. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerasiniUbi ______, ibi sunt opes. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answeramiciAntiqua sunt ______. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answeroptimaHic sunt ______. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerleones______ astra viam. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answermonstrantVestigia ______. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerterrentLibri muti ______ sunt. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answermagistriIusti ut sidera ______. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerfulgentDei ______ sunt omnia. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerplenaAmantes amentes ______. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answersunt______ futura. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerlatent______ mea mecum sunt. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answeromnia______ vestri ubi sunt? fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerpatresMortui non ______. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answermordentScripta ______. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answermanentFata ______. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerobstantVerba cutem non ______. fill in the blank: reveal/hide answerlacerant
The focus for today's lesson is the 2nd-conjugation plural ending: habet, "has" — habent, "have." The ending is -ent, just as you would expect after sunt and -ant, right?
You are now officially experts in the -nt plural ending. And there will be more to come!
The verb latent is the plural of latet, which you can translate as "hides" or "is hidden" or "escapes notice."
The subject is futura, the plural of futurum, an adjective that means "future." The adjective is being used as a plural: futura, "future (things." This can also be translated as "the future" if you prefer!
This saying formed part of the emblem tradition; you can see an example here: Futura latent.
2. Scripta manent. Writings remain.
scripta manent.
The adjective scripta is the plural of scriptum, "written (thing)," so it means "writings," or just "writing." This adjective is one of those verbal adjectives known as participles. So, just as "written" is from the verb "write" in English, scriptumis from the verb scribere in Latin, a verb you've seen before.
The verb manent is the plural of manet.
This is a very optimistic sentiment, although, sad to say, far more Latin literature perished than survived. But, compared to the spoken word, the written word is looking pretty good! Blog on!
Sometimes the full idea is expressed this way: Verba volant, scripta manent, "Words fly, writing remains." Find out more at Wikipedia.
The verb terrent is the plural of terret, "terrifies, scares," as in English "terrify" and "terrific."
The word vestigia is the plural of vestigium.
This phrase comes from Horace's retelling of the fable of the lion in the cave and the fox who is wise enough to not go inside, when he sees footsteps leading in but not out... because the lion gobbled up the other visitors. Here's Horace's satire.
4. Mortui non mordent. Dead-people don't bite.
MOR-tui non mordent.
You know all the words in this saying too!
The verb mordent is the plural of mordet.
The word mortui is the plural of mortuus, "dead," being used substantively as a noun: mortui, "dead (people)."
Compare the English saying, "Dead men tell no tales."
5. Iusti ut sidera fulgent. People-who-are-just shine like stars.
iusti ut SI-dera fulgent.
The word iusti is the plural of the adjective iustus, "just, righteous," being used as a noun: iusti, "the just (people)." You haven't seen this word before, but you have seen the related noun: iustitia.
The verb fulgent is the plural of the fulget, "shines," as in English "refulgent." The word sidera is the plural of the noun sidus, "star." You can see this Latin root in English "sidereal."
The focus for today's lesson is the 3rd-person plural ending for the 1st conjugation... and it's -ant. No surprise there! The verb sunt, "they are," already featured the -nt ending, so now you have -a- the theme vowel of the 1st conjugation, which gives you that ending: ambulant, "they walk;" volant, "they fly," and so on.
You already know all the words in this saying! The verb obstant is the plural form of obstat. The subject is fata, the plural of fatum.
This famous phrase comes from Vergil's Aeneid, an epic that is very much about fate and destiny, with the Fates getting in the way of the plans of both gods and mortals.
2. Monstrant astra viam. The-stars show the-way.
monstrant astra viam.
The verb monstrant is the plural form of monstrat, "shows, demonstrates." The subject is astra, the plural of astrum.
The word viam is the accusative of via, object of the verb.
The stars, astra, are sometimes read as a kind of destiny or fate, and in this saying, the stars are not in the way but are instead pointing the way.
3. Carmina non dant panem. Songs don't give bread.
CAR-mina non dant panem.
The verb dant is the plural form of dat. The carmina, the plural of carmen, "song," which also gives us English "charm." The word panem is the accusative of panis, object of the verb.
In other words, songs (and music and dancing and poetry, etc.) are all very enjoyable, and even valuable, but you cannot live off them. A similar saying declares: Litterae non dant panem, "Letters (i.e. literature, writing) doesn't give bread."
4. Verba cutem non lacerant. Words don't mangle the-skin.
verba cutem non LA-cerant.
The verb lacerant is the plural form of lacerat, "mangles, tears, shreds," as in English "lacerate." The subject is verba, the plural of verbum.
The word cutem is the accusative of cutis, object of the verb.
Compare the English saying, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me."
5. Multae manus onus levant. Many hands lighten the-load.
multae manus onus levant.
The verb levant is the plural form of levat, "mangles, tears, shreds," as in English "lever" and "relieve." The subject is multae manus, the plural of multa manus. Remember manus? It is one of those sneaky feminine 4th-declension nouns. The word onus is the accusative form of onus; yes, it's one of those sneaky neuter 3rd-declension nouns, with the same form in the nominative and the accusative. It's the accusative of the verb.
This is literally true about a heavy load, and metaphorically it implies to cooperation in any kind of work.
