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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Latin Lesson #199: 1st-person 3rd-conjugation verbs

The focus for today's lesson is more 1st-person forms, this time for the 3rd conjugation. This conjugation is different from the others because there are two different forms that you can find for the 1st person: sometimes it is -o and sometimes it is -io. There is no special rule for this; you just learn the forms as you go. In today's sayings, you will see some -o verbs and some -io verbs. The infinitive for both of them is the same, -ere. 

For example, vivo is an -o verb:

• vivo: I live
• vivere: to live

But sapio is an -io verb:

• sapio: I am wise
• sapere: I am wise

And here is the slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before, which is almost all of the verbs in today's sayings.

And here are today's proverbs:

1. In diem vivo.
I-live for the-day.
in diem vivo.

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

The word diem is the accusative form of the noun dies. It's in the accusative case with the preposition in, which means "into" or "for" when it's with the accusative case.

2. Ultra aspicio.
I-look beyond.
ultra as-PI-cio.

The verb aspicio is the 1st-person form of aspicit.

The word ultra, "beyond," is an adverb. You haven't seen this word before, but you've seen this related adjective: ultima. 


3. Patientia vinco.
I-conquer by-means-of-patience.
pati-EN-tia vinco.

The verb vinco is the 1st-person form of vincit.

The word patientiā is the ablative from of the noun patientia, meaning "with patience" or "by means of patience."

This is the Thompson Scottish Clan motto.


4. Aurum in stercore quaero.
I'm-seeking gold in a-manure-pile.
aurum in STER-core quaero.

The verb quaero is the 1st-person form of quaerit.

The word aurum is the accusative form of aurum (remember: neuter nouns have the same form in the nominative and the accusative); it's the object of the verb.

The word stercore is the ablative form of the noun stercus. The preposition in with the ablative means "in."
You've seen a different version of this saying before: Aurum e stercore. You may or may not find gold in the proverbial shit, but even if you do, it's not a pleasant task.


5. Feliciter sapio alieno periculo.
I-grow-wise happily at-another's peril.
fe-LI-citer SA-pio ali-E-no pe-RI-culo.

The verb sapio is the 1st-person form of sapit.

The word feliciter, "happily," is an adverb. You haven't seen this word before, but you've seen the related noun: felicitas.

The word periculo is the ablative form of the noun periculum, and the adjective alieno is also in the ablative, agreeing with the noun periculo. The ablative phrase means "at another's peril" or "by means of someone else's danger."

In other words, it's much better to learn from other people's dangerous mistakes than to make those mistakes on your own.

Here's a recap:

• In diem vivo.
• Ultra aspicio.
• Patientia vinco.
• Aurum in stercore quaero.
• Feliciter sapio alieno periculo.

And here is today's audio:



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Week 64 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 1st and 2nd conjugations:

• #195: 1st-person 1st-conjugation
• #196: More 1st-conjugation 1st-person
• #197: 2nd-conjugation -eo
• #198: More -eo verbs

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 #198: More -eo verbs

The focus for today's lesson is more practice with the 1st-person form of 2nd-conjugation verbs, the ones ending in -eo. 

And here is the slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before; you know all the words in today's sayings except for just two:

And here are today's proverbs:

1. Maneo nemini.
I-wait for-no-one.
MA-neo NE-mini.

The word maneo is the 1st-person form of the verb manet.

The "I" of this saying is... a sundial or a watch, speaking on behalf of time itself. This was an inscription often found on sundials. Time waits for no one! Here's a sundial with Maneo nemini and also Carpe diem, which is also good advice with regard to time.

2. Anguillam cauda teneo.
I've-got the-eel by-the-tail.
an-GUIL-lam cauda TE-neo.

The word teneo is the 1st-person form of the verb tenet.
The word anguillam is the accusative form of anguilla, "eel." It's in the accusative case because it's the object of the verb.

The word cauda (caudā) is the ablative form of the noun cauda: "(by the) tail." Latin often uses an ablative where English has to use a prepositional phrase or an adverb.

The idea, of course, is that an eel is very slippery: you may think you have got hold of it, but it's probably going to wriggle right out of your hands. 

3. Non timeo, sed caveo.
I-fear not, but I'm-cautious.
non TI-meo, sed CA-veo.

The word timeo is the 1st-person form of the verb timet, and the word caveo is the 1st-person form of the verb cavet.
This is a motto of Clan Strachan in Scotland.

4. Timeo naufragus omne fretum.
Having-been-shipwrecked, I-fear every strait.
TI-meo NAU-fragus omne fretum.

The word fretum is in the accusative case (remember: neuter nouns look the same in the nominative and accusative cases), so it is the object of the verb. The neuter adjective omne agrees with fretum. Literally, fretum refers to a strait, but it can also be used metaphorically to refer to the sea, so you could also translate this as "A shipwrecked man, I fear every sea."

The word naufragus is in the nominative case, which means it modifies the subject of the verb: "I, a shipwrecked man, am afraid..."
The words come from a poem by the Roman poet Ovid. This was actually a saying better known in its 3rd-person form, which you have already seen: Timet naufragus omne fretum. Ovid then cleverly adapted the saying for his own disastrous life circumstances, changing timet to timeo, making himself the survivor of a metaphorical shipwreck.


5. Nec habeo, nec careo, nec curo.
I-have not, I-lack not, I-worry not.
nec HA-beo, nec CA-reo, nec curo.

The word habeo is the 1st-person form of the verb habet, and the word careo, "I lack," is the 1st-person form of the verb caret, which is new verb you have not seen before. But caret has been adopted as a word in English, "caret." A caret looks like a little pointing arrow at the bottom of a line of writing — ‸ — and it's used by editors and proofreaders to indicate that something is missing: caret! "something's missing!"

The word curo is the 1st-person form of the verb curat, which is a 1st-conjugation verb, not 2nd.

As always with multiple nec, you have the option of translating it with "neither... nor..." in English. This time, you have a triple nec, so that would be "neither... nor... nor..." — "I neither have, nor do I lack, nor do I care."

This saying was used as the title of a book by the 17th-century writer and satirist George Wither.

Here's a recap:

• Maneo nemini.
• Anguillam cauda teneo.
• Non timeo, sed caveo.
• Timeo naufragus omne fretum.
• Nec habeo, nec careo, nec curo.

And here is today's audio:



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Latin Lesson #197: 2nd-conjugation -eo

The focus for today's lesson is the 1st-person form of the 2nd-conjugation verbs. Since the theme vowel of the 2nd-conjugation is -e-, you won't be surprised that the ending is -eo. So, for example, the verb habeo means "I have." 

Just like last week, these 1st-person forms are found in Latin mottos, so you'll see some heraldry, bookplates, etc. below.

Remember that this 1st-person form is how you look up words in the Latin dictionary, so this is what the entry for habeo looks like:

 
So, now you know the 1st-person form for the 1st conjugation, amo (infinitive: amare), and also the 1st-person form for the 2nd conjugation, habeo (infinitive habere).

And here is the slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before; you know almost all of today's words already:

And here are today's proverbs:

1. Nil timeo.
I-fear nothing.
nil TI-meo.

The word timeo is the 1st-person form of the verb timet.

The word nil is the accusative form of nil (remember: neuter nouns and adjectives have the same form in the nominative and the accusative), and it is the object of the verb.

Some heraldry featuring this saying:

2. Sic fidem teneo.
Thus I-keep the-faith.
sic fidem TE-neo.

The word teneo is the 1st-person form of the verb tenet. 

The word fidem is the accusative form of the noun fides, and it's the object of the verb.

I found an image of this motto being used in Masonic heraldry in the Cornish town of Bodim, England:

3. Irrideo tempestatem.
I-scoff at-the-storm.
ir-RI-deo tempes-TA-tem.

The word irrideo, "I scoff," is the 1st-person form of the verb irridet. You haven't seen this verb before, but you have seen the root verb: ridet.

The word tempestatem is the accusative form of the word tempestas; it's the object of the verb.
I found this one used in a bookplate, paired with the image of a tree that can stand tall in a storm:

4. Nec timeo, nec tumeo.
I-fear not, nor do-I-boast.
nec TI-meo, nec TU-meo.

The word tumeo, "I swell up; I boast," is the 1st-person form of the verb tumet. This same root shows up in English "tumor."

The word nec literally means "and not," but when used in a pair like this, nec... nec..., it can mean "not... nor..." or "neither... nor..." 
So this saying could also be translated as "I neither fear, nor do I boast."

As you can see, the force of this saying depends on the sound-play between the words timeo and tumeo. They are completely unrelated, but they sure sound good together!

More heraldry:

5. Recte faciendo neminem timeo.
By-acting rightly, I-fear no-one.
recte faci-EN-do NE-minem TI-meo.

The word faciendo is the ablative form of the verbal noun faciendum, "doing, acting." You haven't seen this word before, but you know the verb that it comes from: facit.

The word neminem is the accusative form of nemo, and it is the object of the verb.
This one I found used as a military motto:

Here's a recap:

• Nil timeo. 
• Sic fidem teneo. 
• Irrideo tempestatem. 
• Nec timeo, nec tumeo. 
• Recte faciendo neminem timeo.

And here is today's audio:



Plus the LOLCats!

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Week 63 Vocabulary Review

This week the quiz-slideshow focuses on infinitives! The -are and -ire forms are easy to recognize as the 1st and 4th declensions, but the -ere infinitives are tricky: they can be the 2nd declension (long e, so accented on the ending, like habere: hab-ERE) or 3rd declension (short e, so accented on the stem, like capere: CAP-ere). You can use the pronunciation guide on the slides to help you figure out which is which! And don't forget about the irregular infinitive of the verb "to be," esse.

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 63 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 #196: More 1st-conjugation 1st-person

The focus for today's lesson is more practice with those 1st-conjugation verbs and the -o ending for the "I" forms. You know almost all of the words today, like the verbs: amo, "I love," spero, "I hope," vigilo, "I keep watch, stay awake," and exspecto, "I await, expect." You also have one new verb: reformido, "I fear." The Latin root of that verb also appears in the English "formidable."

Because these 1st-person sayings are so commonly found in heraldry, I have some fun art to share today, in addition to the usual LOLcats.

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

And here are today's proverbs:

1. Pacem amo.
I-love peace.
pacem amo.

You already know the words in this saying!

The word pacem is the accusative form of the noun pax, and it is object of the verb, amo.
This is a popular motto, and you can see in all kinds of heraldry, including here in this brewery sign in the England, together with a unicorn:

2. Spe exspecto.
I-await with-hope.
spe ex-SPEC-to.

You also know both of these words!
The word spe is the ablative form of spes, which can mean "with hope, "in hope," etc.

The words spe and exspecto are not related, as the word exspecto has as its root, "spec-," "seeing, watching," as in "spectator," but this saying plays nicely on the similarity in sound between them.


3. Vigilo et spero.
I-keep-watch and I-hope.
VI-gi-lo et spero.

These words are also familiar from before, and this is another popular family motto, appearing in heraldic emblems, as in this Potts family emblem:

4. Supra spem spero.
I-hope beyond hope.
supra spem spero.

And you know all the words in this saying too! 

The word spem is the accusative form of the noun spes, used here with the preposition supra.

The family motto is inspired by the Biblical Letter to the Romans, although the Vulgate text reads contra spem in spem, "against hope into hope."
Here you can see that motto on a Victorian watch:

5. Pacis nomine bellum involutum reformido.
I-fear war rolled-up-in in-the-name of-peace.
pacis NO-mi-ne bellum in-vo-LU-tum re-FOR-mi-do.

There are two new words in this saying. The verb reformido means "I fear," and it's a 1st-conjugation verb, so the infinitive is reformidare.
The word bellum is the accusative form of the neuter noun bellum: "I fear war." The adjective involutum, "wrapped up in," is new, but you know the root verb that it comes from: volvit. This can mean something literally wrapped up in something, but it can also be used metaphorically as in the English word "involve" which comes from this Latin root.

As often with a passive participle like involutum there is an ablative complement: nomine, the ablative form of nomen. So, this is not just about any kind of war, but a war wrapped up "in the name" ... and what name? The name of peace: nomine pacis. The word pacis is the genitive singular of pax.

The words come a speech by the Roman politician Cicero in which, after the assassination of Julius Caesar, Cicero denounced Mark Antony; these are the so-called Philippics.

Here's a recap:

• Pacem amo.
• Spe exspecto.
• Vigilo et spero.
• Supra spem spero.
• Pacis nomine bellum involutum reformido.

And here is today's audio:



Plus the LOLCats!

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