Latin Lesson #3: Noun-Is-Noun / Word Order

In Lesson 1 and Lesson 2, you saw examples of sayings in which the verb "is" was implied. In this lesson, you will now see some sayings which do include the Latin verb "is" — est. Whether or not to include est is purely a matter of style, not grammar. So, for example, both versions of this saying are commonly found:

• Homo bulla.
• Homo bulla est.

Also, Latin has free word order, which means you can put the est wherever you want. It can go at the end, or in the middle:

• Sapientia est potentia.

It can also go at the beginning:

• Est potentia sapientia.

The different word order gives a different emphasis based on how the statement is revealed to the listener word by word. For example, if you say "Est potentia sapientia," the word sapientia is revealed as a kind of surprise at the end. 

The extreme freedom of Latin word order is one of its most distinctive stylistic features. In English, word order is almost completely regulated by grammar, but in Latin the word order is all a matter of style!

So, here are today's proverbs, which continue the Noun-Noun formula, but now with the verb est:

1. Vita est somnium.
Life is (a) dream.
VI-ta   EST   SOM-ni-um.

You see the Latin word for life, vita, in English "vital" and "vitality." The Latin phrase curriculum vitae means "course of life" (vitae is in the genitive case, meaning "of life").

The Latin word for dream, somnium, is derived from the word for sleep, somnus. You can see this root in the English "somnambulist," or "sleep-walker."

A more pessimistic version is Vita sominum breve, "Life (is a) brief dream." (You'll be learning about Latin adjectives in the next lesson!)

2. Peregrinatio vita est.
Life is (a) pilgrimage.
Pe-re-gri-NA-ti-o   VI-ta   EST.

The word for pilgrimage, peregrinatio, is from per-ager, meaning "through the land" or "beyond the land." The adjective peregrinus (pe-re-GRI-nus) meant a traveler, a foreigner or stranger. In medieval Latin, peregrinus became pelegrinus, which is how it eventually became English "pilgrim." The Latin word also gives us "peregrine falcon," a bird who travels literally all over the earth.

You can also find the saying in this form: Vita hominis peregrinatio est, "The life of a person is a pilgrimage." The word hominis (HO-mi-nis) is the genitive form of homo; you'll be learning about the genitive soon too!

3. Est vipera invidia.
Envy is (a) viper.
EST   VI-pe-ra   in-VI-di-a.

From Latin vipera we get English "viper."

The word invidia is the origin of the English word "envy." The Latin noun invidia comes from the verb invidere (in-vi-DE-re), which is a compound: in-videre, "to look at," but with negative connotations: to look at someone with malice, with jealousy, with the evil eye. 

This saying is metaphorical: envy is not literally a viper, but it can be dangerous, even deadly, like a viper. There was a Latin emblem type popular during the Renaissance that associated envy with vipers; you can see that emblem, with an English translation, here: Invidia.


4. Rex est lex.
(The) king is (the) law.
REX EST LEX.

The word rex means king, and the root, reg-, gives us words like "regal" and "reign" in English.

The word lex means law, and the root, leg-, gives us words like "legal" and "legislature" in English.

The idea, of course, is that the king is a law unto himself: Rex est lex. Or, even more simply: Rex lex.

5. Est adulator laudator.
Someone who praises you is (a) flatterer.
EST   a-du-LA-tor   lau-DA-tor.

The Latin adulator is a flatterer, someone who offers insincere compliments, manipulating you for their own benefit. The English word "adulation" comes from this same Latin root, but it has lost its negative connotations in English. In Latin, the adulator is dangerous, someone you should not trust.

The Latin laudator is someone who praises you. This word does not have negative connotations; Latin laus, "praise," is a positive thing. The Latin phrases summa cum laude and magna cum laude ("with the highest praise" and "with great praise") are still used today in English. (The form laude is the ablative case of laus; the ablative case will be coming soon too!)

So, the point of this proverb is to beware: the person who is praising you may just be flattering you for their own purposes. The fact that the word adulator is an anagram of laudator just adds to the power of the proverb. It's almost as if because the words contain the same letters, they are the same thing! You can read more about Latin anagrams at Wikipedia.

1. Vita est somnium.
2. Peregrinatio vita est.
3. Est vipera invidia.
4. Rex est lex.
5. Est adulator laudator.

And now, here is the audio for today:

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