Proverbs/Grammar ~ Grammar/Proverbs: Latin Lesson #82: Finishing up Week 19

The focus for today's lesson is more of those -em 3rd-declension accusatives. You may have noticed that we've only done feminine and masculine 3rd-declension nouns and adjectives, but you'll be learning about 3rd-declension neuter nouns and adjectives next week.

Today's sayings have the same word as both subject and object, a style that you have seen before. To get ready, here's a slideshow that reviews those "duplicated" sayings:

You can read through those "duplicated" proverbs here too:

Cura curam trahit.
Gratia gratiam parit.
Pecunia pecuniam parit.
Nummus nummum parit.
Caecus caecum ducit.
Asinus asinum fricat.
Mulus mulum scabit.
Fatuus fatuum invenit.
Abyssus abyssum invocat.
Vicissim insanus insanum ridet.
Alius alium beatissimum existimat.
Lupus lupum non edit.
Iniuria non excusat iniuriam.

And now here are today's proverbs:

1. Lis litem generat.
(One) quarrel produces (another) quarrel.
lis litem GE-nerat.

The new word here is lis, a 3rd-declension noun, meaning "quarrel, argument," and more specifically "lawsuit, court case." Its accusative form is litem, and you can see this Latin root in English "litigation."
The United States is not the only litigious society, as you can see from this saying.

2. Amor gignit amorem.
Love brings-forth love.
amor gignit a-MO-rem.

The new word here is the verb gignit, "brings forth, gives birth to."

The word amorem is the accusative form of the 3rd-declension noun you've already seen: amor.

Compare a similar saying that you saw earlier: Gratia gratiam parit.

3. Nec serpens serpentem comedit.
Snake doesn't eat snake.
nec serpens ser-PEN-tem COM-edit.

The new word here is the verb comedit, "eats, consumes," which is a compound com-edit. You can see this root in English "edible" and also in the word "comestible."

The word serpentem is the accusative form of the 3rd-declension noun you've already seen: serpens.

Do you remember the little word nec? It is like non, and here it negates the verb: nec comedit, "doesn't eat."

Compare to this similar saying: Lupus lupum non edit.

4. Furem fur cognoscit et lupum lupus.
Thief knows thief and wolf (knows) wolf.
furem fur cog-NO-scit et lupum lupus.

The new word here is the verb cognoscit, "recognizes, knows," and you can see this root in English "cognition."

The word furem is the accusative form of the 3rd-declension noun you've already seen: fur.

Likewise, lupum is the accusative form of a 2nd-delcension noun: lupus.

Notice the word order: the object comes before the subject, furem fur ... lupum lupus.

For the meaning, compare the English saying, "Thick as thieves."

5. Lupus non leporem sed lupum generat.
(A) wolf doesn't give-birth-to (a) rabbit, but (a) wolf.
lupus non LE-porem sed lupum GE-nerat.

You know all the words in this saying already!

The word leporem is the accusative form of the 3rd-declension noun you've already seen: lepus.

The charm of this saying depends on the similar-sounding nouns: lupus and lepus.

Meanwhile, the "Lupus non leporem generat" part of this saying is like this saying about the eagle and the dove: Aquila non parit columbam.

Here's a recap: