Proverbs/Grammar ~ Grammar/Proverbs: Latin Lesson #148: More noli+infinitive

The focus for today's lesson is more practice with noli plus the infinitive to express negative commands. You will also see two related words: the participle (verbal adjective) nolens, which means "not willing," and also the participle volens, which means willing.

To get ready for today's sayings, take a quick look at all the noli sayings from yesterday:

Noli trepidare!
Noli tristis esse.
Miserum noli ridere.
Iratum noli stimulare.
Noli nimis alte volare.

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

So, here are today's proverbs:

1. Noli verberare lapidem.
Don't beat (a) stone.
noli verbe-RA-re LA-pidem.

The word verberare is the infinitive of the verb verberat, "beats." You can see this Latin root in the English word "reverberate."

The word lapidem is the accusative form of the noun lapis, "stone," as in the phrase lapis lazuli. You can also see this root in English "lapidary" and "dilapidated."

This saying is found in the Roman comic playwright, Plautus: Noli verberare lapidem, ne perdas manum, "Don't beat a stone, lest you break your hand." Compare the English saying about "beating a dead horse."

2. Confide, et noli timere.
Trust, and don't fear.
con-FI-de, et noli ti-ME-re.

The word timere is the infinitive of the verb timet, which you have seen before.

Here the negative command, noli timere, is paired with a positive command: confide, which is the imperative form of the verb confidit, "trusts, believes." You haven't seen this verb before, but you have seen a related adjective: fidelis.

You can find this phrase in the Biblical book of 2 Esdras.

3. Iram leonis noli timere.
Don't fear (the) lion's anger.
iram le-O-nis noli ti-ME-re.

You already know all the words in this saying! The word iram is the accusative form of the noun ira, and it is the object of the infinitive.

The word leonis is the genitive form of the noun leo. Whose anger? The lion's anger, iram leonis.

This a motto of the Long family.

4. Irritare canem noli dormire volentem.
Don't disturb (a) dog wanting to-sleep.
irri-TA-re canem noli dor-MI-re vo-LEN-tem.

The word irritare is the infinitive of the verb irritat, which you have seen before, and it goes with noli. The word canem is the accusative form of the noun canis, and it is the object of the infinitive: irritate canem noli, "don't disturb a dog."

You then learn more about the dog in the second half of the saying!

The word volentem is the accusative form of the participle volens, "wanting." You can see this same root in the English word "voluntary."

This participle takes a complementary infinitive, dormire from the verb dormit.

The word volentem is in the accusative because it agrees with canem, which is also in the accusative. Put it all together, and you get: Don't disturb a dog, irritate canem noli, who wants to sleep, dormire volentem.

Compare the English saying, "Let sleeping dogs lie."

5. Vinum senem, etiam vel nolentem, saltare compellit.
Wine compels (an) old-(person) to-leap, even if unwilling.
vinum senem, etjam vel no-LEN-tem, sal-TA-re com-PEL-lit.

You know the word vinum already, and it is the subject of the sentence.

The word senem is the accusative form of the adjective senex, being used as a noun here: "an old (person)."

So, as the sentence begins, you have the subject of the sentence, vinum, and the object, senem, but you don't know what the verb is: what do you think wine does to the old person?

To find out, you need the verb, compellit, "compels." You haven't seen this verb before, but you have seen the root form: pellit.

This verb takes a complementary infinitive: saltare, from the verb saltat, which you have seen before.

So now you can put that together: Vinum senem saltare compellit, "Wine compels the old person to leap."

Then you find out more about the old person, just like you found out more about the dog in the previous saying: the word nolentem is the accusative form of the participle, nolens, "not willing." The phrase etiam si means "even if."

So not you can put it all together: Vinum senem saltare compellit, "Wine makes the old person leap," etiam vel nolentem, "even if the old person is unwilling."

This is one of the sayings collected by Erasmus in his Adagia.

Here's a recap: