Proverbs/Grammar ~ Grammar/Proverbs: Latin Lesson #164: More passives and prepositions

The focus for today's lesson is more review of passive verbs and more review of prepositions. And remember: most prepositions takes the ablative case, but sometimes they take the accusative, and you will see both kinds of prepositions in today's sayings. I'll make sure to point out in the notes the prepositions that are taking the ablative case and the prepositions that take the accusative.

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

And here are today's proverbs:

1. Amicitia vera in calamitate agnoscitur.
True friendship is-known in (a) disaster.
ami-CI-tia vera in calami-TA-te ag-NOS-citur.

The verb agnoscitur, "is known" is the passive form of agnoscit. You haven't seen this verb before, but you have seen a related verb: cognoscit.

The subject is amicita vera.

The preposition in takes the ablative case; calamitate is the ablative form of calamitas.

Compare a saying you have learned already: Amicus certus in necessitate cernitur.

2. Numquam periculum sine periculo vincitur.
Danger never is-defeated without danger.
numquam pe-RI-culum sine pe-RI-culo VIN-citur.

You already know all the words in this saying!

The verb vincitur is the passive form of vincit, and the subject is periculum.

The preposition sine takes the ablative case; periculo is the ablative form of periculum.

In other words, it takes danger to fight danger!

3. Nummus honoratur; sine nummo nullus amatur.
Money is-honored; without money, nobody is-loved.
nummus hono-RA-tur; sine nummo nullus a-MA-tur.

You also know all the words in this saying too!

The verb honoratur is the passive form of honorat, and amatur is the passive form of amat. The subject of honoratur is nummus, while the subject of amateur is nullus.

Here's sine again, taking the ablative; nummo is the ablative form of nummus.

Notice that the saying has internal rhyme, honoratur-amatur, which marks it as a medieval Latin saying. Rhyme was not a feature of classical Latin poetry, but rhyme was widely used in medieval Latin.

4. Per multum cras, cras, semper consumitur aetas.
Through many (a) "tomorrow, tomorrow" (a) lifetime is-used-up.
per multum cras, cras, semper con-SU-mitur aetas.

The verb consumitur, "is consumed," is the passive form of consumit, which gives us English "consume." The subject of the verb is aetas, which usually means "age," but it can also mean "lifetime," as it does here.

The preposition per, "through," takes the accusative case; multum is the accusative form of multum (the nominative and accusative forms of neuter words are identical).

This saying is all about procrastination, an English word that comes from Latin cras. If you put everything off until tomorrow again and again, you will find your life has passed you by.
This saying also has internal rhyme: cras cras-aetas.

5. Faenum agri hodie est, et cras in clibanum mittitur.
(The) hay of-the-field exists today, and tomorrow it-is-sent into (the) oven.
faenum agri HO-die est, et cras in CLI-banum MIT-titur.

The verb mittitur, "is sent," is the passive form of mittit, "sends." You can see this same root in many English verbs like "emit" and "commit."

The subject of the verb is faenum, "hay."

The word agri is the genitive of the noun ager, "field," as in English "agriculture."

The preposition in takes the accusative case here, meaning "into" (instead of the usual meaning "in"); clibanum is the ablative form of clibanus, "oven."

The words appear in the Gospel of Luke and the Gospel of Matthew. Here is the King James translation of the passage in Luke (where the "hay" is rendered as "grass"): Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith?

Here's a recap: