Proverbs/Grammar ~ Grammar/Proverbs: Latin Lesson #258: More Plural Nouns

The focus for today's lesson is plural nouns once again: this time, the masculine plurals of the 2nd declension and 3rd declension.

The 2nd-declension masculine nouns and adjectives end in -i. (And remember, the neuter nouns and adjectives of the 2nd declension end in -a; that was yesterday's lesson.)

The 3rd-declension masculine nouns and adjectives end in -es. (And the neuter nouns and adjectives of the 3rd declension also end in -a.)

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

And here are today's proverbs:

1. Ut apes geometriam.
As the-bees (know) geometry.
ut apes geo-ME-triam.

The word apes is the plural form of apis.

The word geometriam is the accusative of geometria, the direct object of an implied verb, "(know) geometry." This word is easy to recognize because of English "geometry," and you have also seen a related word in Latin: geometra (from the Greek geometres), "geometer, someone who knows geometry."
This saying was made famous by Victor Hugo in The Hunchback of Notre Dame, where a character says: "I possess philosophy by instinct, by nature, ut apes geometriam."

2. Acti labores iucundi.
Once-completed, labors (are) pleasant.
acti la-BO-res iu-CUN-di.

The word labores is the plural form of labor, and the adjectives acti and iucundi are also plural, agreeing with the noun.

The adjective actus, "done, completed," is a passive participle from the verb agit, "drive, do," which you have seen before, and you can see this Latin root in many English words like "act," "active," "actual," etc.

The adjective iucundus gives us English "jocund."

The Roman author Cicero cites this as saying: vulgo enim dicitur, "as it is said by the people."

3. Amici fures temporis.
Friends (are) thieves of-time.
a-MI-ci fures TEM-poris.

You know all the words in this saying! The word amici is the plural form of amicus, and the word fures is the plural form of fur.

The word temporis is the genitive of tempus.

This saying was cited by Sir Francis Bacon in his book Of the Proficience and Advancement of Learning.

4. Ex libro gubernatores.
Helsmen from a-book.
ex libro guberna-TO-res.

You know all the words in this saying too!

The word gubernatores is the plural form of gubernator.

The word libro is the ablative of liber, used with the preposition ex.
book learning.

Erasmus cites this saying in his Adagia, with the physician Galen as his source. It is a reference to book-learning as opposed to practical knowledge. Would you rather have your ship steered by someone who just read about sailing a ship in books, or someone who has actually been sailing on the sea?

5. Otiosi semper egentes.
Lazy (people are) always needy.
oti-O-si semper e-GEN-tes.

The word otiosi is the plural form of otiosus, and the adjective is being used substantively as a noun: "lazy (people)." You haven't seen this adjective before, but you know the noun that it comes from: otium.

The word egentes is the plural form of egens, agreeing with otiosi.
This saying is associated with the famous Aesop's fable about the grasshopper and the ant.

Here's a recap: