Lesson Fifty-Three : Nāsus Foedus

Salvēte, sodālēs.

Today’s reading is a low point in the Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta narrative. The method of introducing the four new words - foedus, nāsus, amat and sōlus - is as strong as ever. But the decision to declare Syra, an enslaved women, to be not beautiful because she has a large and ugly nose is unfortunate, meā sententiā (in my opinion). If you look beyond this, however, you will find that the reading will continue to challenge and develop your Latin reading skills.

Foedus is introduced as the opposite of pulcher. Nāsus is clearly drawn and labelled in the margin. The meanings of amat/amant and sōlus, on the other hand, must be deduced from the text itself. There will be an opportunity to check your understanding after the reading.

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 33.

READ Capitulum Quīntum lines 17-24 now.

• Click here to check your understanding of the new words.

  foedus : ugly

  nāsus : nose

  amat : loves (with a singular subject)

  amant : love (with a plural subject)

  sōlus : alone

Satis est. Return soon to learn about the room of an ancient Roman villa - in Latin!

Lesson Fifty-Two : Prepositions

Salvēte, sodālēs.

On page 18 of Handy Latin Tables, Pars Prīma you will find a handy introduction to prepositions. We met our first preposition - in - way back in Capitulum Prīmum. Back then we commented on how words that followed in changed their endings. Let’s revisit that now with vīlla and hortus. A new adjective - pulcher (beautiful) - will help us out.

Vīlla Aemiliae et Iūliī est pulchra. Trēs līberī in vīllā pulchrā habitant.

Hortus Aemiliae et Iūliī quoque est pulcher. Vīlla in hortō pulchrō est.

All nouns that end in -a change their ending after in exactly like vīlla does. While nouns that end in -us or -r or -um change their ending after in just like hortus. (You may have guessed that the Latin word for dinosaur is actually dīnosaurus.) The same thing happens after the prepositions cum (with), sine (without), e/ex (out of) and a/ab (from). But for now, you only need to know about in and cum. Note: The proposition in can mean in or on ; Pecūnia est in sacculō. Sacculus est in mēnsā.

In yesterday’s reading we saw cum followed by a list of plural nouns. Iūlius et Aemilia in vīllā habitant cum līberīs et servīs et ancillīs. After in and cum the plural ending is -īs. This is true for nouns that end in -a, -us, -r and -um.

Okay, you are almost ready for today’s reading. You just need to remember pulcher and learn the Latin name of two beautiful flowers.

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 32.

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 32.

Now READ lines 12-16. Note that in eō means in it, and here it refers to the hortus.

Satis est. Hope to see you back here again soon.

Lesson Fifty-One : A Pronoun Deep Dive

Salvēte, sodālēs.

It’s time to stop and take stock of pronouns. Pronouns, as the name suggests, are words that can stand in for (pro) nouns. Let’s take a look at all of the pronouns that you have met so far, and a few that you haven’t met yet. One new word before we get started - cum, which means with.

It’s a lot to take in. If the sentences seem overwhelming, take a look at the table near the end of the lesson.

Masculine Singular Pronouns

Iūlius est vir Rōmānus. Julius is a Roman man. Is est vir Rōmānus. He is a Roman man.

Mārcus est fīlius Iūliī. Marcus is Julius’s son. Mārcus est fīlius eius. Marcus is his son.

Mārcus Iūlium vocat. Marcus calls Julius. Marcus eum vocat. Marcus calls him.

Iam Mārcus cum Iūliō est. Now Marcus is with Julius. Iam Mārcus cum eō est. Now Marcus is with him.

Masculine Plural Pronouns

Mēdus et Dāvus sunt virī Graecī. Medus and Davus are Greek men. Iī sunt virī Graecī. They are Greek men.

Iūlius est dominus virōrum. Julius is the master of the men. Iūlius est dominus eōrum. Julius is their master.

Iūlius vīrōs vocat. Julius calls the men. Iūlius eōs vocat. Julius calls them.

Iam Iūlius cum virīs est. Now Julius is with the men. Iam Iūlius cum eīs est. Now Julius is with them.

Feminine Singular Pronouns

Aemilia est fēmina Rōmāna. Aemilia is a Roman woman. Ea est fēmina Rōmāna. She is a Roman woman.

Mārcus est fīlius Aemiliae. Marcus is Aemilia’s son. Mārcus est fīlius eius. Marcus is her son.

Mārcus Aemiliam vocat. Marcus calls Aemilia. Marcus eam vocat. Marcus calls her.

Iam Mārcus cum Aemiliā est. Now Marcus is with Aemilia. Iam Mārcus cum eā est. Now Marcus is with her.

Feminine Plural Pronouns

Dēlia et Syra sunt fēminae Graecae. Delia and Syra are Greek women. Eae sunt fēminae Graecae. They are Greek women.

Iūlius est dominus fēminārum. Julius is the master of the women. Iūlius est dominus eārum. Julius is their master.

Iūlius fēminās vocat. Julius calls the women. Iūlius eās vocat. Julius calls them.

Iam Iūlius cum fēminīs est. Now Julius is with the women. Iam Iūlius cum eīs est. Now Julius is with them.

Neuter Singular Pronouns

Brundisium est oppidum Rōmānum. Brundisium is a Roman town. Id est oppidum Rōmānum. It is a Roman town.

Brūtus est dux oppidī. Brutus is the town’s leader. Brūtus est dux eius. Brutus is its leader.

Brūtus oppidum amat. Brūtus loves the town. Brūtus id amat. Brūtus loves it.

Nonnumquam Brūtus in oppidō habitat. Sometimes Brutus lives in the town. Nonnumquam Brūtus in eō habitat. Sometimes Brutus lives in it.

Neuter Plural Pronouns

Brundisium et Tūsculum sunt oppida Rōmāna. Brundisium et Tusculum are Roman towns. Ea sunt oppida Rōmāna. They are Roman towns.

Brūtus est dux oppidōrum. Brutus is the towns’ leader. Brūtus est dux eōrum. Brutus is their leader.

Brūtus oppida amat. Brūtus loves the towns. Brūtus ea amat. Brūtus loves them.

Nonnumquam Brūtus in oppidīs habitat. Sometimes Brutus lives in the towns. Nonnumquam Brūtus in eīs habitat. Sometimes Brutus lives in them.

This table offers a handy summary of the sentences above.

Now READ Capitulum Quīntum, lines 5-11.

Satis est. See you shortly.

Lesson Fifty : Villa et Hortus

Salvēte, sodālēs.

Congratulations on reaching Capitulum Quīntum. Let’s begin with the picture that starts the chapter. Use it to deduce the meanings of villa and hortus.

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 32.

• Click here to check the meanings of villa and hortus.

  villa : villa

  hortus : garden

The textbook cleverly places two verbs side by side that you might otherwise confuse, habet and habitat. One means has and one means lives. I’m sure you’ll be able to determine which is which. Aemilia magnam vīllam habet. Aemilia in magnā vīllā habitat.

The first paragraph also shows us what happens to these verbs when the subject is plural. Pay attention to the underlining.

Iūlius in magnā vīllā habitat. Iūlius et Aemilia in magnā vīllā habitant.

Iūlius magnam vīllam habet. Iūlius et Aemilia magnam vīllam habent.

There are a few different types of verbs in Latin. Verbs like habitat end in -at and -ant. Other verbs you’ve met that end in -at and -ant are cantat, pulsat, plōrat, vocat, interrogat, verberat, numerat, salūtat and accūsat.

from Handy Latin Tables Pars Prīma, page 23.

Verbs like habet end in -et and -ent. Other verbs you’ve met that end in -et and -ent are rīdet, videt, respondet and tacet.

from Handy Latin Tables Pars Prīma, page 24.

Now READ lines 1-4.

Satis est. See you again soon.

Lesson Forty-Nine : Digitābulum Infīnītīvum (The Infinity Gauntlet)

Salvēte, sodālēs.

Today’s lesson is an entirely optional second comic set in the Lego Marvel Universe (see Lesson Thirty for the first). If you have seen the movies Infinity War and End Game, then you know that Thanos needs all of the Infinity Gems in his Gauntlet in order to carry out his plan. This comic follows the plot of Capitulum Quartum very closely indeed, but with Gemmae Infīnītīvae instead of nummī.

Click on this link to open the Digitābulum Infīnītīvum comic in a new window. Click on the + in the top right corner of any picture to expand it. Now you can read the comic using everything you have learnt from Capitulum Quartum. The English name of Rictus Habenius, by the way, is Ebony Maw.

Satis est. See you again soon.

Lesson Forty-Eight : Another Side

Salvēte, sodālēs.

Much has been written on the representation of marginalised groups in Latin textbooks. With some notable exceptions, the stories of the poor, of girls and women, and of the enslaved are told only at the service of these textbooks’ real heroes - upperclass free Romans. I’m pleased to say that Medus returns to Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta later in the book with his own narrative. But rather than wait that long, I have written my own story that tries to tell Medus’s reasons for stealing Julius’s money, and for accusing Davus for the theft.

Mēdus

Quis est Mēdus? Mēdus est vir Graecus. Estne Mēdus amīcus Iūliī? Mēdus nōn est amīcus sed servus Iūliī. Iūlius est eius dominus. Dominus est vir quī servum habet. Vir quī servum habet est vir improbus!

Mēdus sacculum suum in mensā pōnit et pecūniam suam numerat: “Ūnus nummus, duo nummī, trēs nummī.” Numerus nummōrum in sacculō Mēdī est trēs. Nōn multī sed paucī nummī in sacculō eius sunt. Mēdus pecūniam videt et plōrat.

Syra venit et Mēdum salūtat. Dēlia quoque venit et eum salūtat. Mēdus Syram et Dēliam salūtat.

Syra Dēliam interrogat: ‘Cur Mēdus plōrat?’

Dēlia respondet: ‘Mēdus plōrat quia dominus eum rūrsus verberat.’

Syra: ‘Iūlius est vir improbus, quī quoque mē verberat.’

Dēlia: ‘Domina Aemilia mē verberat. Iūlius ...’ Dēlia tacet.

Dāvus Mēdum vocat: ‘Mēde!’ Mēdus audit et venit. Dāvus Mēdum salūtat.

Mēdus: ‘Quid est, Dāve?’

Dāvus: ‘St! Tace, amīce! Tacē et audī! Sacculus Iūliī hīc in mensā est, sed Iūlius nōn adest. Aemilia quoque abest. Sacculus plēnus est. Iūlius multōs nummōs habet. Sūme pecūniam Iūliī et discēdē! Accūsā mē et discēdē!’ Dāvus rīdet. Mēdus baculum in mensā videt. Servus nullum verbum respondet sed multōs nummōs sūmit et in sacculō suō pōnit.

Satis est. See you tomorrow.

Lesson Forty-Seven : Scaena Tertia

Salvēte, sodālēs.

After a run of lessons with very short readings, I’m happy to tell you that today you’ll be reading the entirety of Capitulum Quartum, Scaena Tertia. There is only one new word that needs to be learnt : is, which is a pronoun meaning he. You’ll see it a number of times throughout.

And a heads up, the end of the reading contains hints of violence.

Now READ lines 79-98.

Satis est. See you soo.

Lesson Forty-Six : Quod

Salvēte, sodālēs.

In Lesson 37 we met the the relative pronouns quī and quae. Both pronouns can be translated as ‘who’. Allow me to refresh your memory:

Quī is masculine (referring to nouns that end in -us or -r).

Quis est puer qui rīdet? Puer quī rīdet est Mārcus. Who is the boy who laughs? The boy who laughs is Marcus.

Quae is feminine (referring to nouns that end in -a).

Quae est puella quae plōrat? Puella quae plōrat est Iūlia. Who is the girl who cries? The girl who cries is Julia.

In today’s reading we will meet quod. Quod is the equivalent of quī or quae for neuter nouns (nouns that end in -um). It appears in the sentence : Mēdus baculum, quod (which) in mēnsā est, videt.

Now READ lines 75-78, in which you will finally learn the answer to that all important question : Quis habet pecūniam Iūliī? Apologies for all these short readings. I promise you that Lesson 47 will provide a much longer passage for you to enjoy.

from the Legonium website.

Satis est. See you back here again soon.

Lesson Forty-Five : Two Antonyms and A Synonym

Salvēte, sodālēs.

To make sense of today’s short reading, you will need to have a good understanding of three words; pōnit, venit and probus. This is because the book is going to define three new words - sūmit, discēdit and bonus - in relation to pōnit, venit and probus. I’ll put all three in a few short sentences to jog your memory.

Marcus est puer improbus. Puer improbus puellam pulsat. Quīntus est puer probus. Puer probus cantat et rīdet neque pulsat puellam. Quīntus sacculum Aemiliae habet. Aemilia Quīntum vocat : ‘Quīnte, ubi est meus sacculus?’ Quīntus venit et sacculum Aemiliae in mēnsā pōnit.

Let’s begin with the two antonyms (words that mean the opposite). The double arrows in the margin tell us that sūmit means the opposite of pōnit, and discēdit means the opposite of venit.

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 29.

Now let’s look at the synonym (word that means the same). The equal sign in the margin tells us that bonus means the same as probus. Quīntus est puer bonus. = Quīntus est puer probus.

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 29.

Now READ lines 68-74.

from the Legonium website.

Satis est. I hope to see you again soon.

Lesson Forty-Four : Ecce baculum in mēnsa.

Salvēte, sodālēs.

Hodie sunt quinque verba nova. Today there are five new words.

Prīmum verbum novum est ‘ecce’. Ecce is an interesting word. Ecce sacculus meus. could mean ‘Look at my purse.’, ‘Here is my purse.’ or ‘Behold my purse.’ Basically, you say ecce to draw somebody’s attention to something.

Secundum verbum novum est ‘baculum’ et tertium verbum novum est ‘mēnsa’. Take a look at the pictures in the margin. From these you will learn the meanings of the nouns baculum and mēnsa.

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 28.

Quartum verbum novum est ‘pōnit’. The verb pōnit is also illustrated in the margin. If you can see what Davus is doing in this picture, then you will understand the meaning of pōnit. As in the previous lessons, be prepared to see the end of pōnit change when Julius uses the verb to give an instruction.

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 28.

Quīntum verbum novum est ‘vaccus’. The adjective vacuus is fairly easy to deduce, as long as you remember that nūlla (with all its various endings) means nōn ūna, as in not [even] one. Its also the root of the English word vacuum.

Now READ lines 59-67. Remember, Julius had just asked Davus ‘Ubi est sacculus tuus?’

Satis est. Until next time.

Lesson Forty-Three : Quis mē accūsat?

Salvēte, sodālēs.

In the nest few lessons, expect to see a lot more of people telling other people what to do. And asking a lot of questions about Julius’s missing money.

But first, let’s look at the vocābula nova for today’s lesson. The first vocābulum novum is verbum. And verbum, we are told in the margin, means the same thing as vocābulum. So, we can say something fun like ‘Verbum’ est verbum nōvum (‘Word’ is a new word). Along with verbum, we learn nūllum, which the margin tells us means nōn ūnum. When Julius asks Medus where his coins are, we get this sentence : Mēdus nūllum verbum respondet. Another way of saying that would be Mēdus tacet. The final two vocābula nova - or verba nova if you prefer - are the verbs accūsat and habet. Try to deduce their meaning for yourself.

from the Legonium website.

Now, READ lines 44-58. I’ve deliberately left it at a bit of a cliff-hanger.

• Click here to check your understanding of accūsat and habet.

  accūsat : accuses

  habet : has

Satis est. See you real soon.

Lesson Forty-Two : Life, the Universe and Everything

Salvēte, sodālēs.

We have reached the beginning of Capitulum Quartum, Scaena Secunda. In Scaenā Secundā sunt quattuor persōnae: Iūlius, Aemilia, Mēdus et Dāvus.

At the end of Scaena Prīma, as you no doubt recall, Julius is concerned because tantum decem nummī in sacculō suō sunt (there only ten coins in his purse), instead of the centum (one hundred) he expected. He ordered Medus to call Davus, which Medus did. The last two sentences were Dāvus venit. Iam duo servī adsunt.

Today’s reading is fairly long, and quite complex. It contains only two new words, both verbs - salūtat (greets) - which is illustrated in the margin, and tacet (is silent).

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 27.

There is, however, a wide range of vocabulary that will need to be recalled (remember the Index Verbōrum), as well as the use of quī (Lesson 37), possessive adjectives (Lesson 40), and people addressing others (Lesson 41) and telling them what to do (Lesson 41).

One last thing : You will recall that when we address somebody whose name ends in -us, we change it slightly. Mēdus est vir Graecus. ‘Salvē, Mēde!’ As you will see in today’s reading, this not only affects names, but also other words ending in -us. Iūlius est dominus Rōmānus. ‘Salvē, domine Rōmāne!’

Now READ lines 29-43.

If you have any questions, please feel free to write them in the comments below and I will answer them as soon as possible.

Satis est. See you tomorrow.

Lesson Forty-One : Dāve! Venī!

Salvēte, sodālēs.

Today’s reading is only short, but two big concepts are introduced, so we’ll take our time.

Let’s begin with Dāve. Dāve is the form of Dāvus we would use if we were addressing Dāvus. Perhaps we are saying ‘Salvē, Dāve.’ Perhaps we are just saying his name to get his attention. ‘Dāve, ubi est tuus sacculus?’

The rules for using somebody’s name to address them in Latin are simple and there are three of them:

Rule One : If their name ends in -us (Dāvus, Mēdus, Quīntus, Mārcus) we address them as Dāve, Mēde, Quīnte, Mārce.

Rule Two : If their name ends in -ius (Iūlius, Cornēlius) we address them as Iūlī and Cornēlī.

Rule Three : If their name ends in any other way (Aemilia, Iūlia, Caesar, Cato) it remains unchanged, and we address them as Aemilia, Iūlia, Caesar, Cato.

Here is a picture of Iūlius calling Mēdus, using the form of his name appropriate for address:

Iūlius Mēdum vocat : ‘Mēde!’ from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 29.

Now let’s move onto venī. Venī is a form of the verb venit, which me met in Capitulum Tertium. Similarly, vocā, which you’ll also see in today’s reading, is a form of vocat.

But how are venī and vocā used in Latin? See if you can puzzle that out for yourself during today’s reading. If not, I’ll explain it afterward. READ lines 23-28 now.

• Click here to check your understanding of venī and vocā.

  The verbs venī and vocā (ending in a single vowel) are used to give instructions to somebody. After Julius tells Medus to call Davus, Medus calls Davus. And after Medus tells Davus to come, Davus comes.

This brings us to the end of Capitulum Quartum, Scaena Prīma. We'll be seeing more examples of both of these big concepts throughout Capitulum Quartum, Scaenae Secunda Tertiaque.

Satis est. See you soon.

Lesson Forty : meus, tuus, suus, eius

Salvēte, sodālēs.

In todays lesson I want to draw your attention to four words that are used when discussing possession; meus (my), tuus (your), suus (it’s complicated) and eius (his, her(s) or its).

Let’s begin with the most straightforward, meus and tuus. This is a good time to remember that adjectives change their endings to match the nouns that they are describing. Read the eight sentences below, paying special attention to the possessive adjectives meus and tuus.

Mea fīlia est in Italiā. Aemilia meam fīliam videt. My daughter is in Italy. Aemilia sees my daughter.

Meus fīlius est in Italiā. Aemilia meum fīlium videt. My son is in Italy. Aemilia sees my son.

Tua fīlia est in Italiā. Aemilia tuam fīliam videt. Your daughter is in Italy. Aemilia sees your daughter.

Tuus fīlius est in Italiā. Aemilia tuum fīlium videt. Your son is in Italy. Aemilia sees your son.

Suus is also a possessive adjective. If Aemilia sees suam fīliam she is seeing her daughter. If Julius sees suam fīliam he is seeing his daughter. If Aemilia AND Julius see suam fīliam they are seeing their daughter. Suus always links possession back to the subject of the sentence, whoever (or whatever) that might be.

Fīlia Aemiliae est in Italiā. Aemilia suam fīliam videt. Aemilia’s daughter is in Italy. Aemilia sees her daughter.

Fīlius Aemiliae est in Italiā. Aemilia suum fīlium videt. Aemilia’s son is in Italy. Aemilia sees her son.

Last in today’s discussion is eius (his, her, its). Eius is NOT an adjective, but a pronoun, so its ending won’t change to match the noun it is describing. Unlike suus, eius does not link possession back to the subject, but refers to another person (or thing).

Fīlia Syrae est in Italiā. Aemilia fīliam eius videt. Syra’s daughter is in Italy. Aemilia sees her daughter.

Fīlius Syrae est in Italiā. Aemilia fīlium eius videt. Syra’s son is in Italy. Aemilia sees her son.

In today’s short reading, you will see the very first appearance of suum. You’ll also see some new verbs; adest, abest, adsunt and absunt. As long as you can remember the meaning of hīc, you’ll be able to understand these new verbs from the note in the margin.

• Click here if you forget the meaning of hīc.

  hīc : here

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 27 (Arrows indicate opposite meanings, equals signs the same meanings).

Now READ lines 18-22.

Satis est. See you back here soon.

Lesson Thirty-Nine : Capitulum Quartum

Salvete, sodalēs.

Welcome to Capitulum Quartum. The title of this chapter is Dominus et Servī and in this chapter we will see interactions occurring between Julius and Aemilia (Iūlius est dominus et Aemilia est domina) and Medus and Davus (Mēdus Dāvusque duo servī sunt).

Capitulum Quartum is set out like a three act play. In Scaena Prima sunt trēs persōnae; lūlius, Aemilia et Mēdus.

Capitulum Quartum also sees the return of the 'of form' of nouns, which were introduced in Capitulum Secundum but didn't appear in Capitulum Tertium at all. (If you need a refresh, reread Lesson Twenty). We've seen sentences like lūlia est fīlia lūllī et Aemiliae. and Aemilia est domina multārum ancillārum and Numerus servōrum est centum. In today’s reading we see Sacculus lūliī nōn parvus est. Speaking of Julius's purse, there is a picture in the margin. Pecūnia is also labelled.

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 26

Also in the margin are the numerī I-X and a picture labeled nummus.

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 26

Cētera nōva vocābula (other new words) that you’ll meet in today’s reading are eius, habet, tantum, numerat and rūrsus. As always, try to deduce their meaning from the text. If necessary, I'll define them after the reading. If you meet any words that you’ve forgotten, use the Index Verbōrum as explained in Lesson Thirty-Four.

Now, READ Capitulum Quartum, lines 1-17.

• Click here to check your understanding of nōva vocābula.

  eius : his, her(s) or its - in this instance it refers to Julius

  habet - has

  tantum - only

  numerat - counts or is counting

  rūrsus - again

Satis est. We will continue with Capitulum Quartum next lesson.

Lesson Thirty-Eight : Quem and Quam

Salvēte, sodālēs.

People stopped saying whom in the 1820’s. I don’t mean, of course, that nobody ever says whom any more, just that that was when it began falling out of fashion. Before the 1820’s, who and whom were as common as he and him, I and me, they and them. And just like those other pairs, who was the subject and whom the object.

Last lesson we saw that quī and quae are the masculine and feminine forms of who. Similarly, quem and quam are the masculine and feminine forms of whom.

Let’s look at some sample sentences.

Quis est vir quem Quīntus vocat. Vir quem Quīntus vocat est Iūlius . Who is the man whom Quintus is calling? The man whom Quintus is calling is Julius.

Quae est fēmina quam Iūlia vocat? Fēmina quam Iūlia vocat est Aemilia. Who is the woman whom Julia is calling? The woman whom Julia is calling is Aemilia.

Quis est puer quem Quīntus videt? Puer quem Quīntus videt est Mārcus. Who is the boy whom Quintus sees? The boy whom Quintus sees is Marcus.

Quae est puella quam Marcus audit? Puella quam Marcus audit est Iūlia. Who is the girl whom Marcus hears? The girl whom Marcus hears is Julia.

Like whom, quem and quam can also start a question at the beginning of a sentence. In today’s reading you will see;

Quem vocat Quīntus? Quīntus Iūlium vocat. Whom does Quintus call? Quintus calls Julius.

Now READ lines 72-82. Congratulations. You have reached the end of Capitulum Tertium.

The final sentence of Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, Capitulum Tertium, page 23.

Lesson Thirty-Seven : Quī and Quae

Salvēte, sodālēs.

First, a four sample sentences from Capitulum Tertium:

Quis est puer qui rīdet? Puer quī rīdet est Mārcus. Who is the boy who laughs? The boy who laughs is Marcus.

Quae est puella quae plōrat? Puella quae plōrat est Iūlia. Who is the girl who cries? The girl who cries is Julia.

The underlined words in the sentences above are called relative pronouns, and are translated as who. Instead of trying to explain relative pronouns, I’ll just provide a few more examples and hopefully that will make it clear. I will say, however, that quī is used if the who refers to a male (or any masculine noun) and that quae is used if the who refers to a female (or any feminine noun).

Quis est vir quī dormit. Vir quī dormit est Iūlius . Who is the man who is sleeping? The man who is sleeping is Julius.

Quae est fēmina quae venit? Fēmina quae venit est Aemilia. Who is the woman who is arriving? The woman who is arriving is Aemilia.

Quis est puer quī Iūliam pulsat? Puer quī Iūliam pulsat est Mārcus. Who is the boy who is hitting Julia? The boy who is hitting Julia is Marcus.

Quae est puella quae Aemiliam vocat? Puella quae Aemiliam vocat est Iūlia. Who is the girl who is calling Aemilia? The girl who is calling Aemilia is Julia.

Now READ lines 69-71 (a very short section indeed). If you want to read ahead and complete the chapter, go ahead. But I’ll still be back next lesson to explain quem and quam for those who need it.

Satis est. See you soon.

Lesson Thirty-Six : Nothing New

Salvēte, sodālēs.

Today’s reading contains absolutely nothings new, just a continuation of the story with words and grammar that you have already met. Still, the margin does suggest that you focus on a few things;

• Keep your eye on the way that Latin uses an -um ending to indicate an object.

• Note that eumque means the same thing as et eum.

• Note that eum (him) can relate to different people, depending on the context.

Also, a reminder that the story contains parents striking children as punishment.

READ Capitulum Tertium, lines 49-68.

Satis est. See you again.

Lesson Thirty-Five : Iam nōn dormit pater.

Salvēte, sodālēs.

Now that you know (see lesson Thirty-Four) what to do when you meet a word you’ve forgotten the meaning of, let’s complete our Capitulum Tertium, Scaena Secunda reading.

The nōva vocābula introduced in lines 35-48 are dormit, hīc, audit, neque, eum and verberat. Tuxtax is more of a sound-effect than a word proper.

Of these, I think hīc is probably the most difficult to deduce the meaning of. Dormit is clearly illustrated, audit is somewhat clear from context and ‘audio equipment’, while neque is defined in the margin (et nōn), as is verberat (pulsat et pulsat). Eum is very similar to eam in line 27.

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 21

Now READ lines 35-48. As you read, be mindful of nouns that are identified as the object by their end changing to an -m. We have Iūlium (line 36), Iūlium (line 41), Quīntum (line 42), Quīntum (line 43), eum (line 43), fīlium (line 45) and eum (line 45). The pronouns mē (me) and tē (you) are also objects, despite not having an -m as their ending.

• Check your understanding of new words here.

  hīc : here, in this place

  dormit : sleeps, is sleeping

  audit : hears

  neque : et nōn

  verberat : pulsat et pulsat

  eum : him, it

Satis est. Please feel free to seek clarification at any time in the comments.

Lesson Thirty-Four : Index Vocābulōrum

Salvēte, sodālēs.

In today’s lesson, I’d like to introduce you to a truely marvellous aspect of Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, the Index Vocābulōrum.

Most Latin textbooks have a Latin to English (or German or Mandarin etc) dictionary at the end of the book, where you can look up words you have forgotten. For example, here is the dictionary from Book I of The Cambridge Latin Course. The Latin words are listed alphabetically with an English definition. If the word appears in a chapter vocabulary list, the number of the chapter is printed beside the word. If there is no number, then the word appears - with an English definition - in the margin somewhere in the book.

from The Cambridge Latin Course Book I, page 236

Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta does things differently and - in my opinion - better. Instead of a dictionary, it has an Index Vocābulōrum (an Index of Words). Let’s begin with the Latin explanation : Numerī crassī (bold numbers) significant (signify) capitula (the chapters), numerī tenuēs (‘thin’ numbers) [signify] versūs (the lines).

from Lingua Latīna Per Sē Illustrāta, page 313

Imagine it’s Lesson 35 and you’ve been told to continue reading Capitulum Tertium. You read Ubi est Iūlius? Cur Iūlius nōn venit? Most of the words you remember. You recognise ubi and venit, but completely blank on their meaning. What can you do?

First you look up ubi in the Index Vocābulōrum. The entry reads ubi I.12. You turn to Capitulum Prīmum, versus 12. You read Ubi est Rōma? Rōma est in Italiā. Yes, you think. I remember now.

Next you look up venit. For reasons that will become clearer as the course moves on, the entry reads venīre, vēnisse (close enough) 3.21. You turn to Capitulum Tertium, versus 21. You read Aemilia venit. Well, that doesn’t help. Until you notice it also says Aemilia venit. in the margin, next to a picture of Aemilia arriving.

You are now ready to return to your reading. Ubi est Iūlius? Cur Iūlius nōn venit?

Satis est. We will return to reading Capitulum Tertium in Lesson 35.