LSP - 5 : ubī dormit Īphiclēs?

ubī dormit Īphiclēs? can be understood in a number of ways. dormit is a Present Tense Verb that means she is sleeping or he is sleeping or it is sleeping. As in, sleeping right now. But the Present Tense in Latin is also used to describe action that happen regularly in the present, whether or not the Subject is doing it at this very moment. So, ubī dormit Īphiclēs? could mean Where is Iphicles sleeping (right now)? or Where does Iphicles sleep (when he does)? We must rely on context to know which is meant at any given time.

At the beginning of our story, Hercules and his brother Iphicles are small infants. The answer to the question ubī dormit Īphiclēs? is Īphiclēs in scūtō dormit, which again could mean Iphicles is sleeping in a shield or Iphicles sleeps in a shield. Hopefully you get the idea.

ubī dormit Herculēs? Well, let’s start by saying where Hercules DOESN’T sleep. The Latin Adverb nōn is used to negate a word or a phrase. Herculēs nōn in cūnīs dormit means Hercules does not sleep in a cradle. ubī dormit Herculēs? Herculēs in scūtō dormit. Hercules sleeps in a shield.