No, we never sleep. I'm a night owl.
rufio wrote:Then it would be:
Te audire non possum. Banana in aure est.
Simple enough. Since we're trying to understand it, and I'm an insomniac, I'll break it up into linguistic elements.
te--------audi---re---non-pos(t)----sum.----------banana--------in--aur--e-----est.
you/acc--hear---inf--not--be able--I/nom/pres---banana/nom---in--ear--abl---be/pres/sing/3P
Hope that made sense.
acc = accusative
nom = nominative
abl = ablative
pres = present (tense)
inf = infinitive
Syntax is generally SOV (Subject Object Verb). Certain prepositions have to take certain cases, so "in" meaning "in" must take an ablative, and "ad" ("to") must take an accusative, and "in" meaning "into" takes an accusative too, etc. So "ad casam" (to house(cas)/acc(am)) is "to the house", "in casa" (in house(cas)/abl(a)) is "in the house" or "within the house" whereas "in casam" (into house(cas)/acc(am)) is "into the house" as in "she called them into the house." (eos in casam vocavit)
I probably only served to confuse people further, but, um, yeah.
Oh crap....maybe I'll just take back about there being hope for me after all. I want to know simple words and phrases....I may be in over my head (or brain).....
It's relatively simple, but you just have to know the sentence structure, and I haven't gotten to it yet. Most basic sentences in Latin can be packed into three words.
Lucifer wrote:No, we never sleep. I'm a night owl.
Sadly, so am I, but not by choice. I despise trying to sleep but can never dream.
Lucifer wrote:It's relatively simple, but you just have to know the sentence structure, and I haven't gotten to it yet. Most basic sentences in Latin can be packed into three words.
Do you have the patience to humor me then as my cognitive functions or lack thereof give it my best shot?
Lucifer wrote: Most basic sentences in Latin can be packed into three words.
Well, like in any other language :wink:
Paulus Paula amat.
Paulum Paula amat.
Paulus Paula amant.
Paula a Paulo amatur.
Paulus et Paula amantur.
... all actually meaning something different.
i live in new zealand, but am also have a slight case of insomnia. i didnt know how much went into making a sentence in latin, i too feel way over my head.
ps. it was amusing watching you guys debate my banana sentence, lol
The motto for a school was something like, "Anima Volet", but in English, it's "Let every spirit soar". See how much longer it is in English?
Anima volet doesn't mean "let every spirit soar" though. It meas "spirit soars". I think it would have to be like omnis anima volat or something. Yeah, English uses lots of particles though. "Will have been said" is simply dixerit.
Lucifer wrote:The motto for a school was something like, "Anima Volet", but in English, it's "Let every spirit soar". See how much longer it is in English?
Shouldn't it be "Omnis Anima Volet"?
That it is. I like simplicity....thank you
First Declension
The first declension is usually feminine, and declenses like this:
(singular | plural)
nominative: stem + "a" | stem + "ae"
genitive: stem + "ae" | stem + "arum"
dative: stem + "ae" | stem + "is"
accusative: stem + "am" | stem + "as"
ablative: stem + "a" | stem + "is"
vocative: stem + "a" | stem + "ae"
eg,
silva, silvae - forest
nominative: silva, silvae
genitive: silvae, silvarum
dative: silvae, silvis
accusative: silvam, silvas
ablative: silva, silvis
You'll usually know what the stem is from a dictionary because the nominative and genitive singular forms will be given (eg, luna, lunae). The vocative case is usually the same as the nominative, but you'll see that this isn't always the case in the other declensions. Some first declension words, such as "agricola" for "farmer" are masculine instead of feminine.
Next: Second declension
Now that, I can understand. Would it be beneficial to get a copy of a Latin dictionary do you think?
Yes, if you want to know the vocabulary. You can get some online. The one I use is Whitaker's WORDs for macintosh, but if you're really into it (and not cheap like me), see if Oxford makes Latin-English dictionaries or something.
Lucifer wrote:Yes, if you want to know the vocabulary. You can get some online. The one I use is Whitaker's WORDs for macintosh, but if you're really into it (and not cheap like me), see if Oxford makes Latin-English dictionaries or something.
Thank you. I will be out and about on Monday and will make a point of visiting my favorite used bookstore to see what they have.
I don't think any of us are ever really cheap. We just look to find the best returns for our time and money.
Well, since it seemes easy enough for you now, I'm moving on.
Second Declension
The second declension is either masculine or neuter. There are two different ways of declensing them:
masculine
(singular | plural)
nominative: stem + "us" | stem + "i"
genitive: stem + "i" | stem + "orum"
dative: stem + "o" | stem + "is"
accusative: stem + "um" | stem + "os"
ablative: stem + "o" | stem + "is"
vocative: stem + "e" | stem + "i"
eg, murus, muri - wall
nominative: murus, muri
genitive: muri, murorum
dative: muro, muris
accusative: murum, muros
ablative: muro, muris
vocative: mure, muri
Occasionally, you might find a Latin word that has an "er" ending like "magister, magistri". In the dictionary, you'll know what the stem is from the genitive form. the form of the Latin word that has "er" at the end is the nominative singular form, but the other declensions will follow the normal pattern like the genitive singular form. It's really just taking off the "er" ending and adding "r" to the other declensions.
neuter
(singular | plural)
nominative: stem + "um" | stem + "a"
genitive: stem + "i" | stem + "orum"
dative: stem + "o" | stem + "is"
accusative: stem + "um" | stem + "a"
ablative: stem + "o" | stem + "is"
The neuter form is similar to the masculine form, but varies in the nominative and accusative case. But also note that the nominative and accusative cases in the neuter declension are the same.
Next: Third declension
The neuter obviously leaning more towards the masculine than feminine which makes sense. I'm still pleased you will not be quizzing me, however.
I wish I had my dictionary already to practice and ask for your opinions.
Neuter isn't any more similar to masculine than to feminine. The first declension isn't the "feminine" declension, and the second isnt' the "masculine" declension. It just happens to be that most first-declension nouns are feminine, and most second-declension nouns are masculine. There are some first-declension masculine nouns (nauta, nautae m. - sailor) - a very few - but they decline just like the feminine ones. Neuter nouns decline according to their declension as well, except that they always end in singular um and plura a in both nominative and accusative. So third declension neuter nouns don't decline anything like second declension neuter nouns, except in those two places.
By the way, I don't know if this has been explained, but the vocabulary notation we've been using is sort of the standard: nominative/sing, genitive/sing. This is because, not so much in these declensions, the actual root of the word is not found in the nominative case, but in the genitive singular. Like magister, magistri - the root is not magister- or magist-, it's actually magistr- so it would decline as
nom magister | magistri
gen magistri | magistrorum
dat magistro | magistris
acc magistrum | magistros
abl magistro | magistris
Unfortunately, just to confuse you, there's a few that don't drop the e in their roots. puer, pueri (boy) comes to mind. But I think most of them do.
Okay, then here are some practice words (not quizzed. Do at your own discretion):
First declension:
lumina, luminae - light
agricola, agricolae - field
poeta, poetae - poet
rosa, rosae - rose
stella, stellae - star
area, areae - space
pecunia, pecuniae - money
harena, harenae - sand
tenebra, tenebrae - darkness (this word is often used in the plural form)
femina, feminae - woman/female
epistola, epistolae - letter
magistra, magistrae - master/teacher (female)
lingua, linguae - language, tongue
Latina, Latinae - Latin
mensa, mensae - table
Second declension
liber, libri - book
magister, magistri - master (male)
equus, equi - horse
frenum, freni - reins, bridle
virus, viri - poison
vir, viri - man
verbum, verbi - word
magus, magi - magician
gladius, gladi(i) - sword
locus, loci - place
mentum, menti - chin
cuneus, cunei - wedge
ferrum, ferri - iron
aurum, auri - gold
servus, servi - servant, slave
If you want more, ask.
Thank you , rufio. I appreciate that. I am certain I have mis-stated what it is I am actually seeking by "learning Latin:" I all honestly do not have an expansive time period to learn the language in its entirety. What I was seeking were words or phrases translated to Latin, purely for personal reasons. I am guessing I may be able to do that by searching on the net and not wasting yours and Lucifer's time.
