curriculum vitae – Course of life
de jure and de facto – In law; In reality
- These terms can also be thought of as “in principle” and “in practice”.
- In some Commonwealth countries, the British monarch is the de jure head of state, but in day-to-day politics, the elected prime minister is the de factoleader
“Festina lente” (a Latin phrase) – Make haste slowly
grosso modo – approximate method
ipso facto – by the fact itself
labor omnia vincit best reflects the actions of a Latin student who always studies
“out of many, one,” the motto held by the eagle on the great seal of the United States of America —-> “e pluribus unum”
non-sequitor – not following
In logic, if the conclusion does not follow from the premise, then it is called a non sequitur
per capita – by head
per se – in itself; intrinsically
It is used to indicate that some quality belongs to a thing by its very nature
professor emeritus – a professor who has retired but retains the title as an honour ——> emeritus translates to “having been earned by service.” In modern English, it refers to a person who has retired, but who retains the previously held title as an honour
sic – thus; so
It is usually seen within square brackets after a quote that has unusual or incorrect words, such as [sic]. It indicates that the wording is the same in the original text and is not a copying mistake
The Virginia state motto, Sic Semper Tyrannis, is translated Thus Always to Tyrants
status quo – current situation
stet – leave as is —-> Stet translates to “let it stand.” It’s used by proofreaders and editors to instruct the writer to disregard a correction or change
“sub rosa” means “in secret”. Roses are a symbol of secrecy, and were hung in meeting rooms to indicate confidentiality
sui generis – belonging to its own category
Apart/away/not – Di/dis (e.g. disappear, digression)
• Beyond/extreme/more than – Ultra (e.g. ultramodern, ultrasonic)
• Caught in the act – In flagrante delicto
• Change – Mut (e.g. immutable, mutant)
• Conquer – Vince/vic (e.g. convince, victory)
• Constellation, interstellar – Stell
• Danger in delay – Periculum in mora
• Every/all – Omnis
• Fire – Ignis
• For the sake of honor (any title) – Honoris causa
• From beyond/without – Ab extra
• Hear the other side – Audi alteram partem
• If – Si
• In the same place – Ibidem
• In glass – In vitro
• In wine there is truth – In vino veritas
• It is sweet and honorable to die for the fatherland – Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori
• Laugh – Rid (e.g. deride, ridiculous)
• Lead – Duc/duct (e.g. conduct, educate) Lead
• Much – Multus
• Nobody’s property – Res nullius
• Nothing more beyond – Ne plus ultra
• No third (possibility) is given – Tertium non datur
• Nourished/former student – Alumnus/alumna
• On – A (e.g. afire, aside)
• One tenth – Deci (e.g. decibel, decimate) One tenth
• Outside/beyond – Extra/extro (e.g. extraordinary, extrovert)
• Sorrow itself/pain for its own sake – Lorem Ipsum
• Third – Tertius
• To be able – Posse
• To err is human – Errare humanum est
• To love – Amare
• To one willing, no harm is done – Volenti non fit injuria
• To sickness/to the point of disgust – Ad Nauseum
• Some(one)/Something – Aliqui/aliquid
• They – Illi/illae
• Thus passes the glory of the world – Sic transit gloria mundi
• Times – Tempus
• To place/put – Pon (e.g. opponent, postpone)
• To step/to go – Gress/grad (e.g.. progress, gradual)
• Tribe/people – Gens
• Veteran – Emeritus
• War – Bellum
• What is said is done – Dictum factum
Latin.
“Caelum” is a neuter noun meaning
“sky” or “heaven.”
In one of its more famous uses, Jerome wrote: “In principio, Deus creavit caelum et terram,” which probably needs no translation
“Candidus” is a bright white, like fresh snow. “Albus” is what we think of as “off white” or “winter white” (if you’re a fashionista)
Carthago delendam est: “It is my opinion Carthage must be destroyed.”
Cato the Elder used to end speeches by saying, “Censeo Carthago delenda est,” or “It is my opinion Carthage must be destroyed.”
Cicero: chickpea
One of Rome’s most famous orators was named “Chickpea.” He wasn’t alone, though: Many of the ancient Romans went by simple, homely first names
“Commentarii de Bello Gallico” This was Caesar’s account of the military campaigns in Gaul (modern-day France and Belgium)
Defective Latin Verb means it can’t be fully conjugated
The Latin word “aio,” meaning “I affirm,” is defective. It’s only seen in present and imperfect tenses. “Nihil,” though a noun, is similar: It means “nothing,” and has only that one form
(though in modern times, it’s also shortened to “nil.”)
English is descended from Latin through the French language
This is because of the Norman invasion in 1054 – the interlopers from Normandy, a region of France, brought their Latinate language with them, and it influenced the native Celtic-Saxon tongues spoken on the British Isles
“Exercitus” is “army,” “miles” is “solider,” and “proelium” is “battle.”
Feminine/Masculine: There’s little rhyme or reason to why some nouns have the gender they do. Is “mensa” (table) feminine because more women than men used to set and clear the table?
Frango, frangere: to break
ipsum: indeed
“Ipse, ipsa, ipsum” is a way of underlining what you’re saying; it always follows a name or personal pronoun
In other words, “Ego ipse” is like saying “I myself” in English
Labor. laboris and opus, operis mean “work,” but of different kinds
“Labor” is drudgery, like cleaning out the garage “Opus” is work with meaning and satisfaction, like writing a screenplay
This is where we get the term “magnum opus.”
“Laetus” covers a spectrum of loosely-related states: happy, lucky, fertile, plump, or stupid
Latin got its start in the Italian region of Latium
You know you’re really a Latin student when you accidentally refer to the Romans as “the Latins.” (Trust us, it will happen). But it’s not entirely wrong:
Latium, in which present-day Rome stands, was home to a people who were, in fact, called the Latins
Latin has five declensions
The first is primarily feminine nouns, and the second primarily masculine
Confusingly, the smallest declension, the fifth, contains one of the most commonly-used words: “res,” meaning “thing.”
Mors: The nominative form of “death”- meaning “death” as the thing itself or the subject of a sentence – is “mors.”
English speakers are far more familiar with “mortis,” meaning “of death,” because it comes up in medical terminology, e.g. “rigor mortis.”
“Mulier” less common name for woman (Femina) could easily be mistaken for a verb. If you know some
Spanish, though, you can remember it through its connection to the word “mujer.”
Necessarius: As an adjective, it means “unavoidable,” and as a noun, “family member.”
Nemo: No one
Pecunia, pecuniae,” means “money or property”
It’s easy to mistake for the verb “pecco, peccare,” meaning “sin or mistake.
Placebo: “I shall please.”
Yes, “placebo” is the first-person, future-tense form of the verb “to please.” English made it the name for an inert non-medicine which might make a patient feel better
Romance Languages: Languages descended from Latin are called the romance languages
“Romance” is derived from the word “Roman, ” and doesn’t refer to love or attraction
“Sagitta” means arrow. Sagittarius, the archer, is a constellation that corresponds to the ninth sign in Greek astrology
Silva: forest
Subjunctive: The five forms in declension are nominative, genitive, dative, accusative, and ablative
Subjunctive is a “mood,” a verb form
indicating possibility or uncertainty
Tenebrae: Darkness is a non-count noun to begin with, but Latin always makes it plural, “tenebrae.” Students remember this by likening it to the English word “shadows.”
-ulus or -culus – suffix that gives a word the meaning “little” or “cute”
This suffix gives English the word “homunculus,” meaning “little man.”
Gardeners will also recognize “gladiolus,” meaning “little sword,” for the flower with sword-shaped leaves
Vocative mood: The vocative case, for addressing someone directly, changes the form of a masculine name. That is,
“Julius” would be “Juli” in direct address
The most famous example of this was Julius Caesar’s last words to Brutus: “Et
tu, Brute?”
Yes and No: There are no specific words for yes and no
Agreement and disagreement are built into the context of a sentence. “Non” comes close to “no”, but it usually means “not” and precedes another word
“Certe,” or “certainly” is very close to “yes,” but not an exact translation
hexafu 