68129630-Conversational-Latin-for-Oral-Proficiency-Traupman

100 Conversational Latin

hang around with frequ¡ns adesse »n§ heart: to take to heart famili§riter fer«
cum (+ abl) ferre tul¿ l§tus

hang: you can just go and hang heaven: for heaven’s sake obsecr« [lit:
yourself! ¿ d¿r¡ct¡ in maximam I pray]
malam crucem!
heaven: I’m in seventh heaven digit«
happen: what happened? quid factum caelum atting«
est?
heavens above! o d¿ immort§l¡s!
hard: he was hard on me in m¡ d»rus
erat heck: who the heck are they? qu¿,
malum, ist¿ sunt?
hard: it’s hard to do, but I’ll try just
the same difficile fact» est, sed heels: to take to his heels s¡ conicere in
c«n§bor nihil« s¡tius ped¡s

hard: to take this hard hoc d»rum hell: I’m going to catch hell hab¡b«
accip·i« |ere acc¡p¿ conv¿cium

harp on the same theme cantil¡nam hello: Terentia says hello to you
eandem can·« |ere cecin¿ Terentia tibi sal»tem d¿cit

have it your way! est« ut lubet! here I am Ecce m¡

have a tough time of it vald¡ lab«r§re here with it! cedo! (pl: cette!) (can take
an accusative object, e.g.: here with
have it in for s.o. alicui per¿culum that book! cedo istum librum!)
d¡n»nti§re
hey you, I’m talking to you! heus t»,
have to do: what do you have to do tibi ego d¿c«!
with him? quid re¿ tibi est cum ill«?
hide: to be after s.o.’s hide corium
have to say: this I have to say haec alic»ius pet·« |ere pet¿v¿
habe« d¿cere
hide: to risk his own hide cori« su«
head: come into one’s head in buccam l»dere
ven·i« |¿re v¡n¿ [lit: come into one’s
cheek] hide: to save his own hide corium
serv§re
head: from head to foot § capite »sque
ad calcem hit it off: did you hit it off with them?
concord§b§sne cum ill¿s?
head: to put heads together capita
c«nfer« c«nferre contul¿ hit: hit s.o. for a loan fer¿re aliquem
m»tu« argent«
headway: we are making some
headway, I hope ut sp¡r«, hmmmmm hem
pr«ficimus aliquantum
hogwash: that’s hogwash! quisquiliae!
health: for reasons of (bad) health
val¡t»dinis caus§ hold it! I won’t let you leave ast§!
ab¿re hinc n«n sinam
heart: from the heart ex anim«; heart
and soul t«t« pectore honest to god medius fidius

heart: my heart was in my throat honestly: tell me honestly d¿c bon§ fide
anima mihi in n§s« erat [lit: my
breath was in my nose] hoot: I don’t give a hoot about him
eum flocc¿ n«n faci«

how come? qu¿ istuc?

Chapter XI: Useful Colloquial Expressions 101

how so? qu¿dum? or quid ita? interested: I am interested in music
m»sicae [dat] stude«
how’s that? (what did you say?)
qu¿dum? or quid iam? interested: I am interested in that id
mihi c»rae est
humor: to humor s.o. alicui m«rem
ger« gerere gess¿ interesting: that book is interesting
ille liber m¡ tenet
hurray! euax!
interrupt: don’t interrupt me! n«l¿ (pl:
hurry! m§t»r§! (pl: m§t»r§te!) n«l¿te) mihi obloqu¿!

hurry: but I’m in a hurry at proper« is that so? itane?

hurry: what’s your hurry? quid itch: I’m just itching to gest·i« |¿re
fest¿n§s? quidem (+ inf)

I’ll be right there iam ader« jam: to be in a jam in angusti¿s vers·or
|§r¿ |§tus sum
idea: you’re full of ideas pl¡nus (-a)
c«nsili¿ es job: good job! r¡ct¡ factum!

importance: it is of the greatest job: it’s a big job but … magnum opus
importance to me that … permagn¿ est sed tamen …
me§ interest (+ acc & inf)
joke: all joking aside ioc« rem«t«
important: it is (very) important to
me (you) that magn¿ (maxim¡) me§ joke: as a joke per iocum
(tu§) interest (+ acc & inf)
joke: now you’re joking ioc§ris nunc t»
important: it’s not all that important
tant¿ n«n est jokingly per iocum or inter iocum

impression: to make a deep judgment: against my better
impression on maxim¡ commov·e« judgment adversum ingenium meum
|¡re comm«v¿ (+ acc)
just about (pretty well, virtually)
in: is your father in? estne pater intus? propemodum

infer: I infer from what you say that just the same (anyhow) tamen or nihil«
… ex verb¿s tu¿s collig« (+ acc & s¡tius
inf)
keep this to yourself haec t» t¡cum
influence: to have a lot of influence hab¡t«
with multum posse in (+ abl)
keep your cool! comp¡sce mentem!
inform: to inform s.o. about aliquem
certi«rem facere d¡ (+ abl) keep a stiff upper lip! fac ut anim«
fort¿ s¿s!
initiative: on my own initiative me§
sponte keep: am I keeping you? num d¡tine«
t¡?
inside: go inside! ¿ (pl: ¿te) intus!
kept: what kept you? quid tenuit qu«
intend: I intended to set out straight minus ven¿r¡s?
for home erat mihi in anim« r¡ct§
profic¿sc¿ domum kick the bucket animam bull¿re

intentions: with the best intentions kid: don’t kid me n¡ m¡ l»d§s
optim« anim« »t¡ns
kidding: you’re kidding l»dis m¡

kill time tempus fall·« |ere fefell¿

102 Conversational Latin

knock it off! parce! (pl: parcite!) like: he said something like this haec
know better: he thinks he knows fer¡ d¿xit

better than I do c¡nset s¡ pl»s like: I like this hoc mihi placet
sapere quam m¡ like: I like to do this m¡ iuvat hoc
know for sure certum (or cert«) sci«
sc¿re sc¿v¿ facere
know: get to know n«sc·« |ere n«v¿ like: I’d like you to come velim (ut)
n«tus
know: let me know what you are veni§s
doing t» m¡ velim certi«rem faci§s, like: that’s more like it propemodum
quid ag§s
know: let me know where you are est
facit« ut sciam ubi s¿s likely: it is more likely that facilius est
latest: today, at latest tomorrow hodi¡,
summum cr§s ut (+ subj)
laugh: I laughed till I cried r¿s¿ »sque likely: most likely he will come
ad lacrim§s
lay a finger on s.o. aliquem »n« digit« proximum est ut veniat
atting·« |ere attig¿ line: drop me a line when you have
lay it on the line d¿r¡ctum loquor loqu¿
loc»tus sum time scr¿be aliquid litter§rum quand«
lay off! d¡sine (pl: d¡sinite) tandem! vac§s
leave me alone! omitte (pl: omittite) m¡ line: he’s feeding you a line verba tibi
leave it up to s.o. to … alicui mand§re iste dat
(+ subj) line: to form a long line longum agmen
leave no stone unturned n»ll« loc« fac·i« |ere f¡c¿ factus
d¡sum d¡esse d¡fu¿ line: to lay it on the line d¿r¡ctum
let down: to let s.o. down alicui d¡sum loquor loqu¿ loc»tus sum
d¡esse d¡fu¿ lip: keep a stiff upper lip fac, ut anim«
let fall: d¡mitt·« |ere d¡m¿s¿ d¡missus fort¿ s¿s
let me go! mitte (pl: mittite) m¡! live it up pergraec·or |§r¿
let me know facit« (pl: facit«te) ut living: to make a living quaestum
sciam facere or v¿ctum quaerit§re
life and death: it’s not a question of living: you’re living on borrowed time
life or death n«n capitis r¡s agitur d¡ lucr« v¿vis (pl: v¿vitis)
life: but such is life sed v¿ta fert; to loaded with money c«pi«s·us |a |um
lead the life of riley v¿tam chiam loaf cess§re
ger·« |ere gess¿ loan: may I hit you for a loan? licet t¡
life: on my life! ita v¿vam! m»tu« fer¿re?
light: to make light of in lev¿ hab·e« long: it would take too long to …
|¡re |u¿ longum erat (+ inf)
look like: I don’t know what he (or
she) looks like qu§ sit faci¡, nesci«
look: aha, the very person I was
looking for Attat, quem quaer¡bam!
look: it looks that way to me ita mihi
vid¡tur

Chapter XI: Useful Colloquial Expressions 103

low: I am low on (e.g., paper) (charta) mean: what I mean is (in correcting a
mihi d¡est misunderstanding) at enim

luck: good luck! f¡l¿citer! means: by all means! maxim¡!
memory: if my memory serves me
lump s.o. together with aliquem
acc»d·« |ere (+ dat) right, s¿ ego satis commemin¿,
memory: in memory of in memoriam
mad: I’m mad at you tibi susc¡nse« or
ego tibi ¿r§tus sum (+ gen)
memory: to commit to memory
mad: to be mad about (be madly in
love with) d¡per·i« |¿re |i¿ (+ acc) memoriae committ·o |ere comm¿s¿
mention: I don’t want to mention him
mad: to go mad mente ali¡n§r¿
by name eum n«l« n«min§re
mail: I mailed the letter yesterday mention: not to mention ut n«n (or
litter§s her¿ ded¿
nihil) d¿cam d¡ (+ abl)
matter: for that matter ade« mention: not to mention the fact that

matter: it doesn’t matter to me nihil … ut mittam quod (+ indic)
ad m¡ pertinet mention: since mention has been

matter: no matter how… quamv¿s (+ made of money, quoniam
subj) numm«rum menti« facta est,
mess: geez, what a mess! eu edepol r¡s
matter: what does that matter to me turbulent§s!
(you, us)? quid id me§ (tu§, n«b¿s) mince: without mincing words sine
r¡fert? f»c« ac fall§ci¿s
mind: he’s out of his mind ali¡n§tus
matter: what on earth’s the matter? est § s¡
quidnam est? mind: I don’t mind if you stay,
provided you’re quiet n«n lab«r« s¿
matter: what’s the matter? quid est? man¡s, modo tace§s
or quid istuc est re¿? mind: I don’t mind that … n«n c»r«
quod (+ indic)
mean: do you know whom I mean? mind: I made up my mind not to
sc¿sne quem d¿cam? hurry erat in anim« nihil fest¿n§re
mind: I made up my mind to leave
mean: do you mean me? m¡ne v¿s? c«nstitu¿ hinc ab¿re or certum est
yes, you t¡ mihi hinc ab¿re
mind: I really don’t mind that istuc
mean: do you really mean it? ain quidem n«n molest¡ fer« ferre tul¿
v¡r«? yes, I do ai« mind: I was out of my mind when …
d¡sipi¡bam mentis cum …
mean: how do you mean that? qu¿ mind: I’ve made up my mind mihi
istuc v¿s? certum est
mind: if you don’t mind s¿ tibi
mean: now you know what I mean molestum n«n est or s¿ tibi vid¡tur
sc¿s iam quid loquar

mean: what do you mean? quid tibi
v¿s?

mean: what do you mean by that?
quid istuc est verb¿?

mean: what does this mean? quid hoc
sibi vult?

104 Conversational Latin

mind: it had not entered my mind needless to say quid quaeris?
mihi in mentem n«n v¡nerat neither: that’s neither here nor there

mind: it slipped my mind to write to (a matter of indifference) susque
you f»git m¡ ad t¡ scr¿bere d¡que est
nerve: what nerve! ø aud§ciam!
mind: never mind! (let is pass) sine! news: if you happen to have any news
(pl: sinite) about … s¿ quid forte nov¿ hab¡s d¡
(+ abl); if you have no news about
mind: never mind what he says mitte … s¿ nihil nov¿ hab¡s d¡ (+ abl); I’ll
id quod d¿cit tell you when I have any news
narr§b«, cum aliquid hab¡b« nov¿ is
mind: set your mind at ease hab¡ there any news? num quid nov¿? no
animum l¡nem et tranquillum other news nihil praetere§ nov¿
nice: it was nice of you to invite me,
mind: to change one’s mind mentem but no, thank you bene voc§s, sed
m»t§re tam gr§tia est
nice: it wasn’t nice of you to say that
mind: to have in mind to in anim« n«n bell¡ f¡cist¿ qu¿ id d¿xer¿s
hab¡re (+ inf) nick: you’ve come in the nick of time
in ips« articul« temporis adven¿s
mind: to mind s.o. else’s (one’s own) no way! minim¡! or n»ll« mod«!
business ali¡na (sua) neg«tia c»r§re no, thanks tam gr§tia est or benign¡
nonsense! n»g§s!
mind: what’s on your mind? quid tibi nonsense: cut out the nonsense omitte
in anim« est? n»g§s
nonsense: that’s a lot of nonsense
misquote: you are misquoting me m¡ n»gae sunt istae magnae
ali¿s verb¿s p«nis nonsense: you are talking nonsense
n»g§s garr¿s
mistake: by mistake impr»d¡ns, nose: to have a good nose for these
perperam things haec f¡st¿v¡ od«r§r¿
nose: under one’s very nose ante
mistake: you’re making a big mistake ocul«s
err§s pervers¡ or vehementer err§s nosey: I don’t want to be nosey but …
n«n libet c»ri«sus (-a) esse sed …
mood: to be in a good mood bonum now here’s the point nunc cogn«sce
animum hab·e« |¡re |u¿ rem
now what? quid nunc?
more of this another time sed d¡ h«c nuts: he’s nuts ali¡n§tus est § s¡
ali§s pl»ribus nuts: you’re nuts d¡l¿r§s
O.K. fiat or licet
mouth: I had better keep my mouth
shut taceam optimum est

mouth: shut your mouth obser§ «s
tuum!

my oh my! vae miser« (-ae) mihi!

naturally (of course) nempe

necessary: if it is necessary for you to
stay on s¿ opus est t¡ commor§r¿

necessary: if it is necessary for your
health s¿ opus est ad val¡t»dinem

need: I (you, we) need money opus est
mihi (tibi, n«b¿s) argent« [abl]

Chapter XI: Useful Colloquial Expressions 105

O.K.: if it’s O.K. with you, s¿ tibi pave: to pave the way to viam fac·i«
vid¡tur |ere f¡c¿ factus ad (+ acc)

O.K.: we’re O.K. bene hab¡mus pay: it pays to listen pretium operae est
auscult§re
objection: I have no objection per m¡
licet pay s.o. a visit aliquem inv¿s·« |ere |¿

obliged: I’m much obliged to you for period: I’ll not give in period n«n
sending me your book f¡cist¿ mihi conc¡dam d¿x¿
pergr§tum quod librum ad m¡ m¿sist¿
pickle: to be in a pickle in angusti¿s
occasion: if occasion should arise, s¿ vers·or |§r¿ |§tus sum
fuerit occ§si«,
pinch: in a pinch in r¡ dubi§
occur: that had never occurred to me
mihi istuc numquam in mentem pity: I pity you misereor tu¿ (pl: vestr¿)
v¡nerat
place: this is not the place to … n«n
of course sc¿licet, profect« est hic locus ut (+ subj)

off: I’m off to the forum ego hinc m¡ plans: to make plans for the trip
ad forum (ag«) c«nsilium cap·i« |ere c¡p¿ d¡ itinere

off: where are you off to? qu« t¡ agis? play up to s.o. aliquem col·« |ere colu¿

oh boy! eu! play: stop playing games d¡siste l»d«s
facere
once I get started, I can’t stop quand«
incipi«, d¡sinere n«n que« please s«d¡s (= s¿ aud¡s); quaes«; (very
informal) am§b« t¡
one on one: we can discuss that one
on one id c«ram agere possumus pleasure: with pleasure libenter

ouch! oiei! plus: consider it a plus id d¡put§ esse
in lucr«
out with it! (tell me!) cedo! (pl: cette!)
(an old imperative) point: at this point h¿c

out of place: if it is not out of place, point: beside the point nihil ad rem;
nisi ali¡num est, get the point? ten¡sne (pl: ten¡tisne)
rem? get to the point! ven¿ ad rem!
over: it’s all over! ×ctum est! or ‡licet! it got to the point where e«
d¡cursum est ut (+ subj); that’s the
overwhelmed: to be overwhelmed main point id caput est up to this
with work obru¿, tamquam fl»ct», point h§ctenus; what was the point
s¿c opere of your writing to me? quid r¡tulit
t¡ mittere ad m¡ litter§s? what’s the
pain : stop being a pain in the neck point of that? quam ad rem istud
molestus (-a) n¡ s¿s r¡fert? what’s your point? (what
are you driving at?) qu« ¡v§dis? you
pain: feel pain dol«re affic·ior |¿ miss the point nihil ad rem pertinet
affectus sum
point: but to return to the point …
pardon: pardon me for what I said sed ad pr«positum …
ign«sce mihi, quod d¿xer«
point: on that point h§c d¡ r¡
particular: in particular potissimum

pass for (appear to be) prob§re pr« (+
abl)

106 Conversational Latin

point: the point is that I no longer question: many questions are raised
care about such things quod caput multa quaeruntur
est, iam ista n«n c»r«
question: no question, he’s at fault
possible: is it really possible that … nempe in culp§ est
numquid; is it really possible that
you are telling the truth? numquid question: that’s a loaded question
v¡ra d¿cis? capti«sum interrog§tum est

pretend: I’ll pretend I don’t know question: to answer the question ad
him dissimul§b« m¡ eum n«visse rog§tum (or interrog§tum)
respond·e« |¡re |¿
pretend: I’ll pretend I’m leaving
assimul§b« quasi abeam question: to ask a loaded question
capti«s¡ interrog§re
pretext: he left under the pretext that
… hinc abiit quasi (+ subj) question: why do you ask such
questions? c»r ista quaeris?
pretty well (just about) propemodum
privately: I want to speak with you quiet: why don’t you keep quiet? qu¿n
t» tac¡s?
privately velim t¡cum loqu¿ in
pr¿v§to or in s¡cr¡t« racket: to raise a racket cl§m«rem
problem: what’s the problem? quid est toll·« |ere sustul¿ subl§tus
neg«t¿?
promise: I am not making any raise a rumpus turb§s dare
definite promise nihil cert¿ polliceor rat: I smell a rat aliquid mihi subolet
promises: to break promises pr«missa rate: at any rate utique
frang·« |ere fr¡g¿ fr§ctus rather: do you know this fellow? hunc
promises: to keep promises pr«missa
serv§re n«vist¿? rather! facile!
promises: to make many promises reason: for various reasons mult¿s d¡
multa pollic·eor |¡r¿ pollicitus sum
prove: this proves that … document« caus¿s
est (+ acc & inf) reason: what’s the reason why … quid
public: in public for¿s
pull a fast one on verba dare (+ dat) est enim, c»r …
pull oneself together s¡ collig·« |ere recall: as I recall ut mea memoria est
coll¡g¿ red cent: I don’t owe anyone a red
put off: let’s put this off to another
time hanc rem in aliud tempus cent assem aer§rium n¡min¿ d¡be«
differ§mus red cent: I haven’t a red cent assem
put up with with s.o. aliquem
perpet·ior |¿ perpessus sum aer§rium habe« n»llum
put yourself in my place fac qu¿ ego regards: give him (her) my best
sum, esse t¡
put: you’re putting it on a little thick regards d¿cit« e¿ multam me¿s verb¿s
es p»tidiusculus sal»tem
remember: if I remember right, s¿
bene memin¿,
reminder: as a reminder memoriae
caus§
retire in «tium ven·i« |¿re v¡n¿ vent»rus
right away continu«
right from the start in pr¿ncipi« ¿lic«

Chapter XI: Useful Colloquial Expressions 107

right now nunciam service: to be at s.o.’s service praest«
(+ dat) esse
right: that’s right s¿c est
seventh heaven: to be in seventh
right: you have every right to … heaven in cael« esse
omne f§s tibi est (+ inf)
shake hands dextrae iungere dextram or
right: you’re right bene d¿xist¿ or v¡ra dextram iungere cum aliqu«
d¿cis
shame on you! pr« pudor!
risk: at your own risk tu« per¿cul«
shame: that’s a darn shame edepol
rough guess ¿nf«rm§ta c«git§ti« facinus improbum

round up c«g·« |ere co¡g¿ co§ctus shame: what a shame! facinus
indignum! or ø rem indignam!
rubbish! quisquiliae!
shoes: please put yourself in my shoes
ruckus: why are you raising such a fac, quaes«, qu¿ ego sum, t¡ esse
ruckus? quid istum cl§m«rem tollis
(pl: tollitis)? shook: all shook up vehementer
perturb§tus
run into s.o. on the street aliquem
offend·« |ere |¿ in plat¡§ short: in short in summ§, ad summam

sake: for the sake of caus§ (+ gen); for show: this shows that … indici« est (+
heaven’s sake obsecr« (lit: i pray); acc & inf)
for your sake tu§ (pl: vestr§) caus§
shut up! obser§ «s tuum!
same: it’s all the same to me me§ nihil
interest shut: why don’t you just shut up?
qu¿n t» tac¡ modo?
satisfaction: to your satisfaction ex tu§
sententi§ sick and tired: I am sick and tired of
hearing the same thing over and
satisfy: you can’t satisfy everyone n«n over (m¡) pertaedet iam aud¿re
potes omnibus satis facere eadem identidem

say: so they say ita aiunt sick and tired: I am sick and tired of
the business m¡ neg«t¿ pertaedet
scared: I am scared to death
exanim§tus (-a) met» sum silly: don’t be silly n«l¿ inept¿re

score: he doesn’t know what the score simply: I simply don’t know what he
is nescit quid ag§tur is thinking of iam pl§n¡ quid c«gitet
nesci«
scram! apage
situation: that’s the situation here in
scrape: I’ll try to scrape together the Rome h¿c R«mae r¡s s¡ s¿c habent
money c«n§bor argentum conr§dere
situation: you see what the situation is
see that you do it facit« ut faci§s vid¡s qu« in loc« haec r¡s sit

see: now I see (I understand) iam tene« skull: I’ll break your skull d¿minuam
ego tibi caput
see: I’ll see to it that … c»r§b« ut (+
subj) … slip: a slip of the tongue laps·us |»s m
linguae
self: he was not his usual self n«n fuit
c»ius mod¿ solet slip: it has slipped my mind memori§
excidit
serious: are you serious? s¡ri«ne d¿cis
t»?

108 Conversational Latin

slip: it slipped my mind to … f»git m¡ stick to the truth in v¡rit§te man·e«
(+ inf) |¡re m§ns¿

smart: don’t talk smart to me n«l¿ stone: I will leave no stone unturned
male d¿cere mihi nihil praetermittam

smart: she is smart ingeni«sa est stop right there! st§ ¿lic«!

snowed: to be snowed under with stop off at d¡vers§r¿ apud (+ acc)
obru¿, tamquam fluct», s¿c (+ abl)
stop off at s.o.’s house d¡vert·« |ere |¿
so far so good bell¡ adh»c ad aliquem

so to speak ut ita d¿cam stop! ast§!

so help me god! medius fidius! stop: he finally stopped talking f¿nem
loquend¿ d¡mum f¡cit
so: that’s not so! haud ita est
story: to make a long story short n¡
sooner: no sooner said than done dict« longus sim or n¡ longam faciam
citius or dictum factum
straighten out a matter rem explic§re
speak of the devil lupus in f§bul§
strictly speaking propri¡
speak I’m listening loquere audi«
stroll: would you like to take a stroll?
speak: well, speak up! qu¿n t» ¡loquere vel¿sne spati§r¿?

spirit: that’s the right spirit now nunc stuck: he is stuck on some girl or
t» fr»g¿ bonae es other in am«rem haeret apud nesci«
quam virginem
splendid! euge!
stuck: I’m stuck (out of ideas) haere«
splendid: absolutely splendid! nimis
factum bene! suggestion: at your suggestion t¡
auct«re
split one’s sides laughing ¿lia sua r¿s»
dissolv·« |ere |¿ sum: to sum up ad summam or in
summam or in summ§
square: this simply doesn’t square n«n
s§n¡ quadrat suppose: I suppose (parenthetical) ut
op¿nor
stand: I can’t stand him istum ferre
neque« sure: be sure to come facit« (or fac)
modo ut veni§s
stand: I’d like to know how matters
stand velim sc¿re qu« mod« r¡s s¡ sure: I am sure that certus (-a) sum (+
habeat acc & inf)

standing ovation: to give s.o. a sure: to know for sure certum (or
standing ovation alicui stant¡s cert«) sc¿re
plau·d« |dere |s¿
suspense: not to keep you any longer
start: you’ve made a good start bene in suspense n¡ di»tius pende§s
habent tibi pr¿ncipia
suspense: to be in suspense anim¿
starters: for starters pr¿ncipi« pende« pend¡re pepend¿

step on it! m§t»r§! (pl: m§t»r§te!) sweat: no sweat n«n lab«r«

stick to one’s guns in sententi§ st« st§re take it easy! parce! (pl: parcite!)
stet¿

Chapter XI: Useful Colloquial Expressions 109

take into consideration respic·i« |ere that’s it! (enough!) tantum est!
respex¿
that’s right (in response to a question)
take it hard that graviter fer« ferre tul¿ s¿c est
(+ acc & inf)
that’s so ita est
take pains to in magn« neg«ti« hab·e«
|¡re |u¿ (+ inf) then and there ibi continu«; ¿lic«

take place f¿« fier¿ factus sum think over reput§re
take upon oneself (to) in s¡ c«nferre (+
think s.th. over aliquid s¡cum reput§re
inf)
take: here, take it accipe, em think: I don’t think so ego n«n put«
take: I can’t take it anymore pat¿
think: I think so s¿c op¿nor
neque« amplius
take: I take it (parenthetical) ut op¿nor think: that is exactly what I think ita
taken in: they know that they were pr«rsus ex¿stim«

taken in sciunt sibi data esse verba think: what do you think? quid
talk: that’s mere talk verba istaec sunt c¡ns¡s?
tear: I can’t tear myself away from
tie up imped·i« |¿re |¿v¿ |¿tus
writing (from my books) in
scr¿bend« (in libr¿s) haer·e« |¡re tie: to be tied up (e.g., with business)
haes¿ imped·ior |¿r¿ |¿tus sum
tenterhooks: to be on tenterhooks
anim¿ pend·e« |¡re pepend¿ time: for the time being pr« tempore
terms: I’m on good terms with in
gr§ti§ sum cum (+ abl); mihi cum (+ time: he’s having a good time by
abl) magna necessit»d« est himself e¿ bene est s«l¿
thank you (for a future favor) am§b« t¡;
(for a favor done) am« t¡ time: I haven’t the time haud mihi
thank you for (+ gerund) tibi gr§ti§s «tium est
ag« agere ¡g¿ quod (+ indic)
thank: I thank you for helping me time: I’m having a good (lousy) time
gr§ti§s tibi ag« quod m¡ i»vist¿ mihi bene (male) est
thankful: I am thankful to you gr§tiam
tibi habe« time: in my spare time cum tempus
thankful: you ought to be thankful to subsic¿vum mihi est
me gr§tiam habe§s mihi
thanks a lot multum t¡ am« time: there is no time to study n«n
thanks for your gifts gr§ti§s tibi d¡ vacat stud¡re
d«n¿s tu¿s
thanks to me (you, etc.) me§ (tu§, etc) tip: it was on the tip of the tongue erat
oper§ in labr¿s pr¿m«ribus
that’ll do sat est
to each his own cuique suum

too bad about male (mehercule) d¡ (+
abl)

too bad about Marcus! male d¡ M§rc«!

tooth and nail t«t« corpore et omnibus
ungul¿s

top (surpass) super§re

top banana: he wants to be top
banana vult s¡ esse pr¿mum omnium
r¡rum

110 Conversational Latin

top: at the top of one’s voice summ§ up in the air (in uncertainty) in medi«
v«ce relict·us |a |um; to be up in the air
(to be undecided) pende« pend¡re
topsy-turvy: everything was topsy- pepend¿
turvy omnia erant s»rsum deorsum
ups and downs: there are ups and
track down s.th. aliquid indag§re downs modo s¿c, modo s¿c

trick: is this a trick? num hoc est upset: don’t be upset n«l¿ (pl: n«l¿te)
capti«? perturb§r¿

tricks: to be up to some tricks upset: that upset me istuc m¡ ipsum
lasc¿v·us |a |um esse commov¡bat

trouble: I’m expecting some big upsetting: that was more upsetting to
trouble nesci« quod magnum malum me than to you illud mihi m§i«r¿
exspect« stomach« erat quam tibi

trouble: if it is no trouble s¿ grave n«n upside down: everything was upside
erit down omnia erant s»rsum deorsum

trouble: more trouble amplius neg«t¿ use: it’s no use ¿licet

trouble: to be in trouble lab«r§re use: what’s the use! quid opus est?

trouble: to make big trouble for s.o. utter: she never uttered a word
dare magnum malum alicui n»llum verbum ¡m¿sit

trouble: what’s the trouble? quid illuc vein: in a similar vein ad similem
mal¿ est? or quid est neg«t¿? sententiam

true: that’s true r¡s ita est or ita very well (in agreement) f¿at
profect« est
virtually propemodum
truth: to tell you the truth ut v¡rum
loquar or n¡ quid mentiar visit: to go to visit, pay a visit to v¿s·«
|ere |¿ |»rus
try one’s best to (not to) operam d«
dare ded¿ ut (n¡) (+ subj) wait a minute if you don’t mind man¡
dum nisi piget
turkey: to talk turkey with lat¿n¡
loqu·or |¿ loc»tus sum cum (+ abl) wait a minute, please man¡ dum,
quaes«
turn out fine bell¡ cad« |ere cecid¿
c§s»rus want: now what do you want? quid
nunc tibi v¿s?
turn up: something will turn up, I
hope f¿et aliquid, sp¡r« waste one’s breath operam per·d«
|dere |did¿
uh-uh (seeing s.o. unexpectedly) attat
waste: I’m wasting my time fr»str§
understand: do you understand now? tempus conter«
iam ten¡s?
watch out: hey you, watch out! heus
understand: I don’t quite understand t», cav¡!
n«n satis intelleg«
way: by the way obiter

Chapter XI: Useful Colloquial Expressions 111

way: he must always have his own while away the time fall·« |ere fefell¿
way semper faciendum est quod vult tempus

way: I’m in a bad way mihi male est who are you? quis t» hom« es?

way: if it’s not too much out of the who is he (she)? quis hom« est?
way for you s¿ tibi n«n s§n¡ d¡vium
erit who is it? it’s me quis hom« est? ego
sum
way: is that the way you help me?
ist«cine pact« m¡ adiuv§s? who says so? quis hoc d¿cit factum?

way: on one’s way inter vi§s whole: taken as a whole in summam

way: to be on the way to iter hab¡re ad why is it that … quid est quod (+ indic)
(+ acc)
why not? (challenging what has been
well done! factum optim¡! said) quid ita n«n?; (as an
expression of assent: of course)
well said! fac¡t¡ dictum! quippin¿? or quidn¿?

well imm« or em or qu¿n why say more? quid pl»ra?

well, well enim v¡r« why so? quid ita? or qu§propter?

what (is the trouble) now? quid iam? why so? because … quid ita? quia …

what about me? quid ego? why, this very day qu¿n hodi¡

what about the dough (money)? quid willy-nilly n«lens vol¡ns
d¡ argent«?
wise guy! impud¡ns!
what do you take me for? for a fool?
pr« qu« m¡ hab¡s? pr« stult«? wise guy: don’t be a wise guy n¡ s¿s
impud¡ns
what else can I do for you? quid est
quod tibi efficere possum amplius? wonder: and no wonder nec m¿rum

what for? quam ob rem?; qu§ caus§? wonder: I wonder what’s up m¿ror,
quid hoc sit neg«t¿
what is it? (what’s the probem?) quid
est neg«t¿? wonder: I wonder where he is ubi sit
c«git«
what is it? out with it! quid est? cedo!
word: I want a word with you pauc¿s
what next? quid deinde? t¡ vol« or vol« t¡ verb¿s paucul¿s

what’s it to me how you … quid istuc word: to give (break, keep) one’s
ad m¡ attinet, qu«modo t» (+ subj) word fidem dare (frangere, serv§re)

what’s that? (what did you say?) quid word: why should I take your word
est? for it? c»r tibi cr¡dam?

what’s that to you? quid ad t¡ attinet? words fail me mihi verba d¡sunt

what’s the reason why … quid est worry: don’t you worry! t» n«l¿
quod (+ indic) sollicit§r¿!

what’s up? quid re¿ est?

112 Conversational Latin

worse: to get worse ingrav¡sc·« |ere; to worthwhile: it is worthwhile operae
turn out for the worse in p¡i«rem pretium est
partem vertor vert¿ versus sum
wow! (in shocked surprise) papae!
worth: he’s worth a lot of money wrong: if I have done anything
d¿viti§s maxim§s habet
wrong, I’m sorry s¿ quid perperam
worth: he’s worth nothing nihil est f¡c¿, m¡ paenitet
worth: it isn’t worth it n«n est operae wrong: what’s wrong with you? quid
est tibi? or quid est t¡cum?
pretium it’s not worth all that tant¿ yes: I say yes you say no ego ai« t»
n«n est neg§s

Chapter XII: Clothing and Jewelry

CONVERSATIONS ___________________________________

LEVEL I Priscilla buys clothes.

Vesti§ria Salv¡. Qu«modo tibi ministr§re Saleslady: Hello. How can I help
Pr¿scilla possum? you?

Salv¡. Ego stolam emere vol«. Priscilla: Hello. I want to buy a
dress.

Vesti§ria Quem col«rem cupis? What color do you want?
Pr¿scilla Stolam caeruleam cupi«. I want a blue dress.

Vesti§ria Cupisne quicquam aliud? Do you want anything else?
Pr¿scilla Ita, p§r socc«rum cupi«. Yes, I want a pair of shoes.

Vesti§ria Cupisne emere sandalia? Do you want to buy sandals?
Pr¿scilla Minim¡. Socc«s alb«s cupi«. No. I want white shoes.

Vesti§ria Hab¡mus hodi¡ vest¡s s¡ric§s We have nice silk dresses today.
Pr¿scilla bell§s.
No, thank you. How much do
Benign¡. Quant¿ haec c«nstant? these (items) cost?

Vesti§ria Decem dollar¿s ex t«t«. Ten dollars in all.
Pr¿scilla Ecce tibi decem dollar«s. Here are your ten dollars.

LEVEL II Peter buys some winter clothes.

Vesti§rius Salv¡. Qu«modo tibi ministr§re Salesman: Hello. How can I help
Petrus possum? you?

Salv¡. Velim emere mihi aliquot Peter: Hello. I’d like to buy
vest¿menta h¿berna. myself some winter clothes.

Vesti§rius Em, hab¡mus paenul§s scorte§s Well, we have leather raincoats
Petrus ex Hisp§ni§. from Spain.

Bene. Cupi« paenulam. Fine. I want a raincoat. Do you
V¡ndit§sne digit§lia? sell gloves?

113

114 Conversational Latin

Vesti§rius Habe« digit§lia scortea et l§n§ta. I have leather and woolen gloves.
Petrus D§ mihi duo paria digit§lium Give me two pairs of woolen

l§n§t«rum. Ege« etiam pille« gloves. I also need a woolen
l§n§t«. cap.

Vesti§rius V¿sne emere t¿bi§lia l§n§ta? Do you want to buy (some)
woolen stockings?
Petrus S§n¡, ege« du«bus paribus.
Yes, I need two pairs.

Vesti§rius V¿sne quicquam aliud? Do you want anything else?

Petrus Cingulum scorteum, s¿ praest« est. A leather belt if it’s available.

Vesti§rius Cingula semper in h§c tabern§ Belts are always available in this
Petrus vesti§ri§ praest« sunt. Quot clothing store. How many belts
cingula cupis? do you want?

Ûnum, op¿nor, satis est. I suppose one is enough.

Vesti§rius Quamobrem eg¡s h¿s vest¿ment¿s Why do you need these winter
Petrus h¿bern¿s? clothes?

Quia ego iter fact»rus sum tr§ns Because I’m going to take a trip
Alp¡s in Germ§niam. across the Alps to Germany.

LEVEL III Two daughters get dressed for a party.

M§ter L¡da et Vanessa, v«sne par§tae Mother: Leda and Vanessa, are
L¡da estis ad conv¿vium quod Mar¿a you ready for the party that
M§ter agitat? Maria is throwing?

L¡da M§ter, ego habe« nihil pr«rsus Leda: Mother, I have absolutely
quod geram. nothing to wear.

N»g§s! Hab¡s v¡r« c¡n§t«ria Nonsense! In fact, you have very
bellissima. Hab¡s enim t§l§rem pretty party clothes. You have,
vestem roseam et t§l§rem you know, a pink dress, a violet
vestem viol§ceam et t§l§rem dress, and a blue dress.
vestem caeruleam.
That’s true. But I took all of them
Ita r¡s est. At ego e§s omn¡s to the laundry three days ago.
abhinc tr¡s di¡s ad full«nicam
attul¿.

Chapter XII: Clothing and Jewelry 115

M§ter Vanessa, t» utique sat superque Vanessa, you at least have more
vest¡s hab¡s. Quoad ego sci«, than enough clothes. As far as I
Vanessa t» hab¡s pulchr§s tunic§s know, you have beautiful long-
manic§t§s et tunic§s sine sleeved and sleeveless dresses.
M§ter manic¿s. D§ L¡dae »nam ex tu¿s Give Leda one of your dresses
L¡da tunic¿s.
M§ter Mother, Leda is always
L¡da M§ter, L¡da semper vest¡s me§s borrowing my clothes. Besides,
M§ter m»tu§tur. Praetere§, mea tunica my deep red dress and my
Vanessa coccinea et tunica viridis sunt green dress are old and worn
M§ter veter¡s et tr¿tae. out.

Vanessa L¡da! Leda!
M§ter Quid est? What is it?
L¡da
C»r§ ut abe§s curricul« ad See to it that you take off on the
full«nicam et pet§s vest¡s tu§s. double for the laundry and fetch
your clothes.
E¿ operam dab« extempl«, m§ter.
I’ll attend to that immediately,
mother.

Et t», Vanessa … And you, Vanessa …
Quid? What?

S¿ v¿s ¿re ex«rn§ta ad conv¿vium, If you want to go to the party all
tibi licet ger§s me§s inaur¡s et decked out, you may wear my
mon¿le gemm§tum. earrings and my necklace of
precious stones.
Gr§ti§s, m§ter.
Thank you, mother.

L¡da, tibi licet ger§s meam Leda, you may wear my bracelet
armillam et mon¿le bacc§tum. and my pearl necklace.

Papae! Qu§le conv¿vium id erit! Great! What a party that will be!

116 Conversational Latin

TOPICAL VOCABULARY______________________________

ankle-length t§l§r·is |is |e clothing store tabern·a |ae f vesti§ria

apron sublig·ar |§ris n clothing vest·is |is f, vest¿t·us |»s m,
vest¿ment·um |¿ n
belt cingul·um |¿ n; z«n·a |ae f (wide
belt, usu. of cloth, used by men and coat paenul·a |ae f, amicul·um |¿ n
women with a tunic; often used as
money belt) collar coll§r·e |is n

blouse p¡l»si·a |ae f deep red coccine·us |a |um

boot p¡r·« |«nis m (of rawhide, dinner clothes c¡n§t«ri·a |«rum npl,
reaching up to the calf, worn by synthes·is |is f
peasants, shepherds, soldiers);
calig·a |ae f (worn by soldiers of dress s vest·is |is f muliebris; (ankle-
lower rank) length) vestis t§l§ris; (Roman) stol·a
|ae f
bra strophi·um |¿ n, mamill§r·e |is n
dress tr indu« induere indu¿ ind»tus,
bracelet armill·a |ae f (worn on the vest·i« |¿re |¿v¿ or |i¿ |¿tus; amic·i«
upper arm) |¿re amicu¿ or amix¿ amictus; to
dress oneself, get dressed s¡
brocade s¡ric·um |¿ n aur« (or argent«) induere, s¡ vest¿re, s¡ amic¿re; to
intextum (or intertextum) dress up s¡ ex«rn§re

bundle up (against the cold) s¡ bene dress shoes socc·¿ |«rum mpl, soccul·¿
oper·i« |¿re |u¿ |«rum mpl (for women, of different
colors and often decorated with
button s globul·us |¿ m gems)

button tr globul¿s string·« |ere str¿nx¿ earrings inaur·¡s |ium fpl
strictus
embroidered (with colors) pict·us |a
cap pille·us |¿ m |um

cape lacern·a |ae f emerald smaragd·us |¿ m

chain catell·a |ae f evening wear c¡n§t«ri·a |«rum npl

change m»t§re fabric (pattern of weaving) text·us |»s
m (coarse crassus; sheer, thin
charm amul¡t·um |¿ n tenuis; thick pinguis)

clasp f¿bul·a |ae f fashion cult»s mod·us |¿ m

cloak palli·um |¿ n (Greek item) fringe fimbri·a |ae f

clogs sole·ae |§rum fpl ligneae fur coat amicul·um |¿ n pellicium

cloth (as a fabric) text·um |¿ n; (a piece fur jacket iacc·a |ae f pellicia
of cloth) pann·us |¿ m
garter periscelis, periscelidis f
clothe vest·i« |¿re |¿v¿ or |i¿ ¿tus
girdle stropp·¿ |«rum mpl
clothes vest¿ment·a |«rum npl; habit·us
|»s m (outfit of a particular class or gloves digit§l·ia |ium npl
occasion)
gown t§l§ris vest·is |is f; (Roman) stol·a
clothier (sales person in a clothing |ae f
store) vesti§ri·us |¿ m, vesti§ri·a |ae f

Chapter XII: Clothing and Jewelry 117

green virid·is |is |e pallium (Greek “toga,” made of wool)
handbag (of leather) p¡rul·a |ae f palli·um |¿ n; wearing a pallium
palli§t·us |a |um
cori§cea
hat petas·us |¿ m (with broad brim) pants br§c·ae |§rum fpl
hem limb·us |¿ m pattern (of weaving) text·us |»s m
housecoat vest·is |is f m§t»t¿na pearl earrings margar¿tae |§rum fpl
jacket iacc·a |ae f; (of leather) iacc·a
d¡pendent¡s
|ae f scortea; fur jacket iacca pearl necklace mon¿l·e |is n bacc§tum
pellicea pink rose·us |a |um
jeans br§c·ae |§rum fpl Genu¡ns¡s pleated undul§t·us |a |um
jewel gemm·a |ae f pocket locul·us |¿ m
laundry full«nic·a |ae f; (dirty clothes) print vest·is |is f im§ginibus impressa
lavand§ri·a |«rum npl purse p¡rul·a |ae f
leather adj ex cori«; (for put on indu« induere indu¿ ind»tus
weatherproofing) scorte·us |a |um raincoat scorte·a |ae f; (hooded)
leather s cori·um |¿ n
leather raincoat scorte·a paenul·a |ae f paenul·a |ae f; (open mantle,
(waterproof) fastened at shoulder) lacern·a |ae f
linen adj l¿ne·us |a |um ribbon taeni·a |ae f
linen s linteum |¿ n, l¿n·um |¿ n ring §nul·us |¿ m
linen cloth saban·um |¿ n robe vest·is |is f
locket (worn by boys, of leather, silver safety pin f¿bul·a |ae f
or gold) bull·a |ae f; wearing a saleslady (in a clothing store) vesti§ri·a
locket bull§t·us |a |um |ae f
long-sleeved manic§t·us |a |um sandal (w. covered toes) sandali·um |¿
miniskirt castul·a |ae f brevissima n; (simplest form of sandal, with the
money belt ventr§l·e |is n, (of cloth) sole fastened to feet with thongs)
z«n·a |ae f sole·a |ae f; (with thick leather sole,
necklace torqu·¡s |is m, mon¿l·e |is n; tied with straps, characteristically
(of precious stones) mon¿le worn by Greeks) crepid·a |ae f
gemm§tum sash z«n·a |ae f
necktie foc§l·e |is n scarf amict«ri·um |¿ n
nightgown cam¿si·a |ae f nocturna sheer (fabrics) rall·us |a |um
outfit habit·us |»s m, synthes·is |is f shirt ind»si·um |¿ n
overcoat superind»ment·um |¿ n shoe (worn with toga) calce·us |¿ m;
pajamas synthes·is |is f dorm¿t«ria (oxfords) calce¿ subt§l§r¡s; (fancy
palla (female “toga,” worn over the low shoe, of different colors, gold,
stola) pall·a |ae f yellow, decorated with pearls, etc.)
socc·us |¿ m, soccul·us |¿ m; (red
shoes of senator) calceus mulleus m
shoelace corrigi·a |ae f

118 Conversational Latin

shorts sublig§cul·um |¿ n; (street wear) take off (clothes) exu« exuere exu¿
brevi«r¡s br§c·ae |§rum fpl ex»tus; (clothes, shoes, ring) d¡trah«
d¡trahere d¡tr§x¿ d¡tractus
ski boot calig·a |ae f nart§t«ria
ski jacket iacc·a |ae f nart§t«ria toga tog·a |ae f; (bright-white toga,
silk adj s¡ric·us |a |um; silk clothes worn by candidates) toga candida;
(worn by men and boys after the age
s¡ric·a |«rum npl of about fifteen) toga vir¿lis or p»ra;
silk s s¡ric·um |¿ n (toga with purple border, worn by
skirt castul·a |ae f curule magistrates, by boys up to the
skirt ind»cul·a |ae f; gunn·a |ae f age of manhood, and by girls until
sleeve manic·a |ae f marriage) toga praetexta; (toga
sleeveless sine manic¿s embroidered with silver stars) toga
slip hypoz«ni·um |¿ n picta; (toga of smooth cloth) toga
slipper sole·a |ae f, socc·us |¿ m; (of r§sa

felt) »d·« |«nis m topcoat superind»ment·um |¿ n
sneakers calce·¿ |«rum mpl gymnic¿ trousers br§c·ae |§rum fpl
sole (of shoe or foot) sol·um |¿ n try on (clothes) induend« prob§re
stocking t¿bi§l·e |is n; (of felt and undershirt (worn by both sexes)

covering part of the legs) imp¿li·um sub»cul·a |ae f
|¿ n undress exu« exuere exu¿ ex»tus; to get
strap (for shoe or sandal, sometimes
decorated with gems) obstr§gul·um undressed s¡ exuere
|¿ n uniform habit·us |»s m; in uniform
street clothes for¡ns·ia |ium npl
style modus |¿ m; to go out of style sub«rn§t·us |a |um
ex(s)ol¡sc·« |ere ex(s)olu¿ veil v¡l·um |¿ n
ex(s)ol¡tus wear ger·« |ere gess¿ gestus, gest·« |§re
suit synthes·is |is f
sweater th«r·§x |§cis m l§nius |§v¿ |§tus; wearing a belt z«n§
swimsuit vest·is |is f balne§ris inc¿nctus
swim trunks sublig·ar |§ris n balne§re women’s winter shoes calce§tus |»s m
f¡min§rum h¿bernus
wool l§n·a |ae f
woolen l§n§t·us |a |um, l§ni·us |a |um
wrap amict·us |»s m
wrist watch h«rologi·um |¿ bracchi§le
zipper claus»r·a |ae f tractilis

Chapter XIII: House and Furniture

CONVERSATIONS ___________________________________

LEVEL I Cynthia tries to persuade her friend Gloria to
come to her house to play.

Cynthia Gl«ria, potesne ven¿re domum Cynthia: Gloria, can you come to
Gl«ria meam? my house?
Cynthia
Gl«ria Quid poterimus facere ibi? Gloria: What can we do there?

Cynthia Poterimus libr«s legere in We can read books in my
Gl«ria cubicul« me«. bedroom.

Cynthia Benign¡. Ego mult«s libr«s dom¿ No, thank you. I have many books
habe«. at home.
Gl«ria
Fortasse poterimus coquere Maybe we can bake cookies in
cr»stula in cul¿n§ nostr§. our kitchen.

Benign¡. Ego saepe coqu« No, thank you. I often bake
cr»stula in cul¿n§ me§. cookies in my kitchen.

Rec¡ns ego compar§v¿ novum Recently I got a new puppy. Do
catulum. V¿sne l»dere cum me« you want to play with my new
nov« catul« in peristyli« nostr«? puppy in our courtyard?

O, ego pr«rsus ad«r« catul«s! Oh, I absolutely adore puppies!
E§mus ill»c curricul«! Let’s go there on the double!

LEVEL II A potential buyer wants to purchase a home
through a real estate agent.

Êmptor M«nstr§ mihi, quaes«, partem Buyer: Please, show me the
interi«rem huius dom»s. interior of this home.

Praedi§tor Libenter. Est v¡r« domus ¡leg§ns. Real Estate Dealer: Gladly. It is
Sunt pict»rae in qu«que pariete. really an elegant home. There
are pictures on every wall.

Êmptor Quot cubicula sunt in h§c dom«? How many bedrooms are there in
Praedi§tor Omn¿n« quattuor cubicula. this house?

Four bedrooms in all.

119

120 Conversational Latin

Êmptor Quid est in qu«que cubicul«? What is in each bedroom?
Praedi§tor B¿n¿ l¡ct¿ et b¿nae cathedrae et Each bedroom has two beds and

vesti§rium. two chairs and a clothes closet.

Êmptor Estne tabl¿num huic domu¿? Does this house have a study?
Praedi§tor Etiam. Est profect« magna m¡nsa Yes. There is, in fact, a large oak

scr¿pt«ria r«borea ibi; atque desk there; and there are
sunt pl»te¿ circ§ pariet¡s omn¡s. bookshelves around all the
walls.

Êmptor Habetne domus amplam cul¿nam? Does the house have a spacious
Praedi§tor Ita; est magnus cam¿nus in cul¿n§ kitchen?

atque f»s«rium. Yes; there is a big stove in the
kitchen as well as a sink.

Êmptor Ubi est tr¿cl¿nium? Where is the dining room?
Praedi§tor Tr¿cl¿nium situm est inter cul¿nam
The dining room is located
et balneum. Prope balneum est between the kitchen and the
l§tr¿na. In balne« est solium bathroom. Near the bathroom is
magnum. a toilet. There is a large
bathtub in the bathroom.

Êmptor Quant¿ c«nstat haec domus? How much does this house cost?
Praedi§tor C«nstat centum m¿libus It costs $100,000.

dollar«rum.

Êmptor Fortasse potes mihi m«nstr§re Perhaps you can show me some
domum min«rem? smaller home?

Praedi§tor Possum, sed n«n in h§c regi«ne I can, but not in this section of the
urbis. city.

LEVEL III Sabina tries to impress her friend Silvia with the
big home her parents own.

Silvia Sab¿na, habit§sne in aedibus an in Silvia: Sabina, do you live in a
Sab¿na ¿nsul§? house or in an apartment
building?

In aedibus habit«. Magnam v¡r« Sabina: I live in a house. In fact,
domum habe«. I have a large home.

Chapter XIII: House and Furniture 121

Silvia Itane? Quot concl§via domus Is that so? How many rooms does
Sab¿na habet? your home have?

Silvia ×trium, tabl¿num, tr¿cl¿nium, An atrium, study, dining room,
Sab¿na cul¿nam, balneum, sex cubicula, kitchen, bathroom, six
perist£lium cum bell« hort«. bedrooms, and a courtyard with
Silvia a nice garden.
Sab¿na
Suntne cubicula omnia in Are all the bedrooms on the
Silvia pedepl§n¿s? ground floor?
Sab¿na
Silvia Quattuor cubicula in pedepl§n¿s There are four bedrooms on the
Sab¿na sunt; c¡tera in tabul§t« secund« ground floor; the rest are on
Silvia sunt. Serv¿ et ancillae in the second floor. The servants
Sab¿na tabul§t« secund« dormiunt. and maids sleep on the second
floor.
Silvia
S¿quidem mar¿tus tuus c«nsul est, Since your husband is a consul,
conveniuntne mult¿ client¡s do many clients gather at your
dom¿ tuae ad officium? home for the courtesy call?

Ita, nam s¿c est m«s. Bene m§ne Yes, for that is the custom. Early
client¡s frequentant n«n s«lum in the morning the clients pack
v¡stibulum sed etiam §trium. not only the vestibule but also
Deinde client¡s mar¿tum meum the atrium. Then they
in forum d¡d»cunt. accompany my husband to the
forum.

Man¡sne in §tri« inter officium? Do you stay in the atrium during
Minim¡ v¡r«, e« tempore ego the courtesy call?

satag« in cul¿n§ aut in Not at all. At that time I am busy
perist£li«. in the kitchen or in the
courtyard.

Quid facis in perist£li«? What do you do in the courtyard?
Ego c»r« ros§s et ali§s plant§s in
I look after the roses and the
hort«. other plants in the garden.

Quid facis in cul¿n§? What do you do in the kitchen?
C¡nam coqu«, quia mar¿tus meus
I cook dinner, since my husband
saepe vocat client¡s ad c¡nam. often invites clients to dinner. I
Ego ipsa cibum adp«n« in myself serve the food in the
tr¿cl¿ni«. dining room.

Sit d¿s gratia, ego in v¿llul§ r»r¿ Thank heaven I live in a little
habit«! V¿ta est tam simplex farmhouse in the country! Life
ibi! is so simple there!

122 Conversational Latin

TOPICAL VOCABULARY______________________________

See also the General Vocabulary for additional items.

air conditioner ¿nstr»ment·um |¿ n §ër¿ bench scabell·um |¿ n
temperand«
blanket l«d·¿x |¿cis f
alarm suscit§bul·um |¿ n; the alarm
went off suscit§bulum sonuit; to set blinds see Venetian blinds
the alarm for (seven o’clock)
obicem ¿nf¿g·« |ere ¿nf¿x¿ ¿nf¿xus ad bolt (on door) pessul·us |¿ m; to bolt
(septimam h«ram) the door «stium obser§re

alarm clock h«rologi·um |¿ n bookcase biblioth¡c·a |ae f pariet¿
suscit§t«rium ¿nserta

apartment diaet·a |ae f; furnished bookshelf plute·us |¿ m
apartment diaeta omn¿ supellectile
¿nstructa bowl cat¿n·us |¿ m

apartment building ¿nsul·a |ae f broom sc«p·ae |§rum fpl

armchair sell·a |ae f bracchi§ta bucket situl·a |ae f

atrium §tri·um |¿ n carpet tap¡t·um |¿ n

attic subt¡gul§ne·um |¿ n casette cas¡t·a |ae f; (for video) cas¡ta
magn¡toscopica
back door post¿c·um |¿ n
casette recorder cas¡toph«n·um |¿ n
balcony maeni§n·um |¿ n
ceiling t¡ct·um |¿ n; (arched or vaulted)
banister adminicul·um |¿ n camer·a |ae f; (paneled) lac»n·ar
|§ris n
barrel doli·um |¿ n, cup·a |ae f;
(wooden barrel) ligneum v§s, v§sis n cellar cell§ri·um |¿ n (subterraneum)

basement hypog¡·um |¿ n, cell§ri·um |¿ central heating calefacti·« |«nis f
n subterr§neum centr§lis

bathroom balne·um |¿ n chair (normally without back or arm-
rests) sell·a |ae f; (w. rounded back)
bath towel gausapin·a |ae f arciselli·um |¿ n; back of the chair
arc·us |»s m sellae
bathtub soli·um |¿ n, l§br·um |¿ n
chandelier lampadum corymb·us |¿ m
bay window pr«iect»r·a |ae f
chimney f»m§ri·um |¿ n
bed lect·us |¿ m; (small) lectul·us |¿ m;
to go to bed cubitum ¿re; to make China fictilia Sin¡nsium v§s·a |«rum
the bed lectum stern·« |ere str§v¿ npl
str§tus
clock h«rologi·um |¿ n; the clock keeps
bed covers str§gul·a |«rum npl good time h«rologium r¡ct¡ metitur;
to look at the clock h«rologium
bedding str§gul·a |«rum npl ¿nspic·i« |ere ¿nspex¿; to set the
clock h«rologium temper§re; to
bed frame spond·a |ae f wind the clock h«rologium inten·d«
|dere |d¿ int¡nsus
bedroom dorm¿t«rium cubicul·um |¿ n
closet arm§ri·um |¿ n pariet¿ ¿nsertum
bedspread opert«ri·um |¿ n, peristr«m·a
|atis n

Chapter XIII: House and Furniture 123

clothes closet vesti§ri·um |¿ n pariet¿ electrical outlet capsul·a |ae f cont§ct»s
¿nsertum ¡lectric¿

clothes hook unc·us |¿ m vesti§rius electric fan m§chin·a |ae f ventigena
electric shaver r§s«ri·um |¿ n
clothes rack, coat rack sustent§cul·lum
|¿ n v¡stium ¡lectricum
faucet epitoni·um |¿ n; to turn on (off)
couch tor·us |¿ m t«ment« fartus
the faucet epitonium vers§re
courtyard peristyli·um |¿ n (revers§re)
fireplace foc·us |¿ m
cup p«cul·um |¿ n, p«cill·um |¿ n floor (paved) pav¿ment·um |¿ n, sol·um
|¿ n; ground floor pedepl§n·a |«rum
curtains aulae·a |«rum npl, cort¿n·ae npl; marble floor pav¿mentum (or
|§rum fpl solum) marm«reum; mosaic floor
pav¿mentum (or solum) tessel§tum;
desk m¡ns·a |ae f scr¿pt«ria wooden floor tabul§t·um |¿ n
fluorescent light tubul·us |¿ m l»cifluus
dining couch lect·us |¿ m food processor m§chin·a |ae f
coqu¿n§ria
dining room tr¿cl¿ni·um |¿ n; (informal) freezer caps·a |ae f fr¿gorifica
c¡n§ti·« |«nis f front door ant¿c·um |¿ n
front hall v¡stibul·um |¿ n, fauc·¡s |ium
dish catill·us |¿ m; (open and flat) fpl
patin·a |ae f; (large) l§n·x |cis f; furnish a home domum supellectile
dishes (including pots and pans) ¿nstru·« |ere ¿nstrux¿ ¿nstructus
v§s·a |«rum npl furnish an apartment diaetam
supellectile ¿nstruere
dishwasher m§chin·a |ae f ¡l»t«ria furniture suppell·ex |ectilis f; piece of
furniture supellectilis par·s |tis f
door i§nu·a |ae f, «sti·um |¿ n; folding garden hort·us |¿ m; vegetable garden
doors valv·ae |§rum fpl hortus (h)olit«rius
ground floor pedepl§n·a |«rum npl
doorknob i§nuae man»bri·um |¿ n guest room hospiti·um |¿ n
hall (large room) oec·us |¿ m
doorstep l¿m·en |inis n hallway andr·«n |«nis m
home dom·us |»s f
doorway «sti·um |¿ n home appliance ¿nstr»ment·um |¿ n
domesticum ¡lectricum; home
double home dom·us |»s f du§rum appliances ¡lectrica dom»s
famili§rum »t¡nsil·ia |ium npl
hopper l§bell·um |¿ n intimum, sell·a
downstairs: he is downstairs in ¿m« |ae f famili§rica
tabul§t« est; to go downstairs sc§l§s
d¡scend·« |ere |¿

drawer locul·us |¿ m

dressing table m¡ns·a |ae f c«m§t«ria

dryer (for hair; for clothes)
¿nstr»ment·um |¿ n sicc§t«rium
(capill«rum; vestium)

easy chair arciselli·um |¿ n t«ment«
fartum

electrical appliance ¡lectricum
¿nstr»ment·um |¿ n [¿nstr»mentum
can be used for a single appliance or
collectively for all the appliances]

124 Conversational Latin

house dom·us |»s f, aed·¡s |ium fpl radiator cal«ris radi§·trum |tr¿ n
radio radioph«n·um |¿ n; to turn on
kitchen cul¿n·a |ae f
(turn off) the radio radioph«num
kitchen knife cult·er |r¿ m coqu¿n§ris excit§re or accend·« |ere |¿ (exped·i«
|¿re |i¿ |¿tus); to turn down (turn
kitchen utensils ¿nstr»ment·a |«rum npl up) the radio vim radioph«n¿
coquin§t«ria remitt·« |ere rem¿s¿ (amplific§re)
radio broadcast ¡missi·« |«nis f
ladle tr»ll·a |ae f radioph«nica
rain basin (in the atrium) impluvi·um
lamp lucern·a |ae f |¿ n
reading lamp lampas, lampadis f
landing (on stairs) sc§l§ri·um |¿ n l¡ct«ria
receiver (of telephone) auscult§bul·um
laundry l§v§t«ri·um |¿ n |¿ n
record player discoph«n·um |¿ n
light l»m·en |inis (¡lectricum) n; to refrigerator fr¿gid§r·ium |¿ n
turn on (off) the light l»men roof tile t¡gul·a |ae f
accend·« |ere |¿ acc¡nsus roof t¡ct·um |¿ n
(exped·i« |¿re |¿v¿ or |i¿ |¿tus) room cubicul·um |¿ n, concl§v·e |is n;
(small room) cell·a |ae f
light bulb globul·us |i m ¡lectricus room with bath (shower) cubicul·um |¿
n balne« (balne« pluvi«) ¿nstructum
linen closet arm§ri·um |¿ n linte§rium row home aed·¡s |ium fpl seri§l¡s
(pariet¿ ¿nsertum) rug tap¡t·e |is n
salt shaker sal¿n·um |¿ n
living room sess«ri·um |¿ n, synoeci·um saucer pater·a |ae f
|¿ n section (of a city) regi·« |«nis f
sew su·« |ere |¿ s»tus
mattress culcit·a |ae f; air mattress sewing machine m§chin·a |ae f s»t«ria
culcita ¿nfl§tilis sheet str§gul·um |¿ n linteum
shower balneol·um |¿ n pluvium; to
microwave oven furn·us |¿ m und§rum take a shower balneol« pluvi« »tor
brevium »t¿ »sus sum
shower curtain aulae·um |¿ n balneol¿
night table m¡nsul·a |ae f cubicul§ris pluvi¿
shower door for·¡s |um fpl balneol¿
oven furn·us |¿ m pluvi¿
shrine sacr§ri·um |¿ n
pantry cell·a |ae f p¡n§ria shutter foricul·a |ae f

peristyle peristyli·um |¿ n

pillow cerv¿c·al |§lis n

pillow case cerv¿c§lis tegim·en |inis n

pipe fistul·a |ae f aqu§ria

pitcher urce·us |¿ m

plate patin·a |ae f

plug spin·a |ae f cont§ct»s ¡lectric¿

plug in adnect·« |ere adnexu¿ adnexus

porch pergul·a |ae f

portico portic·us |»s f

pot (ceramic) oll·a |ae f; (of metal)
a(h)¡n·um |¿ n; pots and pans v§s·a
|«rum npl coqu¿n§ria

Chapter XIII: House and Furniture 125

silverware argente·a |«rum npl esc§ria towel gausapin·a |ae f; bath towel
gausapina balne§ria; hand towel
sink (in a bathroom) l§bell·um |¿ n; (in manutergi·um |¿ n
a kitchen) fus«ri·um |¿ n
tray fercul·um |¿ n
sitting room exedr·a |ae f, sess«ri·um TV room concl§v·e |is n telev¿s«ri«
|¿ n
¿nstructum
skylight compluvi·um |¿ n upstairs: the upstairs dom·us |»s f

sofa tor·us |¿ m t«ment« fartus superior; to go upstairs sc§l§s
ascend·« |ere |¿
stairs sc§l·ae |§rum fpl upstairs bedroom cubicul·um |¿ n
superius
steps grad·»s |uum mpl vacuum cleaner pulveris haur¿t«ri·um
|¿ n
stereo stereoph«n·um |¿ n VCR videoexcept«ri·um |¿ n
vegetable garden hort·us |¿ m holit«rius
stool scabell·um |¿ n; (for sitting or Venetian blinds tr§nsenn·a |ae f
mounting) scamn·um |¿ n vol»bilis; to close (open, let down,
raise) the blinds tr§nsennam
storeroom cell·a |ae f clau·d·« |dere |s¿ |sus (aper·i« |¿re
|u¿, d¡mitt·« |ere d¡m¿s¿ d¡missus,
story tabul§t·um |¿ n subvolv·« |ere |¿)

stove focul·us |¿ m; electric (gas) stove [NOTE 1. The most common Latin word
foculus ¡lectricus (gaseus) for “room” is cubiculum, or, for a
smaller room, cella. Cubiculum
study (room) studiol·um |¿ n; (in a very frequently means “bedroom.”
Roman home) tabl¿n·um |¿ n To avoid ambiguity where the
context did not make it clear, the
sugar bowl v§scul·um |¿ n sacchar¿ Romans used dorm¿t«rium
cubiculum or simply dorm¿t«rium
suite (of rooms) diaet·a |ae f to designate a “bedroom.”

table m¡ns·a |ae f; to set the table NOTE 2. I§nua and «stium both mean
m¡nsam p«n·« |ere posu¿ positus “door” and are often used
interchangeably, but «stium also
tablecloth mant¡l·e |is n means “doorway.” A i§nua often
had two panels, called for¡s or
tableware ¿nstr»ment·a |«rum npl valvae.
esc§ria
NOTE 3. The common Latin word for
tape recorder magn¡toph«n·um |¿ n, “house” is aed·¡s |ium fpl; domus is
cas¡toph«n·um |¿ n normally used to designate an
upscale home. The declension of
telephone t¡leph«n·um |¿ n (see
Chapter IV on Daily Activities)

television (set) t¡lev¿s«ri·um |¿ n (see
Chapter V on Sports and Other
Leisure Activities)

television screen quadr·um |¿ n
t¡lev¿sificum

toaster tostr·um |¿ n

toilet l§tr¿n·a |ae f; (public) foric·a |ae f

toilet bowl l§bell·um |¿ n intimum,
lasan·um |¿ n

126 Conversational Latin

domus is partly of the fourth and Prepositions are used with domum
partly of the second declension. In when modified by an adjective, e.g.,
the following paradigm, the more domum meam or in domum meam.
common form is given first: The preposition apud (w. acc of the
pronoun) is often used in place of the
SINGULAR PLURAL locative, e.g., apud m¡ at my home,
apud eum at his house; ad m¡ “to
NOM domus dom»s my house” is used at times in place
GEN dom»s dom«rum of domum as the accusative. The
(domuum) locative dom¿ “at home” takes the
DAT dom« domibus possessive pronominal adjective in
(domu¿) the genitive, e.g., dom¿ suae “at his
own home,” meae dom¿ “at my
ACC domum dom«s (dom»s) home.”]
ABL dom« domibus
LOC dom¿

Chapter XIV: Buying and Selling

CONVERSATIONS ___________________________________

LEVEL I Lydia explains to Diane why she bought new
clothes.

Di§na L£dia, ub¿ terr§rum illam stolam Diane: Lydia, where on earth did
L£dia bellam ¡mist¿? you buy that pretty dress?

Di§na In tabern§ vesti§ri§ in Vi§ L§t§. Lydia: In the clothing store on
L£dia Broad Street.

Di§na Quant¿ c«nst§bat? How much did it cost?
L£dia Perc§ra erat. Tr¿gint§ dollar¿s It was very expensive. It cost

Di§na c«nst§bat. thirty dollars.
L£dia
Et hab¡s nov«s socc«s. And you have new dress shoes.
Di§na Ita. Etiam inaur¡s et mon¿le Yes. Also earrings and a gold

L£dia aureum. necklace.

Di§na D¿c mihi, c»r haec vest¿menta Tell me, why did you buy these
nova ¡mist¿? new clothes?

Quia meus am§ns novus m¡ ad Because my new boyfriend invited
salt§ti«nem schol§rem inv¿t§vit. me to the school dance.

Ego quoque salt§ti«n¿ interer«. I, too, will attend the dance. And
Itaque d¡s¿der§b« novam so I’ll need a new dress.
stolam.
I’ll see you at the dance, I hope.
Vid¡b« t¡ apud salt§ti«nem, ut Bye!
sp¡r«. Bene val¡!

Bene val¡! Abe« curricul« ad Bye! I’m taking off on the double
Viam L§tam. for Broad Street.

127

128 Conversational Latin

Aulus LEVEL II Sulpicia explains why she is going shopping.
Sulpicia
Qu« hinc ab¿s, Sulpicia? Aulus: Where are you off to,
Aulus Ad macellum in Sub»ram. Sulpicia?
Sulpicia
Aulus Sulpicia: To the market in the
Sulpicia Subura.

Aulus Obs«n§t»ra es iterum? You’re going shopping again?
Sulpicia Quidn¿? Placet mihi obs«n§re. Why not? I like to shop.

Aulus Quid cupis emere? What do you want to buy?
Sulpicia Multa, s¿ ann«na in macell« n«n Many things, if the price of food

Aulus nimia est. at the market is not too high.
Sulpicia
Et s¿ ann«na n«n c§ra est? And if the price of food is not
Aulus Obs«n§b« p«ma, holera, c§seum, high?
Sulpicia
b»bulam, cupp¡dia. I’ll shop for fruit, vegetables,
cheese, beef, and pastries.

C»r, malum, tot merc¡s Why the devil are you going to
obs«n§bis? buy so many items?

Quia cr§s est n§t§lis di¡s amantis Because tomorrow is my
me¿. Agit§b« conv¿vium pr« e«. boyfriend’s birthday. I’m going
to throw him a party.

Em¡sne etiam novam stolam ad Will you also buy a new gown for
conv¿vium? the party?

Cert¡. Sed n«n in macell«. Certainly. But not in the market.
Taberna vesti§ria autem n«n The clothing store, however, is
procul illinc est. not far from there.

Qu¿n, ego quoque novam togam Well, I, too, am going to buy a
emam, s¿ t» m¡ inv¿t§bis. new toga, if you invite me.

Inv¿t§b«, profect«, t¡. Val¡ in Of course I’ll invite you. So long
cr§stinum. till tomorrow.

LEVEL III A storekeeper makes a sale.

Tabern§rius Qu«modo possum t¡ iuv§re? Storekeeper: How can I help you?
Êmptor Numquam ante§ fu¿ in Sub»ra. Customer: I’ve never been in the

Sub»ra vid¡tur esse pl¡na Subura before. The Subura
praestantium tabern§rum. seems to be full of fine shops.

Chapter XIV: Buying and Selling 129

Tabern§rius Ut vid¡s, sunt quidem multae As you see, there indeed are many
Êmptor tabernae in h«c loc«: taberna stores around here: a clothing
vesti§ria, taberna chart§ria, store, a stationery store, a
taberna libr§ria, medic§- bookstore, a drugstore. What do
ment§ria. Quid v¿s ¿nspicere? you wish to look at?

Estne quoque taberna ferr§ria? Is there also a hardware store?
Et taberna v¿n§ria? And a wine shop?

Tabern§rius S§n¡; etiam lani¡na et cupp¡d« Yes. Also a butcher shop and a
et p¿str¿na. Quidquid cupis, id pastry shop and a bakery. You
in h«c loc« emere potes. can buy whatever you wish
around here.
Êmptor Suntne merc¡s in h¿s tabern¿s
c§rae? Is the merchandise expensive in
these shops?

Tabern§rius Ut alib¿, aliae merc¡s sunt As elsewhere, some items are
Êmptor c§rae, aliae sunt v¿l¡s. In h§c expensive, others are cheap. In
tabern§ ego v¡ndit« statu§s this shop I sell statues from
extr¿nsec§s. abroad.

Quant¿ c«nstat haec im§g« How much does this bust of Venus
Veneris? cost?

Tabern§rius Est c§rissima. Ut vid¡re potes, It’s very expensive. As you can
Êmptor »sque ¡ Graeci§ v¡nit. see, it came all the way from
Quadr§gint§ d¡n§ri¿s c«nstat. Greece. It costs forty denarii.

N«n possum d¡numer§re tibi I cannot pay you the money in
argentum praesent§rium. cash.

Tabern§rius N«l¿ sollicit§r¿. Bon§ fid¡ es. Don’t worry. Your credit is good.
Êmptor Potes dare mihi hodi¡ v¿gint¿ You can give me twenty denarii
d¡n§ri«s arrab«n¿. today as a down payment.

Bene. Ceter«s numm«s ad diem Fine. I’ll pay you the rest of the
dictam solvam. money on time.

Tabern§rius Quot d¡n§ri«s potes mihi How may denarii can you pay me
Êmptor solvere hodi¡? today?

Ego v¿gint¿ s«lum d¡n§ri«s I have only twenty denarii with
m¡cum habe«. me.

Tabern§rius Id mihi placet. Qu«modo solv¡s That’s fine with me. How will you
Êmptor quod reliquum est? pay the rest?

S¿ lic¡bit, du§bus p¡nsi«nibus If I may, I’ll pay it off in two
persolvam. installments.

130 Conversational Latin

Tabern§rius Prob¡! Mihi cr¡de, bene emis Fine! Believe me, you are buying
Êmptor hanc im§ginem. Ecquid this statue at a bargain. Do you
placet? like it?

Imm« edepol v¡r« perplacet. Heavens, yes. I really like it a lot.

Tabern§rius Gr§ti§s! Et nunc, s¿s, potes Thanks. And now, if you wish, you
Êmptor v¿sere alter§s tabern§s in can go to see the other shops in
Sub»r§. the Subura.

V¿sam profect«. Val¡! I will indeed. Goodbye!

TOPICAL VOCABULARY______________________________

advertise pr«scr¿b·« |ere pr«scr¿ps¿ (parv¿, gr§t¿s, pl»ris, min«ris)
pr«scr¿ptus c«nst§re

ask the price of an item mercis pretium cost s imp¡ns·a |ae f
inqu¿r·« |ere inqu¿s¿v¿ inqu¿s¿tus
credit (com) fid·¡s |e¿ f; to buy on
bargain preti·um |¿ n speci§le credit fid¡ su§ emere; pec»ni§ haud
praesent§ri§ emere; to have good
be sold, be up for sale v¡n·e« |¿re |i¿ credit bon§ fid¡ esse

bookstore libr§ri·a |ae f customer ¡mpt·or |«ris m, ¡mptr·¿x
|¿cis f
business district empori·um |¿ n
deal mercim«ni·um |¿ n
butcher lani·us |¿ m
dealer merc·§ns |antis mf, merc§t·or
butcher shop lani¡na |ae f |«ris m, merc§tr·¿x |¿cis f

buy par§re; em·« |ere ¡m¿ ¡mptus debt aes, aeris n ali¡num; this has put
(from s.o. d¡ aliqu«); to buy at a me in debt hoc mihi aes ali¡num
bargain bene emere attulit

buyer ¡mpt·or |«ris m, ¡mptr·¿x |¿cis f denarius d¡n§ri·us |¿ m (worth about
one dollar)
cash argent·um |¿ n present§rium; to
pay $10 in cash for d¡numer§re discount remissi·« |«nis f; five- (ten-
decem dollar«s praesent§ri«s pr« (+ twenty-) percent discount quin§rum
abl) (d¡n§rum, vic¡sim§rum)
cent¡sim§rum remissi«
cent cent¡sim·a |ae f
dollar dollar·us |¿ m
cheap v¿l·is |is |e
down payment arrab·« |«nis f; to make
cheaply parv« or v¿l¿ preti«; more a down payment of $20 (or to pay
cheaply min«ris preti¿ $20 down) v¿gint¿ dollar«s arrab«n¿
dare
check syngraph·a |ae f; to write a
check for syngrapham (+ gen) drugstore medic§ment§ri·a |ae f
perscr¿b·« |ere perscr¿ps¿ perscr¿ptus
expensive c§r·us |a |um; very
clerk tabern§ri·us |¿ m, tabern§ri·a |ae f expensive perc§rus

clothing store tabern·a |ae f vesti§ria flea market for·um |¿ n r¡rum v¡n§lium

cost intr c«nst·« |§re |it¿; to cost a lot
(little, nothing, more, less) mult¿

Chapter XIV: Buying and Selling 131

go for: at what price do these items go purchase s ¡mpt·um |¿ n
for? quibus preti¿s hae merc¡s purchase tr merc·or |§r¿ |§tus sum
v¡neunt? purchasing ¡mpti·« |«nis f
receipt apoch·a |ae f
groceries obs«ni·a |«rum npl run a business neg«tium exerc·e« |¡re
grocery store macell·um |¿ n
hardware store tabern·a |ae f ferr§ria |u¿ |itus; to run a shop tabernam
how much did you sell it for? quant¿ exerc¡re
sale v¡nditi·« |«nis f; for sale, on sale
hoc v¡nit?; how much is this? v¡n§lici·us |a |um, v¡n§l·is |is |e; to
quant¿ hoc c«nstat? put up for sale v¡num d« dare d¡d¿
installment p¡nsi·« |«nis f; to pay in datus
five installments qu¿nque sell v¡nd·« |ere v¡ndid¿ v¡nditus; (of a
p¡nsi«nibus solv·« |ere |¿ sol»tus merchant) v¡ndit§re
item of merchandise merx, mercis f seller v¡ndit·or |«ris m, v¡nditr·¿x |¿cis f
mall for·um |¿ n subt¡gul§neum set a price pretium fac·i« |ere f¡c¿
market merc§t·us |»s m, macell·um |¿ n factus or statu·« |ere |¿ stat»tus
marketable v¡ndibil·is |is |e shoe store tabern·a |ae f s»tr¿na
marketplace merc§t·us |»s m, for·um shop, store tabern·a |ae f
|¿ n shop intr (at a grocery store) obs«n§re;
merchandise v¡n§lici·a |«rum npl, to shop for em« emere ¡m¿ ¡mptus;
merc·¡s |ium fpl obs«n§re (groceries)
money pec»ni·a |ae f, argent·um |¿ n, shopkeeper tabern§ri·us |¿ m (·a |ae f)
numm·¿ |«rum mpl shopping ¡mpti·« |«nis f; (for
pastries cupp¡di·a |«rum npl groceries) obs«n§t·us |»s m; to go
pastry baker cupp¡din§ri·us |¿ m (·a shopping ¡mptum ¿re; (for
|ae f) groceries) obs«n§tum ¿re
pastry shop cupp¡d·« |inis f shopper ¡mpt·or |«ris m; (for
pay solv·« |ere |¿ sol»tus; to pay s.o. groceries) obs«n§t·or |«ris m,
$20 for d¡numer§re alicu¿ v¿gint¿ obs«n§tr·¿x |¿cis f
dollar«s pr« (+ abl); to pay off a small change nummul·¿ |«rum mpl
debt debitum persolvere; to pay on stationery r¡s, r¡rum fpl chart§riae
time ad tempus or ad diem dictam stationery store tabern·a |ae f chart§ria
solvere; to pay out (money) to store tabern·a |ae f
d¡numer§re (numm«s) (+ dat) supermarket super¿nstit«ri·um |i n
percent cent¡sim·a |ae f trade merc§t»r·a |ae f
pound l¿br·a |ae f; per pound in l¿br§s valuable: to be valuable pretium
price preti·um |¿ n; at a high (low, very hab·e« |¡re |u¿ |itus
low, exorbitant) price magn« wares merc·¡s |ium fpl
(parv«, minim«, nimi«); higher wholesale magn§ri·us |a |um
price pretium amplius; to set a price wholesaler neg«ti§t·or |«ris m
pretium facere; the price for it is 10 magn§rius
denarii per pound pretium e¿ in
libr§s est decem d¡n§ri¿s; the price
of food ann«n·a |ae f

Chapter XV: The Weather

CONVERSATIONS ___________________________________

LEVEL I A boy and a girl in Rome contrast the weather of
Rome with that of Switzerland.

Puer R«m§nus Est fr¿gidum hodi¡. Roman Boy: It’s cold today.
Puella Helv¡tia Fr¿gidumne? Qu«modo id Swiss Girl: Cold? How can you

d¿cere potes? say that?

Puer Quia ego alge«. Because I feel cold.
Puella At s«l l»cet et ventulus m¿tis flat. But the sun is shining and a

Pr«rsus, est di¡s bellus et gentle breeze is blowing. All in
tepidus. all, it is a nice warm day.

Puer Haec d¿cis, quia tempest§s in You say that because the weather
Puella Helv¡ti§ semper fr¿gida est. is always cold in Switzerland.
Nihil hab¡s in Alpibus praeter You have nothing in the Alps
nivem et glaciem. but snow and ice.

Parum v¡rum est! Est«; hiem¡s in That’s not quite true. Granted, the
Alpibus sunt longae. Sed winters are long in the Alps.
tempest§s ibi aest§te est But the weather there in
bellissima. summer is very nice.

Puer H¿c hiems est pluvia, et di¡s Here the winter is rainy and the
Puella aest§te sunt calidissim¿. days in summer are very hot.

Sed h¿c R«mae neque grandinat But here in Rome it neither hails
neque ningit. Agedum, e§mus nor snows. Come on, then, let’s
for§s l»sum. Mox t» n«n iam go play outside. Soon you will
algebis. no longer be cold.

Puer V¡ra d¿cis. Iam disser¡nat. You’re right. The weather is
already clearing up.

132

Chapter XV: The Weather 133

LEVEL II Martha explains to her teacher how the weather
kept her from going to school.

Magistra C»r n«n in scholam her¿ v¡nist¿? Teacher: Why didn’t you come to
Martha Propter procellam. school yesterday?

Martha: Because of the storm.

Magistra Quid accidit? What happened?
Martha M§t»t¿num quidem erat ser¡num, The early morning was fair all

sed subit« Aquil« perfl§re right, but suddenly the north
inc¡pit. Imber cadere inc¡pit. wind began to blow hard. Rain
began to fall.

Magistra Er§sne adh»c dom¿ e« tempore? Were you still at home at that
time?
Martha Modo disc¡d¡bam dom«. Mox
vehementissim¡ pluit. Imber I was just leaving home. Soon it
v¡r« urce§tim cad¡bat. rained very hard. In fact, the
rain came down in buckets.

Magistra Er§sne form¿dol«sa? Were you afraid?
Martha Ita. Ict»s fulminis et tonitrus m¡ Yes. The bolts of lightning and

terr¡bant. Vent¿ arbor¡s thunder frightened me. The
d¡i¡c¡runt tr§ns vi§s. Vix winds knocked down trees
poteram vid¡re qu« ¿rem. across the streets. I could
scarcely see where I was going.

Magistra Quid deinceps f¡cist¿? What did you do then?
Martha C«nstitu¿ ¿lic« domum red¿re, ubi I decided on the spot to return

m§ter m¡ anxia exspect§bat. home where my mother was
waiting anxiously for me.

Magistra Sapienter d¡cr¡vist¿. You made a wise decision.

LEVEL III The weather of Rome and Switzerland is again
debated.

Caecilius Qu§lis tempest§s tibi potissimum Cecil: What kind of weather do
Sonja placet? you like best?

Caelum tepidum mihi potissimum Sonja: I like warm weather best.
placet. In Alpibus nix per In the Alps the snow lasts
m§i«rem partem ann¿ perd»rat. through most of the year.

134 Conversational Latin

Caecilius Quid ibi facis cum ningit? What do you do there when it
Sonja Postquam n¿nxit, in nive l»dimus. snows?

Interdum pil§s nivis inter n«s After it has snowed, we play in
conicimus. Interdum virum the snow. Sometimes we throw
nivis facimus. Interdum d¡ colle snowballs at one another.
trahe§ l§bimur. Sometimes we build a
snowman. Sometimes we slide
down the hill on a sled.

Caecilius Quam tibi invide«! Ego numquam How I envy you! I have never
Sonja nivem v¿d¿. M§ter tamen mihi seen snow. However, my
d¡ nive et grandine et glaci¡ Mother told me about snow and
n§rr§bat. hail and ice.

Numquam v¿dist¿ st¿ri§s d¡ t¡ct¿s You never saw icicles hanging
d¡pendent¡s? from a roof?

Caecilius Ego tantummodo im§gin§r¿ I can only imagine icicles hanging
Sonja possum st¿ri§s d¡ t¡ct¿s from the roofs and the roofs of
d¡pendent¡s et t¡cta domuum houses covered with soft snow.
nive moll¿ obducta.
But in the Alps, when the north
At cum Aquil« perflat et ningit et wind blows and it snows and
grandinat in Alpibus, v¿ta potest hails, life can be tough in
esse d»ra in Helv¡ti§. Itaque Switzerland. And so I prefer the
praefer« tempest§tem tepidam warm climate of Rome. At least
R«mae. Ibi saltem numquam there I would never feel cold.
algeam.

Caecilius Mihi cr¡de, v¿vere sub aestu«s« Believe me, living in a sultry
Sonja cael« null« mod« ros§rium est! climate is by no means a bed of
Hab¡mus aest§t¡s aestu«s§s. roses! We have sweltering
summers.
T» saltem n«n gel§ris. Potes
l»dere for¿s singul¿s di¡bus. You at least do not freeze. You
can play outdoors every day.

Caecilius At quis, malum, potest l»dere in But who the devil can play in such
Sonja tam aestu«s§ tempest§te? sweltering weather? We sweat
S»d§mus et s»d§mus. Et and sweat. And the flies and
muscae culic¡sque sunt mosquitoes are a big pain in the
molestissim¿. neck.

Pacti«nem faci§mus. T» in Let’s make a deal. You move to
Helv¡tiam migr§ et ego R«mam Switzerland, and I’ll move to
migr§b«. Itaque uterque Rome. Then both of us will be
nostrum contentus erit. satisfied.

Chapter XV: The Weather 135

TOPICAL VOCABULARY______________________________

Note: Expressions such as it is hot, etc., cold weather gel·u |»s n
can be expressed as calidum est
(used impersonally, or with caelum = cover up (against the cold) oper·i« |¿re
weather understood) or calida est |u¿ |tus
(with tempest§s understood).
dark adj obsc»r·us |a |um; as soon as it
bad (weather) advers·us |a |um, grav·is got dark pr¿m¿s tenebr¿s
|is |e
dark s: after dark d¡ nocte; in the
barometer barometr·um |¿ n dark per obsc»rum; sine l»mine
blast fl§t·us |»s m
blow fl§re; to blow hard perfl§re darkness tenebr·ae |§rum fpl; darkness
bolt of lightning ict·us |»s m fulminis had suddenly come tenebrae factae
breeze ventul·us |¿ m, aur·a |ae f sunt repent¡
bright ser¡n·us |a |um
bucket: to come down in buckets degree grad·us |»s m

»rce§tim cad·« |ere cecid¿ c§s»rus; dew r«s, r«ris m
to rain buckets »rce§tim pluere
changing (weather) vari·us |a |um drizzle s pluvi·a |ae f r§ra et min»ta
chilly fr¿gidul·us |a |um
clear ser¡n·us |a |um, s»d·us |a |um drizzle intr l¡niter pluit pluere pluit
clear up disser¡n§re
climate cael·um |¿ n drop (e.g., of rain) gutt·a |ae f
cloud n»b·¡s |is f
cloudless s»d·us |a |um east wind Eur·us |¿ m
cloudy n»bil«s·us |a |um; to become
cloudy n»bil§re fair ser¡n·us |a |um
cold s fr¿g·us |oris n, gel·» |»s n; to
catch a cold grav¡dinem con·trah« fall s autumn·us |¿ m
|trahere traxi tractus; to have a cold
grav¡dine labor§re favorable (wind) secund·us |a |um
cold adj (the most general word,
applied to all degrees from pleasant fine (weather) ser¡n·us |a |um; fine
coolness to severe cold) fr¿gid·us |a weather ser¡nit·§s |§tis f
|um; gelid·us |a |um; liable to get
cold alsi«s·us |a |um; to feel cold flash of lightning fulg·ur |uris n
alge« alg¡re als¿; to get cold
alg¡sc·« |ere; to turn cold fr¿g¡sc·« fog nebul·a |ae f
|ere fr¿x¿
cold spell fr¿gor·a |um npl foggy nebul«s·us |a |um

freeze tr gel§re ¶ intr gel§r¿

freezing gelid·us |a |um

frost pru¿n·a |ae f

frosty pru¿n«s·us |a |um

frozen rig·¡ns |entis

gale procell·a |ae f

glisten nit·e« |¡re |u¿

good (weather) ser¡n·us |a |um

hail s grand·« |inis f

hail impers v grandin·at |§re

hailstorms grandin·¡s |um fpl

136 Conversational Latin

hot (of a person, sun, water, bath, day) scorching (heat, sun) flagrantissimus
calid·us |a |um (opp: fr¿gid·us |a (s«l, s«lis m,. aest·us |»s m)
|um); it is hot calidum est; to
become hot cal¡sc·« |ere; to be hot shifting (wind, weather) vari·us |a |um
cal·e« |¡re |u¿; to be uncomfortably shine l»c·e« |¡re l»x¿; to shine on
hot aestu§re
ill»c·e« |¡re ill»x¿ (+ dat)
hot weather aest·us |»s m shower im·ber |bris m
sky cael·um |¿ n
hurricane t£ph·«n |«nis m sleet im·ber |bris m grandine m¿xtus
slippery l»bric·us |a |um
ice glaci·¡s |¡¿ f; to turn to ice glaci§r¿ sloppy (weather) spurc·us |a |um
snow nix, nivis f covered with snow
icicle st¿ri·a |ae f
nive·us |a |um
icy glaci§l·is |is |e snow impers v ningit ningere n¿nxit
snowball pil·a |ae f nivis
lightning s fulm·en |inis n snowdrift ningu·is |is f
snowfall nivis c§s·us |»s m
lightning: it is lightning fulget fulg¡re snowstorm ning·or |«ris m
fulsit, fulgur·at |§re |§vit snowy niv«s·us |a |um, niv§l·is |is |e
south wind Aus·ter |tr¿ m
lousy (weather) spurc·us |a |um spring v¡r, v¡ris n
storm tempest·§s |§tis f; procell·a |ae f;
melt tr dissol·v« |vere |v¿ |»tus ¶ intr
liqu¡sc·« |ere a storm arose tempest§s coorta est
stormy procell«s·us |a |um,
mild m¿t·is |is |e
turbulent·us |a |um
mist nebul·a |ae f summer aest·§s |§tis f
sun s«l, s«lis m; full sun pl»rimus s«l
misty nebul«s·us |a |um sunny apr¿c·us |a |um
sunshine s«l, s«lis m
muggy aestu«s·us |a |um sultry aestu«s·us |a |um
sweltering aestu«s·us |a |um
nice bell·us |a |um temperature temper§t»r·a |ae f; the

north wind Aquil·« |«nis m temperature fell below thirty-two
degrees temper§t»ra l§psa est subter
open: in the open (air) sub d¿v« du«s et tr¿gint§ grad»s; what is the
temperature? qu« grad» stat
overcast n»bil«s·us |a |um, n»bil·us |a temper§t»ra?
|um; to become overcast n»bil§re thermometer thermometr·um |¿ n
thunder s tonitr·us |»s m
partly partim; it is partly cloudy
(sunny) today (caelum) hodi¡ est
partim n»bil«sum (apr¿cum)

rain impers v pluit pluere pluit; to rain
hard vehementer (or multum) pluere

rain s pluvi·a |ae f, im·ber |bris m;
heavy, steady rain magn¿ et adsidu¿
imbr¡s; the rain is letting up imber
d¡t»m¡scit; it looks like rain vid¡tur
quasi pluat

rainbow arc·us |»s m caelestis, pluvius
arcus

rain cloud nimb·us |¿ m

rainy pluvi·us |a |um

Chapter XV: The Weather 137

thunder impers v tonat ton§re tonuit west wind Zephyr·us |¿ m
thunderbolt fulm·en |inis n wind vent·us |¿ m; head wind ventus
tide aest·us |»s m; high tide aest»s
adversus; tail wind ventus secundus;
access·us |»s m; low tide aest»s the wind is dying down ventus
recess·us |»s m d¡tum¡scit; the wind is picking up
tornado turb·« |inis m ventus increbr¡scit
warm tepid·us |a |um; it is getting wind storm procell·a |ae f
warm tep¡scit windy vent«s·us |a |um
weather (good or bad) tempest·§s |§tis winter hiem·s |is f; at the end of
f, cael·um |¿ n; depending on the winter hieme exeunte; because of
weather ut di¡s su§det; kinds of the severity of the winter propter
weather tempest§t¡s; owing to hiemis magnit»dinem
changes in the weather propter zero zer·um |¿ n
cael¿ variet§t¡s
weather conditions tempest§t·¡s
|um fpl

Chapter XVI: Animals

CONVERSATIONS ___________________________________

Barbara LEVEL I A visit to the zoo. Barbara: Hello, David. Where
David Salv¡, David. Unde ven¿s? are you coming from?
Barbara
David Modo v¿v§rium v¿s¡bam. David: I was just visiting the zoo.

Barbara Qu§s fer§s ibi v¿dist¿? What wild animals did you see
David Panth¡r§s et le«n¡s et elephant«s there?

Barbara et tigr¡s et zebr§s. Panthers, lions, elephants, tigers,
David and zebras.
Barbara
David N«nne fremit»s fer§rum t¡ The roars of the wild animals
terru¡runt? scared you, didn’t they?
Barbara
David Minim¡, hercle. Omn¡s enim Heavens, no! You see, all the wild
ferae in claustr¿s cohibentur. animals are kept in cages.
Barbara
David Quod animal t¡ potissimum What animal did you like best?
d¡lect§vit? The monkeys.
Barbara
David S¿mi¿.

Quam ob rem? Why?
Tam ioc«s¿ sunt, quod s¡ gerunt They are so funny because they

paene quasi homin¡s. behave almost like human
beings.

V¿dist¿ne etiam crocod¿l«s et Did you also see the crocodiles
str»thiocam¡l«s et rh¿nocer«t¡s? and ostriches and rhinoceroses?

E¿ quidem in v¿v§ri« sunt, sed e«s They’re in the zoo all right, but I
n«n v¿d¿. didn’t see them.

Itaque c»r e«s n«n v¿sist¿? Then why didn’t you go see them?
øtium mihi n«n erat ad omn¡s I didn’t have the time to visit all

fer§s v¿send§s. the wild animals.

V¿dist¿ne dinosaur«s? 138 Did you see (any) dinosaurs?
T» s§n¡ ioc§ris! You must be kidding!

Chapter XVI: Animals 139

LEVEL II A visit to a pet shop.

Gr§tia Salv¡. Velim d¡lici§s emere. Grace: Hello. I’d like to buy a
C«ci« Euge! Habe« omnis generis pet.
Gr§tia
C«ci« d¡lici§s v¡n§l¡s. Dealer: Great! I have every kind
Gr§tia of pet for sale.
C«ci«
Ita vide«. So I see.
Gr§tia V¿sne emere catellum vel f¡lem Do you want to buy a puppy or a
C«ci«
Gr§tia vel cun¿culum? cat or a rabbit?
C«ci«
Minim¡, iam mihi est catellus et No, I already have a puppy, cat,
Gr§tia f¡lis et cun¿culus. Quant¿ and rabbit. How much does that
C«ci« c«nstat ille psittacus? parrot cost?

C«nstat trecent«s dollar¿s. Ûsque It costs 300 dollars. You see, it
enim ex ×fric§ d¡vectus est. was shipped all the way from
Africa.

Et quant¿ c«nstant fringillae And how much do canaries cost?
Can§riae? Only ten dollars.

Tantummodo decem dollar¿s.

V§h, nimis c§rae mihi sunt. Wow, they are too expensive for
Hab¡sne hippur«s v¡n§l¡s? me. Do you have goldfish for
sale?
Sc¿licet habe«. Me¿ hippur¿ sunt
v¿l¡s. Quisque c«nstat »n« Of course I have. My goldfish are
dollar«. Et d«n§b« tibi aliquid inexpensive. They are one
¡scae pisc§riae gr§t¿s. dollar apiece. And I’ll give you
some fish food gratis.

Nunc Lat¿n¡ loqueris! Du«s Now you’re talking turkey! I’ll
emam. Ecce du«s dollar«s. buy two. Here are the two
dollars.
Gr§ti§s tibi. Bene val¡.
Thank you. Goodbye.

LEVEL III Young Mark visits old Cato’s farm.

Marcus Cat«, quam ob rem m§v¿s r»r¿ Marcus: Cato, why do you prefer
Cat« habit§re quam in urbe? to live in the country rather
than in the city?
Quia v¿ta in fund« §cta long¡
i»cundior est quam in urbe. Cato: Because life spent on the
farm is far more pleasant than
in the city.

140 Conversational Latin
Marcus
Cat« Quid ita? How so?
Qu¿ v¿ctum in fund« quaeritat, One who makes his living on a
Marcus
Cat« quamv¿s d¿ves numquam fiat, farm, although he may never
l¿ber tamen est. get rich, is nevertheless free.
Marcus
Cat« Ostende mihi pecus, quaes«, s¿ Please show me your livestock, if
«tium tibi est. you have the time.
Marcus
Cat« Libenter. Ecce vacc§s ov¡sque in Gladly. See the cows and sheep in
pr§t« ac equ«s in p§scu«. the meadow and the horses in
Marcus the pasture.
Cat«
Marcus Êduc§sne pull«s gall¿n§ce«s et Do you raise chickens and geese?
Cat« anser¡s? Yes. I also raise pigs and goats.

Marcus Ita. Êduc« etiam porc«s et capr«s. They are on the other side of
Cat« E¿ sunt ultr§ horreum. the barn.

Exstantne pisc¡s in ill« r¿vul« qu¿ Are there fish in that brook that
per pr§tum fluit? flows through the meadow?

Ut v¡ra d¿cam, pisc«sus est ille To tell you the truth, that brook is
r¿vulus. Truct«s capt§re que«, teeming with fish. I can catch
quoti¡scumque libet. trout whenever I please.

Obiter, forte not§v¿ fundum By the way, I happened to notice
silvam contin¡re. Illicne that your farm includes a forest.
umquam v¡n§ris? Do you ever go hunting there?

Etiam. V¡nor cun¿cul«s, Yes. I hunt rabbits, pheasants,
ph§si§n§s, cerv«s. and deer.

Hab¡sne canem v¡n§ticum? Do you have a hunting hound?
Habe« quidem sag§cissimum I do have a very keen-scented

canem; sine e« numquam hound; I never go hunting
v¡nor. without him.

Vald¡ fort»n§tus es, Cat«. You are very fortunate, Cato.
Aliquand« ego fundum mihi Someday I will get myself a
par§b«. farm.

Probum c«nsilium, adul¡sc¡ns! Good idea, young man!

Chapter XVI: Animals 141

TOPICAL VOCABULARY______________________________

animal anim·al |§lis n; wild animal song cant·us |»s m
fer·a |ae f tail caud·a |ae f
wing §l·a |ae f
ant form¿c·a |ae f blackbird merul·a |ae f (see bird)
ape s¿mi·us |¿ m, s¿mi·a |ae f boar ap·er |r¿ m
grunt grunn·i« |¿re |¿v¿ or |i¿ |¿tum
chatter str¿d·e« |¡re |u¿ buffalo »r·us |¿ m
bat vespertili·« |«nis m bug c¿m·ex |icis m
bear urs·us |¿ m, urs·a |ae f bull taur·us |¿ m (see cattle)
butterfly p§pili·« |«nis m
cub ursae catul·us |¿ m cage claustr·a |«rum npl, cave·a |ae f
grunt intr grunn·i« |¿re |¿v¿ or |i¿ calf vitul·us |¿ m, vitul·a |ae f (see
|¿tum cattle)
grunt s grunn¿t·us |»s m camel cam¡l·us |¿ m
beaver fi·ber |br¿ m hump gibb·er |eris m
bedbug scin¿ph·is |is m canary fringill·a |ae f Can§ria (see
bee ap·is |is f bird)
beehive alve·us |¿ m cat f¡l·is or f¡l·¡s |is f; catt·a |ae f,
buzz bombil§re catt·us |¿ m
hum murmur§re meow f¡l·i« |¿re
sting tr ¿c·« |ere ¿c¿ ictus purr intr murmur§re
sting s (on the bee) acule·us |¿ m; purr s murm·ur |uris n
(bite) ict·us |»s m caterpillar ¡r»c·a |ae f
swarm of bees apium ex§m·en catfish sil»r·us |¿ m
|inis n cattle bov·¡s |um mpl (dat & abl pl:
bird av·is |is f b«bus or b»bus)
beak r«str·um |¿ n bellow (or low) m»g·i« |¿re |¿v¿ or
cage cave·a |ae f |i¿ |¿tum
chirp p¿p§re, p¿pil§re graze p§sc·or |¿ p§stus sum
egg «v·um |¿ n head of cattle pec·us |oris n
feather penn·a |ae f chick pull·us |¿ m (see bird)
flap the wings §l¿s plaud·« |ere peep p¿pil§re
plaus¿ plausum chicken (gall¿n§ceus) pull·us |¿ m (see
flight vol§t·us |»s m bird)
fly vol§re; to fly away §vol§re chicken coop gall¿n§ri·um |¿ n
land (on) ¿ns¿d·« |ere ¿ns¡d¿ (+ dat) cluck gl«c·i« |¿re
nest n¿d·us |¿ m; to build a nest
n¿dific§re
sing can·« |ere cecin¿ cantum

142 Conversational Latin

egg «v·um |¿ n donkey asin·us |¿ m
eggshell («v¿) put§m·en |inis n heehaw intr rud·« |ere |¿v¿ |¿tum
egg white («v¿) alb·um |¿ n heehaw s rud¿t·us |»s m
lay (eggs) par·i« |ere peper¿ partus
yolk vitell·us |¿ m dove palumb·¡s |is f (see bird)
cockroach blatt·a |ae f coo gem·« |ere |u¿
colt equol·us |¿ m (see horse)
cow vacc·a |ae f duck an·as |atis f (see bird)
milk s lac lactis n quack tetrinn·i« |¿re
milk tr mul·ge« |g¡re |s¿ |ctum
moo m»g·i« |¿re |¿v¿ or |i¿ |¿tum eagle aquil·a |ae f (see bird)
udder »b·er |eris n screech str¿d·e« |¡re |u¿
crane gr»s, gruis mf (see bird)
crunkle gru·« |ere eel angu¿ll·a |ae f
cricket gryll·us |¿ m elephant elephant·us |¿ m
chirp fritinn·i« |¿re
crocodile crocod¿l·us |¿ m trumpet barr·i« |¿re
crow corn·¿x |¿cis f (see bird) trunk man·us |»s f
caw cr«cit§re falcon falc·« |«nis m (see bird)
deer cerv·us |¿ m, cerv·a |ae f screech str¿d·e« |¡re |u¿
bray rud·« |ere |¿v¿ |¿tum farm animals pec·us |oris n or pecor·a
dinosaur dinosaur·us |¿ m |um npl
dog can·is |is mf fish s pisc·is |is m
bark intr latr§re; bark at allatr§re fin pinn·a |ae f
bark s latr§t·us |»s m fish food ¡sc·a |ae f pisc§ria
collar coll§r·e |is n fish pond pisc¿n·a |ae f
growl ring·or |¿ rictus sum gills branchi·ae |§rum fpl
leash cingul·um |¿ n scale s squ§m·a |ae f
leash a dog canem cingul« allig§re scale tr d¡squ§m§re
pet (stroke) permulc·e« |¡re |s¿ scaly squ§m«s·us |a |um
snarl gann·i« |¿re swim nat§re
tail caud·a |ae f; wag the tail fish intr piscor pisc§r¿ pisc§tus sum
caudam mov¡re flea p»l·ex |icis m
take for a walk d»c·« |ere d»x¿ flounder pass·er |eris m (see fish)
ductus fly musc·a |ae f
dolphin delph¿n·us |¿ m buzz bombil§re
flock (of birds, sheep, goats) grex,
gregis m
fox vulp·¡s |is f
yelp gann·i« |¿re
frog r§n·a |ae f

Chapter XVI: Animals 143

croak coax§re lark alaud·a |ae f (see bird)
game preserve th¡rotroph¿·um |¿ n leopard pard·us |¿ m
giraffe cam¡lopardal·is |is f
gnat cul·ex |icis m mew rict§re
goat cap·er |r¿ m, capr·a |ae f lion le·« |«nis m, leaen·a |ae f

bleat b§l§re mane i»b·a |ae f
goldfish hippur·us |¿ m (see fish) roar r»g·i« |¿re
goose ans·er |eris m (see bird) livestock pec·us |oris n
lizard lacert·us |¿ m, lacert·a |ae f
cackle gingr·i« |¿re lobster astac·us |¿ m
grasshopper grill·us |¿ m locust locust·a |ae f
chirp str¿d·e« |¡re |u¿
chirp fritinn·i« |¿re louse p¡dicul·us |¿ m
haddock gad·us |¿ m (see fish) mackerel scomb·er |r¿ m (see fish)
hawk accipi·ter |tris m (see bird) mole talp·a |ae f
monkey s¿mi·us |¿ m, s¿mi·a |ae f
caw pl¿pi§re chatter str¿d·e« |¡re |u¿
shriek cl§m§re moth blatt·a |ae f
heifer iuvenc·a |ae f (see cattle) mouse m»·s |ris m
hen gall¿n·a |ae f squeak mintr·i« |¿re
cluck gloc·i« |¿re mule m»l·us |¿ m, m»l·a |ae f
herd arment·um |¿ n bray rud·« |ere |¿v¿ |¿tum
hippopotamus hippopotam·us |¿ m ostrich str»thiocam¡l·us |¿ m (see bird)
hog s»·s |is mf owl b»b·« |«nis m (see bird)
oink grunn·i« |¿re hoot b»bil§re
hornet cr§br·« |«nis m (see bee) ox b«s, bovis m (dat & abl pl: b«bus or
horse equ·us |¿ m b»bus)
hoof ungul·a |ae f bellow bo§re
mane i»b·a |ae f oyster ostre·a |ae f
neigh intr hinn·i« |¿re |i¿; neigh at oyster bed ostre§ri·um |¿ n
adhinn¿re shell conch·a |ae f
neigh(ing) hinn¿t·us |»s m panther panth¡r·a |ae f
tail caud·a |ae f parakeet melopsittac·us |¿ m
horsefly tab§n·us |¿ m parrot psittac·us |¿ m
buzz bombil§re partridge perd·¿x |¿cis mf (see bird)
insect ¿nsect·um |¿ n peacock p§v·« |«nis m, p§v·a |ae f (see
jellyfish pulm·« |«nis m bird)
lamb agn·us |¿ m (·a |ae f)
bleat b§l§re

144 Conversational Latin

pelican onocrotal·us |¿ m (see bird) sting tr ¿c·« |ere ¿c¿ ictus
perch (fish) perc·a |ae f (see fish) sting s ict·us |»s m
pet d¡lici·ae |§rum fpl seahorse hippocamp·us |¿ m
pheasant ph§si§n·a |ae f (see bird) seal vitul·us |¿ m mar¿nus
pig porc·us |¿ m serpent serp·¡ns |entis m
bite tr ¿c·« |ere ¿c¿ ictus
oink grunn·i« |¿re bite s ict·us |»s m
pigsty su¿l·e |is n crawl serp·« |ere |s¿
pigeon columb·a |ae f, columb·us |¿ m hiss s¿bil§re
(see bird) shark pistr·is |is m
coo gem·« |ere |u¿ |itum dorsal fin pinn·a |ae f dors§lis
pigeon coop columb§ri·um |¿ n sheep ov·is |is f
pony mann·us |¿ m (see horse) bleat b§l§re
porcupine hystr·ix |icis f shepherd p§st·or |«ris m
poultry av·¡s |ium fpl cohort§l¡s pen (for sheep) ov¿l·e |is n
pup catul·us |¿ m wool l§n·a |ae f
whimper gann·i« |¿re snake angu·is |is mf (see serpent)
puppy catell·us |¿ m snail cochle·a |ae f
quail coturn·¿x |¿cis f (see bird) sow s»·s |is f
rabbit cun¿cul·us |¿ m oink grunn·i« |¿re
squeal v§g·i« |¿re sparrow pass·er |eris m (see bird)
ram ari·¡s |etis m chirp p¿p§re
bleat b§l§re spider ar§ne·us |¿ m
rat m»·s |ris m cobweb ar§ne·a |ae f
squeak mintr·i« |¿re squirrel sci»r·us |¿ m
raven corv·us |¿ m (see bird) stag cerv·us |¿ m
croak cr«cit§re bray rud·« |ere |¿v¿ |¿tum
reindeer tarandr·us |¿ m starling sturn·us |¿ m (see bird)
rhinoceros rh¿nocer·«s |«tis m chirp fritinn·i« |¿re
robin rubecul·a |ae f (see bird) steer iuvenc·us |¿ m
chirp p¿p§re stork cic«ni·a |ae f (see bird)
rooster gall·us |¿ m (see bird) swallow hirund·« |inis f (see bird)
crow c»c»r·i« |¿re; can·« |ere cecin¿ swan cycn·us |¿ m (see bird)
cantum swordfish xiphi·§s |ae m
salmon salm·« |«nis m (see fish) thrush turd·us |¿ m (see bird)
sardine sard¿n·a |ae f (see fish)
scorpion scorpi·« |«nis m

Chapter XVI: Animals 145

tiger tigr·is |is or |idis m weasel must¡l·a |ae f
growl frem·« |ere |u¿ whale balaen·a |ae f
wolf lup·us |¿ m, lup·a |ae f
toad b»f·« |«nis m
trout truct·us |¿ m, truct·a |ae f (see cub lupae catul·us |¿ m
howl intr ulul§re
fish) howl s ulul§t·us |»s m
tuna thunn·us |¿ m (see fish) whelp gann·i« |¿re
turkey gallop§v·« |«nis m woodpecker p¿c·us |¿ m (see bird)
turtle test»d·« |inis f worm verm·is |is m
earth worm lumbr¿c·us |¿ m
shell test»d·« |inis f zoo v¿v§ri·um |¿ n
vulture vult·ur |uris m
wasp vesp·a |ae f (see bee)

146 Conversational Latin

Chapter XVII: Emotions and Qualities

CONVERSATIONS ___________________________________

LEVEL I Diane and Debbie discuss the new teacher.

Di§na: Salv¡, Debra. Qu« pact« t¡cum Diane: Hello, Debbie. How is it
agitur? Audi« t¡ novam going with you? I hear that you
Debra: magistram h«c ann« hab¡re. have a new teacher this year.

Di§na: Salv¡, Di§na. Bene vale«. R¡ct¡ Debbie: Hello, Diane. I’m fine.
Debra: aud¿vist¿. You heard right.

Di§na: Estne bona magistra? Is she a good teacher?
Debra: Sev¡ra est sed aequa; nam tractat
She is strict but fair. She treats all
Di§na: n«s omn¡s e«dem mod«. alike.
Debra:
Quamdi» iam docet? How long has she been teaching?
Di§na: Nesci«. Sed est per¿tissima
Debra: I don’t know. But she’s a very
magistra. N¡m« obdorm¿scit in experienced teacher. No one
eius classe. falls asleep in her class.

Qu«modo condiscipul¿ tu¿ cum e§ How do your classmates get along
congruunt? with her?

Amant eam qu«niam pati¡ns They love her because she is
hilaraque est. patient and cheerful.

Manifest«, magistra ipsa bonum Obviously, the teacher herself sets
exemplum praebet. a good example.

Ita, exemplum adm¿r§bile. Yes, a wonderful example.

LEVEL II A new girlfriend is the subject of discussion.

Val¡ria: Salv¡, Ricarde. Ut val¡s? R»mor Valerie: Hello, Richard. How are
Ricardus: per t«tam v¿c¿niam pervag§tur you? There’s a rumor going
t¡ novam am¿culam repperisse. around the whole neighborhood
that you have found a new
Salv¡. Bene vale«. F§ma est v¡ra; girlfriend.
eam n«n ¿nfitior.
Richard: Hello. I’m fine. The
story is true; I’ll not deny it.

146

Chapter XVII: Emotions and Qualities 147

Val¡ria: Quid n«men e¿ est? Egone eam What is her name? Do I know
Ricardus: n«v¿? her?

N«men e¿ est Donna. Eam n«n Her name is Donna. You do not
n«vist¿. know her.

Val¡ria: Qu§lis hom« est illa? What sort of person is she?
Ricardus: In pr¿m¿s est bella et venusta. First of all, she is pretty and

Breviter, m¿rifica est. attractive. In a word, she is
fantastic.

Val¡ria: N«n, n«n. D¿c¡bam d¡ eius No, no. I was talking about her
Ricardus: indole. personality.

Iam tene«. Donna est intelleg¡ns Now I get it. Donna is intelligent,
et hilara et h»m§na et tenera. cheerful, kind, and gentle.

Val¡ria: Estne generis tacit»rn¿? Is she the silent type?
Ricardus: Est magis loqu§x et soci§bilis
She is talkative and sociable
quam taciturna; h§c d¡ caus§, rather than quiet; for that
apud famili§r¡s gr§ti«sissima reason she is very popular with
est. Etiam corcillum habet, sed her close acquaintances. She
numquam id iactat. also has brains, but she doesn’t
brag about that.

Val¡ria: Donna mihi vid¡tur speci«sa Donna seems to be a very
puella. Sp¡r« t¡ eam mihi interesting girl. I hope that you
aliquand« tr§dit»rum esse. will introduce her to me
sometime.
Ricardus: Quidn¿?
Why not?

LEVEL III Sizing up a political candidate.

Titus: Marcia, quid op¿n§ris d¡ Bibul« Titus: Marcia, what is your
Marcia: candid§t« qu¿ c«nsul§tum petit? opinion of the candidate
Bibulus, who is running for the
Titus: V¿sne illum Bibulum qu¿ Caesaris consulship?
Marcia: compet¿tor est? Praedicat s¡ re¿
p»blicae pr«fut»rum esse. Marcia: Do you mean the Bibulus
who is Caesar’s opponent? He
claims that he will be good for
the country.

Cr¡disne eum esse v¡r§cem Do you believe that he is honest
sinc¡rumque? and sincere?

Multa quidem pr«mittit, sed m¿ror He certainly makes a lot of
num fidem serv§t»rus sit. promises, but I wonder whether
he will keep his word.

148 Conversational Latin
Titus:
Marcia: Mihi vid¡tur ast»tus, aud§x, He seems to me to be shrewd,
Titus: ambiti«sus. bold, and ambitious.
Marcia:
D¡ e§ r¡ t¡cum funditus I fully agree with you on that
Titus: c«nsenti«. Porr« aud¿vist¿ne point. Besides, have you heard
Marcia: eius recent¡s or§ti«n¡s? his recent speeches?

Titus: Aud¿v¿. Ut candid§t¿ solent, iste I have. As candidates usually do,
Marcia: compet¿t«r¡s su«s inpugnat et he attacks his opponents and
Titus: identidem praedicat e«s omn¡s again and again claims that
esse arrogant¡s et dol«s«s. they are all arrogant and tricky.

R»rsus t¡cum omn¿n« c«nsenti«. Again I fully agree with you. Does
C¡nsetne s¡ s«lum esse he think that he alone is
locupl¡tem et candidum et trustworthy, candid, and
amantem patriae? patriotic?

Imm« facile est ali«s candid§t«s Well, it’s easy to criticize other
reprehendere; sed quid iste candidates; but what does he
habet quod d¡ su§ rati«ne d¿cat? have to say about his own
policy?
D¡ su§ rati«ne interrog§tus,
ambiguus fit. D¿cit quidquid in When asked about his own policy,
buccam v¡nerit. Quand«cumque he becomes evasive. He says
urg¡tur, fit indign§bundus ac whatever comes into his head
d¿c§x. [lit: has come into his mouth].
Whenever he is hard pressed,
he becomes indignant and
sarcastic.

Ut v¡ra d¿cam, nesci« cu¿ To tell you the truth, I don’t know
candid§t« suffr§g§t»rus sim. for which candidate I am going
to vote.
Ego ipsa exspect§b« diem
comiti§lem antequam ego I myself am going to wait till
c«nstituam. election day before I make up
my mind.

T¡ n«n culp«. Ego idem faciam. I don’t blame you. I’ll do the
same.

Chapter XVII: Emotions and Qualities 149

TOPICAL VOCABULARY______________________________

ability facult·§s |§tis f arrogance arroganti·a |ae f
absurd absurd·us |a |um arrogant arrog·§ns |antis
abusive maledic·us |a |um articulate disert·us |a |um
accomplished ¡rud¿tus |a |um astute ast»t·us |a |um
active ala·cer |cris |cre athletic §thl¡tic·us |a |um
admirable adm¿r§bil·is |is |e atrocious atr·«x |«cis
admiration adm¿r§ti·« |«nis f attentive attent·us |a |um, ¡r¡ct·us |a
adult (mature) adult·us |a |um
affable aff§bil·is |is |e |um
affected affect§t·us |a |um attitude gest·us |»s m
affection am·or |«ris m attractive am§bil·is |is |e; (in looks)
affectionate am·§ns |antis
afraid form¿dul«s·us |a |um; I am speci«s·us |a |um
austere asp·er |era |erum, aust¡r·us |a
afraid that ver·eor |¡r¿ veritus sum
n¡; to be afraid metu·« |ere |¿ |um
aged ann«s·us |a |um awful d¿r·us |a |um
agreeable commod·us |a |um, gr§t·us |a awkward inconcinn·us |a |um
|um backward (mentally) lent·us |a |um
alert §·cer |cris |cre bad mal·us |a |um, improb·us |a |um
alluring illecebr«s·us |a |um banish (worries, cares) exim·« |ere
alone s«l·us |a |um
ambition ambiti·« |«nis f ex¡m¿ ex¡mptus
ambitious ambiti«s·us |a |um beautiful pulch·er |ra |rum, form«s·us
anger ¿r·a |ae f
angry (at) ¿r§t·us |a |um (+ dat); to get |a |um
angry with ¿r§sc·or |§r¿ (+ dat) beauty pulchrit»d·« |inis f
anguish ang·or |«ris m becoming dec·¡ns |entis
annoyance molesti·a |ae f big-hearted magnanim·us |a |um
annoyed: to be annoyed at molest¡ bitter acerb·us |a |um
fer« ferre tul¿ bitterly: to complain bitterly graviter
antagonistic ¿nfest·us |a |um
anxiety (about) c»r·a |ae f (+ gen) queror quer¿ questus sum
apathetic d¡s·es |idis bitterness acerbit·§s |§tis f
appetite cib¿ appetenti·a |ae f, cib¿ blind caec·us |a |um
appet¿ti·« |«nis f blindness caecit·§s |§tis f
arouse (feelings) exagit§re, suscit§re blush ¡rub¡sc·« |ere ¡rubu¿
boastful iact·§ns |antis
bold aud·§x |§cis
boldness aud§ci·a |ae f
bombastic bull§t·us |a |um
boorish agrest·is |is |e