Latin 6.4 & 6.7: 3b. Define the Syntax

Define
Objective genitive

A genitive that is the object of the action/feeling inside a noun. Translate “for / of / toward.” Ex: dēsīderium tuī = desire for you.

Define
Partitive genitive (genitive of the whole)

A genitive after a quantity word (tantum, quantum, plūs, satis, nihil). Ex: tantum suāvitātis = so much (of) sweetness.

Define
Genitive + causā / grātiā

Genitive placed before causā or grātiā = “for the sake of ___.” Ex: valētūdinis causā.

Define
Dative with special verbs

Some verbs take a dative instead of an accusative, but you translate it like a direct object. Ex: crēdō, cōnsulō, persuādeō, imperō, faveō.

Define
Dative with compound verbs

Verbs with prefixes like ad-, in-, prae-, sub- often take a dative. Ex: sermōnibus inest = is in the conversations.

Define
Ablative of means

A thing (not a person) used to do something, no preposition. Translate “with / by.” Ex: epistulīs = with letters.

Define
Ablative of cause

Ablative showing why something happens. Translate “because of / from / by.” Ex: absentiā meā.

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Ablative of degree of difference

Ablative with a comparative showing “by how much.” Ex: eō magis = by this (much) the more.

Define
Complementary infinitive

An infinitive that completes a verb like possum, volō, cupiō, patior. Ex: simul esse cupiēbam.

Define
Infinitive as subject

An infinitive used as a noun subject, usually with est. Ex: nihil scīre est ānxium = to know nothing is anxiety-ridden.

Define
Indirect statement

Head verb of saying/thinking/writing + accusative subject + infinitive. Translate “that ___.” Ex: scrībis tē afficī.

Define
Indirect question

Head verb + question word (quis, quid, cūr, ubi, ecquid) + subjunctive. Translate the verb normally. Ex: quid apparārēs.

Define
Indirect command

Verb of asking/ordering (rogō, imperō, persuādeō) + ut/nē + subjunctive. Translate “to ___” or “that ___.”

Define
Purpose clause

ut/nē + subjunctive, with NO degree word. Translate “so that / in order to / lest.” Ex: ut oculīs meīs crēderem.

Define
Result clause

Degree word (tam, ita, tantus, adeō) + ut / ut nōn + subjunctive. Translate “that ___.” Ex: ita ... ut torqueat.

Define
How to tell purpose vs. result

Result has a degree word (tam, ita, tantus, adeō) and uses ut nōn for negative. Purpose has no degree word and uses nē for negative.

Define
Concessive clause

Admits something “although.” licet + subjunctive, or cum + subjunctive with tamen in the main clause. Ex: licet hoc mē dēlectet.

Define
Cum clause: 3 meanings

cum + subjunctive = “when,” “since,” or “although” (tamen hints at although). cum + indicative = just “when.”

Define
Potential subjunctive

A subjunctive in a main clause meaning “would / could.” Ex: dēsīderārem = I would desire (miss).

Define
Implied protasis

A hidden “if” clause suggested by a word or phrase instead of sī. Ex: etiam fortem tē = (even if you were) strong.

Define
Relative clause of characteristic

quī/quae/quod + subjunctive describing a type of person or thing. Translate “the kind of person who / the one whom.”

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Correlatives

Paired words that work together: cum ... tum (both ... and), tantum ... quantum (so much ... how much).

Define
Correlative relative clauses

A relative (cuius) paired with a demonstrative (huius) that refers back to it: “whose ... of this one (her).”

Define
Substantive participle

A participle used as a noun. Ex: metuentium = of those fearing.

Define
Substantive quod clause

quod = “(the fact) that,” and the whole clause acts like a noun. Ex: grātum est quod nōs requīris.

Define
Conditional clause of comparison

quasi, tamquam, or velut (sī) = “as if.” Ex: quasi novās = as if (they were) new.

Define
Epistolary tense

A past tense used in a letter from the reader’s point of view. Ex: cupiēbam = I was desiring / I want.

Define
Deponent verb

Passive endings but active meaning. Spot: -r, -ris, -tur, -ntur, -ī, -us sum. Ex: queror, patior, proficīscor, vereor, imāginor.

Define
Frequentative verb

A verb stem + -tō / -itō that shows repeated action. Ex: legō → lēctitō = read again and again.

Define
quam + superlative

“as ___ as possible.” Ex: quam frequentissimē = as frequently as possible.

Define
Imperative mood

A direct command. Singular = present stem (scrībe, valē). Plural adds -te (scrībite, valēte).

Define
Poetic / literary plural

A plural used for a singular, often nōs for “I/me.” Ex: nōs requīris = you miss me.

Define
Litotes

Understatement by denying the opposite. Ex: nōn sine cūrā = with real concern; nōn mediocriter = very much.

Define
Anaphora

Repeating a word at the start of back-to-back phrases. Ex: vereor omnia, imāginor omnia.

Define
Asyndeton

Leaving out conjunctions (et, -que) to make a list feel fast and urgent. Ex: vereor omnia, imāginor omnia.

Define
Hyperbaton

Separating words that belong together (or delaying a key word) for emphasis. Ex: mē ... exterret.

Define
Polyptoton

Repeating a root in different forms. Ex: proficīscentem → profectam.

Define
Metaphor

A comparison without “like/as.” Ex: books as fōmenta (salves); accendor (inflamed with desire).

Define
Diminutive

Ending -ulus/-culus/-culum that makes something small or affectionate. Ex: corpusculum = frail little body.

Define
Present subjunctive: the “wrong vowel”

1st -ē- (amet), 2nd -eā- (habeat), 3rd -ā- (dīcat), 3rd -iō -iā- (capiat), 4th -iā- (audiat). Mnemonic: shE rEAds A dIAry.