Catullus 12

1. Marrucine Asini, manu sinistra

2. non belle uteris. in ioco atque vino

3. tollis lintea neglegentiorum.

4. hoc salsum esse putas? fugit te, inepte:

5. quamvis sordida res et invenusta est.

6. non credit mihi? crede Pollioni

7. fratri, qui tua furta vel talento

8. mutari velit: est enim leporum

9. differtus puer ac facetiarum

Marrucinus Asinius, you do not use your left hand well. You steal the napkins of those who are not watching in joke and wine. Do you think that this is funny? Fool, it flees you, the thing is very disgusting and charmless. Do you not believe me? Believe Pollio, your brother, who even wishes your thefts to be undone with a bussel of silver, for he is a boy full of wit and charm.

10. quare aut hendecasyllabos trecentos

11. exspecta aut mihi linteum remitte

12. quod me non movet aestimatione,

13. verum est mnemosynum mei sodalis.

14. nam sudaria Santana ex Hiberis

15. miserunt mihi muneri Fabullus

16. et Veranius haec amem necesse est

17. ut Veraniolum meum et Fabullum.

Wherefore await 300 lines of hendsyllabic lines or return the napkin to me, which does not move me by its value but it is a reminder of my friend. For Fabullus and Veranius sent the Saetabian sweatcloths to me, from Spain, as a gift. It is necessary to love these as I love my little Veranius and Fabullus.

What is the case and reason for the following nouns?

1. hoc salsum: accusative - indirect statement

2. inepte: vocative - direct adress

3. talento: ablative of means

4. mihi: dative - indirect object

5. aestimatione: ablative of means

6. veraniolum: accusative - direct object

A command

exspecta - expect

What is the case, gender, number, and antecedent of qui?

gender: masculine

number: singular

case: nominative

antecedent: Pollio/fratrio

What is the case, gender, number, and antecedent of quod?

gender: neuter

number: singular

case: nominative

antecedent: linteum

What does sinistra modify?

manu - hand

What does sordida and invenusta modify?

res - thing

What does differtus modify?

puer - boy

What does mei modify?

sodalis - friend

Hyperbole

hendecasyllabos trecentos - 300 hendesyllabic lines

Diminutive

Veraniolum - little Veranius

Alliteration

miserunt mihi muneri

Hendiadys

in ioco atque vino - in joke and vine