Latin Grammar Basics
Declensions
Declension refers to the set of forms a word can take to express different syntactic functions.
1st Declension (Nominative in -a)
- Mostly feminine nouns, with some masculine exceptions (e.g., agricola, nauta, poeta).
- Some nouns have different forms in singular and plural (e.g., littera/ae).
2nd Declension (Nominative in -us, -er, -um)
- -us: Mostly masculine nouns, with some feminine exceptions (e.g., tree names, city names).
- Three neuter nouns: pelagus, vulgus, virus.
- -er: Always masculine.
- -um: Neuter nouns.
3rd Declension (Nominative in consonant or -i)
- Consonant stems: Nouns with an uneven number of syllables in the nominative singular and genitive singular. Can be masculine, feminine, or neuter.
- -i stems: Masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns with the same number of syllables in the nominative and genitive singular. Exceptions include animal and mare.
- Mixed stems: Nouns like pater and frater appear to be -i stems but follow consonant stem patterns.
4th Declension (Nominative in -us, -u)
- -us: Mostly masculine nouns, with some feminine exceptions (e.g., manus, domus).
- -u: Neuter nouns.
5th Declension (Nominative in -es)
- Feminine nouns, except dies, diei.
Prepositions
Prepositions with the Accusative Case
- ad: to, near
- apud: near, at
- in: into, onto, against
- inter: between, among
- per: through, by
- post: after, behind
Prepositions with the Ablative Case
- a/ab: from, by, away from
- cum: with
- de: from, down from, about
- e/ex: from, out of
- in: in, on
- sine: without
Cases and Their Uses
Accusative Case
- Direct object of a verb
- Object of certain prepositions (see above)
- Place to which (with ad or in for towns and small islands, without prepositions for larger places)
Ablative Case
- Place from which (with a/ab, de, e/ex for towns and small islands, without prepositions for larger places)
- Means or instrument
- Accompaniment (with cum)
- Manner (often with an adverb)
- Time when or within which
- Ablative absolute: A noun or pronoun in the ablative case with a participle, expressing an adverbial idea.
Genitive Case
- Possession (‘of’)
- Partitive genitive: Indicates the whole from which a part is taken.
- Description or quality
Dative Case
- Indirect object of a verb
- Purpose or reference
- Possessor (with the verb ‘to be’)
Verbs
Sum (to be)
- With a predicate adjective: The verb agrees with the subject in number and person, while the predicate adjective agrees with the subject in gender, number, and case.
- Without a predicate adjective: Indicates existence or location.
- With the genitive case: Indicates possession or belonging.
- With the dative case: Indicates possession or purpose.
Double Accusative
- Used with verbs of teaching, asking, demanding, and hiding.
- One accusative is the direct object, and the other is the predicate accusative, which describes or renames the direct object.
Adjectives
3rd Declension Adjectives
- Three types: consonant stems, -i stems, and mixed stems (similar to 3rd declension nouns).
- Adjectives agree with the nouns they modify in gender, number, and case.
Adverbs
- Formed from adjectives, often by adding -e to the base of the adjective.
- Can have comparative and superlative degrees.
Other Topics
- Subjunctive mood: Used in independent clauses to express commands, prohibitions, wishes, possibilities, and unreal conditions.
- Imperative mood: Used to express commands and prohibitions.
- Quam: Used to intensify superlatives.
- Degrees of adjectives: Positive, comparative, and superlative.
This document provides a basic overview of Latin grammar. For more detailed information, consult a comprehensive Latin grammar textbook or online resources.