Latin Grammar Basics: Verbs, Nouns, and Adjectives Explained

Break Review Packet

For: Latin 3-6
Date: Nov. 28, 2011
Chapters: 1-4 Review

Verbs

Verbs are the most important words in a sentence because they indicate the person (1st, 2nd, or 3rd) and number (singular or plural) of the subject.

To conjugate a Latin verb (i.e., to put the Latin verb in all persons and numbers), follow these three steps:

1. Find the .

2. Add the .

3. Then, add the .

To find the stem of a verb, you must chop off the ___ ending (i.e., the 2nd principle part of the verb).

To find the thematic vowel of a verb, you must look at the first letter of the ___ ending.

Conjugation Endings:

The endings of a verb are:

,,,,,.

Conjugation Practice

Conjugate the verb specto, spectare:

Singular:

1st Person:

2nd Person:

3rd Person:

Plural:

1st Person:

2nd Person:

3rd Person:

Verb Translation Forms

There are three ways to translate Latin verbs. For example, laborat can be translated as:

He works
He is working
He does work

All three forms are acceptable. Match the translation of laborat with its corresponding form:

1. he does work. - A. Simple

2. he works. - B. Emphatic

3. he is working. - C. Progressive

Understanding Linking Verbs:

The verbs est, sunt, erat, and erant are linking verbs, not helping verbs. A linking verb connects the subject to a subject complement (e.g., He was a farmer).

In the sentence He is working, the verb is is a helping verb, not a linking verb. Therefore, it does not appear as est in Latin.

Note

Est, sunt, erat, and erant are only used as linking verbs when they are the main verb of the sentence (e.g., He was a farmer).

Practice: Identify Linking or Helping Verbs

For the following sentences, identify whether the verbs “is,” “are,” “was,” or “were” are linking or helping verbs. Then write the corresponding verb in Latin.

1. My friends are here.

Linking/Helping:

Conjugated Verb:

2. She was carrying many jars of water.

Linking/Helping:

Conjugated Verb:

3. They were working very diligently.

Linking/Helping:

Conjugated Verb:

4. Are your friends nice?

Linking/Helping:

Conjugated Verb:

5. Is he praising the Lord?

Linking/Helping:

Conjugated Verb:

6. Was he a farmer?

Linking/Helping:

Conjugated Verb:

7. They are preparing a feast.

Linking/Helping:

Conjugated Verb:

8. We are watching the game.

Linking/Helping:

Conjugated Verb:

9. She is so nice.

Linking/Helping:

Conjugated Verb:

10. My friend was here.

Linking/Helping:

Conjugated Verb:

Nouns:

In Latin, the position of a noun in a sentence does not determine its function. To determine the function of a noun (subject, direct object, etc.), you must look at the noun’s ending.

The 3 components of Latin nouns are:

1. Gender

2. Number

3. Case

There are five declensions of Latin nouns. So far, we’ve learned the 1st and 2nd declensions.

1st declension nouns are predominantly feminine.
2nd declension nouns are predominantly masculine or neuter.

Declension Practice

Complete the following with the correct endings for First Declension and Second Declension nouns:

First Declension (Singular):

Nominative:

Accusative:

First Declension (Plural):

Nominative:

Accusative:

Second Declension (Singular):

Nominative:

Accusative:

Second Declension (Plural):

Nominative:

Accusative:

Note

Nominative case: Noun functions as the subject.
Accusative case: Noun functions as the direct object.

Adjectives

An adjective is a word that modifies a noun. In Latin, adjectives must agree with the noun they modify in:

1. Gender

2. Number

3. Case

Since we have learned only 1st and 2nd declension nouns and adjectives, the noun and adjective will have the same endings. The only exception is the noun agricola, which is a 1st declension noun but masculine. Therefore, adjectives modifying agricola will take 2nd declension endings.