Latin III/Gerundive Lesson 1
Salvēte omnēs! Welcome back to Latin for Wikiversity. This lesson continues our study of the gerund and introduces its close relative, the gerundive. The gerundive is a verbal adjective expressing necessity or obligation, sometimes called the "future passive participle."
The Gerundive
[edit | edit source]The gerundive is formed similarly to the gerund, but it is a true adjective that agrees with its noun in gender, number, and case. It expresses the idea of "needing to be done" or "ought to be done." For example:
liber legendus = a book needing to be read epistula scribenda = a letter that ought to be written rēs agenda = a thing that must be done
The gerundive is often used in place of the gerund when the verb would take a direct object. Compare:
- Gerund: cupidus librum legendī = eager of reading a book
- Gerundive: cupidus librī legendī = eager of the book needing to be read
New Vocabulary
[edit | edit source]| Latin | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| cūra, cūrae, f. | care, concern | |
| mora, morae, f. | delay | |
| negōtium, negōtiī, n. | business, task | |
| ratiō, ratiōnis, f. | method, system, reason | |
| spēs, speī, f. | hope |
New Sentences
[edit | edit source]| Latin | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Epistula scribenda est. | The letter must be written. | Basic gerundive use |
| Cūra librōrum legendōrum. | The care of books needing to be read. | Gerundive agreeing with noun |
| Spēs pācis faciendae. | The hope of peace needing to be made. | |
| Tempus est urbis relinquendae. | It is time for the city to be left. | |
| Ratiō vīvendi. | A method of living. | Gerund with no object |
| Ars amīcōs parandī. | The art of acquiring friends. | Gerund with direct object |
| Ars amīcōrum parandōrum. | The art of friends needing to be acquired. | Gerundive construction |
| Negōtium conficiendum cūrāvit. | He saw to the task needing to be completed. | |
| Sine ūllā morā faciendā. | Without any delay needing to be made. | |
| Ad urbem videndam vēnimus. | We came to see the city (lit: for the city needing to be seen). | Purpose clause |
| Libri ad legendōs puerīs dantur. | Books are given to boys for reading. | Gerund |
| Librī legendī puerīs dantur. | Books needing to be read are given to boys. | Gerundive |
| Dē philosophiā discendā scrīpsit. | He wrote about philosophy needing to be learned. | |
| Haec agenda sunt. | These things must be done. | Common phrase |
Practice
[edit | edit source]| Practice and learn the words and phrases in this lesson | |
|---|---|
| Step one | First learn the words using this lesson: |
| Step two | Next try learning and writing the sentencing using this: |
| Note that the Memrise stage covers the content for all lessons in each stage. If you are skipping previous stages you may need to manually "ignore" the words in previous levels (use the 'select all' function) | |
Our next set of lessons will explore subordinate clauses in Latin. Valēte omnēs!