Seneca Letter LXIV
Commentary by Nick Velez, edited by Jacques Bailly

Introduction

“It is a credit to Seneca’s instincts as a writer that he did not allow the Stoic principle that the emotions must be suppressed (Ep. 85.3—5, 116.1) to enfeeble the vigor of his Latin prose.” (Wilson, p. 434)

Letter 64 showcases Seneca’s pointed style and ingenuity, characterized by lively clarity and straightforwardness, alongside complexity and playfulness. On display is Seneca’s trademark rhetorical style, replete with apostrophe, questions and answers, and inner speech. Strong rhetoric is at work, and the energy and strength of conviction is apparent (some people consider such apparently emotional qualities ironic in light of the stoic idea that emotions are to be extirpated: but the sage is utterly committed to one and only one thing, her virtue).

Text

LXIV. SENECA LUCILIO SUO SALUTEM

[1] Fuisti here nobiscum. Potes queri, si here tantum; ideo adieci 'nobiscum'; mecum enim semper es. Intervenerant quidam amici propter quos maior fumus fieret, non hic qui erumpere ex lautorum culinis et terrere vigiles solet, sed hic modicus qui hospites venisse significet. [2] Varius nobis fuit sermo, ut in convivio, nullam rem usque ad exitum adducens sed aliunde alio transiliens. Lectus est deinde liber Quinti Sextii patris, magni, si quid mihi credis, viri, et licet neget Stoici. [3] Quantus in illo, di boni, vigor est, quantum animi! Hoc non in omnibus philosophis invenies: quorundam scripta clarum habentium nomen exanguia sunt. Instituunt, disputant, cavillantur, non faciunt animum quia non habent: cum legeris Sextium, dices, 'vivit, viget, liber est, supra hominem est, dimittit me plenum ingentis fiduciae'. [4] In qua positione mentis sim cum hunc lego fatebor tibi: libet omnis casus provocare, libet exclamare, 'quid cessas, fortuna? congredere: paratum vides'. Illius animum induo qui quaerit ubi se experiatur, ubi virtutem suam ostendat: spumantemque dari pecora inter inertia votis
 optat aprum aut fulvum descendere monte leonem. [5] Libet aliquid habere quod vincam, cuius patientia exercear. Nam hoc quoque egregium Sextius habet, quod et ostendet tibi beatae vitae magnitudinem et desperationem eius non faciet: scies esse illam in excelso, sed volenti penetrabilem. [6] Hoc idem virtus tibi ipsa praestabit, ut illam admireris et tamen speres. Mihi certe multum auferre temporis solet contemplatio ipsa sapientiae; non aliter illam intueor obstupefactus quam ipsum interim mundum, quem saepe tamquam spectator novus video. [7] Veneror itaque inventa sapientiae inventoresque; adire tamquam multorum hereditatem iuvat. Mihi ista acquisita, mihi laborata sunt. Sed agamus bonum patrem familiae, faciamus ampliora quae accepimus; maior ista hereditas a me ad posteros transeat. Multum adhuc restat operis multumque restabit, nec ulli nato post mille saecula praecludetur occasio aliquid adhuc adiciendi. [8] Sed etiam si omnia a veteribus inventa sunt, hoc semper novum erit, usus et inventorum ab aliis scientia ac dispositio. Puta relicta nobis medicamenta quibus sanarentur oculi: non opus est mihi alia quaerere, sed haec tamen morbis et temporibus aptanda sunt. Hoc asperitas oculorum collevatur; hoc palpebrarum crassitudo tenuatur; hoc vis subita et umor avertitur; hoc acuetur visus: teras ista oportet et eligas tempus, adhibeas singulis modum. Animi remedia inventa sunt ab antiquis; quomodo autem admoveantur aut quando nostri operis est quaerere. [9] Multum egerunt qui ante nos fuerunt, sed non peregerunt. Suspiciendi tamen sunt et ritu deorum colendi. Quidni ego magnorum virorum et imagines habeam incitamenta animi et natales celebrem? quidni ego illos honoris causa semper appellem? Quam venerationem praeceptoribus meis debeo, eandem illis praeceptoribus generis humani, a quibus tanti boni initia fluxerunt. [10] Si consulem videro aut praetorem, omnia quibus honor haberi honori solet faciam: equo desiliam, caput adaperiam, semita cedam. Quid ergo? Marcum Catonem utrumque et Laelium Sapientem et Socraten cum Platone et Zenonem Cleanthenque in animum meum sine dignatione summa recipiam? Ego vero illos veneror et tantis nominibus semper assurgo. Vale.

Commentary

Seneca begins with a paradoxical statement: Fuisti here nobiscum. What follows is a description of what happened yesterday. But if Lucilius was with them, then Lucilius already knows about the events, and describing the goings-on is superfluous. Ergo Lucilius was not physically with them and does not know what went on. Seneca adds another paradoxical facet: the "us" referred to is not just Seneca, for Lucilius is always with Seneca. And so there is no need to say that he was with Seneca yesterday in particular. The solution to the latter paradoxical facet is that some friends who came as guests make up the "us" and make the event worth reporting. As to the first paradoxical facet, that Lucilius was with them although he did not know it, Seneca is playing with the notion of physical presence versus intellectual and perhaps emotional. Seneca frequently uses "presence" as an adjustable concept: when it suits him, he emphasizes absence and its downsides, and when it suits him, he emphasizes that friends are permanently present to each other, even when separated by distance (cf. Letter 35). Thus Seneca explains here that when he says Fuisti here nobiscum, Lucilius should understand that Seneca is always with him, but yesterday in particular, when Seneca had friends over for a meal, Lucilius was present with all of them, just not physically.
Next, Seneca introduces a dynamic of wealth and luxury versus sufficiency and simplicity. Seneca trumpets the fact that the meal was not a no-expenses-spared extravaganza, the sort which worries the firefighters of Rome because of the great kitchen fires, but rather a modest meal with friends. Smoke is the metonymical device he uses to indicate that: a great deal of smoke from the kitchen would indicate a banquet (or a fire out of control), while a bit more smoke than usual merely indicates that more food is being prepared. Everyone knows that Seneca was rich as Croesus, and so this sort of talk of the wealthy versus the modest Seneca might be taken as Seneca exhibiting some insecurity about his ethical/philosophical credentials and whether he lives according to his own ideals, or it might even be seen as undermining his thought completely, if one is cynical and uncharitable. See Andrews, 'Did Seneca Practise the Ethics of His “Epistles”?'. Marcus Wilson’s summation is charitable and apt: “[Seneca] advocates neither poverty nor bad writing, but perceives a perversity in the pursuit of wealth and eloquence for their own sakes.” (Wilson, p. 437)
This and the following section is as close as Seneca gets to the sort of exchange of little pleasantries, news about activities, gossip, and other transactions which is often found in letters between friends.

[1] Fuisti here nobiscum. Potes queri, si here tantum; ideo adieci 'nobiscum'; mecum enim semper es. Intervenerant quidam amici propter quos maior fumus fieret, non hic qui erumpere ex lautorum culinis et terrere vigiles solet, sed hic modicus qui hospites venisse significet.

si here tantum (sc. dico or perhaps fuisti nobiscum): here is a quotation from the previous sentence: editors rarely use quotation marks in Latin texts, for some odd reason. This is a simple present open conditional: potes in the present indicative. For the more grammatically advanced: note that in exception to the normal rule the verb possum is used even in contrary-to-fact conditionals in the indicative (the contrary-to-factness is held to reside in the infinitive dependent on possum, and that infinitive cannot be made subjunctive), and so this conditional could be contrary to fact, in which case we would need to supply dicerem or fueris nobiscum not dico or fuisti nobiscum: because the verb is omitted, we cannot tell which type of conditional we have here. In meaning, they amount to much the same thing, however. Perhaps someone has devoted detailed study to this issue. | fumus: metonymy for fire. | Lautorum culinis: because food is one area where wealth could be vaunted and obvious, it is a fitting way to obliquely discuss wealth. Seneca seems to be drawing a comparison between himself and the wealthy, ironic considering Seneca's huge fortunes. But the wealthy need not be extravagant, and if one puts aside jealousy and resentment, it can be seen that the wealthy can be more or less virtuous, more or less moderate. | non hic ... sed hic: both occurrences of hic refer to fumus.

2.
Seneca describes the conversation over the meal as light, leading nowhere in particular, after which a reading from the work of Quintus Sextius occurred. Quintus Sextius the Elder was a Roman philosopher, fl. c. 50 BC who apparently worked in a Stoic and Pythagorean vein (both he and Pythagoras didn't eat meat, for instance). Most of what we know about Quintus Sextius comes from Seneca.
Note that although Cicero prides himself on bringing philosophy into Latin, there were evidently other Romans active in philosophy at the same time!

[2] Varius nobis fuit sermo, ut in convivio, nullam rem usque ad exitum adducens sed aliunde alio transiliens. Lectus est deinde liber Quinti Sextii patris, magni, si quid mihi credis, viri, et licet neget Stoici.

sermo: the subject of fuit and modified in the predicate by 5 items: 1) varius, 2) nobis (dative of ownership = noster), 3) ut in convivio (ut = "as"), 4) adducens, which takes nullam rem as direct object and is modified by usque ad exitum as an adverbial prepositional phrase, and 5) transiliens, which takes adverbial aliunde alio. In English, it may be best to translate the two participial phrases as finite verbs. | aliunde alio: remember that when two ali- forms occur in the same clause, there is a trick to the translation. For example,  alius aliud dicit means "different people say different things" or "one says one thing, another says another thing." | Lectus est ... Stoici: note the unusual placement of the verb at the beginning, which allows Stoici to take up the emphatic last position. While one cannot say what such a placement "means," it does add a certain feel to the prose, a certain artfulness and variety. | Quinti Sextii: Quintus Sextius is modified by the rest of the sentence, which identifies 4 significant qualities of the man: 1) patris, 2) magni, 3) (si quid mihi credis) viri, and 4) (licet neget) Stoici. | si quid mihi credis: a parenthetical clause that applies to viri. | quid: "after si, nisi, num and ne, all the ali-'s drop away." | licet neget: treat this clause as if it were in parentheses. licet is not the impersonal verb, but the conjunction "although," and it takes a subjunctive.

3. Seneca sings the praises of Quintus Sextius, particularly his vigor and protreptic effectiveness. Seneca is likely simply describing other philosophy as exanguia as a foil to highlight the motivational power of Quintus Sextius, rather than having some specific bloodless philosophers or works in mind. But it is not unreasonable to call some philosophy bloodless. After all, protreptic is just one genre of philosophy, and a preliminary at that, and once one is hooked, a good deal of hard work, not all of it thrilling, must be put in to bear philosophy's fruit.

Two clusters of verbs fire in rapid succession: first instituunt, disputant, cavillantur and non faciunt animum, in asyndeton (i.e. there are no connecting conjunctions). Likewise, legeris, dices, vivit, viget and est, separated by a word here and there, fired off in rapid succession, with vivit, viget, liber es in the center in asyndeton. The first cluster represents what Seneca criticizes in other philosophers: exanguia sunt. The second group exemplifies what Seneca likes in a philosopher—vigor, with the lively punctuating alliteration and assonance of vivit, viget, liber est particularly memorable. Dare we say that the form of Seneca's prose is imitating the content? that his prose is exemplifying vigor and conviction? Note also that in the sequence vivit, viget, liber est, supra hominem est, dimittit me plenum ingentis fiduciae, each element is longer than the last (a 'crescendo').

[3] Quantus in illo, di boni, vigor est, quantum animi! Hoc non in omnibus philosophis invenies: quorundam scripta clarum habentium nomen exanguia sunt. Instituunt, disputant, cavillantur, non faciunt animum quia non habent: cum legeris Sextium, dices, 'vivit, viget, liber est, supra hominem est, dimittit me plenum ingentis fiduciae'.

di boni: vocative. | quantum animi: animi is partitive genitive with quantum. | Hoc: acc. sg., refers to the qualities identified in the previous sentence. Whereas English teachers and professors tell us to avoid using "this" without identifying what it refers to in our prose, here a good Latin author does just that, not for the first or last time. | quorundam: Seneca politely refrains from naming these bores. Or perhaps he is merely creating an empty foil to highlight how excited he was by Quintus Sextius. Seneca uses quidam occasionally where we would like to know if he has particular people in mind: cf. the unnamed quidam of Letter 118 §§8,10, and 12. | quorundam scripta clarum habentium nomen: interlaced word order. scripta = subj. of sunt. clarum nomen is the direct object of quorundam habentium, which is possessive genitive dependent on scripta. | exanguia: = exsanguia, predicate nominative. | faciunt animum quia non habent (sc. animum): animum facere and animum habere are somewhat idiomatic, and mean something like "muster courage/passion/conviction" and "have courage/passion/confidence." cf. Livy ab Urbe Condita 25.23.17 animum faceret and Cic. ad Fam. 12.6.2.6  fac animum tantum habeas. The pointed antithesis adds to the feel of Seneca's style. | cum legeris Sextium, dices: the same grammatical pattern as a future more vivid conditional: future perfect, then future. | dices: direct quotation is used here, and the modern editor has used quotation marks to let us know that: Seneca brings Lucilius' voice to life in an "internal speech" (cf. Wilson, p. 432). | supra hominem: the stoics held that a sage is on the same level as the gods (save for being mortal).

[4] In qua positione mentis sim cum hunc lego fatebor tibi: libet omnis casus provocare, libet exclamare, 'quid cessas, fortuna? congredere: paratum vides'. Illius animum induo qui quaerit ubi se experiatur, ubi virtutem suam ostendat: spumantemque dari pecora inter inertia votis
 optat aprum aut fulvum descendere monte leonem.

sim: subjunctive in an Indirect Question with fatebor. | lego: indicative, which indicates that this cum clause is not part of the indirect question, because clauses subordinate to indirect questions are usually in the subjunctive. That pattern notwithstanding, the cum clause does make best sense as part of the question that is reported indirectly rather than as modifying fatebor. | libet: an impersonal verb, but that does not mean that the best English translation need be impersonal. "I want" is a fine idiomatic English translation. | Fortuna…vides: more internal speech. Seneca is fond of using personification to enliven his letters, and regularly addresses human anxieties, particularly Fortuna, “the enemy of philosophy” (Wilson, p. 434). Fortune is philosophy's enemy, because she throws pleasant and unpleasant things at the good and bad alike and so seems to make ethical living pointless. There is an undeniable vigor in this engagement; the direct question to Fortuna followed by the imperative is confrontational and violent. | cessas: from cesso, cessare, cessavi, cessatus. | congredere: imperative. | paratum vides: paratum modifies something as the object of vides: supply me (or maybe a word for "a person," virum would do). | ubi: ubi is a relative adverb, which makes these relative clauses of purpose (whence subjunctive). | spumantemque ... leonem: these are two accusative with infinitive constructions that are both objects of optat. The words are also a quotation from Vergil, Aeneid, iv.158 f. (Seneca quotes Virgil often). The passage from the Aeneid describes the boy Ascanius who seeks wilder, more savage game to challenge him. The metaphor builds until we learn what Seneca is after, the philosophical counterpart to the spumantem aprum or fulvum leonem.

5. One of Sextius' great attractions for Seneca is the ability to depict the happy life in a way that does not cause despair of ever attaining it. That is attractive, because a common criticism of stoicism is that there are no sages and it is impossible to become one, that the happy life of the stoic sage is a mirage. Seneca says that Sextius rises to that challenge and shows how the happy life is exalted but achievable.

[5] Libet aliquid habere quod vincam, cuius patientia exercear. Nam hoc quoque egregium Sextius habet, quod et ostendet tibi beatae vitae magnitudinem et desperationem eius non faciet: scies esse illam in excelso, sed volenti penetrabilem.

quod vincam, cuius patientia exercear: another pair of relative clauses of purpose (subjunctive). | cuius patientia: cuius is an objective genitive dependent on the ablative of means patientia. | hoc quoque egregium: refers to the quod clause that follows. | quod: "the fact that," "that" + indicative, used to present something as a fact. | desperationem eius non faciet: translate facio as "cause," "create." eius is an objective genitive that goes with desperationem and refers to vita beata from the previous clause.

[6] Hoc idem virtus tibi ipsa praestabit, ut illam admireris et tamen speres. Mihi certe multum auferre temporis solet contemplatio ipsa sapientiae; non aliter illam intueor obstupefactus quam ipsum interim mundum, quem saepe tamquam spectator novus video.

Hoc idem: acc. direct object. The nominal ut clause that follows is in apposition to hoc idem. The word idem "the same" is used because the ut clause matches the previous section's description of the good life as exalted but attainable. | Mihi certe ... sapientiae: the word order is far from English, which would be ipsa contemplatio (subject) + sapientiae (objective genitive) + solet auferre (main verb plus complementary infinitive) + multum temporis (direct object + partitive genitive) + mihi (indirect object "from me"). | spectator novus: in apposition to the subject in video, which would be ego if emphatically expressed.

[7] Veneror itaque inventa sapientiae inventoresque; adire tamquam multorum hereditatem iuvat. Mihi ista acquisita, mihi laborata sunt. Sed agamus bonum patrem familiae, faciamus ampliora quae accepimus; maior ista hereditas a me ad posteros transeat. Multum adhuc restat operis multumque restabit, nec ulli nato post mille saecula praecludetur occasio aliquid adhuc adiciendi.

Adquisita (sc. sunt). | mihi ... mihi: repetitions in asyndeton. Both are dative of advantage. | agamus ... faciamus: hortatory subjunctives. | transeat: jussive subjunctive. | adiciendi: gerund. Genitive of definition as in English "a matter of money" (the matter is money) or "a ring of gold" (the ring is gold). aliquid is direct object of adiciendi, and adhuc modifies it adverbially.

8. There is a fair bit of medical terminology here, but it seems to refer to well known matters rather than special technical matters. According to ancient theories, thinness and thickness of bodily humors as well as various excesses, abundances, strong qualities and weak qualities all figure into health. We don't need to understand more than that to get Seneca's points here.

[8] Sed etiam si omnia a veteribus inventa sunt, hoc semper novum erit, usus et inventorum ab aliis scientia ac dispositio. Puta relicta nobis medicamenta quibus sanarentur oculi: non opus est mihi alia quaerere, sed haec tamen morbis et temporibus aptanda sunt. Hoc asperitas oculorum collevatur; hoc palpebrarum crassitudo tenuatur; hoc vis subita et umor avertitur; hoc acuetur visus: teras ista oportet et eligas tempus, adhibeas singulis modum. Animi remedia inventa sunt ab antiquis; quomodo autem admoveantur aut quando nostri operis est quaerere.

hoc semper ... scientia ac dispositio: hoc, novum, scientia, and dispositio are nominative: usus is genitive. | Puta…medicamenta…: Seneca frequently uses medical metaphors in his writings (Summers, p. lxxviii). Puta is imperative, and is idiomatically similar to the phrase "take for example" in English. | sanarentur: relative clause of chraracteristic, perhaps specifically purpose. | temporibus: refers to the stages of a disease. | hoc ..., hoc ..., hoc ..., hoc ...: asyndeton and anaphora: stylistic contrivances. hoc is ablative. | aptanda sunt: future passive periphrastic, translated with a notion of obligation. | collevatur: OLD says "smooth" for collevo, but there are two verbs levo, one of which is "smooth" and the other is "lighten, ease." The second would make better sense here, and so perhaps should be in the OLD. | oportet: often takes a "semi-independent" subjunctive (teras, eligas and adhibeas here): by "semi-independent" is meant that there is no subordinating conjunction such as ut to introduce the subjunctive clause. | quomodo autem admoveantur aut quando: indirect questions dependent on quaerere, hence subjunctive. Understand admoveantur with both quomodo and quando. | nostri operis: predicate genitive after est (quaerere quomodo et quando adhibeantur is the subject of est).

[9] Multum egerunt qui ante nos fuerunt, sed non peregerunt. Suspiciendi tamen sunt et ritu deorum colendi. Quidni ego magnorum virorum et imagines habeam incitamenta animi et natales celebrem? quidni ego illos honoris causa semper appellem? Quam venerationem praeceptoribus meis debeo, eandem illis praeceptoribus generis humani, a quibus tanti boni initia fluxerunt.

egerunt: ago has myriad meanings. Here it just means "do." The per- in peregerunt makes it mean "do thoroughly." Note the pointed formulation. | suspiciendi ...sunt ... colendi: future passive paraphrastics. | quidni ... quidni: rhetorical questions with deliberative subjunctives habeam, celebrem and appellem. | magnorum virorum: genitive dependent on imagines and natales: note that the et ... et ... "both ... and ..." construction indicates to the reader that the genitive must go with both. | incitamenta animi: in apposition to imagines and natales. Consider: imaginem incitamentum habeo means "I consider the image a stimulus." | honoris causa: causa is a postpositive that takes the genitive.

10. Seneca makes a bit of a sudden leap at the end of the letter (as he often does: those who have read several Senecan letters know to expect that there might be such a surprise tidbit at the end). He talks of praetor and consul and the honor with which one treats them (interesting as a part of "everyday life" behavior). What does this have to do with what Seneca has been discussing? The next sentences tie it back to his heroes, the great figures of the past, whose discoveries he has been discussing. The effect is to further exalt them.

[10] Si consulem videro aut praetorem, omnia quibus honor haberi honori solet faciam: equo desiliam, caput adaperiam, semita cedam. Quid ergo? Marcum Catonem utrumque et Laelium Sapientem et Socraten cum Platone et Zenonem Cleanthenque in animum meum sine dignatione summa recipiam? Ego vero illos veneror et tantis nominibus semper assurgo. Vale.

Si ... faciam: future more vivid conditional with future perfect in the protasis (videro) and future in the apodoses (omnia faciam, ... desiliam, ... adaperiam, ... cedam. and perhaps recipiam much later). The three short phrases in asyndeton, equo desiliam, caput adaperiam, and semita cedam, are  in apposition to omnia faciam. | quibus honor haberi honori solet: grammatically, we have a dative of means quibus, subject honor, complementary infinitive haberi, dative of purpose honori, and main verb of relative clause solet. Stylistically, note the alliteration and repetition of honor in two different cases. Semantically, note that honor is used in close succession with two different meanings: "public office" and "honor, praise, respect." | Quid ergo: Seneca knows that he has seemingly changed the subject with the consul and praetor in the last sentence. Thus he asks, "What of it?" to heighten the impact of the point to come, which he then makes. | Marcum Catonem utrumque et Laelium sapientem: Marcus Cato the elder (234-149 BCE), a statesman and author, and Cato the Younger (95-46 BCE), his grandson, a stoic statesman. Gaius Laelius (c. 188-129 BCE), consul in 140 BCE. | Socraten cum Platone et Zenonem Cleanthenque: Socraten and Cleanthen are Greek accusatives (the Greek ending of the accusative of those names was a nu, which transliterates as n). Socrates (469-399 BCE) is considered the initiator of the Greek ethical philosophical tradition in which Seneca works. Plato (428-347BCE) is the author who delivers Socrates (Socrates himself wrote nothing). Zeno of Citium (334-262 BCE) is the founder of the Stoic school and its first head. Cleanthes (c. 330-c. 230 BCE) is Zeno's successor. | recipiam: future perhaps in parallel with the earler futures of the apodosis in the section's first sentence. Or perhaps a deliberative subjunctive. It amounts to the same thing in meaning.

References:

Andrews, Alfred C. “Did Seneca Practise the Ethics of His ‘Epistles’?” The Classical Journal, Vol. 25, No. 8 (May, 1930), 611—625.

Brennan, Tad, The Stoic Life: Emotions, Duties, and Fate. Clarendon Press: Oxford, 2005.

Coleman, Robert. “The Artful Moralist: A Study of Seneca’s Epistolary Style,” The Classical Quarterly, Vol. 24, No. 2 (Dec., 1974), 276—289.

Summers, Walter C., Select Letters of Seneca. St. Martin’s Press: New York, 1962.

Wilson, Marcus, “Rhetoric and the Younger Seneca,” in A Companion to Roman Rhetoric, edited by William Dominik and Jon Hall. Blackwell Publishing: Oxford, 2007, 425—438.

Vocabulary
accipio, accipere, accepi, acceptum, receive
acquiro, acquirere, acquisivi, acquisitum, obtain, procure, get
acuo, acuere, acui, acutum, rouse, sharpen, make keen
adaperio, adaperire, adaperui, adapertum, uncover, bare
adduco, adducere, adduxi, adductum, bring
adeo, adire, adivi, aditum, approach
adhibeo, adhibere, adhibui, adhibitum, apply, use, employ
adhuc, still, yet, up to this point, up to now
adicio, see adjicio
adjicio, adjicere, adjeci, adjectum, add
admiror (1), admire, be amazed at, wonder at
admoveo, admovere, admovi, admotum, apply, bring to bear on
ago, agere, egi, actum, perform, fill the role of; do
alio, adv., to another place, elsewhere
aliquid, adv. acc., at all
aliter, otherwise
aliunde, from elsewhere, from one place
amicus, -i, m., friend
amplius, -a, -um, ample
animus, -a, m., courage, confidence, spirit; spirit, soul
antiquus, -a, -um, ancient, old
aper, apris, m., boar
appello (1), appeal to, call upon
apto (1), adapt, fit, apply, adjust
asperitas, -atis, f., roughness, harshness, dryness
assurgo, assurgere, assurrexi, assurrectum, rise up, stand, give preference to, yield to (out of respect)
aufero, auferre, abstuli, ablatus, take away, remove
aut, or
autem, however
averto, avertere, averti, aversum, fend off, turn away, avert
beatus, -a, -um, blessed
bonus, -a, -um, good
caput, capitis, n., head
casus, -us, m., (mis)fortune, chance event
causa (postpositive, + gen.), for the sake of
cavillor (1), make insignificant points, quibble
cedo, cedere, cessi, cessum, yield
celebro (1), celebrate
certe, certainly
cesso (1), stop, cease
clarus, -a, -um, illustrious
collevo (1), make smooth; relieve?
colo, colerem colui, cultum, tend, take care of, cultivate
congredior, congredi, congressus sum, come meet, go meet, visit
consul, consulis, m., consul
contemplatio, -onis, f., consideration, contemplation
convivium, -i, n., dinner party, banquet
crassitudo, -inis, f., thickness
credo, credere, credidi, creditum, believe
culina, -ae, f., kitchen
debeo, deberem debui, debitum, owe
deinde, then, next
descendere
desilio, desilire, desilui, jump down
desperatio, -onis, f., lack of hope, despair
deus, dei, m., god
dignatio, -onis, f., esteem, regard, respect
dimitto, dimittere, dimisi, dimissum, send away, dismiss
dispositio, -onis, f., management, arrangement, ordering
do, dare, dedi, datus, give, grant
egregius, -a, -um, extraordinary
eligo, eligere, elegi, electum, choose, elect, select
enim, conj., for
equus, -i, m., horse
erumpo, erumpere, erupi eruptum, burst forth
exanguis, -e, bloodless, feeble, weak
excelsus, -a, -um, exalted ; in excelso in a high station, in a lofty place
exclamo (1), exclaim
exerceo, exercere, exercui, exercitum, XXXXXX
exitus, -i, m., conclusion
experior, experiri, expertus sum, test, try, prove
exsanguis (see exanguis)
familia, -ae, f., household
fateor, fateri, fassus sum, proclaim
fiducia, trust, belief, confidence, courage
fio, fieri, factus sum, come to be, happen
fluo, fluere, fluxi, fluxum, flow
fortuna, -ae, f., fortune, luck
fulvus, -a, -um, tawny
fumus, -i, m., smoke
genus, generis, n., race, kind
here, yesterday
hereditas, -atis, f., inheritance, heritage
honor, honoris, m., honor; public office
hospis, -hospitis, m., guest, visitor
humanus, -a, -um, human
idem, adv., likewise
ideo, therefore, so
imago, imaginis, f., image
incitamentum, -i, n., stimulus, incitement, inducement
induo, induere, indui, indutum, put on, assume, wear
iners, inertis, sluggish, idle
ingens, ingentis, huge, great
initium, -i, n., beginning
instituo, instituere, institui, institutum, set up, construct
inter (prep. + acc.) among, between
interim, sometimes; meanwhile
intervenio, intervenire, interveni, interventum, interrupt
intueor, intueri, intuitus sum, behold, look at
invenio, invenire, inveni, inventum, find, discover
inventor, -oris, m., discoverer
inventum, -i, n., invention, discovery, contrivance
itaque, thus
iuvat, it pleases, it is pleasing
laboro (1), elaborate, make, prepare
lautus,-a, -um, (perf, participle of lavo), elegant, refined
lego, legere, legi, lectus, read
leo, -leonis, m., lion
liber, libera, -um, free
liber, libri, m., book
libet, it is pleasing, one is of a mind to
licet, although
magnitudo, magnitudinis, f., size, extent
magnus, -a, -um, great, large
maior, maius, more, greater
medicamentum, -i, n., medicine, drug, remedy
mens, mentis, f., mind
mille (indeclinable adj. in the singular), a thousand
modicus, -a, -um, moderate
modus, -i, m., proper measure, the right amount
mons, montis, m., mountain
morbus, -i, n., disease, disorder
mundus, -i, m., world, universe
nam, conj., for
natalis, natalis, m., birthday
nego (1), deny
nomen, nominis, n., name, reputation, renown, and, by figurative shifts, title, authority; personage
novus, -a, -um, novel, new; inexperienced, new
obstupefacio, obstupefacere, obstupefeci, obstupefactum, astonish, astound, amaze
occasio, -onis, f., opportunity, fit time, occasion
oculus, -i, m., eye
oportet, oportere, oportui, it is necessary, it is proper, it is reasonable
opto (1), wish, desire
opus est (+ dat. of person + abl. of thing or infinitive), there is need of ..., (some person) needs (a thing/to X))
opus, operis, n., task, work, business
ostendo, ostendere, ostendi, ostensum, show
spumo (1), foam, froth
palpebra, -ae, f., eyelid
paratus, -a, um, ready
pater, patris, m., father
patientia, -ae, f., endurance, patience
pecus, -oris, n., livestock
penetrabilis, -e, enterable, attainable
perago, peragere, peregi, peractum, carry through, finish, accomplish
philosophus, -i, m., philosopher
plenus, -a, -um, full
positio, -onis, f., state, situation, state of mind
posteri, -orum, descendants
praeceptor, -oris, m., teacher
praecludo, praecludere, praeclusi, praeclusum, forbid access to, close to, shut to
praesto, praestare, praestiti, show, demonstrate
praetor, praetoris, m., a kind of Roman magistrate
propter (prep. +acc.), on account of, because of
provoco (1), appeal, challenge
puta (imperative of puto), as for instance, as for example, take for example
puto (1), think of, consider
quaero, quaerere ,quaesivi, quaesitum, seek, look for
quando, when
quantus, -a, um, how much
queror, queri, questus sum, complain
quid, if after si, nisi, num, or ne, = ali-quid
quid, why
quidam, quaedam, quoddam, certain, a/an, some
quidni, why not
quomodo, how, in what manner
quoque, too, also
recipio, recipere, recepi, receptum, accept, take in
relinquo, relinquere, reliqui, relictum, leave behind, bequeath, hand down
remedium, -i, n., cure, remedy
resto, restare, restiti, remain
ritus, -us, m., rite, ceremony
saeculum, -i, n., generation
saepe, often
sano (1), heal, cure
sapiens, sapientis, wise
sapientia, -ae, f., wisdom
scientia, -ae, f., knowledge
scio, scire, scivi, scitum, know
semita, -ae, f., narrow path
semper, always
sermo, -onis, m., conversation
significo (1), indicate
sine (+abl.), without
singuli, -ae, -a, one apiece, each, singly
soleo, solere, solui, solitum, be accustomed, be in the habit of
spectator, looker-on, spectator
spero (1), hope for
subitus, -a, -um, sudden
supra (+acc.), above, beyond
suspicio, suspicere, suspexi, suspectum, examine, look (up) at; be sceptical of; admire
tamen, nevertheless
tamquam, as if, as it were
tantum, adv., only
tempus, temporis, n., time (also used in Plural much as in English)
tenuo (1), attenuate, dilute
tero, terere, trivi, tritum, grind, rub
terreo, terrere, terrui, territum, scare, terrify
transeo, transire, transivi, transitum, go over, pass over
transilio, transilire, transilivi/-ui, hasten; leap
ubi, where
umor, -oris, m., fluid, liquid
usque, all the way (+ad)
usus, -us, m., use, employment, application
uterque, utraque, utrumque, each
vale/valete, farewell (from valeo, be strong, be well)
varius, -a, -um, varied
veneratio, -onis, f., admiration, respect
veneror (1), worship, revere
vetus, veteris, old, earlier, ancient
video, videre, vidi, visum, see
vigeo, vigere, be vigorous
vigil, vigilis, guard, watchman sentinel
vigor, -oris, m., strength
vinco, vincere, vici, victum, conquer
vir, -i, m., man
virtus, -utis, f., virtue, excellence
vis, (gen. sg. very rare), f. , force, shock, violence
visus, -us, m., sight
vita, -ae, f., life
vivo, vivere, vixi, victum, live
volens, volentis, (participle of volo)
votum, -i, n., prayer, vow