Latin conjugation

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Conjugation is the creation of derived forms of a verb from basic forms or principal parts. It may be affected by person, number, gender, tense, mood, voice or other language-specific factors. When, for example, we use a verb to function as the action done by a subject, most languages require conjugating the verb to reflect that meaning. (For more information on conjugation in general, see the article on grammatical conjugation.)

In Latin, there are four main patterns of conjugation composed of groups of verbs that are conjugated following similar patterns. As in other languages, Latin verbs have an active voice and a passive voice. Furthermore, there exist deponent and semi-deponent Latin verbs (verbs with a passive form but active meaning), as well as defective verbs (verbs with a perfect form but present meaning). Sometimes the verbs of the third conjugation with a present stem on -ǐ are regarded as a separate pattern of conjugation, and are called the fifth conjugation, so that it is said there are five main patterns of conjugation.

In a dictionary, Latin verbs are always listed with four principal parts which allow the reader to deduce the other conjugated forms of the verbs. These are:

  1. the first person singular of the present indicative active
  2. the present active infinitive
  3. the first person singular of the perfect indicative active
  4. the supine or, in some texts, the perfect passive participle, which is nearly always identical. Texts that commonly list the perfect passive participle use the future active participle for intransitive verbs. Some verbs lack this principal part altogether.

For simple verb paradigms, see the following pages: Latin 1st conjugation [4], Latin 2nd conjugation [5], Latin 3rd conjugation [6], Latin 4th conjugation [7]

Contents

[edit] Latin verb properties

Latin verbs have the following properties.

1. Two aspects—perfective (finished), imperfective (unfinished)
2. Two voices—active, passive
3. Three finite moods—indicative, subjunctive, imperative
4. Four non-finite forms—infinitive, gerund, participle, supine
5. Six tenses—
Present Perfect
Imperfect Pluperfect
Future Future Perfect
6. Two numbers—singular, plural
7. Three persons—first, second, third

[edit] The four conjugations

There exist four important systems of verb inflection. These are the four conjugations. However the grouping in conjugations is based solely on the behaviour of the verb in the present system, and the stems for other forms cannot be inferred from the present stem, which is why one has to know several forms to be able to produce the full range of Latin verbal forms. Most Latin verbs belong to one or other of these conjugations – the most important exception being esse, to be.

[edit] The first conjugation

Sister project Look up Appendix:Latin first conjugation in
Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The first conjugation is characterized by the vowel ā and can be recognized by the -āre ending of the present active infinitive. The principal parts usually adhere to one of the following patterns.

  • perfect with –vī
portō, portāre, portāvī, portātum — to carry, bring
amō, amāre, amāvī, amātum — to love, be fond of
—— All regular first conjugation verbs follow this pattern. ——
  • perfect with –uī
secō, secāre, secuī, sectum — to cut, divide
fricō, fricāre, fricuī, frictum — to rub
vetō, vetāre, vetuī, vetitum — to forbid, prohibit
  • perfect with –ī and stem vowel lengthening
lavō, lavāre, lāvī, lautum — to wash, bathe
iuvō, iuvāre, iūvī, iūtum — to help, assist
  • reduplicated perfect
stō, stāre, stetī, statum — to stand
dō, dare, dedī, datum – to give, bestow irregular

[edit] The second conjugation

Sister project Look up Appendix:Latin second conjugation in
Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The second conjugation is characterized by the vowel ē, and can be recognized by the -eō ending of the first person present indicative and the -ēre ending of the present active infinitive.

  • perfect with –uī
terreō, terrēre, terruī, territus — to frighten, deter
doceō, docēre, docuī, doctus — to teach, instruct
teneō, tenēre, tenuī, tentus — to hold, keep
—— All regular second conjugation verbs follow this pattern, though regular is a loose term for the 2nd through 4th conjugation. ——
  • perfect with –vī
dēleō, dēlēre, dēlēvī, dēlētus — to destroy, efface
cieō, ciēre, cīvī, citum — to arouse, stir
  • perfect with –sī and –xī
augeō, augēre, auxī, auctus — to increase, enlarge
iubeō, iubēre, iussī, iussus — to order, bid
  • reduplicated perfect with –ī
mordeō, mordēre, momordī, morsum — to bite, nip
spondeō, spondēre, spopondī, spōnsum — to vow, promise
  • perfect with –ī and vowel lengthening
videō, vidēre, vīdī, vīsus — to see, notice
foveō, fovēre, fōvī, fōtus — to caress, cherish
  • perfect with –ī only
strīdeō, strīdere, strīdī — to hiss, creak
ferveō, fervēre, fervī1 — to boil, seethe

1may be fervuī.

[edit] The third conjugation

Sister project Look up Appendix:Latin third conjugation in
Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The third conjugation is characterized by a short thematic vowel, which alternates between e, i, and u in different environments. Verbs of this conjugation end in an –ere in the present active infinitive. There is no one regular rule for constructing the perfect stem of third-conjugation verbs, but the following patterns are used.

  • perfect with –sī and –xī
carpō, carpere, carpsī, carptum — to pluck, select
trahō, trahere, trāxī, trāctum — to drag, draw
gerō, gerere, gessī, gestum — to wear, bear
flectō, flectere, flexī, flexum — to bend, twist
  • reduplicated perfect with –ī
currō, currere, cucurrī, cursum — to run, race
caedō, caedere, cecīdī, caesum — to kill, slay
tangō, tangere, tetigī, tāctum — to touch, hit
pellō, pellere, pepulī, pulsum — to beat, drive away
  • perfect with -vī
petō, petere, petīvī, petītum — to seek, attack
linō, linere, līvī, lītum — to smear, befoul
serō, serere, sēvī, satum — to sow, plant
terō, terere, trīvī, trītum — to rub, wear out
sternō, sternere, strāvī, strātum — to spread, stretch out
  • perfect with –ī and vowel lengthening
agō, agere, ēgī, āctum — to do, drive
legō, legere, lēgī, lēctum — to collect, read
emō, emere, ēmī, ēmptum — to buy, purchase
vincō, vincere, vīcī, victum — to conquer, master
fundō, fundere, fūdī, fūsum — to pour, utter
  • perfect with –ī only
īcō, īcere, īcī, īctum — to strike, smite
vertō, vertere, vertī, versum — to turn, alter
vīsō, visere, vīsī, vīsum — to visit
  • perfect with –uī
metō, metere, messuī, messum — to reap, harvest
vomō, vomere, vomuī, vomitum — to vomit
colō, colere, coluī, cultum — to cultivate, till
texō, texere, texuī, textum — to weave, plait
gignō, gignere, genuī, genitum — to beget, cause
  • present stem with a –u
minuō, minuere, minuī, minūtum — to lessen, diminish
ruō, ruere, ruī, rutum — to collapse, hurl down
struō, struere, strūxī, strūctum — to build, erect
  • verbs with –scō
nōscō, nōscere, nōvī, nōtum — to investigate, learn
adolēscō, adolēscere, adolēvī — to grow up, mature
flōrēscō, flōrēscere, flōruī — to begin to flourish, blossom
haerēscō, haerēscere, haesī, haesum — to adhere, stick
pāscō, pāscere, pāvī, pāstum — to feed, nourish

Intermediate between the third and fourth conjugation are the third-conjugation –iō verbs, discussed below.

[edit] The fourth conjugation

Sister project Look up Appendix:Latin fourth conjugation in
Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The fourth conjugation is characterized by the vowel ī and can be recognized by the -īre ending of the present active infinitive. The fourth conjugation verbs' principal parts generally adhere to the following patterns.

  • perfect with –vī
audiō, audīre, audīvī, audītus, a, um — to hear, listen (to)
muniō, munīre, munīvī, munītus, a, um — to fortify, build
—— All regular fourth conjugation verbs follow this pattern. ——
  • perfect with –uī
aperiō, aperīre, aperuī, apertum – to open, uncover
  • perfect with –sī and –xī
saepiō, saepīre, saepsī, saeptum – to surround, enclose
sanciō, sancīre, sānxī, sānctum – to confirm, ratify
sentiō, sentīre, sēnsī, sēnsum – to feel, perceive
  • perfect with –ī and vowel lengthening
veniō, venīre, vēnī, ventum – to come, arrive

[edit] Personal endings

Personal endings are used in all tenses. The present, imperfect, future, pluperfect and future perfect tenses use the same personal endings in the active voice. However, the perfect, pluperfect and future perfect do not have personal endings in the passive voice as these are formed by a participle and part of esse. The perfect tense uses its own personal endings in the active voice.

Active Passive
Singular Plural Singular Plural
Present etc First Person ō, m mus or, r mur
Second Person s tis ris (re) minī
Third Person t nt tur ntur
Active
Singular Plural
Perfect First Person ī imus
Second Person istī istis
Third Person it ērunt (ēre)

[edit] Imperfective aspect tenses

The tenses of the imperfective aspect, which are the present, imperfect and future tenses, express an action that has (or had) not been completed. The verbs used below for explanation are:

1st Conjugation: portō, portāre, portāvī, portātum — to carry, bring
2nd Conjugation: terreō, terrēre, terruī, territum — to frighten, deter
3rd Conjugation: petō, petere, petīvī, petītum — to seek, attack
4th Conjugation: audiō, audīre, audīvī, audītum – to hear, listen (to)

In all the conjugations except for the third conjugation, the –re is removed from the second principal part (for example, from portāre, portā is formed) to give the present stem, which is used for all of the tenses in the imperfective aspect. In the third conjugation, the -ō ending of the present indicative is dropped in order to obtain the present stem (for example, from regere, take the -ō off of the present indicative, regō, and the present stem is reg).[1] Occasionally, the terminating vowel of the stem is lengthened and/or shortened, and sometimes completely changed. This is especially so in the third conjugation and most conjugations in the subjunctive mood.

[edit] Present tense

The present tense (Latin tempus praesēns) is used to show an uncompleted action that happens in the current time. The present tense does not have a tense sign. Instead, the personal endings are added to the bare present stem. However, in this tense the thematical vowel, most notably the ě in the third conjugation, changes the most frequently.

[edit] Indicative present

The indicative present expresses general truths, facts, demands and desires. Most commonly, a verb like portō can be translated as "I carry," "I do carry," or "I am carrying."

  • In all but the third conjugation, the thematical vowel of the stem is only used. In the third conjugation, the e is only used in the second person singular in the passive for a less difficult pronunciation. Otherwise, it becomes either an i or u.
  • The first person singular of the indicative active present is the first principal part. All end in –ō.
Indicative Active Present
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portō portāmus terreō terrēmus petō petimus audiō audīmus
Second Person portās portātis terrēs terrētis petis petitis audīs audītis
Third Person portat portant terret terrent petit petunt audit audiunt

Add the passive endings to form the passive voice. The passive portor can be translated as "I am carried," or "I am being carried."

Indicative Passive Present
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portor portāmur terreor terrēmur petor petimur audior audīmur
Second Person portāris portāminī terrēris terrēminī peteris petiminī audīris audīminī
Third Person portātur portantur terrētur terrentur petitur petuntur audītur audiuntur

Notice that in the second person singular of petere, the thematic vowel is e (peteris, not petiris).

[edit] Subjunctive present

The subjunctive present may be used to assert many things. In general, in independent sentences, it is translated hortatorily (only in the third person plural), jussively and optatively. Portem can be translated as "Let me carry." or "May I carry." Portēmus can be "Let us carry."

Some alterations have occurred in the vowels from the indicative and subjunctive.

  • The first conjugation now uses an e and an ē.
  • The second conjugation uses ea and eā.
  • In the third conjugation, all thematicals have become either a or ā.
  • The fourth conjugation now has either ia or iā.

"We eat caviar" is a helpful mnemonic for remembering this. First conjugation verbs have an "e" in their stem (we), second conjugation verbs have an "-ea" (eat), third conjugation verbs have an "a" (caviar), and fourths have an "ia" (caviar). Other acceptable mnemonics include she reads a diary, he beats a liar, everybody eats apple iambics, or let’s steal a fiat.

Subjunctive Active Present
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portem portēmus terream terreāmus petam petāmus audiam audiāmus
Second Person portēs portētis terreās terreātis petās petātis audiās audiātis
Third Person portet portent terreat terreant petat petant audiat audiant

Like the indicative, active personal endings may be replaced by passive personal endings. Porter can be translated as "Let me be carried" or "May I be carried." Hortatorily, Portēmur can be "Let us be carried."

Subjunctive Passive Present
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person porter portēmur terrear terreāmur petar petāmur audiar audiāmur
Second Person portēris portēminī terreāris terreāminī petāris petāminī audiāris audiāminī
Third Person portētur portentur terreātur terreantur petātur petantur audiātur audiantur

[edit] Imperative present

The imperative in the present conveys commands, pleas and recommendations. Portā can be translated as "(You) Carry" or simply, "Carry." The imperative present occurs only in the second person.

  • The second person singular in the active voice uses only the bare stem, and does not add an imperative ending.
Imperative Active Present
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
Second Person portā portāte terrē terrēte pete petite audī audīte

The imperative present of the passive voice is rarely used. Portāminī can be translated as "(You) Be carried" or "Be carried."

  • The singular uses the present active infinitive and the plural uses the present passive indicative form of the second person plural.
Imperative Passive Present
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
Second Person portāre portāminī terrēre terrēminī petere petiminī audīre audīminī

[edit] Imperfect tense

The imperfect tense (Latin tempus imperfectum) indicates a perpetual, but incomplete action in the past. It is recognized by the tense signs bǎ and bā in the indicative, and re and rē in the subjunctive.

[edit] Indicative imperfect

In the indicative mood, the imperfect simply express an action in the past that was not completed. Portābam can be translated to mean, "I was carrying," "I kept carrying," or "I used to carry."

  • In the indicative, the imperfect employs its tense signs ba and bā before personal endings are added.
Indicative Active Imperfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portābam portābāmus terrēbam terrēbāmus petēbam petēbāmus audiēbam audiēbāmus
Second Person portābās portābātis terrēbās terrēbātis petēbās petēbātis audiēbās audiēbātis
Third Person portābat portābant terrēbat terrēbant petēbat petēbant audiēbat audiēbant

As with the present tense, active personal endings are taken off, and passive personal endings are put in their place. Portābar can be translated as "I was being carried," "I kept being carried," or "I used to be carried."

Indicative Passive Imperfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portābar portābāmur terrēbar terrēbāmur petēbar petēbāmur audiēbar audiēbāmur
Second Person portābāris portābāminī terrēbāris terrēbāminī petēbāris petēbāminī audiēbāris audiēbāminī
Third Person portābātur portābantur terrēbātur terrēbantur petēbātur petēbantur audiēbātur audiēbantur

[edit] Subjunctive imperfect

In the subjunctive, the imperfect tense is quite important, especially in subordinate clauses. Independently, it is largely translated conditionally. Portārem can mean, "I should carry," or "I would carry."

  • Unlike the indicative, the subjunctive does not modify the thematic vowel. The third conjugation's thematical remains short as an e, and the fourth conjugation does not use an iē before the imperfect signs. It keeps its ī.
  • In the subjunctive, the imperfect employs its tense signs re and rē before personal endings.
  • The verb esse (to be) has two subjunctive imperfects: one using the present infinitive (essem, esses, esset, essemus, essetis, essent) and one using the future infinitive (forem, fores, foret, foremus, foretis, forent).
Subjunctive Active Imperfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portārem portārēmus terrērem terrērēmus peterem peterēmus audīrem audīrēmus
Second Person portārēs portārētis terrērēs terrērētis peterēs peterētis audīrēs audīrētis
Third Person portāret portārent terrēret terrērent peteret peterent audīret audīrent

As with the indicative subjunctive, active endings are removed, and passive endings are added. Portārer may be translated as "I should be carried," or "I would be carried."

Subjunctive Passive Imperfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portārer portārēmur terrērer terrērēmur peterer peterēmur audīrer audīrēmur
Second Person portārēris portārēminī terrērēris terrērēminī peterēris peterēminī audīrēris audīrēminī
Third Person portārētur portārentur terrērētur terrērentur peterētur peterentur audīrētur audīrentur

[edit] Future tense

The future tense (Latin tempus futūrum simplex) expresses an uncompleted action in the future. It is recognized by its tense signs bō, bi, bu, e and ē in the indicative and the vowel ō in the imperative mood.

[edit] Indicative future

The future tense always refers to an incomplete action. In addition, the future tense is stricter in usage temporally in Latin than it is in English. Standing alone, portābō can mean, "I shall carry," or "I will carry." Remember that "shall" and "will" are only used in the first person. All other persons only use "will" in the indicative.

  • The first and second conjugations use bō, bi and bu as signs for the future indicative.
  • The third and fourth conjugations replace their thematicals with a, ě and ē. The fourth conjugation inserts an ǐ before the a, e and ē.
Indicative Active Future
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portābō portābimus terrēbō terrēbimus petam petēmus audiam audiēmus
Second Person portābis portābitis terrēbis terrēbitis petēs petētis audiēs audiētis
Third Person portābit portābunt terrēbit terrēbunt petet petent audiet audient

As with all imperfective system tenses, active personal endings are removed, and passive personal endings are put on. Portābor translates as, "I shall be carried."

Indicative Passive Future
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portābor portābimur terrēbor terrēbimur petar petēmur audiar audiēmur
Second Person portāberis portābiminī terrēberis terrēbiminī petēris petēminī audiēris audiēminī
Third Person portābitur portābuntur terrēbitur terrēbuntur petētur petentur audiētur audientur

Notice that the penultimate vowel in the second person singular of portāre and terrēre is e, not i (portāberis and terrēberis, instead of the expected portābiris and terrēbiris).

[edit] Imperative future

The so-called future imperative was an archaic and formal form of the imperative; by the classical period, it was chiefly used in legal documents and the like. A few irregular or defective verbs (esse 'be', meminisse 'remember') used this form as their only imperative.

Portātō can be translated as "You shall carry".

  • As mentioned previously, the vowel ō is used as a sign of the future imperative.
Imperative Active Future
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
Second Person portātō portātōte terrētō terrētōte petitō petitōte audītō audītōte
Third Person portātō portantō terrētō terrentō petitō petuntō audītō audiuntō

The letter R is used to designate the passive voice in the future imperative. The second person plural is absent here. Portātor translates as "You shall be carried."

Imperative Passive Future
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
Second Person portātor —— terrētor —— petitor —— audītor ——
Third Person portātor portantor terrētor terrentor petitor petuntor audītor audiuntor

[edit] Perfective aspect tenses

The tenses of the perfective aspect, which are the perfect, pluperfect and future perfect tenses, are used to express actions that have been completed. The verbs used for explanation are:

1st Conjugation: portō, portāre, portāvī, portātum — to carry, bring
2nd Conjugation: terreō, terrēre, terruī, territum — to frighten, deter
3rd Conjugation: petō, petere, petīvī, petītum — to seek, attack
4th Conjugation: audiō, audīre, audīvī, audītum – to hear, listen (to)

For all conjugations, the –ī is removed from the third principal part. For example, from portāvī, portāv is formed. This is the perfect stem, and it is used for all of the tenses in the perfective aspect. The perfective aspect verbs also use the perfect passive participle in the passive voice. See below to see how it is formed. Along with these participles, the verb esse, which means, "to be", is used.

Unlike the imperfective aspect, inflection does not deviate from conjugation to conjugation.

[edit] Perfect tense

The perfect tense (Latin tempus perfectum) refers to an action completed in the past. Tense signs are only used in this tense with the indicative. The tense signs of the subjunctive are eri and erī.

[edit] Indicative perfect

The indicative perfect expresses a finished action in the past. If the action were not finished, but still lies in the past, one would use the imperfect tense. Portāvī is translated as "I carried," "I did carry," or "I have carried."

  • As aforementioned, the indicative perfect in the active voice has its special personal endings.
Indicative Active Perfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portāvī portāvimus terruī terruimus petīvī petīvimus audīvī audīvimus
Second Person portāvistī portāvistis terruistī terruistis petīvistī petīvistis audīvistī audīvistis
Third Person portāvit portāvērunt terruit terruērunt petīvit petīvērunt audīvit audīvērunt

In the passive voice, the perfect passive participle is used with the auxiliary verb esse. It uses the indicative present form of esse. Portātus sum translates as "I was carried," or "I have been carried."

Indicative Passive Perfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portātus sum portātī sumus territus sum territī sumus petītus sum petītī sumus audītus sum audītī sumus
Second Person portātus es portātī estis territus es territī estis petītus es petītī estis audītus es audītī estis
Third Person portātus est portātī sunt territus est territī sunt petītus est petītī sunt audītus est audītī sunt

[edit] Subjunctive perfect

Like the subjunctive imperfect, the subjunctive perfect is largely used in subordinate clauses. Independently, it is usually translated as the potential subjunctive. By itself, portāverim translates as "I may have carried."

  • The tense signs eri and erī are used before the personal endings are added.
Subjunctive Active Perfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portāverim portāverīmus terruerim terruerīmus petīverim petīverīmus audīverim audīverīmus
Second Person portāverīs portāverītis terruerīs terruerītis petīverīs petīverītis audīverīs audīverītis
Third Person portāverit portāverint terruerit terruerint petīverit petīverint audīverit audīverint

The passive voice uses the perfect passive participle with the subjunctive present forms of esse. Portātus sim means, "I may have been carried."

Subjunctive Passive Perfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portātus sim portātī sīmus territus sim territī sīmus petītus sim petītī sīmus audītus sim audītī sīmus
Second Person portātus sīs portātī sītis territus sīs territī sītis petītus sīs petītī sītis audītus sīs audītī sītis
Third Person portātus sit portātī sint territus sit territī sint petītus sit petītī sint audītus sit audītī sint

[edit] Pluperfect tense

The pluperfect tense (Latin tempus plūs quam perfectum) expresses an action which was completed before another completed action. It is recognized by the tense signs era and erā in the indicative and isse and issē in the subjunctive.

[edit] Indicative pluperfect

As with English, in Latin, the indicative pluperfect is used to assert an action that was completed before another (perfect tense). Portāveram translates as "I had carried."

  • The tense sign erā is employed before adding the personal endings, with the long ā following the usual rules for shortening before final -m, -t, and -nt.
Indicative Active Pluperfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portāveram portāverāmus terrueram terruerāmus petīveram petīverāmus audīveram audīverāmus
Second Person portāverās portāverātis terruerās terrurerātis petīverās petīverātis audīverās audīverātis
Third Person portāverat portāverant terruerat terruerant petīverat petīverant audīverat audīverant

In the passive voice, the present passive participle is utilized with esse in the indicative imperfect. Portātus eram is translated as "I had been carried."

Indicative Passive Pluperfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portātus eram portātī erāmus territus eram territī erāmus petītus eram petītī erāmus audītus eram audītī erāmus
Second Person portātus erās portātī erātis territus erās territī erātis petītus erās petītī erātis audītus erās audītī erātis
Third Person portātus erat portātī erant territus erat territī erant petītus erat petītī erant audītus erat audītī erant

[edit] Subjunctive pluperfect

The subjunctive pluperfect is to the subjunctive perfect as the subjunctive imperfect is to the subjunctive present. Simply put, it is used with the subjunctive perfect in subordinate clauses. Like the subjunctive imperfect, it is translated conditionally independently. Portāvissem is translated as "I should have carried," or "I would have carried."

  • The tense signs isse and issē are used before the personal endings.
Subjunctive Active Pluperfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portāvissem portāvissēmus terruissem terruissēmus petīvissem petīvissēmus audīvissem audīvissēmus
Second Person portāvissēs portāvissētis terruissēs terruissētis petīvissēs petīvissētis audīvissēs audīvissētis
Third Person portāvisset portāvissent terruisset terruissent petīvisset petīvissent audīvisset audīvissent

As always, the passive voice uses the perfect passive participle. The subjunctive imperfect of esse is used here. Portātus essem may mean "I should have been carried," or "I could have been carried," in the conditional sense.

Subjunctive Passive Pluperfect
portāre terrēre
Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portātus essem portātī essēmus territus essem territī essēmus
Second Person portātus essēs portātī essētis territus essēs territī essētis
Third Person portātus esset portātī essent territus esset territī essent
petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person petītus essem petītī essēmus audītus essem audītī essēmus
Second Person petītus essēs petītī essētis audītus essēs audītī essētis
Third Person petītus esset petītī essent audītus esset audītī essent

[edit] Future perfect tense

The least used of all the tenses, the future perfect tense (Latin tempus futūrum exāctum) conveys an action that will have been completed before another action. It is signified by the tense signs erō and eri. The future perfect tense is the only tense that occurs in a single mood.

[edit] Indicative future perfect

As said, the future perfect is used to mention an action that will have been completed in futurity before another action. It is often used with the future tense. In simple translation, portāverō means, "I will have carried," or "I shall have carried."

  • The tense signs erō and eri are used before the personal endings.
Indicative Active Future Perfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portāverō portāverimus terruerō terruerimus petīverō petīverimus audīverō audīverimus
Second Person portāveris portāveritis terrueris terrueritis petīveris petīveritis audīveris audīveritis
Third Person portāverit portāverint terruerit terruerint petīverit petīverint audīverit audīverint

As with all perfective aspect tenses, the perfect passive participle is used in the passive voice. However, the future perfect uses the indicative future of esse as the auxiliary verb. Portātus erō is "I will have been carried," or "I shall have been carried."

Indicative Passive Future Perfect
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person portātus erō portātī erimus territus erō territī erimus petītus erō petītī erimus audītus erō audītī erimus
Second Person portātus eris portātī eritis territus eris territī eritis petītus eris petītī eritis audītus eris audītī eritis
Third Person portātus erit portātī erunt territus erit territī erunt petītus erit petītī erunt audītus erit audītī erunt

[edit] Non-finite forms

The non-finite forms of verbs are participles, infinitives, supines, gerunds and gerundives. The verbs used are:

1st Conjugation: portō, portāre, portāvī, portātum — to carry, bring
2nd Conjugation: terreō, terrēre. terruī, territum — to frighten, deter
3rd Conjugation: petō, petere, petīvī, petītum — to seek, attack
4th Conjugation: audiō, audīre, audīvī, audītum – to hear, listen (to)

[edit] The participles

See also: Participle

There are three participles: present active, perfect passive and future active.

  • The present active participle is declined like a third declension adjective with one ending.
    • In the first and second conjugations, the present active infinitive is formed by taking the present stem and adding an –ns. The genitive singular form adds an –ntis, and the thematicals ā and ē are shortened.
    • In the third conjugation, the e of the present stem is lengthened. In the genitive, the ē is short again.
    • In the fourth conjugation, the ī is shortened, and an ē is placed. Of course, this ē is short in the genitive.
    • Puer portāns translates into "carrying boy."
  • The perfect passive participle is declined like a first and second declension adjective.
    • In all conjugations, the perfect participle is formed by taking the –um from the supine, and adding a –us (masculine nominative singular).
    • Puer portātus translates into "carried boy."
  • The future active participle is declined like a first and second declension adjective.
    • In all conjugations the –um is removed from the supine, and an –ūrus (masculine nominative singular) is added.
    • Puer portātūrus translates into "boy about to carry," or "boy who is about to carry."
Participles
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Present Active portāns, –antis terrēns, –entis petēns, –entis audiēns, –entis
Perfect Passive portātus, –a, –um territus, –a, –um petītus, –a, –um audītus, –a, –um
Future Active portātūrus, –a, –um territūrus, –a, –um petītūrus, –a, –um audītūrus, –a, –um

[edit] The infinitives

See also: Infinitive

There are six infinitives. They are in the present active, present passive, perfect active, perfect passive, future active and future passive.

  • The present active infinitive is the second principal part (in regular verbs). It plays an important role in the syntactic construction of Accusativus cum infinitivo, for instance.
    • Portāre means, "to carry."
  • The present passive infinitive is formed by adding a –rī to the present stem. This is only so for the first, second and fourth conjugations. In the third conjugation, the thematical vowel, e, is taken from the present stem, and an –ī is added.
    • Portārī translates into "to be carried."
  • The perfect active infinitive is formed by adding an –isse onto the perfect stem.
    • Portāvisse translates into "to have carried."
  • The perfect passive infinitive uses the perfect passive participle along with the auxiliary verb esse. The perfect passive infinitive must agree with what it is describing in number and gender.
    • Portātus esse means, "to have been carried."
  • The future active infinitive uses the future active participle with the auxiliary verb esse.
    • Portātūrus esse means, "to be going to carry." The future active infinitive must agree with what it is describing in number and gender.
    • Esse has two future infinitives: futurus esse and fore.
  • The future passive infinitive uses the supine with the auxiliary verb īrī.
    • Portātum īrī is translated as "to be going to be carried." This is normally used in indirect speech. For example: Omnēs senātōres dīxērunt templum conditum īrī. "All of the senators said that a temple would be built."
Infinitives
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Present Active portāre terrēre petere audīre
Present Passive portārī terrērī petī audīrī
Perfect Active portāvisse terruisse petīvisse audīvisse
Perfect Passive portātus esse territus esse petītus esse audītus esse
Future Active portātūrus esse territūrus esse petītūrus esse audītūrus esse
Future Passive portātum īrī territum īrī petītum īrī audītum īrī
Here, masculine endings are used.

[edit] The supine

See also: Supine

The supine is the fourth principal part. It resembles a masculine noun of the fourth declension. Supines only occur in the accusative and ablative cases.

  • The accusative form ends in a –um, and is used with a verb of motion in order to show the purpose. Thus, it is only used with verbs like cedere, venīre, etc. The accusative form of a supine can also take an object if needed.
    • Pater vēnit portātum līberōs suōs. — The father came to carry his children.
  • The ablative, which ends in a –ū, is used with the Ablative of Specification.
    • Arma haec facillima portātū erant. — These arms were the easiest to carry.
Supine
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Accusative portātum territum petītum audītum
Ablative portātū territū petītū audītū

[edit] The gerund

See also: Gerund

The gerund is formed similarly to the present active participle. However, the –ns becomes an –ndus, and the preceding ā or ē is shortened. Gerunds are neuter nouns of the second declension, but the nominative case is not present. The gerund is a noun, meaning "the act of doing (the verb)", and forms a suppletive paradigm to the infinitive which cannot be declined.

  • Portandī can mean, "of carrying." Portandō (dative) can mean, "to carrying." Portandum can simply mean, "carrying." Portandō (ablative) can mean, "by carrying," "in respect to carrying," etc.
Gerund
portāre terrēre petere audīre
Genitive portandī terrendī petendī audiendī
Dative portandō terrendō petendō audiendō
Accusative portandum terrendum petendum audiendum
Ablative portandō terrendō petendō audiendō
Locative portandō terrendō petendō audiendō

One common use of the gerund is with the preposition in to indicate purpose. For example paratus ad oppugnandum could be translated as "ready to attack". However the gerund was avoided when an object was introduced, and a passive construction with the gerundive was preferred. For example for "ready to attack the enemy" the construction paratus ad hostes oppugnandos is preferred over paratus ad hostes oppugnandum[2].

[edit] The gerundive

See also: Gerundive

The gerundive is the passive equivalent of the gerund, and much more common in Latin. It is a first and second declension adjective, and means, “(the verb) being done”. Often, the gerundive is used with an implicit esse, to show obligation.

  • Puer portandus “(the) Boy who should be carried.” Amanda means “She who must be loved.”
  • Oratio laudenda est means, “The speech has to be praised.” In such constructions a substantive in dative may be used to name the agens of the obligation (dativus auctoris), like in Oratio nobis laudenda est meaning “The speech has to be praised by us” or “We have to praise the speech”.
Gerundive
portāre terrēre petere audīre
portandus, –a, –um terrendus, –a, –um petendus, –a, –um audiendus, –a, –um

[edit] Periphrastic conjugations

There are two periphrastic conjugations. One is active, and the other is passive.

[edit] Active

The first periphrastic conjugation uses the future participle. It is combined with the forms of esse. It is translated as "I am going to carry," "I was going to carry", etc.

Conjugation Translation
Pres. Ind. portātūrus sum I am going to carry
Imp. Ind. portātūrus eram I was going to carry
Fut. Ind. portātūrus erō I will be going to carry
Perf. Ind. portātūrus fuī I have been going to carry
Plup. Ind. portātūrus fueram I had been going to carry
Fut. Perf. Ind. portātūrus fuerō I will have been going to carry
Pres. Subj. portātūrus sim I may be going to carry
Imp. Subj. portātūrus essem I should be going to carry
Perf. Subj. portātūrus fuerim I may have been going to carry
Plup. Subj. portātūrus fuissem I should have been going to carry

[edit] Passive

The second periphrastic conjugation uses the gerundive. It is combined with the forms of esse and expresses necessity. It is translated as "I am to be carried," "I was to be carried", etc., or as "I have to (must) be carried," "I had to be carried," etc.

Conjugation Translation
Pres. Ind. portandus sum I am to be carried
Imp. Ind. portandus eram I was to be carried
Fut. Ind. portandus erō I will deserve to be carried
Perf. Ind. portandus fuī I was to be carried
Plup. Ind. portandus fueram I had deserved to be carried
Fut. Perf. Ind. portandus fuerō I will have deserved to be carried
Pres. Subj. portandus sim I may deserve to be carried
Imp. Subj. portandus essem I should deserve to be carried
Perf. Subj. portandus fuerim I may have deserved to be carried
Plup. Subj. portandus fuissem I should have deserved to be carried
Pres. Inf. portandus esse To deserve to be carried
Perf. Inf. portandus fuisse To have deserved to be carried

[edit] Peculiarities within conjugation and non-finite forms

[edit] Irregular verbs

There are a few irregular verbs in Latin that are not grouped into a particular conjugation (such as esse and posse), or deviate slightly from a conjugation (such as ferre, īre, and dare). It consists of the following list and their compounds (such as conferre). Many irregular verbs lack a fourth principal part.

sum, esse, fuī, futūrus — to be, exist
possum, posse[8], potuī — to be able, can
eō, īre, īvī / īī, ītum — to go
volō, velle, voluī — to wish, want
nōlō, nōlle, nōluī — to be unwilling, refuse
mālō, mālle, māluī — to prefer
ferō, ferre, tulī, lātum — to bear, endure
fiō, fīerī, factus sum — to become, happen
edō, ēsse, ēdī, ēsum – to eat, waste
dō, dare, dedī, datum — to give, bestow

[edit] Deponent and semi-deponent verbs

Deponent verbs are verbs that are passive in form (that is, conjugated as though in the passive voice) but active in meaning. These verbs have only three principal parts, since the perfect tenses of ordinary passives are formed periphrastically with the perfect participle, which is formed on the same stem as the supine. Some example coming from all conjugations are:

1st Conjugation: mīror, mīrārī, mīrātus sum — to admire, wonder
2nd Conjugation: polliceor, pollicērī, pollicitus sum — to promise, offer
3rd Conjugation: loquor, loquī, locūtus sum — to speak, say
4th Conjugation: orior, orīrī, ortus sum – to rise, spring up

Deponent verbs use active conjugations for tenses that do not exist in the passive: the gerund, the supine, the present and future participles and the future infinitive. They cannot be used in the passive themselves, and their analogues with "active" form do not in fact exist: one cannot directly translate "The word is said" with any form of loquī, and there are no forms like loquō, loquis, loquit, etc.

Semi-deponent verbs form their imperfective aspect tenses in the manner of ordinary active verbs; but their perfect tenses are built periphrastically like deponents and ordinary passives; thus semideponent verbs have a perfect active participle instead of a perfect passive participle. An example:

audeō, audēre, ausus sum — to dare, venture

Note: In the Romance languages, which lack deponent or passive verb forms, the Classical Latin deponent verbs either disappeared (being replaced with non-deponent verbs of a similar meaning) or changed to a non-deponent form. For example, in Spanish and Italian, mīrārī changed to mirar(e) by changing all the verb forms to the previously nonexistent "active form", and audeō changed to osar(e) by taking the participle ausus and making an -ar(e) verb out of it (note that au went to o).

[edit] Third conjugation –iō verbs

There is a rather prolific subset of important verbs within the third conjugation. They have an –iō present in the first principal part (–ior for deponents), and resemble the fourth conjugation in some forms. Otherwise, they are still conjugated as normal, third conjugation verbs. Thus, these verbs are called third conjugation –iō verbs or third conjugation i-stems. Some examples are:

capiō, capere, cēpī, captum — to take, seize
cupiō, cupere, cupīvī, cupītum — to desire, long for
faciō, facere, fēcī, factum - to do, make
morior, morī[9], mortuus sum (dep.) — to die, decay
patior, patī, passus sum (dep.) — to suffer, undergo
rapiō, rapere, rapuī, raptum - to plunder, take up

They resemble the fourth conjugation in the following instances.

Indicative present (first person singular, third person plural) — capiō, capiunt, etc.
Indicative imperfect — capiēbam, capiēbāmus, etc.
Indicative future — capiam, capiēmus, etc.
Subjunctive present — capiam, capiāmus, etc.
Imperative future (third person plural) — capiuntō, etc.
Present Active Participle — capiēns, –entis
Gerund — capiendī, capiendum, etc.
Gerundive — capiendus, –a, –um

[edit] Defective verbs

Defective verbs are verbs that are only conjugated in only some instances.

  • Some verbs are only conjugated in the perfective aspect's tenses, yet have the imperfective aspect's tenses' meanings. As such, the perfect becomes the present, the pluperfect becomes the imperfect, and the future perfect becomes the future. Therefore, the defective verb ōdī means, "I hate." These defective verbs' principal parts are given in vocabulary with the indicative perfect in the first person and the perfect active infinitive. Some examples are:
ōdī, ōdisse — to hate
meminī, meminisse — to remember
coepī, coepisse — to have begun
  • A few verbs, the meanings of which usually have to do with speech, only appear in certain occurrences.
Cedo (plur. cette), which means "Hand it over" or "Out with it" is only in the imperative mood, and only is used in the second person.

The following are conjugated irregularly:

[edit] āiō — I affirm, state

Conjugation of āiō
Indicative
Present		 Indicative
Imperfect		 Subjunctive
Present
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person āiō —— āiēbam āiēbāmus —— ——
Second Person aīs —— āiēbās āiēbātis āias* ——
Third Person aīt āiunt āiēbat āiēbant āiat āiant*
Present Active Participle: — āiēns, –entis
  • Some sources[who?] do not list these parts.

[edit] inquam — I say

Conjugation of inquam
Indicative
Present		 Indicative
Future		 Indicative
Perfect		 Indicative
Imperfect
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person inquam inquimus[3] —— —— inquii[4] —— —— ——
Second Person inquis —— inquiēs inquisti[5] —— —— —— ——
Third Person inquit inquiunt inquiet —— inquit —— inquiebat[10] ——

[edit] fārī — to speak

Conjugation of fārī
Indicative
Present		 Indicative
Future		 Indicative
Perfect		 Indicative
Pluperfect		 Imperative
Present
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
First Person for —— fābor —— fātus sum —— fātus eram —— —— ——
Second Person —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— fāre ——
Third Person fātur fantur fābitur —— —— —— —— —— —— ——
Imperative - fare
Present Active Participle — fāns, fantis
Present Active Infinitive — fārī
Present Passive Infinitive - farier
Supine — (acc.) fātum, (abl.) fātū
Gerund — (gen.) fandī, (dat. and abl.) fandō, no accusative
Gerundive — fandus, –a, –um

The Romance languages lost many of these verbs, but others (such as ōdī and the imperative cedo) survived but became regular fully conjugated verbs (in Italian, odiare, cedere).

[edit] Impersonal verbs

Impersonal verbs are those lacking a person. In English impersonal verbs are usually used with the neuter pronoun "it" (as in "It seems," or "It storms"). Latin uses the third person singular. These verbs lack a fourth principal part. A few examples are:

pluit, pluere, pluvit — to rain (it rains)
ningit, ningere, ninxit[11] — to snow (it snows)
oportet, oportēre, oportuit — to be proper (it is proper, one should/ought to)

The third person forms of esse may also be impersonal:

Nox aestīva calida fuit. — It was a hot, summer night.
Est eī quī terram colunt. — It is they who till the land.

[edit] Irregular future active participles

As stated, the future active participle is normally formed by removing the –um from the supine, and adding a –ūrus. However, some deviations occur.

present
active
infinitive		 supine future
active
participle
iuvāre iūtum iuvātūrus
lavāre lautum lavātūrus
parere partum paritūrus
ruere rutum ruitūrus
secāre sectum secātūrus
fruī fructum fruitūrus
morī[12] mortuum moritūrus
orīrī ortum oritūrus

[edit] Alternate verb forms

Several verb forms may occur in alternate forms (in some authors these forms are fairly common, if not more common than the canonical ones):

  • The ending –ris in the passive voice may be –re as in:
portābāris → portābāre
  • The ending –ērunt in the perfect tense may be –ēre as in:
portāvērunt → portāvēre

[edit] Syncopated verb forms

Like most Romance languages, syncopated forms and contractions are present in Latin. They may occur in the following instances:

  • Perfect stems that end in a –v may be contracted when inflected.
portāvisse → portāsse
portāvistī → portāstī
portāverant → portārant
portāvisset → portāsset
  • The compounds of noscere (to learn) and movēre (to move, dislodge) can also be contracted.
novistī → nostī
novistis → nostis
commoveram → commoram
commoverās → commorās

[edit] Summary of forms

[edit] The four conjugations in the indicative mood

The Four Conjugations, Indicative Mood
1st 2nd 3rd 3rd (i-stem) 4th
laudō, laudāre, laudāvī, laudātum terreō, terrēre, terruī, territum agō, agere, ēgī, actum capiō, capere, cēpī, captum audiō, audīre, audīvī, audītum
Active Passive Active Passive Active Passive Active Passive Active Passive
Present
1st Singular laudō laudor terrēo terreor agō agor capiō capior audiō audior
2nd Person laudās laudāris terrēs terrēris agis ageris capis caperis audīs audīris (audīre)
3rd Person laudat laudātur terret terrētur agit agitur capit capitur audit audītur
1st Plural laudāmus laudāmur terrēmus terrēmur agimus agimur capimus capimur audīmus audīmur
2nd Person laudātis laudāminī terrētis terrēminī agitis agiminī capitis capiminī audītis audīminī
3rd Person laudant laudantur terrent terrentur agunt aguntur capiunt capiuntur audiunt audiuntur

[edit] Notes

^ The archaic uncontracted form potesse occurs frequently in Lucretius.
^  Form moriri, Ovid, Metamorphoses (poem) 14.215 [13]
^  Used by Cicero frequently.
^  Used personally by Lucretius (2.627): ningunt [14]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Jenney's First Year Latin, 123
  2. ^ S. Eitrem, Latinsk grammatikk, 3rd edition (Aschehoug, Oslo, 2006), p. 111
  3. ^ Horace, Sermonum liber primus 1.3.66[1]
  4. ^ Catullus, 10.27[2]
  5. ^ Cicero, De Oratore 2.259[3]

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

Sister project For a list of words relating to Latin verbs, see the Latin verbs category of words in Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_conjugation"
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