Non calor sed umor est qui nobis incommodat.
It’s not the heat, it’s the humidity.
Ecce hora! Uxor mea me necabit!
Look at the time! My wife will kill me!
Lex clavatoris designati rescindenda est.
The designated hitter rule has got to go.
Sentio aliquos togatos contra me conspirare.
I think some people in togas are plotting against me.
Caesar si viveret, ad remum dareris.
If Caesar were alive, you’d be chained to an oar.
Quantum materiae materietur marmota monax si marmota monax materiam posit materiari?
How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
(At a barbeque) Animadvertistine, ubicumque stes, fumum recta in faciem ferri?
Ever noticed how wherever you stand, the smoke goes right into your face?
Sona si Latine loqueris.
Honk if you speak Latin.
Si Hoc Legere Scis Nimium Eruditionis Habes
If you can read this you’re over-educated
Mihi ignosce. Cum homine de cane debeo congredi.
Excuse me. I’ve got to see a man about a dog.
Si hoc signum legere potes, operis boni in rebus Latinus alacribus et fructuosis potiri potes!
If you can read this sign, you can get a good job in the fast-paced, high-paying world of Latin!
Gramen artificiosum odi.
I hate Astroturf.
Nihil curo de ista tua stulta superstitione.
I’m not interested in your dopey religious cult.
Noli me vocare, ego te vocabo.
Don’t call me, I’ll call you.
Nullo metro compositum est.
It doesn’t rhyme.
Non curo. Si metrum non habet, non est poema.
I don’t care. If it doesn’t have meter, it isn’t a poem.
Fac ut gaudeam.
Make my day.
Braccae illae virides cum subucula rosea et tunica Caledonia-quam elenganter concinnatur!
Those green pants go so well with that pink shirt and the plaid jacket!
Visne saltare? Viam Latam Fungosam scio.
Do you want to dance? I know the Funky Broadway.
Re vera, potas bene.
Say, you sure are drinking a lot.
Utinam barbari spatium proprium tuum invadant!
May barbarians invade your personal space!
Utinam coniurati te in foro interficiant!
May conspirators assassinate you in the mall!
Utinam logica falsa tuam philosophiam totam suffodiant!
May faulty logic undermine your entire philosophy!
Radix lecti
Couch potato
Mellita, domi adsum.
Honey, I’m home.
Tam exanimis quam tunica nehru fio.
I am as dead as the nehru jacket.
Ventis secundis, tene cursum.
Go with the flow.
Totum dependeat.
Let it all hang out.
Te precor dulcissime supplex!
Pretty please with a cherry on top!
Magister Mundi sum!
I am the Master of the Universe!
Fac me cocleario vomere!
Gag me with a spoon!
Te audire no possum. Musa sapientum fixa est in aure.
I can’t hear you. I have a banana in my ear.
Prehende uxorem meam, sis!
Take my wife, please!
Nihil est–in vita priore ego imperator Romanus fui.
That’s nothing–in a previous life I was a Roman Emperor.
Recedite, plebes! Gero rem imperialem!
Stand aside plebians! I am on imperial business.
Sic faciunt omnes.
Everyone is doing it.
Fac ut vivas.
Get a life.
Anulos qui animum ostendunt omnes gestemus!
Let’s all wear mood rings!
Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum immane mittam.
I have a catapult. Give me all the money, or I will fling an enormous rock at your head.
CHT to the reader who e-mailed! Let the Latin nitpicking begin!
For completeness’ sake….
Most (if not all) of these phrases come from the following two books:
Latin for All Occasions
Latin for Even More Occasions
Should you consider purchasing one of them, be warned that not all the content is family-friendly, and is in fact quite crude in places. But overall they’re quite funny.
Some of these would make great t-shirts.
This one:
“Nihil curo de ista tua stulta superstitione.”
“I’m not interested in your dopey religious cult.”
would be great to wear while walking through the airport, or in my neighborhood on Saturday mornings (when the Jehovah’s Witnesses come around).
That “Gag me (with a spoon)” bit definitely sounds like it could be crude (if pronounced improperly).
Jimmy,
Thanks for reminding me how much Latin this Classics major has forgotten. :-p
I leave you with this groan-inducing piece of Latin advice:
Semper ubi sub ubi. (Pronounced, roughly, semper oo-be suh-boo-be)
Or, in English, Always where under where.
Forgive me, Dr. Kelly, wherever you are.
How do you say the following in Latin:
“These are not the droids you are looking for.”
I always liked “Sola lingua bona est lingua mortua.”
(The only good language is a dead language.)
Don’t know about droids, but what about: “Postatem obscuri lateris nescitis.”
(You do not know the power of the dark side.)
I sometimes want to utter this one on this blog spot, especially to all those Vat. II haters, let’s go back to the 1940’s, real women should cover their heads….
“Fac ut vivas.”
Or sometimes this might be good while putting your fingers in your ears and turning around in circles, especially when those Papal Succession conspiracy theories are brought up…..
“Quantum materiae materietur marmota monax si marmota monax materiam posit materiari?”
It could be the adult version of “la, la, la, la,la, la, crazy talk..”
How do you say the following in Latin:
“These are not the droids you are looking for.”
Hmmm… something like…
“Hae droidekas quae quaeritis non sunt.”
RyanL:
Positing a second-declension noun droidus, -i for “droid,” it would probably go something like either of these sentences:
Hi non sunt droidi qui quaerens es.
Hi non sunt droidi qui quaeris.
First form uses a periphrastic construction with the present participle, so it’s more like the English; the second conjugates the verb “to look for” directly, so it’s more like “These are not the droids you seek.” You’d use “quaeritis” or “quaerens estis” for more than one person. (Obi-Wan addressed only one stormtrooper in the film so I presumed singular.)
I posited (based on Phantom Menace) “droideka” as a feminine singular first declension.
I also posited that Obi-Wan was addressing the trooper as the leader of his team.
Interesting verb placement. I thought about putting the verb in the middle, too, to stress the non-identity of the two things (these droids, the ones you are looking for) but decided to throw it at the end for Yoda’s sake.
Yeah. My Latin skills are fairly rudimentary, and I haven’t undertaken any formal study in composition. If only I had the time….
How about the Latin for, “Could you please publish that universal indult soon?”
This is probably the Single. Greatest. Post. Ever. Thank you, Mr. Akin, for lightening my day. Also:
Non curo. Si metrum non habet, non est poema.
I don’t care. If it doesn’t have meter, it isn’t a poem.
Truer words were never spoken.
Fac ut vivas.
Get a life.
I’d love to say this one — except that I might end up just saying the first word, and, actually, mis-pronouncing it at that!
I’m still waiting for “No, it is I who will eat you!”
On the other hand, Beard is cleaner than Catullus. 🙂
For the family friendly try:
Cattus Petasatus: The Cat in the Hat in Latin
Or perhaps a little more seasonal:
Quomodo Invidiosulus nomine GRINCHUS Christi natalem Abrogaverit
For the technically minded:
Vocabula computatralia
http://www.obta.uw.edu.pl/~draco/docs/voccomp.html
Or, in case you need a “currus instrumentarius”
Neo Lexicon
http://users.adelphia.net/~florusc/neo-lexicon.htm
Valete et semper salvete, vos omnes.
Speaking of technical, I’ve been thinking of trying to create a programming language in Latin…
But until I get my lazy butt to actually create this masterpiece (and learn Latin while I’m at it), there’s the Perl extension Perligata.
It is interesting that the subject of Latin quotes follows the subject of methods of torture. One of my first experiences with torture was that “handed out” by our Franciscan nuns/teachers who were in charge of training the altar boys. As many ex-altar boys now “AARPies” will confirm, memorizing the foot of altar Latin prayers was no easy task but not knowing them resulted in significant mental to physical “torture” depending on the nun in charge. Hmmm, Ad deum que laetificat juventutem meam …” was the only line I remember.
For those of a little longer in the tooth, there is Adlai Stevenson’s:
Via oviceptum dura est.
Rough trans: An egghead’s life is not easy.
On the other hand, Beard is cleaner than Catullus. 🙂
This is true.
For my birthday this year I got a copy of Green Eggs And Ham in Latin (Virent Ova! Viret Perna!), which was quite funny. My fiancée and I are both amateur Latinists, and the friend who gave it to me gave it as a gift for both of us as well as our future children. Ours will be an *ahem* interesting house.
Walter Canis Inflatus, a great attempt to “reach out” to those who don’t know the fun of Latin. You can read some of it at the Amazon site.
“Dona nos indultem universitatum, si tibi placet.”
the only word I’m not sure is Indult….treated it like a 3rd declension noun cuz it felt right. Comments?
Question: does one pronounce Latin like one pronounces Spanish? I’m guessing it’s very similar. Or is it more similar to Italian? I want to be able to actually say out loud some of those.
I don’t care. If it doesn’t have meter, it isn’t a poem.
Truer words were never spoken.
Ditto.
Latin phrase t-shirts.
I came across a t-shirt in a catalogue, years ago, that apparently translated into something like ‘Let polyester not be so much as mentioned among us’ (it was 100% cotton, of course), and that made me laugh out loud. I didn’t buy it, though — and I thoroughly regret that.
What would ‘Freak Magnet’ be in Latin, anyone know? Because I would totally stitch that on a pillow.
Question: does one pronounce Latin like one pronounces Spanish? I’m guessing it’s very similar. Or is it more similar to Italian? I want to be able to actually say out loud some of those.
It all depends if you’re referring to pronounciations in terms of Classical Latin, Ecclesiastical Latin, or Restored Latin.
Ecclesisastical Latin pronounciation is more Italian, IMO.
F.I.O. Spanish and Italian as well as any other of the romance languages came from Latin.
Jen:
“Attractor Lusuum” would be fairly close. (lusus, -us means “game/sport” but is also used in the phrase “lusus naturae,” for which a good English equivalent is “freak of nature.”)
Now can you say all that in Klingon?
Time to nitpick, I suppose.
“Dona nos indultem universitatum, si tibi placet.”
“Give the ‘indultem’ of the universities us, if you please”?
I’m not sure what to make of this. First of all, “indult” is an English word from the Latin indultum, -i, (2nd decl. neuter) so certainly no need to make up a word and its endings.
It’s not clear why nos is in the accusative. It should be in the dative (“Give the universal indult to us, if you please”).
Universitatum would mean “of the universities” (genitive plural of universitas, universitatis). You want universale, the neuter accusative singular to agree with indultum.
I’d say something like:
Si tibi placet, sanctissime Pater, ede indultum universale quam celerrime!
“Holy Father, [if you] please publish the universal indult as soon as possible!”
Now can you say all that in Klingon?
With the swift demise of the Star Trek saga, which now only lives in the hearts of its fans, this has become the next dead language, if it ever was one to begin with! ;^)
Ad deum que laetificat juventutem meam …”
How about, “Ad Deum qui laetificat juventutem meam …”?
Sorry, more torture for you I suppose.
In training current altar boys for the Indult Mass, I find that they’re very receptive, and, indeed, feel very special to be given the opportunity to learn the Church’s language. Maybe my methods are different from the sisters and priests of yore.
I’m also teaching a Latin class for my parish, and my students (mostly adults) very much enjoy the chance to learn the ancient tongue.
In training current altar boys for the Indult Mass, I find that they’re very receptive, and, indeed, feel very special to be given the opportunity to learn the Church’s language. Maybe my methods are different from the sisters and priests of yore.
This was the language that surely would’ve united the whole of Christendom — or, at the very least, Roman Catholics!
Too bad it was dispensed with all too soon, at least, from where we now stand as a whole. It would’ve been nice to have one of the unifying marks of the universal Church be this ancient language that had been the official language of the Church since the 4th Century!
I remember a story told by one priest that while a certain group of Catholics were being brought to their deaths for simply being Catholics, they sang in unison the hymn of Salve Regina, as they met with their heroic deaths.
What have we now that actually unites us!?!
I’m also teaching a Latin class for my parish, and my students (mostly adults) very much enjoy the chance to learn the ancient tongue.
It’d be nice if there were similar folks in every parish! It’s certainly a part of our Catholic heritage!
By any chance, you wouldn’t happen to offer folks here your humble services, eh??? ;^)
(j/k)
One of my favourites has always been: “Illegitimata non carborundum”, a phrase of encouragement which is quite appropriate in these tough times for Christians.
Anonymous,
Google picked up the “que vs qui” but that is how I remembered it so that is what I presented. The altar boys took “great glee” after the first NOM as we burned those damn Latin Mass cards. We thought about burning the “torturing nuns” but Sister Joan intervened.
The altar boys took “great glee” after the first NOM as we burned those damn Latin Mass cards. We thought about burning the “torturing nuns” but Sister Joan intervened.
Peasant’s Revolt?
Any ideas how one might say “chancery rat” in Latin?
I hope this doesn’t give the wrong people ideas, but has anybody gotten spam e-mail in Latin yet?
How about:
Noli upquam puerum mittere ut laborem viri faciat
umquam. sorry
Nick: a pox on the periphrastic….(Nice job, though).
Just goes to show: Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.
‘Whatever is said in Latin sounds profound.’
Not an original, but maybe a comment upon all of us “posters.”
Vix vivunt lavandis mutandis.
trans : They eke out a precarious livelihood by taking in each other’s washing.
So has anyone worked up a translation for “No, it is I who will eat you!”?
I hope this doesn’t give the wrong people ideas, but has anybody gotten spam e-mail in Latin yet?
Yes, I have, of sorts. I participate in a number of Latin groups lists, etc, and a number of places promoting their stuff have sent me unsolicited e-mails written in the mother tongue of the Latin Rite promoting their items. This is not all that surprising considering the international flavor of the lists. It is perhaps the only SPAM that I do not mind.
I also get queries in Latin about my web site/Latin prayers & liturgy from folks from tine to time, though that is not SPAM.
Oh, one more URL to amuse folks, for the news in Latin see:
Ephemeris, Nuntii Latini Universi
http://ephemeris.alcuinus.net/
And don’t forget that the Second Council of the Lateran (1139 AD) declared that if you do not learn Latin in this life, you will spend the next in Purgatory until you do!
How would you say ‘\/1Agra’ in Latin anyways?
Edward:
I don’t know Latin, but here’s my best guess:
Quinimmo, te edam.
I was hoping someone who actually knew Latin would field this one. 🙂
After looking some, I guess it would be a 1st decln noun.
For the singluar:
nom. \/1agra
gen. \/1agrae
dat. \/1agrae
acc. \/1agram
abl. \/1agra
And lets not forget our favorite, the vocative:
O \/1agra
Funny, typepad thought my last comment was spam, so I had to make it pass the no spam test. 🙂
Michael M.,
You noted:
“And don’t forget that the
Second Council of the Lateran (1139 AD) declared that if you do not learn Latin in this life, you will spend the next in Purgatory until you do!”
Hmmm, please cite the reference. Hopefully, you have one since it hightlights the silliness of it all.
“\/\Agra” is actually a Sanskrit masculine stem, with the Nom. S. as “\/|Agras”. Which makes me think that the Romans would have imported it as they did Greek words ending in “-as” (Latin had a special declension for those, besides the usual 5) or else (since the word is masculine) they would have altered it to an “-us” ending to fit with their program.
Or they could just translate it: “tigris” 🙂
“No, it is I who will eat you!”
Id be tempted to render the “no” haud…
Haud; ego est qui te edet.
I made “ego” an appositive to the subject of est, qui a pronoun refering back to ego, and qui the subject of edet.
“te egam” just seemed to lose all of the flavor of the orginial.
But then, Im only a third year in high school…
-El S.
My Latin prof once had us going with the following bit of completely fake Latin, which looked just enough like real Latin to make us novices try to decipher it for a few minutes:
O sibile, si ergo
Fortibus is in ero
O nobile, deis trux
Votis enim? Causin’ dux
Ahha, love the website. Classy, crude, enjoyable. How do say “Run Forest, run!” in latin?? Thanks. Get back to me.
F.L
Veni – Vedi – VISA
I came – I saw – I Sopped a little
I have 2 Latin mottos that I would love to have translated please. They are both from ships badges/crests that a relative served on.
HMS Vernon:
Vernon Semper Viret
HMS Pembroke:
Omnia Servimus
If someone would be kind enough to email me the answers, I will donate £50 to the Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen’s Family Association [SSAFA]
Many thanks,
Derek
sorry, my e-mail address = dgs699@westnet.com.au
thanks
Derek
How do you say,”Run! The killer worms are coming!” in Latin?
Que dice,”El bano es en fuega!”???????????
I’m only a second year Latin student so I need a clarification. What is the most used Latin word for “yes”??? In my Latin dictionary there are four translations.
I’m warning you. Shut down this site, or else I will hack into it a shut it down by force.
Okay
let…
me…
re-
move…
the…
fool…
from…
the…
sidebar.
Anyone who has seen a pouch of Borkum Riff pipe tobacco has seen the motto of the Clone Armies of the Galactic Republic:
“Verus amicus est tamquam alter idem”
“A true friend is like another me.”
And let’s not forget–
ROMANES EUNT DOMUS!
Derek thanks. I just sent you an email consisting the second translation.
I’m finding it difficult to pronounce “duces tecum” with a soft “c” in “duces” and a long “e” in “tecum”-although everyone at work is insisting that I do so. I prefer the hard c and the long a…am I wrong in looking for proof to find them wrong?
Thanks ever so much,
Solange
I just want everyone to know that this website is AWESOME!!!!!
I learned a new latin motto today.
EX AMICITIA PAX
This is the motto of the Diplomatic Corps, sometimes called (Corps Diplomatique)
It means “Through Friendship, Peace”
Cool motto that.
Wouldn’t “Through Frienship, Peace” be
PER AMICITIAM PACEM?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!