← Latin for Biologists and Gardeners — Botanical Latin
Lesson 101 of a graded Botanical Latin reading course for botanists, biologists and gardeners.
What does amīcus mean in Latin?
The noun amīcus, amīcī (masculine, second declension) means "friend." The same word is also an adjective, amīcus, -a, -um, meaning "friendly, well-disposed, favourable," and as an adjective it takes the dative of the person or thing it favours: ulmus vītī amīca est, "the elm is friendly to the vine." This double life is what makes amīcus useful to the reader of plant literature. Roman writers on farming and natural history describe plants and soils as friendly or hostile to one another. Pliny the Elder opens Book 20 of his Nātūrālis Historia with the odia amīcitiaeque, the "hatreds and friendships," of things that cannot hear or feel, and Book 24 begins with the oak and the olive, which hate each other so stubbornly that one dies if planted in the other's trench. The poet Statius, listing the trees felled for a funeral pyre, calls the alder amīca fretīs, "friend to the waters," because it grows by water and its timber went into ships.
The word is built on the verb amō, amāre, "to love," with the suffix -īcus. Its family is large: the feminine amīca (a female friend), the abstract noun amīcitia (friendship), the adverb amīcē (in a friendly way), and the negative inimīcus, "unfriendly, hostile; a personal enemy" (in- + amīcus, with the vowel weakened to i). English "amicable," "amity" and "inimical" all descend from this family.
FAQ: What does amīcus mean in Latin?
Amīcus means "friend" as a noun and "friendly" as an adjective. As an adjective it agrees with its noun in gender, number and case (amīcus, amīca, amīcum) and takes a dative: terra levis plantae amīca est, "light soil is friendly to the plant." Its opposite is inimīcus, "hostile."
How will amīcus be used in this lesson?
The fifteen main examples move from simple sentences about friends in the garden to the friendships and enmities of plants as Pliny records them, the alder of Statius, and Ennius's famous line on the true friend. The genre section is a letter from one gardener to a friend, sent with a packet of seeds, which shows the noun in almost every case, including the vocative amīce.
Key Takeaways
- amīcus, amīcī (m.) is a second-declension noun: "friend"; the vocative singular is amīce, and "my friend" is mī amīce - amīcus, -a, -um is also an adjective, "friendly," and takes the dative: vītī amīca, "friendly to the vine" - the opposite is inimīcus, "hostile," which also takes the dative: brassica vītī inimīca, "cabbage is hostile to the vine" - the abstract noun is amīcitia, -ae (f.), "friendship"; Pliny speaks of the odia amīcitiaeque of plants - the i of amīcus is long in every form: a-MĪ-cus
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amīcus /aˈmiː.kʊs/ — three syllables, stress on the long ī of the second syllable; the c is always hard, as in English "cat"
amīcī /aˈmiː.kiː/ — genitive singular and nominative plural; both i-sounds are long
amīce /aˈmiː.kɛ/ — the vocative, used when you speak to a friend; the final e is short and fully pronounced
amīcitia /a.miːˈkɪ.tɪ.a/ — five syllables; the stress moves to the third syllable, -ci-, because the following syllable is short
inimīcus /ɪ.nɪˈmiː.kʊs/ — four syllables; the stress stays on the long ī
In Classical pronunciation the c of amīcus and amīcī is hard (/k/) before every vowel. In Ecclesiastical (Italianate) pronunciation, c before i and e is softened, so amīcī is said /aˈmi.tʃi/ and amīce /aˈmi.tʃe/; amīcus itself is /aˈmi.kus/. In traditional English botanical pronunciation the word is often said "a-MY-cus," with the long ī given its English diphthong value.
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101.1a Amīcus friend venit comes
101.1b Amīcus /aˈmiː.kʊs/ friend.NOM.SG.M venit /ˈwɛ.nɪt/ comes.3SG.PRES
101.2a Hortulānus gardener amīcus friend est is
101.2b Hortulānus /hɔr.tʊˈlaː.nʊs/ gardener.NOM.SG.M amīcus /aˈmiː.kʊs/ friend.NOM.SG.M est /ɛst/ is.3SG.PRES
101.3a Amīcō to-a-friend sēmina seeds dō I-give
101.3b Amīcō /aˈmiː.koː/ friend.DAT.SG.M sēmina /ˈseː.mɪ.na/ seed.ACC.PL.N dō /doː/ give.1SG.PRES
101.4a Amīcī friends hortum garden vīsitant visit
101.4b Amīcī /aˈmiː.kiː/ friend.NOM.PL.M hortum /ˈhɔr.tʊm/ garden.ACC.SG.M vīsitant /ˈwiː.sɪ.tant/ visit.3PL.PRES
101.5a Ulmus elm vītī to-the-vine amīca friendly est is
101.5b Ulmus /ˈʊl.mʊs/ elm.NOM.SG.F vītī /ˈwiː.tiː/ vine.DAT.SG.F amīca /aˈmiː.ka/ friendly.NOM.SG.F est /ɛst/ is.3SG.PRES
101.6a Amīcus friend meus my rosās roses in in hortō garden suō his-own colit grows
101.6b Amīcus /aˈmiː.kʊs/ friend.NOM.SG.M meus /ˈmɛ.ʊs/ my.NOM.SG.M rosās /ˈrɔ.saːs/ rose.ACC.PL.F in /ɪn/ in hortō /ˈhɔr.toː/ garden.ABL.SG.M suō /ˈsʊ.oː/ his-own.ABL.SG.M colit /ˈkɔ.lɪt/ grow.3SG.PRES
101.7a Medicus physician amīcō to-a-friend herbās herbs siccātās dried mīsit sent
101.7b Medicus /ˈmɛ.dɪ.kʊs/ physician.NOM.SG.M amīcō /aˈmiː.koː/ friend.DAT.SG.M herbās /ˈhɛr.baːs/ herb.ACC.PL.F siccātās /sɪkˈkaː.taːs/ dried.PPP.ACC.PL.F mīsit /ˈmiː.sɪt/ send.3SG.PERF
101.8a Sine without amīcīs friends nēmō no-one hortum garden bene well colit tends
101.8b Sine /ˈsɪ.nɛ/ without amīcīs /aˈmiː.kiːs/ friend.ABL.PL.M nēmō /ˈneː.moː/ no-one.NOM.SG hortum /ˈhɔr.tʊm/ garden.ACC.SG.M bene /ˈbɛ.nɛ/ well colit /ˈkɔ.lɪt/ tend.3SG.PRES
101.9a Apēs bees flōribus to-flowers semper always amīcae friendly sunt are et and eōs them fēcundant they-fertilise
101.9b Apēs /ˈa.peːs/ bee.NOM.PL.F flōribus /ˈfloː.rɪ.bʊs/ flower.DAT.PL.M semper /ˈsɛm.pɛr/ always amīcae /aˈmiː.kae̯/ friendly.NOM.PL.F sunt /sʊnt/ are.3PL.PRES et /ɛt/ and eōs /ˈɛ.oːs/ them.ACC.PL.M fēcundant /feːˈkʊn.dant/ fertilise.3PL.PRES
101.10a Vir man quī who plantās plants amat loves amīcus friend nātūrae of-nature vocātur is-called
101.10b Vir /wɪr/ man.NOM.SG.M quī /kʷiː/ who.NOM.SG.M plantās /ˈplan.taːs/ plant.ACC.PL.F amat /ˈa.mat/ love.3SG.PRES amīcus /aˈmiː.kʊs/ friend.NOM.SG.M nātūrae /naːˈtuː.rae̯/ nature.GEN.SG.F vocātur /wɔˈkaː.tʊr/ call.3SG.PRES.PASS
101.11a Quercus oak et and olea olive nōn not sunt are amīcae friends Plīnius Pliny enim for trādit reports eās them tam so pertinācī stubborn odiō with-hatred dissidēre to-be-at-odds
101.11b Quercus /ˈkʷɛr.kʊs/ oak.NOM.SG.F et /ɛt/ and olea /ˈɔ.lɛ.a/ olive.NOM.SG.F nōn /noːn/ not sunt /sʊnt/ are.3PL.PRES amīcae /aˈmiː.kae̯/ friendly.NOM.PL.F Plīnius /ˈpliː.nɪ.ʊs/ Pliny.NOM.SG.M enim /ˈɛ.nɪm/ for trādit /ˈtraː.dɪt/ report.3SG.PRES eās /ˈɛ.aːs/ them.ACC.PL.F tam /tam/ so pertinācī /pɛr.tɪˈnaː.kiː/ stubborn.ABL.SG.N odiō /ˈɔ.dɪ.oː/ hatred.ABL.SG.N dissidēre /dɪs.sɪˈdeː.rɛ/ be-at-odds.PRES.INF
101.12a Brassica cabbage vītī to-the-vine inimīca hostile est is ut as Plīnius Pliny docet teaches nam for vītis vine eā by-it fugātur is-put-to-flight
101.12b Brassica /ˈbras.sɪ.ka/ cabbage.NOM.SG.F vītī /ˈwiː.tiː/ vine.DAT.SG.F inimīca /ɪ.nɪˈmiː.ka/ hostile.NOM.SG.F est /ɛst/ is.3SG.PRES ut /ʊt/ as Plīnius /ˈpliː.nɪ.ʊs/ Pliny.NOM.SG.M docet /ˈdɔ.kɛt/ teach.3SG.PRES nam /nam/ for vītis /ˈwiː.tɪs/ vine.NOM.SG.F eā /ˈɛ.aː/ it.ABL.SG.F fugātur /fʊˈɡaː.tʊr/ put-to-flight.3SG.PRES.PASS
101.13a Alnus alder amīca friend fretīs to-the-waters in on rīpīs banks flūminum of-rivers libenter gladly crēscit grows
101.13b Alnus /ˈal.nʊs/ alder.NOM.SG.F amīca /aˈmiː.ka/ friendly.NOM.SG.F fretīs /ˈfrɛ.tiːs/ strait.DAT.PL.N in /ɪn/ on rīpīs /ˈriː.piːs/ bank.ABL.PL.F flūminum /ˈfluː.mɪ.nʊm/ river.GEN.PL.N libenter /lɪˈbɛn.tɛr/ gladly crēscit /ˈkreːs.kɪt/ grow.3SG.PRES
101.14a Hortulānus gardener aequē equally amīcus friend est is et both plantīs to-plants et and animālibus to-animals quae which hortum garden adiuvant help ut such-as lumbrīcīs earthworms et and apibus bees
101.14b Hortulānus /hɔr.tʊˈlaː.nʊs/ gardener.NOM.SG.M aequē /ˈae̯.kʷeː/ equally amīcus /aˈmiː.kʊs/ friendly.NOM.SG.M est /ɛst/ is.3SG.PRES et /ɛt/ both plantīs /ˈplan.tiːs/ plant.DAT.PL.F et /ɛt/ and animālibus /a.nɪˈmaː.lɪ.bʊs/ animal.DAT.PL.N quae /kʷae̯/ which.NOM.PL.N hortum /ˈhɔr.tʊm/ garden.ACC.SG.M adiuvant /ˈad.jʊ.want/ help.3PL.PRES ut /ʊt/ such-as lumbrīcīs /lʊmˈbriː.kiːs/ earthworm.DAT.PL.M et /ɛt/ and apibus /ˈa.pɪ.bʊs/ bee.DAT.PL.F
101.15a Amīcus friend certus sure in in rē matter incertā uncertain cernitur is-discerned
101.15b Amīcus /aˈmiː.kʊs/ friend.NOM.SG.M certus /ˈkɛr.tʊs/ sure.NOM.SG.M in /ɪn/ in rē /reː/ matter.ABL.SG.F incertā /ɪŋˈkɛr.taː/ uncertain.ABL.SG.F cernitur /ˈkɛr.nɪ.tʊr/ discern.3SG.PRES.PASS
Notes: - 101.5 and 101.13 echo Statius, Thebaid 6.106 (see Section F); the sentences themselves are pedagogical constructions. - 101.11 and 101.12 are adapted from Pliny, Nātūrālis Historia 24.1, where the oak and the olive "tam pertinaci odio dissident" and the vine is driven off by the cabbage ("olus, quo vitis fugatur"). - 101.15 is authentic: a line of Ennius quoted by Cicero, Laelius dē Amīcitiā 64. - All other examples are pedagogical constructions from verified vocabulary and patterns, not quotations.
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101.1 Amīcus venit. → "A friend is coming."
101.2 Hortulānus amīcus est. → "The gardener is a friend."
101.3 Amīcō sēmina dō. → "I am giving seeds to a friend."
101.4 Amīcī hortum vīsitant. → "Friends are visiting the garden."
101.5 Ulmus vītī amīca est. → "The elm is friendly to the vine."
101.6 Amīcus meus rosās in hortō suō colit. → "My friend grows roses in his garden."
101.7 Medicus amīcō herbās siccātās mīsit. → "The physician sent dried herbs to a friend."
101.8 Sine amīcīs nēmō hortum bene colit. → "Without friends, no one tends a garden well."
101.9 Apēs flōribus semper amīcae sunt et eōs fēcundant. → "Bees are always friendly to flowers and pollinate them."
101.10 Vir quī plantās amat amīcus nātūrae vocātur. → "A man who loves plants is called a friend of nature."
101.11 Quercus et olea nōn sunt amīcae: Plīnius enim trādit eās tam pertinācī odiō dissidēre. → "The oak and the olive are not friends: Pliny reports that they are at odds with such stubborn hatred."
101.12 Brassica vītī inimīca est, ut Plīnius docet, nam vītis eā fugātur. → "Cabbage is hostile to the vine, as Pliny teaches, for the vine is driven off by it."
101.13 Alnus, amīca fretīs, in rīpīs flūminum libenter crēscit. → "The alder, friend to the waters, grows gladly on riverbanks."
101.14 Hortulānus aequē amīcus est et plantīs et animālibus quae hortum adiuvant, ut lumbrīcīs et apibus. → "A gardener is a friend both to plants and to the animals that help the garden, such as earthworms and bees."
101.15 Amīcus certus in rē incertā cernitur. → "A sure friend is known in an unsure matter." (Ennius, quoted by Cicero)
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101.1 Amīcus venit.
101.2 Hortulānus amīcus est.
101.3 Amīcō sēmina dō.
101.4 Amīcī hortum vīsitant.
101.5 Ulmus vītī amīca est.
101.6 Amīcus meus rosās in hortō suō colit.
101.7 Medicus amīcō herbās siccātās mīsit.
101.8 Sine amīcīs nēmō hortum bene colit.
101.9 Apēs flōribus semper amīcae sunt et eōs fēcundant.
101.10 Vir quī plantās amat amīcus nātūrae vocātur.
101.11 Quercus et olea nōn sunt amīcae: Plīnius enim trādit eās tam pertinācī odiō dissidēre.
101.12 Brassica vītī inimīca est, ut Plīnius docet, nam vītis eā fugātur.
101.13 Alnus, amīca fretīs, in rīpīs flūminum libenter crēscit.
101.14 Hortulānus aequē amīcus est et plantīs et animālibus quae hortum adiuvant, ut lumbrīcīs et apibus.
101.15 Amīcus certus in rē incertā cernitur.
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These are the grammar rules for amīcus in Latin:
1. The Noun amīcus, amīcī (m.)
As a noun, amīcus follows the second declension, like hortus or hortulānus.
Singular: nominative amīcus, genitive amīcī, dative amīcō, accusative amīcum, ablative amīcō, vocative amīce.
Plural: nominative amīcī, genitive amīcōrum, dative amīcīs, accusative amīcōs, ablative amīcīs, vocative amīcī.
The vocative singular in -e is the one form that differs from the nominative, and it is the form you use when you address a friend directly: valē, amīce, "goodbye, friend." With the possessive "my," the vocative of meus is mī: mī amīce, "my friend." A female friend is amīca, -ae (first declension).
2. The Adjective amīcus, -a, -um with the Dative
As an adjective, amīcus agrees with its noun in gender, number and case, like bonus, -a, -um. Most tree names are feminine in Latin even though they end in -us (ulmus, quercus, alnus, pīnus), so the adjective takes its feminine form: ulmus amīca, quercus inimīca. The person or thing to which something is friendly stands in the dative: vītī amīca (101.5), flōribus amīcae (101.9), amīca fretīs (101.13), plantīs et animālibus amīcus (101.14). The comparative is amīcior and the superlative amīcissimus.
3. The Opposite: inimīcus
Inimīcus, -a, -um (in- "not" + amīcus) means "unfriendly, hostile" and takes the same dative: brassica vītī inimīca est (101.12). As a noun, inimīcus means a personal enemy; the enemy in war is hostis.
4. amīcus in the Predicate
With the verb esse, amīcus can stand as a predicate noun or adjective: hortulānus amīcus est, "the gardener is a friend" (101.2). In 101.14, hortulānus aequē amīcus est et plantīs et animālibus, it is an adjective with two datives joined by et ... et, "both ... and."
5. Other Constructions in This Lesson
- Ablative with sine (101.8): sine amīcīs, "without friends." - Indirect statement after trādit (101.11): Plīnius trādit eās ... dissidēre, "Pliny reports that they are at odds," with the subject eās in the accusative and the verb in the infinitive. - Ablative of manner (101.11): pertinācī odiō, "with stubborn hatred." - Ablative of means with a passive verb (101.12): eā fugātur, "is driven off by it." A thing takes the plain ablative, as in Pliny's olus, quo vitis fugatur; ab with the ablative is kept for persons. - Relative clause (101.10, 101.14): vir quī plantās amat; animālibus quae hortum adiuvant. - Possessive genitive (101.13): rīpīs flūminum, "on the banks of rivers."
Common Mistakes English Speakers Make
- Using the nominative to address someone: write valē, amīce, not *valē, amīcus. - Writing mī amīcus or meus amīce: "my friend" in address is mī amīce, both words in the vocative. - Putting the person after amīcus in the accusative or with ad: "friendly to the vine" is vītī amīca, not *ad vītem amīca. - Using the masculine with a feminine tree name: ulmus amīca, not *ulmus amīcus. - Dropping the macron: the i is long in every form, so the stress never falls on the first syllable.
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Friendship and Enmity among Plants
Ancient writers on plants did not separate observation from metaphor as sharply as modern botanists do. Pliny the Elder, whose Nātūrālis Historia is the chief Latin source for ancient botanical knowledge, introduces the medicinal plants of Book 20 as an account of the pax and bellum of nature: the odia amīcitiaeque rērum surdārum ac sēnsū carentium, "the hatreds and friendships of things deaf and without feeling." Book 24 begins with examples. The oak and the olive are so hostile that one dies when set in the other's trench; the cabbage and the vine are enemies, and the cabbage, which drives off the vine, itself withers next to cyclamen and marjoram.
Modern gardeners keep a version of the idea under the name "companion planting," and plant scientists study allelopathy, the chemical influence of one plant on the growth of its neighbours. The Latin vocabulary of friend and enemy still describes, loosely, what ancient observers saw: some plants grow better side by side, and some do not.
The Elm and the Vine
The friendship most often described in Roman farming is that of the elm and the vine. Italian farmers trained vines up living elms, and Latin poets made the pair an image of marriage and support. Statius's phrase nec inhospita vītibus ulmus, "the elm not unwelcoming to vines," belongs to this tradition (Section F).
amīcus Outside the Garden
For Romans, amīcitia was also a social and political bond, with obligations on both sides, as well as a personal affection. Cicero's dialogue Laelius dē Amīcitiā is the classic Latin treatment of the subject, and it preserves Ennius's line amīcus certus in rē incertā cernitur (101.15). Cicero also records the Greek proverb that friends hold all things in common (Dē Officiīs 1.51), a principle gardeners have long applied to seeds and cuttings, as the letter in the genre section shows.
Register
Amīcus is a common word in every period of Latin, from Plautus to modern scientific correspondence. It is rare in the formal diagnoses of botanical Latin, which describe the plant itself rather than its relations, but it appears in the prefaces, dedications and letters that surround them, and in the ecological prose of the ancient and early modern herbals.
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Statius, Thebaid 6.104–106 — The Felling of the Sacred Grove
In Book 6 of Statius's epic Thebaid (late first century AD), the Argive army cuts down an ancient grove to build the funeral pyre of the child Opheltes. Statius lists the trees as they fall: beech, cypress, pitch-pine, ash, yew, oak. The catalogue closes with these lines, in which each tree is named by what it does or what it is used for. The alder is amīca fretīs, "friend to the waters," and the elm is nec inhospita vītibus, "not unwelcoming to vines." The text is that of the Latin Library, with macrons added.
Part F-A: Interlinear Construed Text
F.1a hinc then audāx bold abiēs fir et and odōrō fragrant vulnere with-wound pīnus pine
F.1b hinc /hɪŋk/ then audāx /ˈau̯.daːks/ bold.NOM.SG.F abiēs /ˈa.bɪ.eːs/ fir.NOM.SG.F et /ɛt/ and odōrō /ɔˈdoː.roː/ fragrant.ABL.SG.N vulnere /ˈwʊl.nɛ.rɛ/ wound.ABL.SG.N pīnus /ˈpiː.nʊs/ pine.NOM.SG.F
F.2a scinditur is-split adclīnant they-bow intōnsa unshorn cacūmina crowns terrae to-the-earth
F.2b scinditur /ˈskɪn.dɪ.tʊr/ split.3SG.PRES.PASS adclīnant /adˈkliː.nant/ bow.3PL.PRES intōnsa /ɪnˈtoːn.sa/ unshorn.ACC.PL.N cacūmina /kaˈkuː.mɪ.na/ crown.ACC.PL.N terrae /ˈtɛr.rae̯/ earth.DAT.SG.F
F.3a alnus alder amīca friend fretīs to-the-waters nec nor inhospita unwelcoming vītibus to-vines ulmus elm
F.3b alnus /ˈal.nʊs/ alder.NOM.SG.F amīca /aˈmiː.ka/ friendly.NOM.SG.F fretīs /ˈfrɛ.tiːs/ strait.DAT.PL.N nec /nɛk/ nor inhospita /ɪnˈhɔs.pɪ.ta/ unwelcoming.NOM.SG.F vītibus /ˈwiː.tɪ.bʊs/ vine.DAT.PL.F ulmus /ˈʊl.mʊs/ elm.NOM.SG.F
Part F-B: Natural Text and Translation
hinc audāx abiēs et odōrō vulnere pīnus scinditur, adclīnant intōnsa cacūmina terrae alnus amīca fretīs nec inhospita vītibus ulmus.
"Then the bold fir and the pine with its fragrant wound are split; the alder, friend to the waters, and the elm, not unwelcoming to vines, bow their unshorn crowns to the earth."
Part F-C: Latin Text Only
hinc audāx abiēs et odōrō vulnere pīnus scinditur, adclīnant intōnsa cacūmina terrae alnus amīca fretīs nec inhospita vītibus ulmus.
Part F-D: Grammar and Literary Commentary
Amīca fretīs is the adjectival use of amīcus with the dative, exactly as in Section A: fretīs is the dative plural of fretum, "strait, sea, the waters." It is matched in the same line by inhospita vītibus, another adjective with a dative, so the line balances a friend and a host. Both adjectives are feminine because alnus and ulmus, like most Latin tree names, are feminine.
Each tree gets its own epithet. The fir is audāx, "bold," because fir timber was used for ships that dared the sea. The pine has an odōrus vulnus, a "fragrant wound," because its cut bark gives off resin. The alder is the sea's friend both because it grows by water and because, as Lewis and Short note, alnus can stand in poetry for a boat made of alder. The elm is the vine's host, the support on which Italian vines were trained.
Scinditur is singular although it has two subjects (abiēs and pīnus); Latin often lets the verb agree with the nearer subject. Adclīnant, "they lean, they bow," takes intōnsa cacūmina as object and terrae as dative of direction, a poetic construction: "they bow their unshorn tops to the earth." Intōnsus, "unshorn, uncut," is the word for uncut hair, here used of a crown of branches that no woodman had touched until now.
Publius Papinius Statius (c. AD 45–96) wrote the Thebaid, an epic in twelve books on the war of the Seven against Thebes, and the Silvae, a collection of occasional poems.
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A noun lesson calls for an informational text. Here it takes the form of a letter: Marcus, a gardener, writes to his friend Lucius and sends him the seeds he asked for, with notes on how to grow the plant. Exchanging seeds and letters among friends was the ordinary way plants travelled between gardens for centuries. The letter opens with the Roman greeting formula and closes with the Roman farewell.
Part A: Interlinear Construed Text
101.16a Mārcus Marcus Lūciō to-Lucius amīcō friend suō his salūtem greeting dīcit says
101.16b Mārcus /ˈmaːr.kʊs/ Marcus.NOM.SG.M Lūciō /ˈluː.kɪ.oː/ Lucius.DAT.SG.M amīcō /aˈmiː.koː/ friend.DAT.SG.M suō /ˈsʊ.oː/ his-own.DAT.SG.M salūtem /saˈluː.tɛm/ greeting.ACC.SG.F dīcit /ˈdiː.kɪt/ say.3SG.PRES
101.17a Accēpī I-received litterās letter tuās your amīce friend cārissime dearest et and valdē very gāvīsus glad sum I-was
101.17b Accēpī /akˈkeː.piː/ receive.1SG.PERF litterās /ˈlɪt.tɛ.raːs/ letter.ACC.PL.F tuās /ˈtʊ.aːs/ your.ACC.PL.F amīce /aˈmiː.kɛ/ friend.VOC.SG.M cārissime /kaːˈrɪs.sɪ.mɛ/ dearest.VOC.SG.M et /ɛt/ and valdē /ˈwal.deː/ very gāvīsus /ɡaːˈwiː.sʊs/ rejoice.PERF.PTCP.NOM.SG.M sum /sʊm/ am.1SG.PRES
101.18a Sēmina seeds quae which petīvistī you-asked-for tibi to-you cum with hāc this epistulā letter mittō I-send
101.18b Sēmina /ˈseː.mɪ.na/ seed.ACC.PL.N quae /kʷae̯/ which.ACC.PL.N petīvistī /pɛ.tiːˈwɪs.tiː/ ask.2SG.PERF tibi /ˈtɪ.bɪ/ you.DAT.SG cum /kʊm/ with hāc /haːk/ this.ABL.SG.F epistulā /ɛˈpɪs.tʊ.laː/ letter.ABL.SG.F mittō /ˈmɪt.toː/ send.1SG.PRES
101.19a Haec these sēmina seeds ab from amīcō friend meō my Graecō Greek accēpī I-received quī who ea them in in montibus mountains collēgit gathered
101.19b Haec /hae̯k/ this.ACC.PL.N sēmina /ˈseː.mɪ.na/ seed.ACC.PL.N ab /ab/ from amīcō /aˈmiː.koː/ friend.ABL.SG.M meō /ˈmɛ.oː/ my.ABL.SG.M Graecō /ˈɡrae̯.koː/ Greek.ABL.SG.M accēpī /akˈkeː.piː/ receive.1SG.PERF quī /kʷiː/ who.NOM.SG.M ea /ˈɛ.a/ them.ACC.PL.N in /ɪn/ in montibus /ˈmɔn.tɪ.bʊs/ mountain.ABL.PL.M collēgit /kɔlˈleː.ɡɪt/ gather.3SG.PERF
101.20a Planta plant est is perennis perennial et and flōrēs flowers caeruleōs blue fert bears
101.20b Planta /ˈplan.ta/ plant.NOM.SG.F est /ɛst/ is.3SG.PRES perennis /pɛˈrɛn.nɪs/ perennial.NOM.SG.F et /ɛt/ and flōrēs /ˈfloː.reːs/ flower.ACC.PL.M caeruleōs /kae̯ˈrʊ.lɛ.oːs/ blue.ACC.PL.M fert /fɛrt/ bear.3SG.PRES
101.21a Sōlem sun amat it-loves sed but umbram shade nōn not timet it-fears
101.21b Sōlem /ˈsoː.lɛm/ sun.ACC.SG.M amat /ˈa.mat/ love.3SG.PRES sed /sɛd/ but umbram /ˈʊm.bram/ shade.ACC.SG.F nōn /noːn/ not timet /ˈtɪ.mɛt/ fear.3SG.PRES
101.22a Terra soil levis light et and sicca dry eī to-it amīca friendly est is
101.22b Terra /ˈtɛr.ra/ soil.NOM.SG.F levis /ˈlɛ.wɪs/ light.NOM.SG.F et /ɛt/ and sicca /ˈsɪk.ka/ dry.NOM.SG.F eī /ˈɛ.iː/ it.DAT.SG.F amīca /aˈmiː.ka/ friendly.NOM.SG.F est /ɛst/ is.3SG.PRES
101.23a Nimia too-much aqua water huic to-this plantae plant inimīca hostile est is rādīcēs roots enim for putrēscunt rot
101.23b Nimia /ˈnɪ.mɪ.a/ excessive.NOM.SG.F aqua /ˈa.kʷa/ water.NOM.SG.F huic /hʊi̯k/ this.DAT.SG.F plantae /ˈplan.tae̯/ plant.DAT.SG.F inimīca /ɪ.nɪˈmiː.ka/ hostile.NOM.SG.F est /ɛst/ is.3SG.PRES rādīcēs /raːˈdiː.keːs/ root.NOM.PL.F enim /ˈɛ.nɪm/ for putrēscunt /pʊˈtreːs.kʊnt/ rot.3PL.PRES
101.24a Apēs bees et and pāpiliōnēs butterflies flōrēs flowers eius its frequenter often vīsitant visit
101.24b Apēs /ˈa.peːs/ bee.NOM.PL.F et /ɛt/ and pāpiliōnēs /paː.pɪ.lɪˈoː.neːs/ butterfly.NOM.PL.M flōrēs /ˈfloː.reːs/ flower.ACC.PL.M eius /ˈɛj.jʊs/ it.GEN.SG frequenter /frɛˈkʷɛn.tɛr/ often vīsitant /ˈwiː.sɪ.tant/ visit.3PL.PRES
101.25a Cum with amīcīs friends tuīs your sēmina seeds dīvide share
101.25b Cum /kʊm/ with amīcīs /aˈmiː.kiːs/ friend.ABL.PL.M tuīs /ˈtʊ.iːs/ your.ABL.PL.M sēmina /ˈseː.mɪ.na/ seed.ACC.PL.N dīvide /ˈdiː.wɪ.dɛ/ share.2SG.IMP
101.26a Graecī Greeks enim for dīcunt say amīcōrum of-friends esse to-be commūnia common omnia all-things
101.26b Graecī /ˈɡrae̯.kiː/ Greek.NOM.PL.M enim /ˈɛ.nɪm/ for dīcunt /ˈdiː.kʊnt/ say.3PL.PRES amīcōrum /a.miːˈkoː.rʊm/ friend.GEN.PL.M esse /ˈɛs.sɛ/ be.PRES.INF commūnia /kɔmˈmuː.nɪ.a/ common.ACC.PL.N omnia /ˈɔm.nɪ.a/ all.ACC.PL.N
101.27a Proximō next vēre in-spring hortum garden tuum your vīsitāre to-visit volō I-want
101.27b Proximō /ˈprɔk.sɪ.moː/ next.ABL.SG.N vēre /ˈweː.rɛ/ spring.ABL.SG.N hortum /ˈhɔr.tʊm/ garden.ACC.SG.M tuum /ˈtʊ.ʊm/ your.ACC.SG.M vīsitāre /wiː.sɪˈtaː.rɛ/ visit.PRES.INF volō /ˈwɔ.loː/ want.1SG.PRES
101.28a Tum then mihi to-me ostendēs you-will-show quōmodo how sēmina seeds nostra our crēverint have-grown
101.28b Tum /tʊm/ then mihi /ˈmɪ.hɪ/ me.DAT.SG ostendēs /ɔsˈtɛn.deːs/ show.2SG.FUT quōmodo /ˈkʷoː.mɔ.dɔ/ how sēmina /ˈseː.mɪ.na/ seed.NOM.PL.N nostra /ˈnɔs.tra/ our.NOM.PL.N crēverint /ˈkreː.wɛ.rɪnt/ grow.3PL.PERF.SUBJ
101.29a Salūtā greet uxōrem wife tuam your et and omnēs all amīcōs friends nostrōs our
101.29b Salūtā /saˈluː.taː/ greet.2SG.IMP uxōrem /ʊkˈsoː.rɛm/ wife.ACC.SG.F tuam /ˈtʊ.am/ your.ACC.SG.F et /ɛt/ and omnēs /ˈɔm.neːs/ all.ACC.PL.M amīcōs /aˈmiː.koːs/ friend.ACC.PL.M nostrōs /ˈnɔs.troːs/ our.ACC.PL.M
101.30a Valē farewell mī my amīce friend
101.30b Valē /ˈwa.leː/ farewell.2SG.IMP mī /miː/ my.VOC.SG.M amīce /aˈmiː.kɛ/ friend.VOC.SG.M
Part B: Natural Sentences
101.16 Mārcus Lūciō amīcō suō salūtem dīcit. → "Marcus sends greetings to his friend Lucius."
101.17 Accēpī litterās tuās, amīce cārissime, et valdē gāvīsus sum. → "I received your letter, my dearest friend, and I was very glad."
101.18 Sēmina quae petīvistī tibi cum hāc epistulā mittō. → "I am sending you the seeds you asked for with this letter."
101.19 Haec sēmina ab amīcō meō Graecō accēpī, quī ea in montibus collēgit. → "I received these seeds from my Greek friend, who gathered them in the mountains."
101.20 Planta est perennis et flōrēs caeruleōs fert. → "The plant is perennial and bears blue flowers."
101.21 Sōlem amat, sed umbram nōn timet. → "It loves the sun, but it does not fear shade."
101.22 Terra levis et sicca eī amīca est. → "Light, dry soil suits it well."
101.23 Nimia aqua huic plantae inimīca est; rādīcēs enim putrēscunt. → "Too much water is bad for this plant, for the roots rot."
101.24 Apēs et pāpiliōnēs flōrēs eius frequenter vīsitant. → "Bees and butterflies often visit its flowers."
101.25 Cum amīcīs tuīs sēmina dīvide. → "Share the seeds with your friends."
101.26 Graecī enim dīcunt amīcōrum esse commūnia omnia. → "For the Greeks say that friends hold all things in common."
101.27 Proximō vēre hortum tuum vīsitāre volō. → "Next spring I want to visit your garden."
101.28 Tum mihi ostendēs quōmodo sēmina nostra crēverint. → "Then you will show me how our seeds have grown."
101.29 Salūtā uxōrem tuam et omnēs amīcōs nostrōs. → "Give my greetings to your wife and to all our friends."
101.30 Valē, mī amīce! → "Farewell, my friend!"
Part C: Latin Text Only
101.16 Mārcus Lūciō amīcō suō salūtem dīcit.
101.17 Accēpī litterās tuās, amīce cārissime, et valdē gāvīsus sum.
101.18 Sēmina quae petīvistī tibi cum hāc epistulā mittō.
101.19 Haec sēmina ab amīcō meō Graecō accēpī, quī ea in montibus collēgit.
101.20 Planta est perennis et flōrēs caeruleōs fert.
101.21 Sōlem amat, sed umbram nōn timet.
101.22 Terra levis et sicca eī amīca est.
101.23 Nimia aqua huic plantae inimīca est; rādīcēs enim putrēscunt.
101.24 Apēs et pāpiliōnēs flōrēs eius frequenter vīsitant.
101.25 Cum amīcīs tuīs sēmina dīvide.
101.26 Graecī enim dīcunt amīcōrum esse commūnia omnia.
101.27 Proximō vēre hortum tuum vīsitāre volō.
101.28 Tum mihi ostendēs quōmodo sēmina nostra crēverint.
101.29 Salūtā uxōrem tuam et omnēs amīcōs nostrōs.
101.30 Valē, mī amīce!
Part D: Grammar Notes for Genre Section
The letter shows amīcus in almost every case. The dative amīcō in the opening formula (101.16) names the person greeted: Mārcus Lūciō amīcō suō salūtem dīcit, "Marcus says greetings to Lucius his friend," the standard Roman opening of a letter, often abbreviated S. D. The vocative amīce appears twice: with the superlative cārissime (101.17) and with mī in the closing valē, mī amīce (101.30). The ablative amīcō follows ab, "from" (101.19), and amīcīs follows cum, "with" (101.25). The genitive plural amīcōrum (101.26) and the accusative plural amīcōs (101.29) complete the set.
The adjectival use appears in 101.22 and 101.23: terra levis et sicca eī amīca est, "light dry soil is friendly to it," and nimia aqua huic plantae inimīca est, "too much water is hostile to this plant." In both, the plant stands in the dative (eī, huic plantae), and the adjective agrees with its feminine subject (terra, aqua).
Litterae (101.17) in the plural means "a letter," a single piece of correspondence; the singular littera is a letter of the alphabet. Epistula (101.18) is the other common word for a letter.
Gāvīsus sum (101.17) comes from gaudeō, gaudēre, gāvīsus sum, "to rejoice," a semi-deponent verb: active in the present system, passive in form but active in meaning in the perfect.
101.26 is an indirect statement after dīcunt: amīcōrum esse commūnia omnia, "that all things are common to friends." Amīcōrum is a predicate genitive of possession, "belong to friends." The sentence follows Cicero's report of the Greek proverb in Dē Officiīs 1.51, amicorum esse communia omnia.
101.28 is an indirect question with the perfect subjunctive crēverint (crēscō, crēscere, crēvī, crētum): quōmodo sēmina nostra crēverint, "how our seeds have grown." The subjunctive is required in an indirect question even where English uses the indicative.
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The i of amīcus is long in every form and carries the stress throughout the declension except in the genitive plural amīcōrum /a.miːˈkoː.rʊm/, where the long ō of the penultimate syllable draws the stress forward. In amīcitia /a.miːˈkɪ.tɪ.a/ the stress falls on the short third syllable because the penultimate syllable is short and open.
The first a of amīcus is short, unlike the long ā of the infinitive amāre. Write amīcus, never *āmīcus.
Inimīcus shows Latin vowel weakening: the a of amīcus becomes i after the prefix in-. The same thing happens in compounds such as faciō → efficiō.
Mī is the vocative of meus and is used only in address: mī amīce, mī Lūcī.
Tree names: ulmus, alnus, quercus, pīnus, abiēs and vītis are feminine. Pīnus has a long ī, and abiēs has a long final ē in the nominative. Fretum is neuter, so its dative plural is fretīs.
In Classical pronunciation, v is /w/ (vītis /ˈwiː.tɪs/, vēre /ˈweː.rɛ/) and qu is /kʷ/ (quercus /ˈkʷɛr.kʊs/). In the ae diphthong of caeruleōs, Graecī and plantae, the classical sound is close to English "eye."
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