Welcome to Lesson 61 of the Latinum Institute Conversational Latin Course. Today’s word is the noun rēx, rēgis, “king.” The Dickinson Core Vocabulary ranks it 60th among all Latin words. In Lesson 60 you learned īdem, “the same.” Rēx carries a whole chapter of Roman history: Rome began with kings, drove out the last of them, and for centuries afterwards treated the very word as an insult.
What does rēx mean in Latin?
Rēx means “king”: the man who rules a people alone, as Romulus ruled Rome. Romans also used it for kings of other nations, for gods (Jupiter is the king of gods and men), and for the leader of a children’s game. Rēgīna is “queen,” and rēgnum is “kingdom” or “royal power.”
How is rēx built?
Rēx belongs to the third declension. Its stem is rēg-, which you see in every form except the nominative: rēg-is, rēg-ī, rēg-em, rēg-e. In the nominative the ending -s joins the g, and g + s is written x: rēg-s → rēx. The same thing happens in lēx, lēgis, “law,” and grex, gregis, “flock.”
The noun is related to the verb regō, “I rule, I guide.” The king is the one who rules: septem rēgēs Rōmam rēxērunt, “seven kings ruled Rome.” The same root gives English “regal,” “reign” and “region,” and Spanish rey, French roi and Italian re all descend from rēx.
How does Latin differ from English here?
Latin has no articles, so rēx can mean “a king” or “the king”; the context decides. Rēx often stands beside a name in apposition, taking the same case: Tarquinius rēx, “King Tarquin”; ad Tarquinium rēgem, “to King Tarquin.” And to a Roman of the Republic, rēx was not a neutral word. It meant a man who stood above the law. When the crowd hailed Julius Caesar as king, he answered that he was Caesar, not king (Section F).
Key Takeaways
✦ Rēx, rēgis, m., “king”: third declension, stem rēg-
✦ The nominative rēx is rēg- + s, written x; every other form shows the g
✦ The ē is long in every form: rēgis “of the king,” but regis (short e) “you rule”
✦ Rēx stands in apposition to a name in the same case: Tarquinius rēx, Tarquiniō rēgī
✦ Related words: rēgīna “queen,” rēgnum “kingdom,” rēgius “royal,” regō “I rule”
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rēx /reːks/: one syllable, with a long ē, as in “they,” held a little longer, followed by ks: RAYKS.
rēgis /ˈreː.ɡis/, rēgem /ˈreː.ɡem/, rēge /ˈreː.ɡe/: two syllables, stress on the first. The g is always hard, as in “get,” never as in “gem.”
rēgēs /ˈreː.ɡeːs/: both vowels are long. This is the nominative and accusative plural.
rēgum /ˈreː.ɡum/, rēgibus /ˈreː.ɡi.bus/: the genitive plural and the dative and ablative plural.
rēgīna /reːˈɡiː.na/: the long ī takes the stress: ray-GEE-na.
rēxērunt /reːkˈseː.runt/: “they ruled,” the perfect of regō. Here too the ē of the stem is long.
Key vocabulary for this lesson:
rēgīna /reːˈɡiː.na/ — queen; rēgnum /ˈreːŋ.num/ — kingdom, royal power; cōnsul /ˈkoːn.sul/ — consul, one of the two yearly magistrates of the Republic; superbus /suˈper.bus/ — proud; ancilla /anˈkil.la/ — maidservant; avus /ˈa.wus/ — grandfather; collēga /kolˈleː.ɡa/ — colleague; dēlīrō /deːˈliː.roː/ — be mad, act foolishly.
This course gives the restored classical pronunciation: c and g are always hard, v is /w/, ae is /ae̯/ as in “eye,” and qu is /kʷ/.
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61.1a Rēx the-king venit is-coming
61.1b Rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG venit /ˈwe.nit/ come.3SG.PRES
61.2a Rēgem the-king videō I-see
61.2b Rēgem /ˈreː.ɡem/ king.ACC.M.SG videō /ˈwi.de.oː/ see.1SG.PRES
61.3a Ubi where est is rēx the-king
61.3b Ubi /ˈu.bi/ where.ADV est /est/ be.3SG.PRES rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG
61.4a Fīlius the-son rēgis of-the-king aegrōtat is-ill
61.4b Fīlius /ˈfiː.li.us/ son.NOM.M.SG rēgis /ˈreː.ɡis/ king.GEN.M.SG aegrōtat /ae̯ˈɡroː.tat/ be-ill.3SG.PRES
61.5a Rēgī to-the-king dōnum a-gift damus we-give
61.5b Rēgī /ˈreː.ɡiː/ king.DAT.M.SG dōnum /ˈdoː.num/ gift.ACC.N.SG damus /ˈda.mus/ give.1PL.PRES
61.6a Cum with rēge the-king in in hortō the-garden ambulābat he-was-walking
61.6b Cum /kum/ with.PREP+ABL rēge /ˈreː.ɡe/ king.ABL.M.SG in /in/ in.PREP+ABL hortō /ˈhor.toː/ garden.ABL.M.SG ambulābat /am.buˈlaː.bat/ walk.3SG.IMPERF
61.7a Rōmulus Romulus prīmus the-first rēx king Rōmānōrum of-the-Romans fuit was
61.7b Rōmulus /ˈroː.mu.lus/ Romulus.NOM.M.SG prīmus /ˈpriː.mus/ first.NOM.M.SG rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG Rōmānōrum /roː.maːˈnoː.rum/ Roman.GEN.M.PL fuit /ˈfu.it/ be.3SG.PERF
61.8a Septem seven rēgēs kings Rōmam Rome ante before cōnsulēs the-consuls rēxērunt ruled
61.8b Septem /ˈsep.tem/ seven.INDECL rēgēs /ˈreː.ɡeːs/ king.NOM.M.PL Rōmam /ˈroː.mam/ Rome.ACC.F.SG ante /ˈan.te/ before.PREP+ACC cōnsulēs /ˈkoːn.su.leːs/ consul.ACC.M.PL rēxērunt /reːkˈseː.runt/ rule.3PL.PERF
61.9a Tarquinius Tarquin rēx the-king superbus proud Rōmā from-Rome expulsus driven-out est was
61.9b Tarquinius /tarˈkʷi.ni.us/ Tarquinius.NOM.M.SG rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG superbus /suˈper.bus/ proud.NOM.M.SG Rōmā /ˈroː.maː/ Rome.ABL.F.SG expulsus /eksˈpul.sus/ drive-out.PERF.PASS.PTCP.NOM.M.SG est /est/ be.3SG.PRES
61.10a Rēgum of-kings fīliī the-sons eundem the-same magistrum teacher habēbant had
61.10b Rēgum /ˈreː.ɡum/ king.GEN.M.PL fīliī /ˈfiː.li.iː/ son.NOM.M.PL eundem /eˈun.dem/ same.ACC.M.SG magistrum /maˈɡis.trum/ teacher.ACC.M.SG habēbant /haˈbeː.bant/ have.3PL.IMPERF
61.11a At but puerī boys lūdentēs playing Rēx king eris you-will-be aiunt say sī if rēctē rightly faciēs you-will-act
61.11b At /at/ but.CONJ puerī /ˈpu.e.riː/ boy.NOM.M.PL lūdentēs /luːˈden.teːs/ play.PRES.PTCP.NOM.M.PL Rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG eris /ˈe.ris/ be.2SG.FUT aiunt /ˈaj.junt/ say.3PL.PRES sī /siː/ if.CONJ rēctē /ˈreːk.teː/ rightly.ADV faciēs /ˈfa.ki.eːs/ do.2SG.FUT
61.12a Rēx king erat was Aenēās Aeneas nōbīs to-us quō than-whom iūstior more-just alter another nec not pietāte in-devotion fuit was nec nor bellō in-war maior greater et and armīs in-arms
61.12b Rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG erat /ˈe.rat/ be.3SG.IMPERF Aenēās /ae̯ˈneː.aːs/ Aeneas.NOM.M.SG nōbīs /ˈnoː.biːs/ we.DAT.PL quō /kʷoː/ who.ABL.M.SG iūstior /ˈjuːs.ti.or/ just.NOM.M.SG.COMP alter /ˈal.ter/ other.NOM.M.SG nec /nek/ nor.CONJ pietāte /pi.eˈtaː.te/ devotion.ABL.F.SG fuit /ˈfu.it/ be.3SG.PERF nec /nek/ nor.CONJ bellō /ˈbel.loː/ war.ABL.N.SG maior /ˈmaj.jor/ great.NOM.M.SG.COMP et /et/ and.CONJ armīs /ˈar.miːs/ arms.ABL.N.PL
61.13a Quidquid whatever dēlīrant act-madly rēgēs the-kings plectuntur are-punished Achīvī the-Achaeans
61.13b Quidquid /ˈkʷid.kʷid/ whatever.ACC.N.SG dēlīrant /deːˈliː.rant/ rave.3PL.PRES rēgēs /ˈreː.ɡeːs/ king.NOM.M.PL plectuntur /plekˈtun.tur/ punish.3PL.PRES.PASS Achīvī /aˈkʰiː.wiː/ Achaean.NOM.M.PL
61.14a Rēgēs kings ex from nōbilitāte the-nobility ducēs war-leaders ex from virtūte courage sūmunt they-take
61.14b Rēgēs /ˈreː.ɡeːs/ king.ACC.M.PL ex /eks/ from.PREP+ABL nōbilitāte /noː.bi.liˈtaː.te/ nobility.ABL.F.SG ducēs /ˈdu.keːs/ leader.ACC.M.PL ex /eks/ from.PREP+ABL virtūte /wirˈtuː.te/ courage.ABL.F.SG sūmunt /ˈsuː.munt/ take.3PL.PRES
61.15a Dīxit said itaque therefore eī to-him Pīlātus Pilate Ergō then rēx a-king es are tū you Respondit answered Iēsus Jesus Tū you dīcis say quia that rēx a-king sum am ego I
61.15b Dīxit /ˈdiːk.sit/ say.3SG.PERF itaque /ˈi.ta.kʷe/ therefore.CONJ eī /ˈe.iː/ he.DAT.M.SG Pīlātus /piːˈlaː.tus/ Pilate.NOM.M.SG Ergō /ˈer.ɡoː/ therefore.ADV rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG es /es/ be.2SG.PRES tū /tuː/ you.NOM.SG Respondit /resˈpon.dit/ answer.3SG.PERF Iēsus /ˈjeː.sus/ Jesus.NOM.M.SG Tū /tuː/ you.NOM.SG dīcis /ˈdiː.kis/ say.2SG.PRES quia /ˈkʷi.a/ that.CONJ rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG sum /sum/ be.1SG.PRES ego /ˈe.ɡo/ I.NOM.SG
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61.1 Rēx venit. → “The king is coming.”
61.2 Rēgem videō. → “I can see the king.”
61.3 Ubi est rēx? → “Where is the king?”
61.4 Fīlius rēgis aegrōtat. → “The king’s son is ill.”
61.5 Rēgī dōnum damus. → “We are giving the king a present.”
61.6 Cum rēge in hortō ambulābat. → “He was walking in the garden with the king.”
61.7 Rōmulus prīmus rēx Rōmānōrum fuit. → “Romulus was the first king of the Romans.”
61.8 Septem rēgēs Rōmam ante cōnsulēs rēxērunt. → “Seven kings ruled Rome before the consuls.”
61.9 Tarquinius, rēx superbus, Rōmā expulsus est. → “Tarquin, the proud king, was driven out of Rome.”
61.10 Rēgum fīliī eundem magistrum habēbant. → “The kings’ sons had the same teacher.”
61.11 At puerī lūdentēs “Rēx eris” aiunt, “sī rēctē faciēs.” → “But boys at play say, ‘You’ll be king, if you do right.’” (Horace, Epistles 1.1.59–60)
61.12 Rēx erat Aenēās nōbīs, quō iūstior alter nec pietāte fuit, nec bellō maior et armīs. → “Aeneas was our king: no one was more just than he in his devotion, and no one greater in war and arms.” (Vergil, Aeneid 1.544–545)
61.13 Quidquid dēlīrant rēgēs, plectuntur Achīvī. → “Whatever madness the kings commit, it is the Greeks who are punished.” (Horace, Epistles 1.2.14)
61.14 Rēgēs ex nōbilitāte, ducēs ex virtūte sūmunt. → “They choose their kings for their noble birth, their war-leaders for their courage.” (Tacitus, Germania 7.1)
61.15 Dīxit itaque eī Pīlātus: “Ergō rēx es tū?” Respondit Iēsus: “Tū dīcis quia rēx sum ego.” → “So Pilate said to him, ‘Are you a king, then?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king.’” (John 18:37, Vulgate)
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61.1 Rēx venit.
61.2 Rēgem videō.
61.3 Ubi est rēx?
61.4 Fīlius rēgis aegrōtat.
61.5 Rēgī dōnum damus.
61.6 Cum rēge in hortō ambulābat.
61.7 Rōmulus prīmus rēx Rōmānōrum fuit.
61.8 Septem rēgēs Rōmam ante cōnsulēs rēxērunt.
61.9 Tarquinius, rēx superbus, Rōmā expulsus est.
61.10 Rēgum fīliī eundem magistrum habēbant.
61.11 At puerī lūdentēs “Rēx eris” aiunt, “sī rēctē faciēs.”
61.12 Rēx erat Aenēās nōbīs, quō iūstior alter nec pietāte fuit, nec bellō maior et armīs.
61.13 Quidquid dēlīrant rēgēs, plectuntur Achīvī.
61.14 Rēgēs ex nōbilitāte, ducēs ex virtūte sūmunt.
61.15 Dīxit itaque eī Pīlātus: “Ergō rēx es tū?” Respondit Iēsus: “Tū dīcis quia rēx sum ego.”
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These are the grammar rules for rēx in Latin:
1. A third-declension consonant stem
Rēx is a masculine noun of the third declension. Its stem is rēg-. The dictionary gives two forms, rēx, rēgis, because the nominative hides the stem: you need the genitive to see it.
2. The paradigm
Singular: Nominative: rēx (61.1, 61.3) Genitive: rēgis (61.4) Dative: rēgī (61.5) Accusative: rēgem (61.2) Ablative: rēge (61.6) Vocative: rēx
Plural: Nominative: rēgēs (61.8, 61.13) Genitive: rēgum (61.10) Dative: rēgibus Accusative: rēgēs (61.14) Ablative: rēgibus Vocative: rēgēs
The genitive plural is rēgum, with -um, not -ium: rēx is a consonant stem.
3. Why x?
The nominative ending of most third-declension masculine nouns is -s. Added to rēg-, it gives rēg-s, and the Romans wrote the sound gs or ks with the single letter x. The same thing happens with lēx, lēgis, “law,” dux, ducis, “leader” (61.14 ducēs), and vōx, vōcis, “voice.” When you meet a nominative in -x, look at the genitive to find out whether the stem ends in g or c.
4. The long ē
The ē of rēx is long in every form: rēgis, rēgī, rēgem, rēgēs. The verb regō, “I rule,” has a short e in the present: regō, regis, regit. So rēgis /ˈreː.ɡis/ is “of the king,” and regis /ˈre.ɡis/ is “you rule.” In the perfect the verb has a long ē again: rēxī, rēxērunt (61.8).
5. Nouns in -s and the subject and object plural
Rēgēs is both nominative and accusative plural. In 61.8 septem rēgēs … rēxērunt, rēgēs is the subject. In 61.14 rēgēs … sūmunt, it is the object: the subject “they” (the Germans) is in the verb. Only the sense and the verb tell you which.
6. Apposition: Tarquinius rēx
When rēx stands beside a name, it takes the same case: Tarquinius, rēx superbus (61.9), nominative; Tarquiniō rēgī, “to King Tarquin,” dative. English puts “King” before the name; Latin usually puts rēx after it.
7. Rēx as a predicate
With sum, rēx is a predicate noun in the nominative: Rōmulus prīmus rēx fuit (61.7), rēx es tū? (61.15), rēx eris (61.11). In indirect speech it goes into the accusative with its subject: Caesarem sē, nōn rēgem esse, “that he was Caesar, not king” (Section F). With verbs of calling and greeting there are two accusatives: rēgem sē salūtāre, “to greet him as king” (Section F).
8. The dative of possession
Rēx erat Aenēās nōbīs (61.12) is literally “Aeneas was king to us,” that is, “Aeneas was our king.” Latin often uses sum with a dative where English uses “have” or “our.”
9. The ablative of separation with a city
Rōmā expulsus est (61.9), “he was driven out of Rome”: with the names of cities, Latin uses the plain ablative for “from,” without a preposition. With other nouns it uses ab or ex: ex urbe, “out of the city.”
10. Quia meaning “that”
In 61.15 the Vulgate writes tū dīcis quia rēx sum ego, “you say that I am a king.” Classical Latin would say tū dīcis mē rēgem esse, with the accusative and infinitive of point 7. Later Latin, following the Greek of the Gospels, often uses quia or quod with an ordinary verb instead. Recognise it in Christian texts; write the accusative and infinitive yourself.
11. Related words
rēgīna, -ae, f., “queen”; rēgnum, -ī, n., “kingdom, royal power”; rēgnō, -āre, “reign”; rēgius, -a, -um, “royal” (Section F rēgiī nōminis, “of the royal name”); regō, regere, rēxī, rēctum, “rule, guide.” Rēctē, “rightly” (61.11), comes from rēctus, “straight,” the participle of regō: the king and the right way are the same family of words.
Common Mistakes
Writing regis for rēgis. Without the macron the two look alike; with it they are different words. Rēgis is “of the king”; regis is “you rule.”
Building forms on the nominative. There is no rēxis or rēxem. Always decline from the stem rēg-: rēgis, rēgem.
Rēgium for the genitive plural. The genitive plural is rēgum (61.10), as in Horace’s rēgumque turrīs, “and the towers of kings” (Section E).
A feminine rēx. Rēx is always masculine. A queen is rēgīna (61.16).
Confusing rēgēs nominative and accusative. Check the verb: in 61.14 sūmunt needs an object, so rēgēs is accusative.
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Seven kings
Roman tradition counted seven kings, from Romulus, the founder (61.7), to Tarquinius Superbus, “Tarquin the Proud” (61.9). Livy tells how Tarquin took power by force: inde L. Tarquinius rēgnāre occēpit, cui Superbō cognōmen facta indidērunt, “then Lucius Tarquinius began to reign, whose deeds gave him the surname Superbus” (Livy 1.49.1). Tradition dates his expulsion to 509 BC. In place of one king for life the Romans chose two consuls each year, so that no one man held power alone or for long.
A hated word
After the kings were expelled, rēx became a word of abuse. Lewis and Short note that under the Republic it was a hated name, close in meaning to tyrannus, “tyrant.” To call a politician rēx, or to say that he wanted rēgnum, was to accuse him of aiming at tyranny. Yet the title did not disappear: a priest called the rēx sacrōrum, “king of the sacred rites,” went on performing the religious duties of the old kings.
Caesar, not king
In 44 BC the question came back. Suetonius tells how a crowd hailed Julius Caesar as rēx, and Caesar replied that he was Caesar, not king; and how at the festival of the Lupercalia, Mark Antony, then consul, offered him a diadem, the band worn by Hellenistic kings, and Caesar pushed it away (Section F). Many did not believe that he meant it. A month later he was killed.
“You’ll be king if you do right”
Roman children played a game in which the winner was king. Horace quotes their rhyme in 61.11: rēx eris, sī rēctē faciēs, “you will be king, if you do right.” He uses it against the adults, who teach that money comes first and goodness after; the children understand better that kingship belongs to whoever acts rightly. The pun, rēx and rēctē, comes from the shared root of rēx and regō.
Kings in poetry
The poets use rēx with respect as well as fear. Vergil’s Trojan Ilioneus describes Aeneas to Dido as the most just of kings (61.12). Horace has the famous line on the Trojan War, quidquid dēlīrant rēgēs, plectuntur Achīvī (61.13): Agamemnon and Achilles quarrel, and the ordinary soldiers pay for it. And in Odes 1.4.13–14 he reminds his friend that death treats all alike: pallida Mors aequō pulsat pede pauperum tabernās / rēgumque turrīs, “pale Death knocks with impartial foot at the huts of the poor and the towers of kings.”
Kings outside Rome
Tacitus, describing the Germans, notes that they choose their kings for noble birth and their war-leaders for courage (61.14). He adds at once that their kings do not have unlimited or arbitrary power, nec rēgibus īnfīnīta aut lībera potestās (Germania 7.1). The point would not have been lost on a Roman reader under an emperor.
The King of the Jews
In the Gospel of John, Pilate asks Jesus whether he is a king (61.15). The inscription on the cross reads, in the Vulgate, Iēsus Nazarēnus, Rēx Iūdaeōrum (John 19:19), “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews”: the letters INRI seen on crucifixes are its initials.
Rēx today
The word is still in daily use. In British courts a criminal case is brought in the name of the Crown, so cases are cited as “R v. Smith”: R stands for Rēx, “the King,” or Rēgīna, “the Queen.” English “regal” and “regalia,” “reign” and “regent” all come from the same family.
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Suetonius, Dīvus Iūlius (The Life of Julius Caesar) 79.2. Suetonius describes the last months of Caesar’s life, when people suspected that he wanted to make himself king. The tribunes had removed a crown from his statue, and Caesar had punished them. Suetonius goes on to say that Caesar could never again clear himself of the charge. The text is that of the Latin Library; the macrons are editorial.
F-A: Interlinear Construed Text
F.1a Neque nor ex from eō that-time īnfāmiam the-disgrace affectātī of-having-aimed-at etiam even rēgiī the-royal nōminis name discutere to-shake-off valuit was-he-able
F.1b Neque /ˈne.kʷe/ and-not.CONJ ex /eks/ from.PREP+ABL eō /ˈe.oː/ that.ABL.N.SG īnfāmiam /iːnˈfaː.mi.am/ disgrace.ACC.F.SG affectātī /af.fekˈtaː.tiː/ aim-at.PERF.PASS.PTCP.GEN.N.SG etiam /ˈe.ti.am/ even.ADV rēgiī /ˈreː.ɡi.iː/ royal.GEN.N.SG nōminis /ˈnoː.mi.nis/ name.GEN.N.SG discutere /disˈku.te.re/ shake-off.PRES.INF valuit /ˈwa.lu.it/ be-able.3SG.PERF
F.2a quanquam although et both plēbeī to-the-common-people rēgem king sē him salūtantī greeting Caesarem Caesar sē he nōn not rēgem king esse was responderit he-replied
F.2b quanquam /ˈkʷaŋ.kʷam/ although.CONJ et /et/ both.CONJ plēbeī /ˈpleː.be.iː/ common-people.DAT.F.SG rēgem /ˈreː.ɡem/ king.ACC.M.SG sē /seː/ himself.ACC.SG salūtantī /sa.luːˈtan.tiː/ greet.PRES.PTCP.DAT.F.SG Caesarem /ˈkae̯.sa.rem/ Caesar.ACC.M.SG sē /seː/ himself.ACC.SG nōn /noːn/ not.ADV rēgem /ˈreː.ɡem/ king.ACC.M.SG esse /ˈes.se/ be.PRES.INF responderit /resˈpon.de.rit/ answer.3SG.PERF.SUBJ
F.3a et and Lupercālibus at-the-Lupercalia prō in-front-of rōstrīs the-Rostra ā by cōnsule the-consul Antōniō Antony admōtum moved-towards saepius several-times capitī to-head suō his diadēma the-diadem reppulerit he-pushed-back atque and in to Capitōlium the-Capitol Iovī to-Jupiter Optimō Best Maximō Greatest mīserit sent-it
F.3b et /et/ and.CONJ Lupercālibus /lu.perˈkaː.li.bus/ Lupercalia.ABL.N.PL prō /proː/ before.PREP+ABL rōstrīs /ˈroːs.triːs/ rostra.ABL.N.PL ā /aː/ by.PREP+ABL cōnsule /ˈkoːn.su.le/ consul.ABL.M.SG Antōniō /anˈtoː.ni.oː/ Antonius.ABL.M.SG admōtum /adˈmoː.tum/ move-towards.PERF.PASS.PTCP.ACC.N.SG saepius /ˈsae̯.pi.us/ often.ADV.COMP capitī /ˈka.pi.tiː/ head.DAT.N.SG suō /ˈsu.oː/ his-own.DAT.N.SG diadēma /di.aˈdeː.ma/ diadem.ACC.N.SG reppulerit /repˈpu.le.rit/ push-back.3SG.PERF.SUBJ atque /ˈat.kʷe/ and.CONJ in /in/ into.PREP+ACC Capitōlium /ka.piˈtoː.li.um/ Capitol.ACC.N.SG Iovī /ˈjo.wiː/ Jupiter.DAT.M.SG Optimō /ˈop.ti.moː/ best.DAT.M.SG Maximō /ˈmak.si.moː/ greatest.DAT.M.SG mīserit /ˈmiː.se.rit/ send.3SG.PERF.SUBJ
F-B: Natural Text with Translation
Neque ex eō īnfāmiam affectātī etiam rēgiī nōminis discutere valuit, quanquam et plēbeī rēgem sē salūtantī Caesarem sē, nōn rēgem esse responderit et Lupercālibus prō rōstrīs ā cōnsule Antōniō admōtum saepius capitī suō diadēma reppulerit atque in Capitōlium Iovī Optimō Maximō mīserit.
“And from that time he could not shake off the disgrace of having aimed even at the title of king, although, when the common people hailed him as king, he replied that he was Caesar and not king; and although at the Lupercalia, in front of the Rostra, when the consul Antony several times brought a diadem up to his head, he pushed it away and sent it to the Capitol, to Jupiter Best and Greatest.”
— Suetonius, Dīvus Iūlius 79.2
F-C: Latin Text Only
Neque ex eō īnfāmiam affectātī etiam rēgiī nōminis discutere valuit, quanquam et plēbeī rēgem sē salūtantī Caesarem sē, nōn rēgem esse responderit et Lupercālibus prō rōstrīs ā cōnsule Antōniō admōtum saepius capitī suō diadēma reppulerit atque in Capitōlium Iovī Optimō Maximō mīserit.
F-D: Grammar and Literary Commentary
Neque ex eō … valuit. Ex eō, “from that (time),” means “from then on.” Īnfāmiam affectātī etiam rēgiī nōminis is literally “the disgrace of the royal name having been aimed at”: Latin uses a noun and a participle where English uses a verbal noun, “of having aimed at the royal name.” Affectō here means “aim at, strive for,” the usual word for reaching after power one should not have. Rēgius, “royal,” is the adjective from rēx; rēgium nōmen, “the royal name,” is simply the title rēx.
Quanquam … responderit … reppulerit … mīserit. Quanquam (Classical quamquam), “although,” here takes the subjunctive. Cicero usually puts quamquam with the indicative; writers of the Empire, Suetonius among them, often use the subjunctive. The three verbs are perfect subjunctives: responderit, “he answered,” reppulerit, “he pushed back,” mīserit, “he sent.” Et … et joins the two things Caesar did: et plēbeī … responderit et Lupercālibus … reppulerit.
Plēbeī rēgem sē salūtantī. Plēbs, “the common people,” has an old fifth-declension form plēbēs, plēbeī; plēbeī here is the dative, “to the common people.” Salūtantī, the present participle, agrees with it: “to the people (when they were) greeting him.” Rēgem sē salūtāre is the double accusative of Section D, point 7: “to greet him as king.”
Caesarem sē, nōn rēgem esse. This is indirect speech, the accusative and infinitive after responderit. His actual words would have been Caesar sum, nōn rēx, “I am Caesar, not king.” Many readers hear a pun in it: Rēx was also a Roman family name, borne by the Mārciī Rēgēs, Caesar’s relatives through his grandmother Mārcia. Caesar could pretend that the crowd had simply got his name wrong.
Lupercālibus prō rōstrīs. Lupercālia is a neuter plural festival name; the ablative gives the time, “at the Lupercalia.” The Rōstra were the speakers’ platform in the Forum, named after the bronze ship’s beaks (rōstra) fixed to it. Admōtum … diadēma: the participle admōtum, “moved towards,” agrees with diadēma, a neuter Greek noun. Saepius, the comparative of saepe, means “more than once.”
In Capitōlium Iovī Optimō Maximō mīserit. Caesar sent the diadem to the temple of Jupiter on the Capitol: the only rēx in Rome, the gesture said, was Jupiter. Suetonius’ long sentence piles up the evidence for Caesar’s refusals and then lets the main clause, at its start, tell us that none of it helped.
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A pedagogical dialogue, composed for this lesson and not a quotation. Mārcus and his sister Iūlia are playing in the courtyard, and they cannot agree who is to be king. Their grandfather (avus) settles the quarrel with the Roman children’s rhyme of 61.11 and a short history of the kings of Rome. Every line of the dialogue uses a form of rēx.
Part A: Interlinear Construed Text
61.16a IŪLIA: Lūdāmus let-us-play Mārce Marcus Ego I rēgīna the-queen sum am tū you rēx the-king
61.16b Lūdāmus /luːˈdaː.mus/ play.1PL.PRES.SUBJ Mārce /ˈmaːr.ke/ Marcus.VOC.M.SG Ego /ˈe.ɡo/ I.NOM.SG rēgīna /reːˈɡiː.na/ queen.NOM.F.SG sum /sum/ be.1SG.PRES tū /tuː/ you.NOM.SG rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG
61.17a MĀRCUS: Nōn no Ego I rēx the-king sum am tū you ancilla the-maidservant rēgis of-the-king es are
61.17b Nōn /noːn/ not.ADV Ego /ˈe.ɡo/ I.NOM.SG rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG sum /sum/ be.1SG.PRES tū /tuː/ you.NOM.SG ancilla /anˈkil.la/ maidservant.NOM.F.SG rēgis /ˈreː.ɡis/ king.GEN.M.SG es /es/ be.2SG.PRES
61.18a AVUS: Quid why clāmātis are-you-shouting puerī children Uter which vestrum of-you rēx king erit will-be
61.18b Quid /kʷid/ why.ACC.N.SG clāmātis /klaːˈmaː.tis/ shout.2PL.PRES puerī /ˈpu.e.riː/ child.VOC.M.PL Uter /ˈu.ter/ which-of-two.NOM.M.SG vestrum /ˈwes.trum/ you.GEN.PL rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG erit /ˈe.rit/ be.3SG.FUT
61.19a IŪLIA: Mārcus Marcus semper always rēx king esse to-be vult wants
61.19b Mārcus /ˈmaːr.kus/ Marcus.NOM.M.SG semper /ˈsem.per/ always.ADV rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG esse /ˈes.se/ be.PRES.INF vult /wult/ want.3SG.PRES
61.20a AVUS: Audīte listen Ōlim once puerī children Rōmānī Roman lūdentēs playing dīcēbant used-to-say Rēx king eris you-will-be sī if rēctē rightly faciēs you-will-act
61.20b Audīte /au̯ˈdiː.te/ listen.2PL.IMP Ōlim /ˈoː.lim/ once.ADV puerī /ˈpu.e.riː/ child.NOM.M.PL Rōmānī /roːˈmaː.niː/ Roman.NOM.M.PL lūdentēs /luːˈden.teːs/ play.PRES.PTCP.NOM.M.PL dīcēbant /diːˈkeː.bant/ say.3PL.IMPERF Rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG eris /ˈe.ris/ be.2SG.FUT sī /siː/ if.CONJ rēctē /ˈreːk.teː/ rightly.ADV faciēs /ˈfa.ki.eːs/ do.2SG.FUT
61.21a MĀRCUS: Sī if rēctē rightly faciō I-act rēx king sum I-am Facile easy est it-is
61.21b Sī /siː/ if.CONJ rēctē /ˈreːk.teː/ rightly.ADV faciō /ˈfa.ki.oː/ do.1SG.PRES rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG sum /sum/ be.1SG.PRES Facile /ˈfa.ki.le/ easy.NOM.N.SG est /est/ be.3SG.PRES
61.22a AVUS: Nōn not tam so facile easy est it-is rēgēs kings enim for saepe often errant go-wrong
61.22b Nōn /noːn/ not.ADV tam /tam/ so.ADV facile /ˈfa.ki.le/ easy.NOM.N.SG est /est/ be.3SG.PRES rēgēs /ˈreː.ɡeːs/ king.NOM.M.PL enim /ˈe.nim/ for.CONJ saepe /ˈsae̯.pe/ often.ADV errant /ˈer.rant/ go-wrong.3PL.PRES
61.23a IŪLIA: Quot how-many rēgēs kings Rōma Rome habuit had ave grandfather
61.23b Quot /kʷot/ how-many.INDECL rēgēs /ˈreː.ɡeːs/ king.ACC.M.PL Rōma /ˈroː.ma/ Rome.NOM.F.SG habuit /ˈha.bu.it/ have.3SG.PERF ave /ˈa.we/ grandfather.VOC.M.SG
61.24a AVUS: Septem seven Prīmus the-first rēx king erat was Rōmulus Romulus ultimus the-last Tarquinius Tarquinius Superbus the-Proud
61.24b Septem /ˈsep.tem/ seven.INDECL Prīmus /ˈpriː.mus/ first.NOM.M.SG rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG erat /ˈe.rat/ be.3SG.IMPERF Rōmulus /ˈroː.mu.lus/ Romulus.NOM.M.SG ultimus /ˈul.ti.mus/ last.NOM.M.SG Tarquinius /tarˈkʷi.ni.us/ Tarquinius.NOM.M.SG Superbus /suˈper.bus/ Superbus.NOM.M.SG
61.25a MĀRCUS: Cūr why Rōmānī the-Romans ultimum the-last rēgem king expulērunt drove-out
61.25b Cūr /kuːr/ why.ADV Rōmānī /roːˈmaː.niː/ Roman.NOM.M.PL ultimum /ˈul.ti.mum/ last.ACC.M.SG rēgem /ˈreː.ɡem/ king.ACC.M.SG expulērunt /eks.puˈleː.runt/ drive-out.3PL.PERF
61.26a AVUS: Quia because rēgem a-king superbum proud et and crūdēlem cruel nōn not iam any-longer ferēbant they-would-bear
61.26b Quia /ˈkʷi.a/ because.CONJ rēgem /ˈreː.ɡem/ king.ACC.M.SG superbum /suˈper.bum/ proud.ACC.M.SG et /et/ and.CONJ crūdēlem /kruːˈdeː.lem/ cruel.ACC.M.SG nōn /noːn/ not.ADV iam /jam/ now.ADV ferēbant /feˈreː.bant/ bear.3PL.IMPERF
61.27a IŪLIA: Ergō so post after Tarquinium Tarquin nūllus no rēx king Rōmae at-Rome fuit was-there
61.27b Ergō /ˈer.ɡoː/ therefore.ADV post /post/ after.PREP+ACC Tarquinium /tarˈkʷi.ni.um/ Tarquinius.ACC.M.SG nūllus /ˈnuːl.lus/ no.NOM.M.SG rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG Rōmae /ˈroː.mae̯/ Rome.LOC.F.SG fuit /ˈfu.it/ be.3SG.PERF
61.28a AVUS: Nūllus none Etiam even Caesar Caesar populō to-the-people dīxit said Caesar Caesar sum I-am nōn not rēx king
61.28b Nūllus /ˈnuːl.lus/ no.NOM.M.SG Etiam /ˈe.ti.am/ even.ADV Caesar /ˈkae̯.sar/ Caesar.NOM.M.SG populō /ˈpo.pu.loː/ people.DAT.M.SG dīxit /ˈdiːk.sit/ say.3SG.PERF Caesar /ˈkae̯.sar/ Caesar.NOM.M.SG sum /sum/ be.1SG.PRES nōn /noːn/ not.ADV rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG
61.29a MĀRCUS: Ego I igitur then nōn not rēx king sed but cōnsul consul erō will-be et and tū you Iūlia Julia collēga colleague eris will-be
61.29b Ego /ˈe.ɡo/ I.NOM.SG igitur /ˈi.ɡi.tur/ therefore.CONJ nōn /noːn/ not.ADV rēx /reːks/ king.NOM.M.SG sed /sed/ but.CONJ cōnsul /ˈkoːn.sul/ consul.NOM.M.SG erō /ˈe.roː/ be.1SG.FUT et /et/ and.CONJ tū /tuː/ you.NOM.SG Iūlia /ˈjuː.li.a/ Julia.VOC.F.SG collēga /kolˈleː.ɡa/ colleague.NOM.SG eris /ˈe.ris/ be.2SG.FUT
61.30a AVUS: Rēctē rightly facitis you-act puerī children ergō so ambō both rēgēs kings estis you-are
61.30b Rēctē /ˈreːk.teː/ rightly.ADV facitis /ˈfa.ki.tis/ do.2PL.PRES puerī /ˈpu.e.riː/ child.VOC.M.PL ergō /ˈer.ɡoː/ therefore.ADV ambō /ˈam.boː/ both.NOM.M.PL rēgēs /ˈreː.ɡeːs/ king.NOM.M.PL estis /ˈes.tis/ be.2PL.PRES
Part B: Natural Sentences
61.16 IŪLIA: Lūdāmus, Mārce! Ego rēgīna sum, tū rēx. → “Let’s play, Marcus! I’m the queen, you’re the king.”
61.17 MĀRCUS: Nōn! Ego rēx sum; tū ancilla rēgis es! → “No! I’m the king, and you’re the king’s maid!”
61.18 AVUS: Quid clāmātis, puerī? Uter vestrum rēx erit? → “What are you shouting about, children? Which of you is going to be king?”
61.19 IŪLIA: Mārcus semper rēx esse vult. → “Marcus always wants to be king.”
61.20 AVUS: Audīte! Ōlim puerī Rōmānī lūdentēs dīcēbant: “Rēx eris, sī rēctē faciēs.” → “Listen! Long ago Roman children used to say in their games, ‘You’ll be king if you do right.’”
61.21 MĀRCUS: Sī rēctē faciō, rēx sum? Facile est! → “If I do right, I’m king? That’s easy!”
61.22 AVUS: Nōn tam facile est: rēgēs enim saepe errant. → “It isn’t so easy: kings often go wrong.”
61.23 IŪLIA: Quot rēgēs Rōma habuit, ave? → “How many kings did Rome have, Grandpa?”
61.24 AVUS: Septem. Prīmus rēx erat Rōmulus, ultimus Tarquinius Superbus. → “Seven. The first king was Romulus, the last Tarquin the Proud.”
61.25 MĀRCUS: Cūr Rōmānī ultimum rēgem expulērunt? → “Why did the Romans drive out the last king?”
61.26 AVUS: Quia rēgem superbum et crūdēlem nōn iam ferēbant. → “Because they would no longer put up with a proud and cruel king.”
61.27 IŪLIA: Ergō post Tarquinium nūllus rēx Rōmae fuit? → “So after Tarquin there was no king at Rome?”
61.28 AVUS: Nūllus. Etiam Caesar populō dīxit: “Caesar sum, nōn rēx.” → “None. Even Caesar told the people, ‘I am Caesar, not king.’”
61.29 MĀRCUS: Ego igitur nōn rēx sed cōnsul erō, et tū, Iūlia, collēga eris. → “Then I won’t be king, I’ll be consul, and you, Julia, will be my colleague.”
61.30 AVUS: Rēctē facitis, puerī: ergō ambō rēgēs estis! → “You’re doing right, children, so you are both kings!”
Part C: Latin Text Only
61.16 IŪLIA: Lūdāmus, Mārce! Ego rēgīna sum, tū rēx.
61.17 MĀRCUS: Nōn! Ego rēx sum; tū ancilla rēgis es!
61.18 AVUS: Quid clāmātis, puerī? Uter vestrum rēx erit?
61.19 IŪLIA: Mārcus semper rēx esse vult.
61.20 AVUS: Audīte! Ōlim puerī Rōmānī lūdentēs dīcēbant: “Rēx eris, sī rēctē faciēs.”
61.21 MĀRCUS: Sī rēctē faciō, rēx sum? Facile est!
61.22 AVUS: Nōn tam facile est: rēgēs enim saepe errant.
61.23 IŪLIA: Quot rēgēs Rōma habuit, ave?
61.24 AVUS: Septem. Prīmus rēx erat Rōmulus, ultimus Tarquinius Superbus.
61.25 MĀRCUS: Cūr Rōmānī ultimum rēgem expulērunt?
61.26 AVUS: Quia rēgem superbum et crūdēlem nōn iam ferēbant.
61.27 IŪLIA: Ergō post Tarquinium nūllus rēx Rōmae fuit?
61.28 AVUS: Nūllus. Etiam Caesar populō dīxit: “Caesar sum, nōn rēx.”
61.29 MĀRCUS: Ego igitur nōn rēx sed cōnsul erō, et tū, Iūlia, collēga eris.
61.30 AVUS: Rēctē facitis, puerī: ergō ambō rēgēs estis!
Part D: Grammar Notes for Genre Section
The dialogue uses most of the paradigm of Section D. Nominative singular: rēx (61.16, 61.17, 61.18, 61.19, 61.20, 61.21, 61.24, 61.27, 61.28, 61.29). Genitive: ancilla rēgis (61.17). Accusative singular: ultimum rēgem (61.25), rēgem superbum et crūdēlem (61.26). Nominative plural: rēgēs enim saepe errant (61.22), ambō rēgēs estis (61.30). Accusative plural: quot rēgēs … habuit (61.23). The feminine is a different word: rēgīna (61.16).
Rēx as a predicate. Most of the nominatives are predicates with sum, erō, esse: tū rēx (61.16, with es understood), rēx erit (61.18), rēx esse vult (61.19), rēx eris (61.20). Caesar sum, nōn rēx (61.28) is Caesar’s answer from Section F, given in direct speech. Suetonius reports it as Caesarem sē, nōn rēgem esse, the accusative and infinitive; the grandfather quotes the words themselves, so they stand in the nominative.
The children’s rhyme. Rēx eris, sī rēctē faciēs (61.20) is Horace’s line from 61.11. Both verbs are future: “you will be king if you will do right.” English uses the present after “if,” but Latin is exact about time and puts the future in both halves. In 61.21 Mārcus answers with the present in both halves, sī rēctē faciō, rēx sum, because he is talking about now. In 61.30 the grandfather turns the rhyme round: they have done right, so they are both kings.
Other grammar points: 61.16 lūdāmus, “let us play,” is the subjunctive of exhortation, like aperiāmus in Lesson 60. Mārce is the vocative of Mārcus: second-declension nouns in -us have a vocative in -e. 61.18 quid, “what,” here means “why”: quid clāmātis? “why are you shouting?” Uter vestrum, “which of you (two),” uses uter for a choice between two and the genitive vestrum, “of you.” 61.22 rēgēs enim brings back Lesson 58’s enim, “for,” second in its clause. 61.23 ave is the vocative of avus, “grandfather”; do not confuse it with avē, “hail!”, which has a long ē. Quot, “how many,” is indeclinable. 61.26 nōn iam, “no longer”; ferēbant, the imperfect of ferō, “they would not go on bearing.” 61.27 Rōmae is the locative, “at Rome.” 61.29 collēga, “colleague,” is a first-declension noun for a man, like poēta in Lesson 60. Every consul had a colleague, and Mārcus offers the post to his sister: the dialogue makes the point of Section E, two consuls, never one king. 61.30 ambō, “both,” is an old dual form, declined like duo.
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The letter x. Latin x is always two sounds, /ks/, and it closes the syllable before it: rēx /reːks/, dīxit /ˈdiːk.sit/, rēxērunt /reːkˈseː.runt/, Maximō /ˈmak.si.moː/. Never pronounce it /z/ as in English “example.”
Long ē in every form. Rēx, rēgis, rēgī, rēgem, rēge, rēgēs, rēgum, rēgibus: the first vowel is always long. Say it clearly: it is the only thing that separates rēgis, “of the king,” from regis, “you rule.”
Hard g. The g of rēgis, rēgem, rēgīna is always the g of “get.” English “regal” and “regent” have a soft g; Latin does not.
Ch in Greek names. In Achīvī (61.13) the ch represents a Greek aspirated k: /kʰ/, a k with a puff of breath. Many speakers simply say /k/.
Consonant i. At the start of a word before a vowel, i is the consonant /j/, as in “yes”: iam /jam/, Iūlia /ˈjuː.li.a/, Iovī /ˈjo.wiː/, Iēsus /ˈjeː.sus/. Between vowels it is pronounced double: aiunt /ˈaj.junt/ (61.11), maior /ˈmaj.jor/ (61.12).
Quanquam. The Latin Library text of Suetonius prints quanquam, a spelling found in many manuscripts and older editions; the usual Classical spelling is quamquam. Both are pronounced /ˈkʷaŋ.kʷam/: the m before qu is said as the ng of “sing.” This lesson keeps the printed spelling in Section F.
Spellings in the quoted texts. The Latin Library prints Horace with u for consonant v (uirtus, ciues) and the Vulgate with J (Jesus, Judaeorum). This course writes v for the consonant u and i for the consonant j: Achīvī, Iēsus, Iūdaeōrum. Mārcus and Rōma are written with their long vowels; macrons are editorial throughout.
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