← Latinum Institute Latin Reading Course
###
109.1 Ego I tibī to you crēdō believe
109.2 Puer boy mātrī to mother semper always crēdit believes
109.3 Omnēs all illī to that man crēdunt believe
109.4 Crēdisne do you believe mihi to me amīce friend
109.5 Nōlīte do not crēdere believe mendācibus to liars
109.6 Rēx king nūntiīs to messengers crēdidit believed
109.7 Crēdidī I believed quod what dīxistī you said
109.8 Nēmō no one eī to him crēdere to believe vult wishes
109.9 Crēditūrus about to believe sum I am verbīs to words tuīs your
109.10 Difficile difficult est it is crēdere to believe hostibus to enemies
109.11 Magistrō to teacher crēdite believe discipulī pupils
109.12 Nōn not crēdidērunt they believed sacerdōtī to priest
109.13 Crēdendum it must be believed est is sapientibus to wise men
109.14 Patrī to father crēdere to believe dēbēmus we ought
109.15 Quis who crēdet will believe fābulae to story tuae your
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
109.1 Ego tibī crēdō. I believe you.
109.2 Puer mātrī semper crēdit. The boy always believes his mother.
109.3 Omnēs illī crēdunt. Everyone believes him.
109.4 Crēdisne mihi, amīce? Do you believe me, friend?
109.5 Nōlīte crēdere mendācibus. Do not believe liars.
109.6 Rēx nūntiīs crēdidit. The king believed the messengers.
109.7 Crēdidī quod dīxistī. I believed what you said.
109.8 Nēmō eī crēdere vult. No one wants to believe him.
109.9 Crēditūrus sum verbīs tuīs. I am about to believe your words.
109.10 Difficile est crēdere hostibus. It is difficult to believe enemies.
109.11 Magistrō crēdite, discipulī. Believe the teacher, pupils.
109.12 Nōn crēdidērunt sacerdōtī. They did not believe the priest.
109.13 Crēdendum est sapientibus. One must believe wise men.
109.14 Patrī crēdere dēbēmus. We ought to believe our father.
109.15 Quis crēdet fābulae tuae? Who will believe your story?
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
109.1 Ego tibī crēdō.
109.2 Puer mātrī semper crēdit.
109.3 Omnēs illī crēdunt.
109.4 Crēdisne mihi, amīce?
109.5 Nōlīte crēdere mendācibus.
109.6 Rēx nūntiīs crēdidit.
109.7 Crēdidī quod dīxistī.
109.8 Nēmō eī crēdere vult.
109.9 Crēditūrus sum verbīs tuīs.
109.10 Difficile est crēdere hostibus.
109.11 Magistrō crēdite, discipulī.
109.12 Nōn crēdidērunt sacerdōtī.
109.13 Crēdendum est sapientibus.
109.14 Patrī crēdere dēbēmus.
109.15 Quis crēdet fābulae tuae?
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
For English speakers learning Latin, understanding "crēdō" requires attention to several key points: -
Conjugation Pattern: -
crēdō is a 3rd conjugation verb (-ere infinitive) -
Present: crēdō, crēdis, crēdit, crēdimus, crēditis, crēdunt -
Perfect: crēdidī, crēdidistī, crēdidit, crēdidimus, crēdidistis, crēdidērunt -
Future: crēdam, crēdēs, crēdet, crēdēmus, crēdētis, crēdent -
Case Usage: -
Takes DATIVE of the person/thing believed (not accusative!) -
Example: "Magistrō crēdō" = "I believe the teacher" -
This differs from English which uses a direct object -
Common Constructions: -
With indirect statement (accusative + infinitive): "Crēdō eum venīre" = "I believe he is coming" -
With quod clause: "Crēdidī quod dīxistī" = "I believed what you said" -
With dative gerundive: "Crēdendum est" = "It must be believed" -
Word Order Variations: -
Initial position for emphasis: "Crēdō tibī" (I DO believe you) -
Final position for normal statement: "Tibī crēdō" (I believe you) -
Interrogative with -ne: "Crēdisne mihi?" (Do you believe me?) -
Verbal Forms Used: -
Infinitive as complement: "vult crēdere" (wishes to believe) -
Future participle: "crēditūrus" (about to believe) -
Gerundive: "crēdendum" (must be believed)
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
For English speakers, understanding how Romans used "crēdō" requires cultural context: -
Trust in Roman Society: -
Personal trust (fidēs) was fundamental to Roman social relationships -
Breaking trust was considered one of the worst offenses -
"Crēdere" implied not just belief but commitment to action -
Religious Context: -
Romans "believed in" their gods through ritual observance -
Less about faith than proper religious practice -
"Crēdō" rarely used for religious belief in classical texts -
Legal and Commercial: -
"Crēditor" (creditor) comes from crēdō - one who trusts/lends -
Trust essential in business dealings without modern banking -
Written contracts often included trust formulas -
Modern Usage: -
"Crēdō" survives in the Christian Creed -
Source of English words: credit, credible, incredible -
Shows shift from social trust to religious faith
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
From Cicero's "De Amicitia" (6.22):
The symbol Ø means no case ending exists
109.1 I-Ø I-Ø to-you-ī to-you-ī believe-ō believe-ō
109.2 Boy-us Boy-us to-mother-ī to-mother-ī always-Ø always-Ø believes-it believes-it
109.3 All-ēs All-ēs to-that-man-ī to-that-man-ī believe-unt believe-unt
109.4 Do-you-believe-ne Do-you-believe-ne to-me-ī to-me-ī friend-e friend-e
109.5 Do-not-īte Do-not-īte believe-re believe-re to-liars-ibus to-liars-ibus
109.6 King-x King-x to-messengers-īs to-messengers-īs believed-it believed-it
109.7 Believed-ī Believed-ī what-Ø what-Ø you-said-tī you-said-tī
109.8 No-one-ō No-one-ō to-him-ī to-him-ī to-believe-re to-believe-re wishes-t wishes-t
109.9 About-to-believe-ūrus About-to-believe-ūrus am-m am-m to-words-īs to-words-īs your-īs your-īs
109.10 Difficult-e Difficult-e it-is-t it-is-t to-believe-re to-believe-re to-enemies-ibus to-enemies-ibus
109.11 To-teacher-ō To-teacher-ō believe-te believe-te pupils-ī pupils-ī
109.12 Not-n Not-n believed-ērunt believed-ērunt to-priest-ī to-priest-ī
109.13 Must-be-believed-um Must-be-believed-um is-t is-t to-wise-men-ibus to-wise-men-ibus
109.14 To-father-ī To-father-ī to-believe-re to-believe-re we-ought-ēmus we-ought-ēmus
109.15 Who-s Who-s will-believe-et will-believe-et to-story-ae to-story-ae your-ae your-ae
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
Maximē vērō illud animadvertendum est, quod nōn tam ipsī amīcī quam amīcitia ipsa dēlectāre vidētur. Itaque nōn iīs sōlīs crēdendum est quī ipsa amīcitia dīgnī sunt, sed etiam iīs quī in amīcitiā ipsā iam versantur.
But this especially must be noticed, that not so much the friends themselves as friendship itself seems to delight. Therefore, one must believe not only those who are worthy of friendship itself, but also those who are already engaged in friendship itself.
Cicero uses "crēdendum est" in a philosophical context to discuss trust in friendship. The gerundive construction emphasizes moral obligation. Note the careful balance of the sentence structure with parallel "nōn...sed etiam" construction.
-
"crēdendum est" - impersonal gerundive expressing necessity -
Dative with crēdō: "iīs...quī" (those who) -
Complex relative clauses modifying the dative objects -
Philosophical use of "ipse/ipsa" for emphasis on essence
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
Part F-A (Interleaved Text)
Maximē especially vērō indeed illud that animadvertendum to be noticed est is quod that nōn not tam so much ipsī themselves amīcī friends quam as amīcitia friendship ipsa itself dēlectāre to delight vidētur seems. Itaque therefore nōn not iīs to those sōlīs alone crēdendum it must be believed est is quī who ipsa the very amīcitia friendship dīgnī worthy sunt are, sed but etiam also iīs to those quī who in in amīcitiā friendship ipsā itself iam already versantur are engaged.
109.16 Mārcus Tullius Quīntō frātrī salūtem dīcit. Marcus Tullius sends greetings to his brother Quintus.
109.17 Tuās litterās herī accēpī et omnibus crēdidī. I received your letter yesterday and believed everything.
109.18 Crēde mihi, frāter cārissime, nihil falsī scrībō. Believe me, dearest brother, I write nothing false.
109.19 Quod dē rē pūblicā scrīpsistī, vix crēdere possum. What you wrote about public affairs, I can scarcely believe.
109.20 Omnēs amīcī nostrī crēdunt tē mox reditūrum esse. All our friends believe you will return soon.
109.21 Nōlī crēdere rumoribus quōs dē mē audīs. Do not believe the rumors which you hear about me.
109.22 Uxor mea tibī semper crēdit et tē amat. My wife always believes you and loves you.
109.23 Crēdō tē iam dē victōriā Caesaris audīvisse. I believe you have already heard about Caesar's victory.
109.24 Sī mihi crēdis, statim Rōmam venī. If you believe me, come to Rome immediately.
109.25 Crēditūrumne tē patrem nostrum esse putās? Do you think our father will believe you?
109.26 Omnēs senātōrēs crēdidērunt cōnsulī, sed errāvērunt. All the senators believed the consul, but they were mistaken.
109.27 Fīliō tuō crēdere dēbēs; bonus enim puer est. You ought to believe your son; for he is a good boy.
109.28 Crēdidistīne servō quī epistulam attulit? Did you believe the slave who brought the letter?
109.29 Nēminī crēde nisi mihī et frātribus tuīs. Believe no one except me and your brothers.
109.30 Valē et crēde mē tē maximē amāre. Farewell and believe that I love you very much.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
109.16 Mārcus Tullius Quīntō frātrī salūtem dīcit.
109.17 Tuās litterās herī accēpī et omnibus crēdidī.
109.18 Crēde mihi, frāter cārissime, nihil falsī scrībō.
109.19 Quod dē rē pūblicā scrīpsistī, vix crēdere possum.
109.20 Omnēs amīcī nostrī crēdunt tē mox reditūrum esse.
109.21 Nōlī crēdere rumoribus quōs dē mē audīs.
109.22 Uxor mea tibī semper crēdit et tē amat.
109.23 Crēdō tē iam dē victōriā Caesaris audīvisse.
109.24 Sī mihi crēdis, statim Rōmam venī.
109.25 Crēditūrumne tē patrem nostrum esse putās?
109.26 Omnēs senātōrēs crēdidērunt cōnsulī, sed errāvērunt.
109.27 Fīliō tuō crēdere dēbēs; bonus enim puer est.
109.28 Crēdidistīne servō quī epistulam attulit?
109.29 Nēminī crēde nisi mihī et frātribus tuīs.
109.30 Valē et crēde mē tē maximē amāre.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
In epistolary Latin, "crēdō" appears in several distinctive constructions: -
Letter Opening Formula: -
"Mārcus Tullius Quīntō frātrī salūtem dīcit" -
Standard greeting formula: sender (nom.) + recipient (dat.) + salūtem dīcit -
Imperative Forms in Letters: -
Positive: "Crēde mihī" (Believe me) - common persuasive formula -
Negative: "Nōlī crēdere" (Do not believe) - uses nōlī + infinitive -
Both create intimate, conversational tone -
Indirect Statement with crēdō: -
"Crēdō tē iam audīvisse" (I believe you have heard) -
Accusative (tē) + infinitive (audīvisse) construction -
"Crēdunt tē reditūrum esse" (They believe you will return) -
Shows future infinitive with esse -
Conditional Constructions: -
"Sī mihi crēdis, venī" (If you believe me, come) -
Present indicative in protasis for real condition -
Imperative in apodosis for urgent advice -
Interrogative Forms: -
"Crēdidistīne?" (Did you believe?) -
Enclitic -ne for yes/no questions -
"Crēditūrumne...putās?" (Do you think he will believe?) -
Complex question with future participle -
Epistolary Perfect: -
"accēpī et crēdidī" (I received and believed) -
Perfect tense common in letters for recent actions -
Creates immediacy and relevance -
Word Order in Letters: -
Vocatives often mid-sentence: "Crēde mihi, frāter cārissime" -
Important words at clause boundaries for emphasis -
Closing formula: "Valē et crēde mē tē amāre" -
Trust Vocabulary in Letters: -
Personal trust: "tibī crēdō" -
Information trust: "omnibus crēdidī" (everything in the letter) -
Warning formulas: "Nēminī crēde nisi..."
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
---