# A Practical Grammar of the Latin Language/Lesson 7

Transcription of this lesson is complete - project of sergius

# Of the Fourth Declension.

* A. The fourth declension comprises all substantives which form their genitive in ūs. The nominative singular has two terminations, viz. us for masculine and feminine nouns, and ū for neuters. Examples:—
| | Fructus, m., fruit. | Cornū, n., the corn. | Domus, f., the hourse |
| Nom. | fructus | cornū | domus |
| Gen. | fructūs | cornūs | domūs or domī$^1$ |
| Dat. | fuctuī | cornū (cornuī) | domuī or domō |
| Acc. | fructum | cornū | domum |
| Voc. | fructus | cornū | domus |
| Abl. | fuctū. | cornū. | domō. |
Like fructus decline aditus, access; cantus, a song; currus, a chariot; ictus, a stroke; mōtus, motion; rīsus, laughter; senātus, the senate; sumptus, expense; vīctus, living. Also the feminines acus, a needle; manus, a hand; tribus, a tribe, &c.—Like cornū decline gelū, ice; genū, the knee; verū, a spear; tonitrū, thunder.
Remark.—The final u of Latin words generally is long.
| Have you my coat or the tailor's? | Estne tibi toga mea an sartōris? Utrum habēs togam meam an sartōris? |
| I have yours. | Est mihi tua. Tuam habeō. |
| | | Masc | Fem | Neut |
| Mine. | Nom. Acc. | meus meum | mea meam | meum. meum. |
| Yours. | Nom. Acc. | tuus tuum | tua tuam | tuum. tuum. |
* B. Obs. The possessive pronouns meus, tuus, suus, &c. may either be joined to nouns in the sense of the conjunctive my, your (thy), his, &c., or they may stand absolutely, like the English mine, yours (thine), his, &c. They are inflected like bonus, a, um. (Cf. Lesson V.)
| | | Masc | Fem | Neut |
| This. | Nom. Acc. | hic hunc | haec hanc | hoc hoc. |
| Is this your hat? | Estne hic pilleus tuus? |
| No, Sir, it is not mine, but yours. | Minimē, domine, nōn est meus, sed tuus. |
| Is this my ribbon? | Num haec est taenia tua? |
| No, it is not yours but mine. | Nōn est tua, sed mea. |
| Is this your sugar? | An hoc est saccharum tuum? |
| It is not mine, but that of my brother. | Nōn est meum, sed meī frātris. |
| The man. | Vir$^2$, gen. virī, m. Homō, inis, m. & f. |
| The stick, cane. | Bāculum, i, n. Scīpiō, ōnis, m. |
| My brother. | Frāter meus, gen. frātris meī. |
| The shoemaker. | Sūtor, sutōris, m. |
| The merchant. | Mercātor, ōris, m. |
| The friend. | Amīcus. Familiāris, is, m. |
| Neither—nor. | Nec—nec. Neque—neque. Neque—nec. |
* C. Obs. The disjunctive conjunctions nec and neque are used in the same sense, except that the former more frequently stands before consonants and the latter before vowels.
| Have you the merchant's stick or yours? | Tenēsne$^3$ bāculum mercātōris an tuum? |
| I have neither the merchant's stick nor yours. | Nec mercātōris bāculum nec tuum teneō. |
| Are you hungry or thirsty? | Utrum ēsurīs an sitīs? |
| I am neither hungry nor thirsty. | Egō neque ēsuriō, nec sitiō. |

## Exercise 6.

See the answers here.
* Have you your cloth or mine? — I have neither yours nor mine.
* I have neither my bread nor the tailor's.
* Have you my stick or yours? — I have mine.
* Have you the shoemaker's shoe or the merchant's? — I have neither the shoemaker's nor the merchant's.
* Have you my brother's coat? — I have it not.
* Which paper have you? — I have your friend's.
* Have you my dog or my friend's? — I have your friend's.
* Have you my thread stocking or my brother's? — I have neither yours nor your brother's.
* Have you my good baker's good bread or that of my friend? — I have neither your good baker's nor that of your friend.
* Which bread have you? — I have mine.
* Which ribbon have you? — I have yours.
* Have you the good or the bad cheese? — I have neither the good nor the bad.
* Have you anything? — I have nothing.
* Have you my pretty or my ugly dog? — I have neither your pretty nor your ugly dog.
* Have you my friend's stick? — I have it not.
* Are you sleepy or hungry? — I am neither sleepy nor hungry.
* Have you the good or the bad salt? — I have neither the good nor the bad.
* Have you my horse or the man's? — I have neither yours nor the man's.
* What have you? — I have nothing fine.
* Are you tired? — I am not tired.

## Footnotes.

$^1$ The genitive domī is only used in the sense at home. The dative domuī is the more usual form; but the ablative of this irregular noun is always domō. $^2$ Vir is used with reference to the sex, and homō with reference to the species. $^3$ Teneō is properly to hold, and may be used in these exercises for variety, especially where to have may signify to hold in one's hand, or to retain, keep.