The Latin Noun - Textkit Greek and Latin Learning Tools Page 1 of 8

The Latin Noun

by Dr. Biagio Vella
Textkit - Greek and Latin Learning Tools
September 24, 2003
Article Difficulty Rating: Beginner

Introduction

This is a brief tutorial about the Latin Noun which seeks to accommodate those fortunate visitors who
would like to experience the beauty of this immortal language. At first sight the "inflection" of Latin
nouns may seem a bit "awesome" but I bet you that English nouns are more difficult. What about
English plurals! With a little patience when you read and re-read this tutorial you will find that the Latin
Noun is easy to understand and encourages you to learn and read more Latin. It will become enjoyable.
Lastly, to read and understand Latin, you must think straight - this is an important "maxim" in our life.

About Latin Noun Endings

Noun derives from Latin nomen name of objects, ideas and people. Like all nouns of other
languages they have a gender either masculine or feminine but if neither of these two applies it
would be neutrum (neuter). They are used in the singular and plural as other languages. The Latin noun
is declined. Roman grammarians thought of the cases visually, with the nominative (subject) at the top
and the other cases falling away declining from it. Case derives from the Latin casus (fall).

Since Latin word-order is not the same as English or other modern languages but subject object
verb or subject object indirect object verb the Latin Noun changes its endings to indicate the
grammatical job it is doing whether it is a Subject (Nominative) or an Object (Accusative) or an Indirect
Object (Dative) etc. so it is inflected.

The Roman grammarians classified nouns into five categories which we usually call the five
declensions. They classified them according to their stems vowel or consonant stems thus we find
the:

a (first declension) stem

o (second declension) stem
consonant/ i (third declension) stem
- u (fourth declension) stem
e (fifth declension) stem.

Naturally the majority of Latin nouns are of the 3rd.declension, because this class comprises consonant
and i stems. We distinguish one class from another through the endings of the Genitive Singular.
(genitive derives from gens (race)).

So Genitives end thus:

1st.decl. ae

http://www.textkit.com/tutorials/20030921print.html 10/3/03
The Latin Noun - Textkit Greek and Latin Learning Tools Page 2 of 8

2nd.decl. i
3rd.decl. is
4th.decl. us
5th. decl.-ei

Note that the endings of the Genitive Singulars of the five declensions are different from one another
so you can never confuse them.

e.i.

mensa, - mensae;
discipulus discipuli;
pater patris,
gradus gradus,
dies diei.

But the genitive has also its particular meaning possessive meaning:

of, s, s
the doll of the girl, the girls doll = pupa puellae.

(N.B. these two vowels ae- joined together are called diphthong and are pronounced together ai
like the i of hi in the salutations of todays e-mails or like eye)

Now if we find a noun ending in m : 90% this will be doing the job of a singular direct object
(accusative singular). puella pupam amat the girl loves the doll. This m form is also found in
English objects: them, him, whom. You have also noticed that the article is missing in Latin lux may
mean a light, the light or light. The Romans at times used the demonstrative adjective/pronoun: ille,
illa, illud in front of a Proper Name to mean: the famous: Ille Caesar: - the famous Caesar, illa Cornelia,
or illud Caesaris: the famous word of Caesar (illud stands for illud verbum). For the indefinite article
a, an the Romans used a compound pronoun: quidam, qaedam, quoddam a certain
puella qaedam a girl, a certain girl.

But let us continue with the Noun. Again a noun ending in s : 90% indicates a plural direct object
(Accusative plural). Never learn declensions by heart, as I was taught. Try to understand the difference
between the endings (tails) of one declension and another and you will note that most of these endings
(which are very important, since they indicate the grammatical job of each noun) are NOT after all very
different from one declension and another.

Nouns of 1st.Decl and 5th. Decl. are mostly feminine; those of the 2nd. Decl. and 4th.Decl. are
masculine or neuter the 3rd.Decl nouns could be masculine, feminine or neuter.

Dont forget the roots :

1st = -a
2nd = -o
3rd = consonants/i
4th = -u
5th = -e

http://www.textkit.com/tutorials/20030921print.html 10/3/03
The Latin Noun - Textkit Greek and Latin Learning Tools Page 3 of 8

Singular Endings Overview

CASE FIRST SECOND THIRD FOURTH FIFTH
(Gender) Fem Masc/Neut Masc/Fem/Nuet Masc/Nuet Fem

Nominative -a -us, -er, -um (word) -us - u -es

Vocative -a -e, -er, - um (word) -us - u -es
Accusative -am -um-rum-um Root + em -umu -em
Genitive -ae - i, - ri, - i Root + is -us -us -ei
Dative -ae -o , -ro, -o Root + i -ui -u -ei
Ablative -a -o , -ro, -o Root + e - u, -u -e

These are Singular endings note the prevalence of m in the accusative. The u in the second
declension nominative was an o in early Latin. The nominative, vocative and accusative neuters have
the same ending in all declensions um, um, um (2nd.); - u, u, u, (4th.) also 3rd.decl.neuters:e.g.
corpus, corpus, corpus (body), nomen,nomen, nomen (name).

You can see that in the 2nd.decl.there are three forms (rather four) those ending in us, those ending
in er (Nom/Voc) and then drop e in declining the other cases such as:

magister, magister, magistrum, magistri, magistro, magistro

others ending in er, but retaining the e such as:

puer, puer, puerum, pueri, puero, puero

and finally the neuter nouns: -um, -um, um, -i ,-o, -o such as:

scutum, scutum, scutum, scuti, scuto, scuto.

In the 3rd.decl. note that in the Nom.and Voc. I have written (Word) this means that you have to write
the word as you find it in the dictionary

e.g.

king = rex (Nom/Voc)

but then you have to find the root how? either

a) you learn the genitive singular ending which always gives the root or
b) you get the root from an English or Romance language root such as : regal (take off the
final syllable and you find the root reg- so the root of rex is reg-.

Why was it written rex in the nominative/ vocative? Because actually this was written regs then with
an euphonic change: (Latin g always pronounced like g in got or girl (guttural sound) and c
pronounced k + s = x; Greek c) gs = x, cs = x.

http://www.textkit.com/tutorials/20030921print.html 10/3/03
The Latin Noun - Textkit Greek and Latin Learning Tools Page 4 of 8

Plural Endings Overview

CASE FIRST SECOND THIRD FOURTH FIFTH
(Gender) Masc/Neut Masc/Fem/Nuet Masc/Nuet
Fem. Fem

Root + es,
Nominative -ae -i, -ri, -a -us, -ua -es
Root + a
Root + es,
Vocative -ae -i, -ri, -a -us, -ua -es
Root + a
Root + es,
Accusative -as -os,-ros, -a -us, -ua -es
Root + a
-orum,-orum,
Genitive -arum - um/ -ium -uum -erum
-orum
Dative -is -is, -ris is Root + ibus -ibus -ebus
Ablative -is -is, -ris is Root + ibus -ibus -ebus

These are the Plural endings; the roots remain the same as those of the Singular declension note the
prevalence of s in the accusative plural, the um in genitive plural, the dative and ablative of 1st. and
2nd. declensions are the same is, and those of the 3rd. 4th and 5th. declensions are the same too
ibus/ebus, note the prevalence of a in all neuter nominative, vocative and accusative plurals.

1st. Declension:

mensae, mensae, mensarum, mensis, mensis - (Root - mensa-)

2nd. Declension:

amici, amici, amicos, amicorum, amicis, amicis (Root - amico -) magistri, magistri,
magistros, magistrorum, magistris, magistris
scuta, scuta, scuta, scutorum, scutis, scutis (neuter noun root: scuto)

3rd. Declension:

reges, reges, reges, regum, regibus, regibus (Root reg-)

4th. Declension:

gradus, gradus, gradus, graduum, gradibus, gradibus (Root - gradu-)

5th. Declension:

dies, dies, dies, dierum, diebus, diebus (Root die- )

Important Points re: Declensions of Nouns

http://www.textkit.com/tutorials/20030921print.html 10/3/03
The Latin Noun - Textkit Greek and Latin Learning Tools Page 5 of 8

Second Declension Vocative Singular ends in e, but Vocative of filius and Proper names in ending in
ius is - i. fili mi = My son!

Third Declension - note carefully euphonic changes of Roots when they meet the s of the Nominative
Singular: -c/-g + s = x, -t/-d + s = drop t/d dent+s = dens (t dropped), -p/-b + s = ps,bs = princeps, urbs,
stems in i, -e + s = -is, civis, genitive singular = civis.

You have also noted above that in the 3rd. declension there are nouns which have genitive plural ending
in um, and others in ium. You can distinguish these by following these two rules:

1. Those nouns with a syllable more in the Genitive Singular than in the Nominative
Singular have Genitive Plural in um, rex (1 syllable), regis (2 syllables) so Genitive Plural
= regum. But mus, muris (mouse); nox, noctis; (night), mons, montis (mountain); urbs,
urbis (city) have Genitive Plural in ium, e.g. noctium.

2. Those nouns with the same number of syllables in the Nominative Singular and Genitive
Singular have Genitive Plural in ium, civis (2 syllables), civis (2 syllables) so Genitive
Plural = civium. But pater, patris; mater, matris; frater, fratris; senex, senis; iuvenis, iuvenis;
canis, canis have Genitive Plural in - um, e.g. matrum.

Meanings of Latin nouns can easily be traced from English, French, Italian nouns roots.

Not to confuse declensions, always find the Genitive Singular of the noun which is given in all
dictionaries.

You can confuse nouns ending in us:

These could be Masculine Nouns of the 2nd.declension, e.g. amicus, gen.sing: amici, or Neuter Nouns
of the 3rd. Declension: e.g. corpus, gen.sing.:corporis, or Masculine Nouns of the 4th.declension, e.g.
gradus, gen. sing.: gradus Look at the Genitive Singular and it solves your problem.

You can also confuse nouns ending in a, which could be Singular Nouns of the First declension: e.g.
amica, gen.sing. amicae, or Neuter Plural Nouns of 2nd, 3rd, 4th, declensions scuta, corpora, genua.
Here the verb will help you if it is singular the noun will be of the First Declension Singular, if it is
plural, the noun will be a plural neuter noun of the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th.

Check these two short sentences:

puella matrem amat: (amat is 3rd.pers.sing. so noun puella is singular of

1st.declension) The girl loves her mother.

corpora sunt robusta: (sunt is 3rd.pers. plural so noun corpora is plural of

3rd.declension) Bodies are strong.

Dont confuse the endings in um. These could be Neuter Nominative/Vocative/Accusative Singular
Nouns of the 2nd.declension, or Masculine Accusative Singulars of the 2nd. declension/ 4th. declension
or even Genitive Plurals of the 3rd.declension.

Well here you must analyse intelligently the sentence, i.e. find the VERB, its Subject and then its Object
and you are safe.

http://www.textkit.com/tutorials/20030921print.html 10/3/03
The Latin Noun - Textkit Greek and Latin Learning Tools Page 6 of 8

Lets tackle some examples:

monstrum in antrio intrat. The verb is intrat 3rd.pers.sing. so the subject must be
singular, find it! monstrum The monster enters the cave. (If you try to give it another
meaning it will be pure rubbish)

magister puerum castigat : The verb is castigat 3rd.pers.sing. so the subject must be
singular, find it! magister - The teacher punishes the boy (puerum: Object Accusative
Singular).

servi canes regum non amant: - The verb is amant 3rd. pers.plural so the subject must
be plural find it ! Is it servi or canes? I think its servi Lets try: The
slaves..do not love? What? canes the dogs? Whose dogs? = regum is Gen.Pl. of
rex of the kings The slaves do not love the dogs of the kings/ the kings dogs.

Reading Latin
To test how much you can read Latin, take in hand about 10 lines of Latin prose and underline the
nouns, then name their cases. Thus you train yourself in picking up the nouns, which job in a sentence
are various they could be subjects, objects, indirect objects, possessives, or ablatives, i.e. expressing
place, agents (by), instruments (with), time, origin e.g. in aula = in the room, a puella = by the girl,
gladio = with a sword, sexta hora = in the 6th. hour, natus Venere = son of Venus.

It is very important that when you read Latin, you check carefully the endings of nouns. These will tell
you whether the noun is used as Subject, or Object of a sentence, of whether it means of, to, by,
with, in, from. etc.

e.g.

puella pupam habet puella is the subject and pupam is the object =
The girl has a doll.

puella rosam puero dat puella is the subject, rosam is the direct object and puero is dative
case indirect object to - The girl gives a rose to the boy.

pupa puellae est in mensa. pupa is the subject, puellae is possessive of, mensa is
ablative case showing place where. - The doll of the girl is on the table.

Although the usual word order of a Latin sentence is: Subject, Object, Indirect Object, Verb, you can
change the order how you like but the meaning would still be the same since, as we have said, the
endings of the nouns will tell what the nouns are doing.

On a good Latin grammar you can check the declensions as stated above and some important
peculiarities dont call them exceptions. (If a person is a 7 footer and another one is 5 foot tall or less
you cannot call these exceptions they are both human and the same in grammar).

When reading Latin always have this in mind: Who Does/Did/What? The answer to this question
will solve many of your difficulties.

http://www.textkit.com/tutorials/20030921print.html 10/3/03
The Latin Noun - Textkit Greek and Latin Learning Tools Page 7 of 8

I close this short tutorial by encouraging you to read some Latin lines daily. The more you read the more
you learn. Its useless to learn Grammar without reading the language. Yes! Grammar is an important
tool, but the clue in learning a language is to read few lines daily and then begin to write in the language
too.

Exercises
Read the following and then answer the appended questions:
Marius in agro laborat. est agricola et duos filios habet. Horatia est Marii filia et in culina laborat, sed
Paulus, filius Marii suum patrem in agris iuvat. Marius cum filio post cenam ad forum it (goes). Paulus
ad ludum (school) non it, quod pater suus pecuniam non habet. amicus Pauli, filius senatoris, ad ludum it
et Paulum rogat: Pauli, cur ad ludum non venis?. Paulus respondit: tum quis (who) patrem meum in
agris iuvat? amicus non respondit et Paulum iterum non rogat. Horatia, soror Pauli, post cenam in horto
cum fratre ludit.

a. Find the nouns and name their declensions.

b. Give the genitive singular of: agro, agricola, filios, filia, patrem, ludum, amicus.
c. Give English words derived from: agricola, filius, pater, pecunia, culina, frater.
d. Try to find Latin words from which the following English words are derived: puerile,
labour, dual, forensic, amiable, response.
e. Translate into Latin: Marius is a farmer. Paulus is Marius son. Paulus goes to school.
After dinner Marius, the father, Horatia, his daughter and Paulus, his son go (eunt) to the
forum of Rome.

With reference to the The Latin Noun tutorial it is clear that to find the root of 3rd.declension
nouns you have to look for an English word derived from that noun and delete the final syllable,
e.g. rex English: reg(al) root is: reg- and then the Genitive Singular is reg+is = regis

a) Try to find the root of the following 3rd.declension nouns:

dens (tooth), miles (soldier), caput (head), nomen (name), vox (voice), lex (law)
b) Now that you have found the root decline the above nouns in the singular and plural.

Decline in the singular and plural these nouns first name their declension:

amica, servus, bellum (neuter), arbor (gen.s.- arboris), nomen (neuter), gradus, res.

Select the correct word to complete the sentences:

a) in via stant (puer, puella, feminae)

b) Horatius .amat ( sororem, pater, ager)
c) pater . est in agro. (pueros, pueri, puerum)
d) nos amamus. ( amicus, filiorum, familiam)
e) sunt arbores in ( forum, agros, horto)

Change to plural or singular form as required:

servus in agro; pupa puellae; libri magistrorum; pueri cum canis; pueri in via.

the end.

http://www.textkit.com/tutorials/20030921print.html 10/3/03
The Latin Noun - Textkit Greek and Latin Learning Tools Page 8 of 8

Copyright Textkit.com 2003.

Additional Resources
Revised Latin Primer, B.H.Kennedy, Longmans very good for references
Reading Latin Grammar, Voc, & Exercises, Jones & Sidwell - J.A.C.T. (CUP)
Latin Grammar, Gildersleeve & Lodge
Wheelocks Grammar, F.M.Wheelock
Beginners Latin GDA. Sharpley - Teach Yourself Books
Oxford Latin Course Balme & Morwood Oxford University Press

http://www.textkit.com/tutorials/20030921print.html 10/3/03