CONJUNCTIONS
A conjuction is a word that joins two or more words in a clause, or two or more clauses in a sentence. Most modern languages have one key conjunction: "and" in English, "et" in French, "e" in Italian, "y" in Spanish, etc.
In Latin there are four key conjuctions, all of them equally used. Here they are: et, atque, -que, ac. Do you wonder why Latin has so many different copulative conjunctions? The reason is to avoid the monotony of repeating the same sound.
Et - is used when the next word starts with a consonant or the preposition "in". Sometimes it can be found before a word starting with a vowel, too.
Examples:
1- Italia et Gallia - Italy and France
2- Britannia et Germania - Britain and Germany
3- Apud Helvetios longe nobilissimus fuit et ditissimus Orgetorix is M. Messala et P.M. Pisone consilibus regni... from Caesar, De Bello Gallico.
Among the Swiss stood out, by far, for nobility and wealth, Orgetorix. In the year of the consulship of M. Messala and P.M. Pisone...
4- Classis e Sicilia velificaverat et in Africa pervenerat.
The fleet set off from Sicily and arrived in Africa.
Atque is used primarely when the following word starts with a vowel, but can also be used with a consonant.
Examples:
1- Africa atque Asia - Africa and Asia
2- ...una ex parte flumine Rheno latissimo atque altissimo qui agrum Helvetium a Germanis dividit... from Caesar, De Bello Gallico
3- ...on the one side the Rhine river, with its large and deep course, divides the fields of the Swiss from the Germans' ...
4- Bene considera latineque responde - Consider well and reply in Latin
- -Que is an enclitic, a word pronounced as if it is part of the preceding word, and is attached to it.
Examples:
1- Sicilia Sardiniaque - Sicily and Sardinia
2- Saecula non obscurabunt Romae Athenarumque gloriam. - Centuries do not obscure the glory of Rome and Athens. (time does not make the glory of Rome and Athens fade away)
3- Lacedaemoniorum captivi agriculturam exercebant dominisque serviebant.
The Spartan's captives laboured on the land and served their matrons.
Senatus Populusque Romanus
The Senate and the People of Rome.
Ac is used only when the following word starts with a consonant.
Examples:
1- Verulamium ac Roma - St. Albans and Rome
2-
Mixed Examples:
Germanie populi in casis habitabant et per silvas errabant.
The German people lived in cottages and wondered in the forests.
Praeterea somno ac pigritiae libenter indulgebant.
From then on they freely indulged themselves to sleeping and laziness.
Filios negligebant, divitias non curabant, arma equosque diligebant.
They neglected their children, they did not take care for their goods but prised their arms and horses.
Crebo bella gerebant et gladiis lanceisque pugnabant.
Often they made war and fought with swords and lances.
Other Conjunctions
1- Quoque - also, too
2- Etiam - also, too
3- aut...aut - or...or; either...or
4- vel...vel - or...or; either...or
- Quoque - This conjunction is placed after the noun or pronoun: Vos quoque - You, too. The Shakespearean expression - et tu Brute - in Latin would have been: tu quoque Brute.
- Etiam - This conjunction can precede or follow the noun or pronoun: Etiam Cicero, or Cicero etiam = also Cicero
- aut...aut - this is called a disjunctive conjunction and is used when two concepts are strongly in contrast one against the other. Example: aut veniat aut maneat domi - either he (she) comes or he (she) stays at home.
- vel...vel - the same as aut...aut but can be used unemphatically or when the contrasting elements are not strong.
Example: vel hoc vel illud - or this thing or that thing
I will deal with the full list of conjunctions, prepositions and interjections in Part 4.