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SENTENCES: VERBS, CLAUSES, AND PHRASES
Take a look at this typical Latin sentence from Julius Caesar:
Id aliquot de causis acciderat, ut subito Galli belli renovandi legionisque opprimendae consilium caperent: primum,
quod legionem -- neque eam plenissimam, detractis cohortibus duabus et compluribus singillatim, qui commeatūs
petendi causā missi erant, absentibus propter paucitatem, despiciebant; tum etiam, quod propter iniquitatem loci,
cum ipsi ex montibus in vallem decurrerent et tela coicerent, ne primum quidem impetum suum posse sustineri
existimabant.
It’s a lot longer than a typical English sentence, isn’t it? To read and understand a sentence like this one, we need certain
skills and knowledge to be able to break it down into smaller bits, making it much easier to handle. We call those bits
“clauses” and “verb phrases.”
To understand sentences, clauses, and verb phrases, we first have to understand verbs.
We say that verbs are either finite, “finished,” or non-finite, “unfinished.”
A Latin finite verb has these five properties: person, number, tense, mood, and voice (PNTMV); in other words, if it has a
personal ending, it’s finished.
A Latin finite verb can be a sentence all by itself: Vīxērunt, Cicero said of Catilina’s executed co-conspirators, “They-havelived (and are now dead).”
A non-finite verb has a verb stem but an ending which makes it a verbal noun or verbal adjective.
Latin verbal nouns are the six infinitives, the two supines, and the gerund.
Latin verbal adjectives are the three participles and the gerundive.
But sometimes a participle can function as a noun: amans, “loving,” = “a lover.”
For example, dīxissem, pōnet, amābantur, audiāmus, and estis are all finite verbs; they have person, number, tense, mood and
voice. They’re finished.
But dicta, pōnendus, amandī, audītū and futūrum are all non-finite verbs. They have tense, voice, and number, but lack
person or mood. That’s why they’re not finished.
A SENTENCE is a group of words combined to express a feeling or thought or to relate a fact or an action.
A CLAUSE is a sentence, too, with one finite verb, but it is joined to other clauses to make a longer sentence.
We say that clauses are either main (leading) or subordinate (dependent).
A PHRASE is any group of words that combine closely together . There are different kinds of phrases, such as prepositional
phrases, adjective-noun phrases, and so on. Right now, we’re concerned with VERB PHRASES.
A VERB PHRASE is a group of words with one non-finite verb; thus we can speak of a participial phrase or an infinitive
phrase. A non-finite phrase is often equivalent to--but not the same as--a finite subordinate clause.
WHAT KINDS OF SENTENCES ARE THERE?
There are three kinds of sentences:
A simple sentence has one subject and one finite verb: Ego haec sciō, “I know these things.” A clause is a simple sentence.
A compound sentence may have more than one subject, more than one verb; these are originally simple sentences, now
joined together by a coordinating conjunction: Ego et tu haec scimus, “You and I know these things” (originally Ego haec
sciō et tu haec scīs) or Ego quidem haec sciō, tu autem nescīs, “Yes, I know these things, but you don’t know (them).”
In other words, a compound sentence has more than one main clause, but has no subordinate clauses.
A complex sentence has at least one main clause and at least one subordinate clause: Cum haec sciam, tu tamen nescīs,
“Although I know these things, you still do not know (them).” The clause Cum haec sciam is subordinate (dependent),
because it is introduced by the subordinating conjunction Cum. The main clause is tu tamen nescīs.
MEMENTOTE! the
number of verbs (usually) = the number of clauses or phrases in a compound or complex
sentence.
To understand complex sentences and the relationships between main and subordinate clauses, it helps to know that long ago
simple sentences stood, so to speak, side-by-side (“co-ordinate”); later on, subordinating conjunctions were used to make one
of those sentences, or clauses, subordinate to or dependent (“hanging”) on the other:
Ego te moneō. Haec scītō. I advise you. Know these things.
Ego te moneō ut haec sciās. I advise you to (lit. "that you should") know these things.
This is a noun purpose clause, usually called “indirect command,” and you can see why.
The original direct, imperative command, Haec scītō, “Know these things,” is now indirectly stated as a separate subordinate
clause, “that you should know these things.”
Notice how the subordinating conjunction ut, “that,” automatically makes its own clause subordinate to the other one.
The clause ut haec sciās, “that you should know these things,” cannot stand on its own; it’s now an object of the verb moneo.
HOW DO WE KNOW WHETHER A CLAUSE IS MAIN OR SUBORDINATE?
There are two tests, one formal, one informal: formally, if a clause is introduced by a subordinating conjunction or a relative
pronoun or adverb (in most cases), it is subordinate; informally, if when you translate it you could not put a period at the
end: “Although I know these things …” But if you remove the subordinating conjunction ‘Although’, you could put a period
at the end: “I know these things.”
It’s best to have memorized and to be able to recognize the subordinating conjunctions, their meanings, and whether they
take a verb in the indicative mood, the subjunctive mood, or both. A list of them will be given later on.
MEMENTOTE! ‘subjunctive’ and ‘subordinate’ are not the same! We can have a main clause with a subjunctive
verb and a subordinate clause with an indicative verb: Quoniam haec iam scīmus, meliōre ratiōne utāmur, “Since
we now know these things, let’s use a better method.” The subordinate, causal, clause Quoniam haec iam scīmus,
has an indicative verb, but the main clause, meliōre ratiōne utāmur, has a subjunctive verb.
WHAT DO SUBORDINATE CLAUSES DO?
MEMENTOTE! A subordinate (dependent) clause functions as a noun, an adverb, or an adjective in the
sentence on which it is dependent.
Look at this example, again from Julius Caesar:
Eā nocte accidit ut lūna esset plēna, “On that night it happened that the moon was full.”
First, we want to know how many clauses this sentence has. We note that it has has two finite verbs, accidit and esset. That
tells us we have two finite clauses.
Our first question is: Are they both main clauses (i. e. do we have a compound sentence), or is one clause subordinate to the
other (i. e. do we have a complex sentence)? To answer this question, we must first ask another: How are the two clauses
joined?
We see that the word ut joins the second clause to the first.
We’ve learned that ut is a subordinating conjunction, so we know that the clause ut lūna esset plēna must be subordinate to
the main clause, Eā nocte accidit.
This sentence has one main (leading) clause and one subordinate (dependent) clause; it’s a complex sentence.
We also note that the subordinate clause’s verb is subjunctive, but that alone does NOT make the clause subordinate!
Our next question is: How does the clause ut lūna esset plēna relate to the main clause?
Because that, too, is what subordinate clauses do: though separate, simple sentences, they can’t stand alone, but have some
function in the clauses which introduce them.
Let’s reconsider our example above, in translation:
On that night … happened
that the moon was full.
The English neuter pronoun ‘it’ has been left out to illustrate the fact that it does not exist in the Latin original. Now study
the main clause and ask yourself: What’s missing? What’s missing of course is a subject. Something happened that night,
but we don't yet know what. If you ask the question, “What happened on that night?”, the subordinate clause will give you
the answer. Now we can begin to see what function the dependent clause has. Let’s rewrite the sentence this way:
That the moon was full / happened on that night.
It’s not good English style, but it still makes sense, doesn’t it?
Now we see that the Latin clause ut lūna esset plēna functions as the subject of the verb of the main clause, accidit. It’s
called a “noun (or "substantive") result clause.”
As we said earlier, other kinds of subordinate clauses function as adjectives or as adverbs. Let’s study some examples:
Discipulī qui haec sciunt vere sunt callidissimī, “Students who know these things are really very clever.”
The relative clause qui haec sciunt works like an adjective, modifying the main subject, Discipulī.
Relative clauses are (almost) always adjective clauses.
Discipulī cum haec sciunt, tum multō facilius discunt, “When students know these things, then they learn much more easily.”
The temporal clause cum haec sciunt works like an adverb, modifying the main action tum multō facilius discunt.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF SUBORDINATE CLAUSES?
First, let’s review our definition of subordinate clauses:
• they are introduced by some subordinating word
(relative pronoun or adverb; interrogative pronoun, adjective or adverb; or subordinating conjunction);
• their verb is finite (with person, number, tense, mood, and voice);
• they can’t stand alone;
• they function as either a noun, an adjective, or an adverb within their own leading clause.
Now let’s preview all the kinds of subordinate clauses with respect to their functions.
NOUN CLAUSES
ADJECTIVE CLAUSES
ADVERBIAL CLAUSES
function as either a subject or an object
of the verb in another, leading clause or
phrase:
describe a subject and make it more
specific, just as an adjective does:
qualify the leading action in terms of
manner, time, place, cause, etc.:
Fact clauses
Relative clauses
Adverbial purpose
Fearing clauses
Adverbial result
Indefinite relative clauses
Causal clauses
Indirect question
Circumstantial clauses
Noun purpose (“indirect command”)
Clauses of proviso
Noun result
Clauses of prohibition
Conditions (only the “if” part of a
condition, the ‘protasis’, is subordinate)
Comparative clauses
Concessive clauses
Relative clauses of time or place
Relative clauses of purpose
Temporal clauses
Nineteen kinds of subordinate clauses, in three different functions! That’s a lot to master. But don’t worry: each clause type
has clear signs that help us identify and translate it. We’ll deal with each separate kind one at a time.
MEMENTOTE! Right now, the most important thing is to see and know the meaning of subordinating
conjunctions.
These are usually little words (particles), and it’s easy to overlook them.
But if we do, we won’t notice that we have a subordinate clause at all,
or, even if we do notice it, we still won’t know what kind of subordinate clause we have,
and then we misunderstand the clause’s meaning and function in its own sentence.
That makes it impossible for us to understand and appreciate what we’re reading, especially when we have a long Latin
sentence to deal with. Here’s our example from Julius Caesar, now with the subordinating words in bold capitals, finite verbs
underlined, non-finite verbs in italics:
Id aliquot de causis acciderat, UT subito Galli belli renovandi legionisque opprimendae consilium caperent: primum, QUOD
legionem neque eam plenissimam, detractis cohortibus duabus et compluribus singillatim, QUI commeatūs petendi causā
missi erant, absentibus propter paucitatem, despiciebant; tum etiam, QUOD propter iniquitatem loci, CUM ipsi ex montibus in
vallem decurrerent et tela coicerent, ne primum quidem impetum suum posse sustineri existimabant.
Sixty words, in ten clauses and phrases! And only the first clause, five words, is the main one--all the rest are subordinate!
You can see how important it is to be able to analyze a long sentence like this one. As we go forward, we'll learn to take a
sentence apart into its clauses and verb phrases to see its design and to make translating easier, like this:
Id aliquot de causis acciderat,
UT subito Galli
belli renovandi
legionisque opprimendae
consilium caperent:
primum, QUOD legionem neque eam plenissimam,
detractis cohortibus duabus
et compluribus singillatim,
QUI
commeatūs petendi causā
missi erant,
absentibus,
propter paucitatem despiciebant;
tum etiam, QUOD propter iniquitatem loci,
CUM ipsi ex montibus in vallem decurrerent
et tela coicerent,
ne primum quidem impetum suum posse sustineri existimabant.
Notice that sometimes a clause is started, but we don't get the verb right away: other clauses or phrases are inserted between
them. We'll put them together with '…' to bridge over the clauses or phrases in between the two parts, like this:
subito Galli … consilium caperent:
primum, QUOD legionem neque eam plenissimam, … propter paucitatem despiciebant;
et compluribus singillatim, … absentibus,
QUI … missi erant,
tum etiam, QUOD propter iniquitatem loci, … existimabant.
ne primum quidem impetum suum posse sustineri
UT
Now that we can see all the separate parts of the sentence we can list all the clauses and phrases and identify them by type:
Id aliquot de causis acciderat,
UT
subito Galli … consilium caperent:
MAIN CLAUSE
noun result clause
belli renovandi
gerundive phrase
legionisque opprimendae
gerundive phrase
primum, QUOD legionem neque eam plenissimam, … propter paucitatem despiciebant;
causal clause
detractis cohortibus duabus
ablative absolute
et compluribus singillatim, … absentibus,
ablative absolute
QUI
… missi erant,
relative clause
commeatūs petendi causā
gerundive phrase
tum etiam, QUOD propter iniquitatem loci, … existimabant.
CUM
ipsi ex montibus in vallem decurrerent
et tela coicerent,
ne primum quidem impetum suum posse sustineri
causal clause
circumstantial clause
circumstantial clause
indirect statement
"It had happened for several reasons that the Gauls suddenly formed the plan of renewing the war and overwhelming the
legion: first, because they despised the legion, it not being the most fully-manned, because of its small size (two cohorts
having been drawn off and quite a few individuals being absent who had been dispatched for the purpose of gathering grain);
then, too, because they thought, owing to the unevenness of the terrain, while they themselves would be running down from
the hills into the valley and hurling spears, that not even their first attack could be sustained. "
Here are the Latin subordinating words, with respect to their finite clause type and function:
NOUN CLAUSES
Noun purpose (“indirect command”) clauses
ut, that, to
ne, that … not, not to
ut ne, that … not, not to
neve, or … that not, nor
Noun result clauses
ut, that
ut non, that … not
Fearing clauses
ne, that
ne non, that … not
Fact clauses
quod, quia, (the fact) that
Indirect questions
interrogative pronouns (quis, quid, etc.)
interrogative adjectives (qui, quae, quod, qualis, etc.)
interrogative adverbs (cur, ubi, quo, quo modo,
etc.), why, when, where, how, etc.
utrum … an, -ne … an, utrum … annon, etc.,
whether … or (not)
Indefinite relative clauses
indefinite relative pronoun and adjectives
(quicumque, quilibet, quivis, quisquam, etc.)
whoever, whatever, etc.
indefinite relative adverbs (ubicumque, quolibet,
etc.) whenever, however, wherever, etc.
ADJECTIVE CLAUSES
Relative clauses
relative pronouns (qui, quae, quod, etc.) who, which, etc. (but also note uses with subjunctive verbs!)
ADVERBIAL CLAUSES
Adverbial purpose clauses
ut, so that, to
ne, lest, that … not
Adverbial result clauses
ut, that
ut non, that … not
Causal clauses
quia, quod, quoniam, quando, cum,
quandoquidem, si quidem, quippe, since,
because, insasmuch as
Temporal clauses
cum, quando, ubi, ut, when
cum primum, ut primum, ubi primum, simul
(atque), as soon as
postquam, after
ante … quam, prius … quam, before
dum, quoad, donec, until, as long as, while
Circumstantial clauses
cum, when, once, while
Clauses of proviso
dum, modo, dummodo, tantum ut, dummodo ne
tantum ne, provided that, so long as (not)
Clauses of prohibition
quin, quominus, ne, that, but that, that … not
Relative clauses of time or place
relative adverbs of time, place, or manner (ubi,
unde, quo, etc.), when, where, how
Relative clauses of purpose
relative pronouns, with verb in subjunctive, after
leading verb of sending or going
Conditions
si, if
sin, quod si, but if
nisi, if not, unless
si modo, si tantum, if only
Concessive clauses
etsi, etiamsi, tametsi, even if
quamquam, cum, although
quamvis, quamlibet, however much
Comparative clauses
ut, uti, sicut, just as
tamquam, quasi, ut si, ac si, velut si, as if
prout, ceu, like, according … as
quam, atque, ac, as, than
You noticed right away that many of these words have a qu-, a cu-, or a u- form.
That’s because most of them evolved long ago from words that had a stem like this: kw--.
We have them in English, too: most have a wh- stem; that will sometimes help you translate.
You also noticed that many of these words can introduce different kinds of subordinate clauses.
The conjunctions cum, ut and si, for example, are used in several different ways.
We’ll learn other ways of distinguishing among these as we go further on.
Meanwhile, LEARN THESE WORDS VERY WELL!
SEQUENCE(S) OF TENSES
Let's recall: a complex sentence is one with at least one main clause and at least one subordinate clause. It might have more
than one of either or of each. Now, the actions or events in these clauses don't necessarily happen at the same time. For
example, "Because you studied hard last night, you will do well on the quiz today." The main, leading clause, "you will do
well on the quiz today," is future, but the subordinate causal clause, "Because you studied hard last night," is past. The
relationship between the tense of a subordinate and that of its main (or leading) verb is called Sequence of Tenses, in Latin
consecutio temporum, a term from the Middle Ages, not from ancient Rome.
In this unit we'll be concerned only with the tense-relationship when a subordinate clause's verb is in the subjunctive mood.
(But remember that many kinds of subordinate clauses can or even must have an indicative verb.) This is because the
subjunctive lacks the future and future perfect and because the tenses of the subjunctive mood don't express the relative times
of actions in the fixed way that the indicative does. The tense of a subordinate subjunctive verb depends on a Latin author's
need to represent, in a clause or phrase, an event or action as occurring
before,
at the same time as, or
after
the action or event related in the introductory, "super-ordinate" verb (NB! which may or may not be a main verb), that is, the
verb of the clause or phrase on which the sub-ordinate clause depends. In Latin, when a dependent verb is subjunctive, the
time-relationship of tenses follows this general pattern. The top row is usually referred to as the "primary" or "present"
sequence and the bottom row the "secondary" or "historical" sequence. We'll also see important deviations from this rule.
INTRODUCTORY VERB
Present
Future
Present & Future Imperative
Future Perfect
Present Perfect ("have," "has")
Historical Present
Imperfect
Historical Infinitive
Historical Perfect (simple past)
Historical Present
Pluperfect
ACTION BEFORE
ACTION SAME TIME AS
ACTION AFTER
PERFECT
SUBJUNCTIVE
PRESENT
SUBJUNCTIVE
FUTURE PERIPHRASTIC
(FUTURE ACTIVE
PARTICIPLE + PRES.
SUBJ. of esse)
PLUPERFECT
SUBJUNCTIVE
IMPERFECT
SUBJUNCTIVE
FUTURE PERIPHRASTIC
(FUTURE ACTIVE
PARTICIPLE + IMPERF.
SUBJ. of esse)
show the fullest range of possibilities for these sequences. Here are two examples. The first has a
present-tense leading verb (Sciō) and demonstrates the primary sequence, while the second has an imperfect leading verb
(Sciēbam) and demonstrates the secondary sequence:
INDIRECT QUESTIONS
BEFORE
SAME TIME AS
AFTER
Sciō
ēgeris
agās
actūrus sīs
I know (now)
you did
you have done
you were doing
you are doing
you are going to do
you will do
Sciēbam
ēgissēs
agerēs
actūrus essēs
I knew (then)
you had done
you did
you were doing
you were going to do
you would do
quid
what
That's the general rule. But remember: it's only a general rule. It's really better to talk about Sequence-s of Tenses rather than
one single uniform Sequence of Tenses. In actual fact, different subordinate clause types have their own tense relationships
with their leading (super-ordinate) clause verbs. Here are examples of the major types.
PURPOSE CLAUSES (including noun purpose or "indirect command" clauses):
INTRODUCTORY VERB
Present
Future
Present & Future Imperative
Future Perfect
Present Perfect ("have," "has")
Historical Present
Imperfect
Historical Infinitive
Historical Perfect (simple past)
Historical Present
Pluperfect
AFTER
PRESENT
SUBJUNCTIVE
IMPERFECT
SUBJUNCTIVE
You'll notice that there are no "Before" or "At the same time as" columns and that the present and imperfect tenses now don't
represent action at the same time as but action after the leading verbs. This is because a purpose is an intention, something a
subject wants to do, to be done, or to happen, and that will always occur after or lie in the future -- relative to the time of
their leading verb. Since the past is gone and the present is constantly slipping away, you can't have a purpose now for
something that has already happened or is presently happening.
I studied hard last night
I studied hard last week
so that I might (or will) do well on the quiz today.
so that I might (or would) do well on the quiz last Friday.
Here's an example from Cicero:
Maiōrēs nostrī ab arātrō addūxērunt Cincinnatum illum
ut dictātor esset
Our ancestors drew the great Cincinnatus from his plow
in order that he would be (= to be) dictator
CLAUSES OF FEARING.
CLAUSES OF DOUBTING
RESULT CLAUSES. Just as purpose clauses must represent action after the verb of the clause on which they depend, so
do result clauses: a consequence can only follow some other action. When the leading verb is in a past tense, result clauses
can follow either the secondary or the primary sequence. This is because any past action can have a consequence thereafter
in the past or even in the present.
INTRODUCTORY VERB
AFTER
Present
Future
Present & Future Imperative
Future Perfect
Present Perfect ("have," "has")
Historical Present
PRESENT
SUBJUNCTIVE
Imperfect
Historical Infinitive
Historical Perfect (simple past)
Historical Present
Pluperfect
IMPERFECT or PERFECT
SUBJUNCTIVE
or
PRESENT
SUBJUNCTIVE
Examples:
Romani tam fortiter pugnabant (pugnaverunt, pugnaverant) ut hostes plane devincerent.
The Romans were fighting (fought, had fought) so bravely that they utterly defeated the enemy.
When the leading verb is present-perfect (i. e. when we translate with "have" or "has") the result is usually present.
Compare these:
Romani tam fortiter pugnaverunt ut hostes plane devincerent
The Romans fought (at that time) so bravely that they (thereafter, in the past) utterly defeated the enemy.
but
Romani tam fortiter pugnaverunt ut hostes plane devincant
The Romans have (up to now) fought so bravely that they are (now) utterly defeating the enemy.
[The corrupt Roman praetor Verres] ita vexavit ac perdidit (Siciliam) ut ea restitui in antiquum statum nullo modo
possit.
He so ravaged and destroyed (the province of Sicily (in 73-71 BC) that it can in no way (now, in 70 BC or anytime
hereafter) be restored to its former condition. (Cicero)
In addition, the subjunctive verb of a result clause in secondary sequence might be perfect tense. This is true especially
when an author wishes to represent a consequential action as sudden; but it is also found when that action is conceived as
ongoing, repeated, or even habitual in the past. Here are two examples, again from Cicero:
[The Bithynian king] Mithridates tantum tamen consilio atque auctoritate valuit, ut bellum renovaverit
But Mithradates was so endowed with strategic ability and personal charisma that he renewed the war.
[P. Cornelius Sulla] ita se gessit in tribunatu, ut nihil nisi de rei publicae commodis cogitaverit
He so conducted himself in the office of tribune that he thought of nothing except the state's best interests.
And sometimes we will see both imperfect and perfect subjunctive in result clauses dependent on the same leading verb, as in
this case from Livius:
tantus terror omnes occupavit, ut non modo alius quisque arma (non) caperet aut castris pellere hostem conaretur, sed etiam
ipse rex ... perfugerit.
Such a great terror seized them all that not only did one man after another not get his weapons or try to drive the enemy from
the camp, (but) even the king himself (suddenly) ran away.
CAUSAL and CONCESSIVE CLAUSES.
TEMPORAL and CIRCUMSTANTIAL CLAUSES.
CONDITIONS.
RELATIVE CLAUSES
I have always considered (and still consider now) this the perfect (form of) philosophy, which can (now and always) speak
of the most important questions in a rich and stylish way. (Cicero).
LET'S SUM UP. We've found that there is a general pattern or rule for Sequence of Tenses when the subordinate clause
verb is in the subjunctive mood. But we've also found many deviations from it and that many kinds of subordinate clauses
have their own special patterns. The most important thing, however, is to understand what the author meant and what the
relative time between the leading and the dependent actions is, even when the sentence seems to follow a certain pattern. For
example, a Latin writer might use a present-perfect leading verb to express something that is always and presently true or
continues to be true into the present moment, and an imperfect subordinate subjunctive verb which also applies to the present
or is always true:
Hanc perfectam philosophiam semper iudicavi, quae de maximis quaestionibus copiose posset ornateque dicere.