How to figure out the gender of latin words

I have a lot of trouble with figuring out how what gender latin words are and I was wondering if someone could help me and give me a couple of hints. I particularly have trouble figuring out the gender of words like felix and fortis.
 

Iáson

Cívis Illústris

  • Civis Illustris

They're adjectives, so they have the gender of the noun they agree with, which depends on the sentence. Just as a word like bonus/a/um can be either masculine (eg. bonus) or feminine (eg. bona) or neuter (eg. bonum).
 
 

Terry S.

Aedilis

  • Aedilis

  • Patronus

Location:
Hibernia
p
 

Pollux

New Member

Location:
Maretropolis, Equus Prime
Usually, words that end in -us are male, -a words are female and -um words neuter. Though of course, there are many nouns with different endings (-o, -er, -is, -on etc.) and some that have one of the first three endings but other genders.
 
 

Matthaeus

Vemortuicida strenuus

  • Civis Illustris

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Location:
Varsovia
Actually, many -us nouns can also be neuter and feminine. Cf. sidus, opus, genus, tempus, acus, virtus, anus, et multa alia...
 
 

Godmy

Sīmia Illūstris

  • Censor

Location:
Bohemia
For the third declension, it's useful to make groups based always on a nom.sg. gen.sg. pair, not just nom.sg. alone.


Like -us, -oris (short -oris) is always neuter but in lepus, leporis (can't think of another exception.)

Etc.

I once made a list like that on this forum. If I just knew where.
 
 

Terry S.

Aedilis

  • Aedilis

  • Patronus

Location:
Hibernia
For the third declension, it's useful to make groups based always on a nom.sg. gen.sg. pair, not just nom.sg. alone.


Like -us, -oris (short -oris) is always neuter but in lepus, leporis (can't think of another exception.)

Etc.

I once made a list like that on this forum. If I just knew where.
This list?

Hello,
each pair of endings, like "us, oris" or "or, oris" (etc) is usually fixed to one gender but there ARE exceptions.

I will write a few:
(I also beg any latinist, who will spot that I'm not aware of some other exception in these rules to write it down ;) I'll be glad to learn)

us, oris / us,eris* - neuter (pectus, pectoris; tempus, temporis; vulnus, vulneris; corpus, corporis; latus, lateris; frigus, frigoris; litus, litoris; nemus, nemoris... It is handy to remember the nom./acc plural too as it is so different: pectora, tempora, corpora, vulnera, latera, frigora, litora, nemora) - the EXCEPTION I remember is for example "lepus, leporis" with plural "lepores" - a hare, masculine (+ of course accusative singular leporem which case is virtually non-existent for neuters); also "tellus, telluris" (with uris) - the earth, feminine with an accusative tellurem and nominative/accusative plural tellures

or, oris - masculine, this is like english "-er" (driver, worker... etc), or as pointed by Nikolaos some nouns as: dolor, doloris (a pain), the exception I recall now is "arbor, arboris" a tree; all trees are feminine, even if they end on "us" and are second declension. I think that my teacher was saying once that the ancient Romans had overall idea that certain godesses/feminine-numina inhabit the trees (all cities and islands are also feminine.... Corinthus pulchra - a nice city of Corinth) OR naturally soror, sororis (sorores) - a sister; uxor, uxoris - a wife

rix, ricis - feminine (or trix, tricis) - feminine opposite of "or, oris": bellatrix, bellatricis; meretrix, meretricis
ix, icis - appendix, appendicis are usually feminine too

tio, tionis - feminine: declinatio, declinationis; oratio, orationis; expugnatio, expugnationis... and many others I can't remember. I can't also remember now any exceptions to this rule.

en, inis - again neuter: carmen, carminis (carmina); nomen, nominis (nomina); flumen, fluminis (flumina); numen, numinis (numina); fulmen, fulminis (fulmina) - and there is one exception I've just found out: perten, pertinis (pertines) - a comb (with an accusative sg. pertinem, don't forget please that you NEVER ever create an accusative for neuter, so all these neuters I've just said are aswell accusatives)
Edit: also flamen, flaminis (flamines); existing accusative flaminem - kind of priest -> masculine

go, ginis - feminine (and I don't know so far about any exceptions): vorago, voraginis (voragines); origo, originis (origines); virgo, virginis (virgines); imago, imaginis (imagines)

is, is - can be masculine or feminine (don't know about such neuter), but my experience is, that when I see new noun ending having the nominative sg. and genitive sg. "is" then it's on 80% feminine (if not "common gender" = masculine or feminine), the exceptions I remember are: collis, piscis, sanguis, mensis (masculines)

ns, ntis - masculine or feminine, but my experience says that (when not obviously made from the present participle) masculine is more freqent: fons, fontis (fontes); dens, dentis (dentes); mons, montis (montes)

mo, monis - masculine (I don't know yet about any other): pulmo, pulmonis (pulmones); sermo, sermonis (sermones); (beware; not homo, hominis ;) it's "minis")

tus, tutis - feminine (as far as I know): virtus, virtutis (virtutes); salus, salutis (salutes) <- is not completely the same, but quite alike ... and I can't remember any other, but there are more

tas, tatis - feminine: libertas, libertatis (libertates); veritas, veritatis (veritates); cupiditas, cupiditatis (cupiditates)

r(e), ris + al, lis - neuter: exemplar(e), exemplaris (exemplaria); mare, maris (maria); coclear(e), coclearis (coclearia), altar(e), altaris (altaria); animal, animalis(animalia)

ma, matis - (usually or always(?) neuters coming from greek) NEUTER: drama, dramatis (dramata); aenigma, aenigmatis (aenigmata); neo-latin noun I think: trauma, traumatis(traumata); programma, programmatis (programmata); systema, systematis (systemata); problema, problematis (problemata); poema, poematis (poemata)

-----
I will add more if I remember some, but you can do the observation yourself after all ;)
And feel free to point out some exceptions or if you disagree with something!
 
 

Terry S.

Aedilis

  • Aedilis

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Location:
Hibernia
The thread is entitled, 'Third Declension'. I hope to get my own use out of it. Thank you for taking the trouble to write it in the first place. :)
 
 

Terry S.

Aedilis

  • Aedilis

  • Patronus

Location:
Hibernia
2012! I was a different Hobbit back then!
Yeah, six years ago. My life has really changed since then, too. Still, every day above ground is a bonus! :D
 
E

Etaoin Shrdlu

Guest

That's strange. I can find that thread on Google, but not on this site's own search facility.
 
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