“I am the wolf”.

Ignis Umbra

Ignis Aeternus

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I think I'm following you. Articles are added to make a sentence more idiomatic and colloquial in English, and they are added, yes, according to context. For example, Lupus matrem videt is literally "wolf sees mother", but in idiomatic English, it could be any one if the following:

-"The wolf sees its mother"
-"The wolf sees the mother"
-"Thr wolf sees a mother"
-"A wolf sees a mother"
-"A wolf sees the mother"

The first two translation appear the most idiomatic to me; you may hold different opinions. "The" and "a(n)" can be interchanged, but sometimes one article will be more appropriate than the other.
 

Latin Lover

New Member

I think I'm following you. Articles are added to make a sentence more idiomatic and colloquial in English, and they are added, yes, according to context. For example, Lupus matrem videt is literally "wolf sees mother", but in idiomatic English, it could be any one if the following:

-"The wolf sees its mother"
-"The wolf sees the mother"
-"Thr wolf sees a mother"
-"A wolf sees a mother"
-"A wolf sees the mother"

The first two translation appear the most idiomatic to me; you may hold different opinions. "The" and "a(n)" can be interchanged, but sometimes one article will be more appropriate than the other.
That's a great explanation. Thank you for taking the time to do that.
 

Abbatiſſæ Scriptor

Senex

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Articles, in languages that uſe them, are ſimply demonſtratives or numerals that have been weaken'd in meaning paſt the point of actually delivering any really neceſſary information. Typically ſuperfluous as articles are, however, their preſence in the idiom of a languages forces the ſpeaker or writer to decide whether an object might be interchangable with others that might be named with the ſame common noun. This extra category of interchangability is very ſimilar to the categories of gender and number, in that as natural and neceſſary as it may ſeem to be in ſome languages, other languages get along quite well without it. Juſt as languages which do not demand choices of gender and number can expreſs thoſe ideas whenever they are actually important, ſo Latin can addreſs interchangability when the need is felt. Thus 'ille' is an option.
 

Pacifica

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Fabulosus, if it is still to describe that wolf. If it were for something else the grammatical gender or number might change.
 
 

Matthaeus

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The first is an adjective, the second a noun of the feminine gender in plural, "of [the] fables".
 

Pacifica

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Custodis means "of (a/the) guardian", "guardian's". By "guardian wolf" you mean a wolf who is a guardian and not the wolf of a guardian, right?
 
 

Matthaeus

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Poor Puella! :(
 

Pacifica

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I am not "sir", I am "Madam". Or even better: "Milady".
 
 

Matthaeus

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Milady the Latinist witch. :)
 

Latin Lover

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Milady, I know this is a forum meant for Latin, but do you happen to have any knowledge of Ancient Greek? I don't trust Google.
 
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