Quid sum? (What am I?) Latin writing game

Petrus Cunīculus

New Member

Location:
WA, United States
I'm in the process of practicing/improving my Latin writing (an endless endeavor to be sure), and I thought it would be fun to try a writing game. There is a party game here in the U.S. called Taboo, where you draw a card with a word on it and you must describe the word to your team without using it. I once read that this is a great example of what it is like to speak in a foreign language when you don't know a particular word for something. Anyways, this got me thinking. There are plenty of Latin words that I don't know, but a handful that I do! Wouldn't it be fun to try playing something like "Taboo" as a writing game.

Here is how it works:
  1. The first person (me) posts a description (in Latin) of a thing/person/place/action/etc.
    1. The writer does not necessarily need to know how to say the final word in Latin.
    2. Ideally, the writer should try to avoid using a Dictionary and rely on the words that you know (not that anyone could tell...).
  2. The first person to see the post is free to supply what they think is the answer.
    1. Always provide an answer in English.
    2. If you also know the Latin word, please supply that in ( ). This will help us all learn some new vocabulary!
  3. When you supply an answer, you must also post a new description for everyone to guess. Otherwise, the game would end...
    1. If two people post an answer to the same description at the same time, then the next person must try to guess an answer for both posts.
  4. The person who wrote the original description can then let everyone know if the guess was correct or not (and supply the correct answer) by "quoting" the answer in a separate post.
As an example, I might post:
Salvē. Animāl sum. Quattuor pedēs habeō. Canis sum sed nōn canis sum. Cum loquor, ululō praecipuē ad lunam. Quid sum?
The next person would then answer:
You're a wolf (lupus)! Here is my description...​
And then provide another description for the next person.​
I would then confirm the answer (whenever I'm back online) by writing something like:
You're a wolf (lupus)!
Nice job, you figured it out!
I'm hoping this will give everyone a chance to practice a little bit of simple off the cuff Latin writing while also learning some new words. I'm also curious to see how people describe things. It should be fun! :)
Here is the first description:
Pīlum minimum sum. Ex ligneā facior. Cum cibum inter dēntem tuum est, mē ōrem purgāre potes. Quid sum?​
 

Pacifica

grammaticissima

  • Aedilis

Location:
Belgium
Sounds fun.

A toothpick. I don't know what is the/if there is a Latin word for this, but I could search.

Question: Is it desirable to correct Latin mistakes in this game or not?
 

Pacifica

grammaticissima

  • Aedilis

Location:
Belgium
Oh, it seems I must write a description even before getting your confirmation... That's weird, but OK. Give me five to think of something.
 

Pacifica

grammaticissima

  • Aedilis

Location:
Belgium
In me alii stant, alii currunt, alii pugnant, plures autem sedent. Hi spectant, spectantur illi.
 

Petrus Cunīculus

New Member

Location:
WA, United States
Oh, it seems I must write a description even before getting your confirmation... That's weird, but OK. Give me five to think of something.
I'm open to adjusting the rules. I mostly wanted to make sure that it was clear who should post the next description (and if someone disappeared for awhile, the game didn't just end).

Question: Is it desirable to correct Latin mistakes in this game or not?
Good question. I think people should expressly call out if they want their Latin to be correct before anyone offers suggestions. My hope is to simulate "speaking" and I don't want to slow the game down if people are having fun exchanging descriptions quickly.

As for my post, please call out any corrections you might have. I could definitely use the feedback. I'm still very clunky with my writing.

A toothpick.
Yup, you got it! And I'm going to have to think about your post! It's got me thinking...
 

Pacifica

grammaticissima

  • Aedilis

Location:
Belgium
As for my post, please call out any corrections you might have. I could definitely use the feedback. I'm still very clunky with my writing.
OK, then:
Ex ligneā facior
Two problems here:

Lignea is an adjective, in the feminine, meaning "wooden". Here you need the noun lignum, "wood": ex ligno...

Present, imperfect and future simple passive forms of facio are extremely rare. Usually, forms of fio are used instead, so ex ligno fio would be better.
Cum cibum inter dēntem tuum est
Two problems here too:

Cibum is in the wrong case. It's the subject of the sentence, so it should be in the nominative, cibus.

Inter dentem tuum = between your tooth. This is as weird in Latin as in English. Normally, you'd use the plural: "between your teeth", inter dentes tuos.
Os is neuter, so, as in all neuter nouns, the accusative is identical to the nominative.

BTW, I found dentiscalpium for "toothpick".
 

Petrus Cunīculus

New Member

Location:
WA, United States
Your's is much more like a riddle! :) I'm not sure I know what the answer to your's is... but let me know if my translation is accurate:
On me, some stand, some run, others fight, however, most sit. These (sitting) watch. Those (moving) are watched.

It sounds like grass or a stage or something...

I'm not very confident in my answer, so I'm not going to give a new description yet. That way someone else can take a stab at guessing yours.
 

Petrus Cunīculus

New Member

Location:
WA, United States
I'm going to say, movie theater?

And here is a new one:

In ōceanō habitō, sed nōn piscis sum. Ex capite per punctum, a quō aqua emittit, spīrō, ut nāsus. Quid sum?

I'm open to grammar fixes, and if any of the vocab is way off (but trying to stick to words I know).
 

Petrus Cunīculus

New Member

Location:
WA, United States
Should the definition actually be plain and, more like dictionary definitions but in the first person?
I leave that up to the writer. :) I don't mind riddles, but I don't know if I'm good enough at making them to post them. I mostly want it to be fun for everyone. If dictionary entry style descriptions are too simply for you (since you are much more advanced at writing Latin than me), feel free to post something a little more challenging. I just want other beginners to also feel comfortable posting simpler descriptions if they are not up to the challenge of making a riddle. :)
 

Pacifica

grammaticissima

  • Aedilis

Location:
Belgium
I'm going to say, movie theater?
I was thinking of an amphitheater (amphitheatrum).
In ōceanō habitō, sed nōn piscis sum. Ex capite per punctum, a quō aqua emittit, spīrō, ut nāsus. Quid sum?
A whale (balaena).
I'm open to grammar fixes, and if any of the vocab is way off (but trying to stick to words I know).
a quō aqua emittit
The verb should be passive, emittitur. The water isn't emitting anything, but is being emitted.

E(x) would be a better preposition that a(b). E(x) denotes a motion out of, a(b) a motion away from.
spīrō, ut nāsus.
Nasus in the nominative doesn't fully make sense there. It would be the subject of an implied verb spirat. However, you didn't mean to say "I breathe through a hole as a nose breathes" but rather "I breathe through a hole as if through a nose". Per nasum.

Next description:

Ego corpore maculato, collo excelso Africam incolo.
 

Pacifica

grammaticissima

  • Aedilis

Location:
Belgium
Yes. The classical word is camelopardalis.

But you aren't following the rules...
  1. Always provide an answer in English.
  2. If you also know the Latin word, please supply that in ( ).
 
B

Bitmap

Guest

Yes. The classical word is camelopardalis.

But you aren't following the rules...

I haven't read the rules – apologies! "Giraffe" is what I meant to write, but I just failed to fight the dire urge to put my answer into verse of ancient days. "Giraffa" was the word the Romans used ... or, well, the very long one that you gave:
camelopardalis.
 
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