| The
ablative case is also sometimes called the adverbial case because
the Romans used it when they wanted to modify or limit the
verb by such ideas as means, agent, accompaniment, manner, place,
and time. |
| |
| The Romans sometimes
used the ablative with prepositions (much
like the accusative case),
but sometimes without. |
| |
| General English
prepositions which are used to translate the ablative case
are: by, with, from, in, on,
and at. |
| |
|
| |
| Ablative of Separation |
| redi |
| Ablative of Source |
| redi |
Ablative
of Agent
|
| redi |
| Ablative of Comparison |
The
Comparative degree is often followed by the Ablative signifying than.
|
| |
|
Ō quid solūtis est beātius
cūris (Cat. Carm. 31.7)
- O, what is more blessed than released cares... |
| |
|
quid nōbīs duōbus labōriōsius est (Mil.
5) - what more burdened with toil than we two? |
| |
|
vīlius argentum est aurō, virtūtibus aurum (Hor.
Ep. 1.1.52) - silver is less precious than gold, gold than
virtue. |
| |
|
|
| redi |
Ablative
of Means
|
| redi |
| Ablative of Cause |
| Generally without a preposition
but sometimes with a preposition, the ablative is used to express cause.
The motive which influences the mind of the person acting is
expressed by the ablative of cause; the object exciting the
emotion often by ob or propter with the accusative. |
| |
|
Clāmāre gaudiō coepit.
She began to shout because of joy. |
| |
|
Fōrmā laudābantur.
They were praised because of (their) beauty.
|
| |
|
Ille cubāns
gaudet mūtātā sorte bonīsque rēbus
agit laetum convīvam - The (mouse) reclining rejoices
at his changed fate and acts the
happy guest on account of the good things (dishes and luxury).
(Hor. Sat. II.6.110-111) |
| The ablative of cause is used especially
with words denoting mental states such as dēlector,
gāudeō, laetor, glōrior, fīdō, and cōnfidō. It
can be also used with verbs such as labōrō (also
with ex), exsiliō, exsultō, triumphō,
lacrimō, and ārdeō, and as seen in
the case above with agō. |
| redi |
Ablative
of Manner
|
| redi |
| Ablative of Attendant Circumstance |
| redi |
Ablative
of Accompaniment
|
| redi |
| Ablative of Association |
| redi |
| Ablative of Degree of Difference |
| redi |
| Ablative of Quality |
| redi |
| Ablative of Price |
| redi |
| Ablative of Specification |
| redi |
| Ablative
Absolute |
| The ablative
is used in a clause to denote something that has no close syntactical
connection with the
rest of the sentence or main clause. The ablative absolute
is an adverbial modifier of the verbal predicate of a sentence. It
is translated into the English nominative absolute. Specifically
in this construction, a noun or pronoun and a past participle
are put into the ablative case to show in what circumstances
or time the action of a finite verb takes place. Thus in having
heard this, he returned the Latin would read hoc audītō,
rediit. Ablative absolutes were originally ablatives of
accompaniment indicating the attendant circumstances. The construction
is generally used to indicate ideas of cause and time. |
| redi |
| Ablative
of Place Where |
| The place where is regularly
denoted by the Ablative with a preposition, as in |
| |
|
| |
In urbe habitat |
| |
| The place where is also designated
by the use of the Ablative without a preposition with certain
words. |
| |
|
| |
Names of towns, except Singulars
of the First and Second declensions |
| |
|
|
| |
|
Carthāgnī,
at Carthage |
| |
|
Athēnīs,
at Athens |
| |
|
Veiīs, at Veii |
| |
|
|
| The general words locō,
locīs, parte, also many words modified by tōtus or
even by other Adjectives |
| |
|
|
| |
|
Hōc locō,
at this place |
| |
|
Tōtīs castrīs,
in the whole camp |
| |
| The special words: |
| |
|
|
| |
|
forīs, out of
doors |
| |
|
rūrī, in
the country |
| |
|
terrā marīque,
on land and sea |
| |
| Poetry frequently omits the
preposition with any word denoting place |
| |
|
|
| |
|
Stant lītore puppēs,
the sterns rest on the beach. |
| redi |
| Place from Which |
| Place
from which is usually indicated by the ablative with a preposition. |
| In
many instances, particularly in poetry, however, the ablative
is used alone. |
| |
|
cum
subitō ingēns valvārum strepitus lectīs
excussit utrumque. - when suddenly the loud noise of
the door made both of them
leap from the beds. (Hor. Sat. II. 6, 111-112)
|
| redi |
| Ablative
of Time at Which |
| redi |
Ablative
of Time within Which
|
| redi |
| Ablative of the Whole |
| The Ablative with the prepositions ex and dē is
often used in place of the Genitive of the Whole. |
| |
|
fidēlissimus
dē servīs the most trusty of the slaves
|
| |
|
quīdam
ex amīcīs certain
of his friends |
| |
|
ūnus
ex mīlitibus on
of the soldiers |
| |
|
trēs ex dōnīs three
of the gifts |
| |
|
quīnque
ex militibus five
of the soldiers |
| |
|
centum ex puellīs five
of the girls |
| |
|
quīdam ex nautīs a
certain one of the sailors |
redi
|
| Ablative
of Description |
| When modified by an adjective,
may be used to describe or express a quality of another noun. |
| |
|
Vir magnā sapientiā -
a man of great wisdom |
| redi |
| Prepositions
that take the Ablative |
|
ā,
ab from,
by |
prae
before |
| absque without |
prō in
front of, for |
| cōram
in the presence of |
sine
without |
| cum
with |
*sub
under |
| dē from,
concerning |
*subter
beneath |
| ē,
ex from, out of |
*super
over |
| in
in, on, at, among, during |
tenus
up to |
| *words take both the ablative
and accusative cases |
redi |
