emeritus | veteran -- retired from office |
ergo | therefore |
et alii | and others -- abbreviated et al. |
et cetera | and the others |
et tu, Brute? | last words of Caesar after being murdered by friend Brutus in Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar," used today to convey utter betrayal |
ex animo | from the heart -- thus, "sincerely" |
ex libris | from the library of -- to mark books from a library |
ex nihilo | out of nothing |
ex post facto | from a thing done afterward -- said of a law with retroactive effect |
fac fortia et patere | do brave deeds and endure |
fac simile | make alike -- origin of the word "fax" |
flectere si nequeo superos, acheronta movebo | if I cannot move heaven I will raise hell -- Virgil's Aeneid |
fortes fortuna adiuvat | fortune favors the bold |
fortis in arduis | strong in difficulties |
gloria in excelsis Deo | glory to God in the highest |
habeas corpus | you should have the body -- a legal term from the 14th century or earlier; commonly used as the general term for a prisoner's legal right to challenge the legality of their detention |
habemus papam | we have a pope -- used after a Catholic Church papal election to announce publicly a successful ballot to elect a new pope |
historia vitae magistra | history, the teacher of life -- from Cicero; also "history is the mistress of life" |
hoc est bellum | this is war |
homo unius libri (timeo) | (I fear) a man of one book -- attributed to Thomas Aquinas |
honor virtutis praemium | esteem is the reward of virtue |
hostis humani generis | enemy of the human race -- Cicero defined pirates in Roman law as being enemies of humanity in general |
humilitas occidit superbiam | humility conquers pride |
igne natura renovatur integra | through fire, nature is reborn whole |
ignis aurum probat | fire tests gold -- a phrase referring to the refining of character through difficult circumstances |
in absentia | in the absence |
in aqua sanitas | in water there is health |
in flagrante delicto | in flaming crime -- caught red-handed, or in the act |
in memoriam | into the memory -- more commonly "in memory of" |
in omnia paratus | ready for anything |
in situ | in position -- something that exists in an original or natural state |
in toto | in all or entirely |
in umbra, igitur, pugnabimus | then we will fight in the shade -- made famous by Spartans in the battle of Thermopylae and by the movie 300 |
in utero | in the womb |
in vitro | in glass -- biological process that occurs in the lab |
incepto ne desistam | may I not shrink from my purpose |
intelligenti pauca | few words suffice for he who understands |
invicta | unconquered |
invictus maneo | I remain unvanquished |
ipso facto | by the fact itself -- something is true by its very nature |
labor omnia vincit | hard work conquers all |
laborare pugnare parati sumus | to work, (or) to fight; we are ready |
labore et honore | by labor and honor |
leges sine moribus vanae | laws without morals [are] vain |
lex parsimoniae | law of succinctness -- also known as Occam's Razor, the simplest explanation is usually the correct one |
lex talionis | the law of retaliation |
magna cum laude | with great praise |
magna est vis consuetudinis | great is the power of habit |
magnum opus | great work -- said of someone's masterpiece |
mala fide | in bad faith -- said of an act done with knowledge of its illegality, or with intention to defraud or mislead someone; opposite of bona fide |
malum in se | wrong in itself -- a legal term meaning that something is inherently wrong |
malum prohibitum | wrong due to being prohibited -- a legal term meaning that something is only wrong because it is against the law |
mea culpa | my fault |
meliora | better things -- carrying the connotation of "always better" |
memento mori | remember that [you will] die -- was whispered by a servant into the ear of a victorious Roman general to check his pride as he paraded through cheering crowds after a victory; a genre of art meant to remind the viewer of the reality of his death |
memento vivere | remember to live |
memores acti prudentes futuri | mindful of what has been done, aware of what will be |
modus operandi | method of operating -- abbreviated M.O. |
montani semper liberi | mountaineers [are] always free -- state motto of West Virginia |
morior invictus | death before defeat |
morituri te salutant | those who are about to die salute you -- popularized as a standard salute from gladiators to the emperor, but only recorded once in Roman history |
morte magis metuenda senectus | old age should rather be feared than death |
mulgere hircum | to milk a male goat -- to attempt the impossible |
multa paucis | say much in few words |
nanos gigantum humeris insidentes | dwarfs standing on the shoulders of giants -- commonly known by the letters of Isaac Newton: "If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants" |
nec aspera terrent | they don't terrify the rough ones -- frightened by no difficulties, less literally "difficulties be damned" |
nec temere nec timide | neither reckless nor timid |
nil volentibus arduum | nothing [is] arduous for the willing |
nolo contendere | I do not wish to contend -- that is, "no contest"; a plea that can be entered on behalf of a defendant in a court that states that the accused doesn't admit guilt, but will accept punishment for a crime |
non ducor, duco | I am not led; I lead |
non loqui sed facere | not talk but action |
non progredi est regredi | to not go forward is to go backward |
non scholae, sed vitae discimus | we learn not for school, but for life -- from Seneca |
non sequitur | it does not follow -- in general, a comment which is absurd due to not making sense in its context (rather than due to being inherently nonsensical or internally inconsistent), often used in humor |
non sum qualis eram | I am not such as I was -- or "I am not the kind of person I once was" |
nosce te ipsum | know thyself -- from Cicero |
novus ordo seclorum | new order of the ages -- from Virgil; motto on the Great Seal of the United States |
nulla tenaci invia est via | for the tenacious, no road is impassable |
obliti privatorum, publica curate | forget private affairs, take care of public ones -- Roman political saying which reminds that common good should be given priority over private matters for any person having a responsibility in the State |
panem et circenses | bread and circuses -- originally described all that was needed for emperors to placate the Roman mob; today used to describe any entertainment used to distract public attention from more important matters |
para bellum | prepare for war -- if you want peace, prepare for war—if a country is ready for war, its enemies are less likely to attack |
parvis imbutus tentabis grandia tutus | when you are steeped in little things, you shall safely attempt great things -- sometimes translated as, "once you have accomplished small things, you may attempt great ones safely" |
pater familias | father of the family -- the eldest male in a family |
pecunia, si uti scis, ancilla est; si nescis, domina | if you know how to use money, money is your slave; if you don't, money is your master |
per angusta ad augusta | through difficulties to greatness |
per annum | by the year |
per capita | by the person |
per diem | by the day |
per se | through itself |
persona non grata | person not pleasing -- an unwelcome, unwanted or undesirable person |
pollice verso | with a turned thumb -- used by Roman crowds to pass judgment on a defeated gladiator |
post meridiem | after noon -- P.M., used in timekeeping |
post mortem | after death |
postscriptum | thing having been written afterward -- in writing, abbreviated P.S. |
praemonitus praemunitus | forewarned is forearmed |
praesis ut prosis ne ut imperes | lead in order to serve, not in order to rule |
primus inter pares | first among equals -- a title of the Roman Emperors |
pro bono | for the good -- in business, refers to services rendered at no charge |
pro rata | for the rate |
quam bene vivas referre (or refert), non quam diu | it is how well you live that matters, not how long -- from Seneca |
quasi | as if or as though |
qui totum vult totum perdit | he who wants everything loses everything -- attributed to Seneca |
quid agis | what's going on? -- what's up, what's happening, etc. |
quid pro quo | this for that -- an exchange of value |
quidquid Latine dictum sit altum videtur | whatever has been said in Latin seems deep -- or "anything said in Latin sounds profound"; a recent ironic Latin phrase to poke fun at people who seem to use Latin phrases and quotations only to make themselves sound more important or "educated" |
quis custodiet ipsos custodes? | who will guard the guards themselves? -- commonly associated with Plato |
quorum | of whom -- the number of members whose presence is required under the rules to make any given meeting constitutional |
requiescat in pace | let him rest in peace -- abbreviated R.I.P. |
rigor mortis | stiffness of death |
scientia ac labore | knowledge through hard work |
scientia ipsa potentia est | knowledge itself is power |
semper anticus | always forward |
semper fidelis | always faithful -- U.S. Marines motto |
semper fortis | always brave |
semper paratus | always prepared |
semper virilis | always virile |
si vales, valeo | when you are strong, I am strong |
si vis pacem, para bellum | if you want peace, prepare for war |
sic parvis magna | greatness from small beginnings -- motto of Sir Frances Drake |
sic semper tyrannis | thus always to tyrants -- attributed to Brutus at the time of Julius Caesar's assassination, and to John Wilkes Booth at the time of Abraham Lincoln's assassination; whether it was actually said at either of these events is disputed |
sic vita est | thus is life -- the ancient version of "it is what it is" |
sola fide | by faith alone |
sola nobilitat virtus | virtue alone ennobles |
solvitur ambulando | it is solved by walking |
spes bona | good hope |
statim (stat) | immediately -- medical shorthand |
status quo | the situation in which or current condition |
subpoena | under penalty |
sum quod eris | I am what you will be -- a gravestone inscription to remind the reader of the inevitability of death |
summa cum laude | with highest praise |
summum bonum | the supreme good |
suum cuique | to each his own |
tabula rasa | scraped tablet -- "blank slate"; John Locke used the term to describe the human mind at birth, before it had acquired any knowledge |
tempora heroica | Heroic Age |
tempus edax rerum | time, devourer of all things |
tempus fugit | time flees -- commonly mistranslated "time flies" |
terra firma | firm ground |
terra incognita | unknown land -- used on old maps to show unexplored areas |
vae victis | woe to the conquered |
vanitas vanitatum omnia vanitas | vanity of vanities; everything [is] vanity -- from the Bible (Ecclesiastes 1) |
veni vidi vici | I came, I saw, I conquered -- famously said by Julius Caesar |
verbatim | repeat exactly |
veritas et aequitas | truth and equity |
versus | against |
veto | I forbid |
vice versa | to change or turn around |
vincit qui patitur | he conquers who endures |
vincit qui se vincit | he conquers who conquers himself |
vir prudens non contra ventum mingit | [a] wise man does not urinate [up] against the wind |
virile agitur | the manly thing is being done |
viriliter agite | act in a manly way |
viriliter agite estote fortes | quit ye like men, be strong |
virtus tentamine gaudet | strength rejoices in the challenge |
virtute et armis | by virtue and arms -- or "by manhood and weapons"; state motto of Mississippi |
vive memor leti | live remembering death |
vivere est vincere | to live is to conquer -- Captain John Smith's personal motto |
vivere militare est | to live is to fight |
vox populi | voice of the people |
What are your favorite Latin phrases? Any other important Latin words and phrases that you think a modern man should know? Share with us in the comments!