Latin Adjectives

Adjectives, from the Latin adiectīvum 'added' or 'placed near,' are parts of speech that add information to and modify nouns. In Latin, adjectives pair to the nouns that they describe and then match the noun in case, number, and gender. Furthermore, just like nouns, Latin adjectives are divided into different declensions; fortunately, these are generally the same as nouns.

Generally, adjectives in Latin will follow the nouns they modify, except for certain types of adjectives or if they precede the noun for emphasis.

For further help and paradigms, Cactus 2000: Latin Adjectives is an excellent source.

Latin Adjectives

Adjectives in Latin are divided into first, second, and third declensions.

First & Second Declension

Adjectives in the first and second declensions always go together and decline exactly like their noun counterparts. They also form an adverb by replacing the ending with an -e or -ē. The same principles apply to the adjective's comparative and superlative forms (for example, happy, happier, and happiest). Here is an example with the adjective lætus ('happy'):

As mentioned earlier, adjectives must match the noun they modify. For example:

"Puella læta" > the happy girl.
"Fīlius lætus" > the happy boy.

However, this does not mean that the endings of the noun and the adjective will always match. For example, nauta 'sailor' is a first declension noun and therefore looks feminine; however, professions in the first declension are masculine. Thus, the noun and the adjective will look quite different:

"Nauta lætus" > the happy sailor
"Agricola bonus" > the good farmer

Third Declension

The other major kind of adjectives are third declension adjectives. Like third declension nouns, these adjectives can have various endings. Adjectives in this category differ from each other depending on the number of endings they have. Some have three endings, one for each gender, like celer (masc.), celeris (fem.), celere (neut.), 'quick.' Some have two endings, one for masculine and feminine, and one for neuter as in nātūrālis (m&f), nātūrāle (n), 'legitimate.' Finally, other have simply one ending for all the genders like dīligēns 'diligent, careful.'

Like first and second declension nouns, the adverb for this class is made by adding -iter, or, if the adjective ends in -ns, then by adding -ter. For example: celer > celeriter, nātūrālis > nātūrāliter, and dīligēns > dīligēnter.

• Image: Unknown, Mosaic with scenic masks, 2nd century AD, Mosaic, Digital Image, Wikimedia Commons (https://en.wikipedia.org : accessed 20 July 2023). This image is in the public domain.