Latin word order

The word order of classical Latin is relatively free. Subject, Object, and Verb can come in any order; adjectives and possessives can go before or after their noun, and so on. A commonly found feature of Latin is hyperbaton, in which a phrase is split up by other words, e.g. Sextus est Tarquinius "it is Sextus Tarquinius".

A complicating factor in Latin word order is that there are variations between the style of different authors, and also between different genres of writing; for example, in some authors the verb is much more likely to come at the end of the sentence than in others. The word order of poetry is even freer than prose, and examples of interleaved word order (double hyperbaton) are common.

In terms of word order typology, Latin is classified by some as basically an SOV (Subject-Object-Verb) language, with Preposition-Noun, Noun-Genitive, and Adjective-Noun (but also Noun-Adjective) order. Others, however, argue that the word order of Latin is so variable that it is impossible to establish one order as more basic than another.

As will be seen in the examples below, the order of words in Latin is not random, but frequently indicates different nuances of meaning and emphasis. As the authors of Latin Word Order, Devine and Stephens, put it: "Word order is not a subject which anyone reading Latin can afford to ignore. ... Reading a paragraph of Latin without attention to word order entails losing access to a whole dimension of meaning."[1]

Word order and meaning

One important advantage of studying word order in Latin is that it helps the reader to understand the author's meaning more clearly. Thus for example complosit Trimalchio manus doesn't merely mean "Trimalchio clapped his hands", but the initial verb implies a sudden action: "Trimalchio suddenly clapped his hands". In another sentence the initial verb functions as a topic: decessit Corellius Rufus doesn't mean "Corellius Rufus has died" but rather "The person who has died is Corellius Rufus."[2] In another sentence, the initial verb is emphatic: vidi forum doesn't simply mean "I saw the forum", but "with my own eyes I saw the forum".

The placement of adjectives also affects the emphasis. Thus mea fama, with the possessive before the noun, means not "my fame" but "my own fame"; naves sunt combustae quinque, with the number at the end of the sentence and separated from its noun, doesn't just mean "five ships were burnt" but "no fewer than five ships were burnt".

The use of hyperbaton (separation of words which normally go together) is also worth observing. Thus Caesar's hae permanserunt aquae dies complures, with hae separated from aquae and complures at the end of the sentence, doesn't mean "These floods remained for several days" but "This time the flood waters, unlike the previous ones, remained for several days".

Theoretical approaches

In the past hundred years, but especially since the advent of computerised texts, Latin word order has been extensively studied, with a view to elucidating the principles on which it is based, and establishing what nuances of meaning or emphasis could be obtained by using different word orders. Two major recent works on Latin word order, based on different approaches, are those of Devine and Stephens (2006) and Olga Spevak (2010).

It is generally agreed that pragmatic factors play a major role in Latin word order, that is, factors such as topic and focus, contrast, emphasis, and heaviness. The topic (what is being talked about) often tends to come at the beginning of the sentence, and the focus (what is said about the topic) at the end or in penultimate position.[3]

Other factors that play a role in word order are semantic (for example, adjectives of size usually precede the noun, those of material more often follow it), and in some Latin authors consideration of such matters as euphony, assonance, and rhythm.

One major area of disagreement is how far syntax plays a role in word order. According to Devine and Stephens (2006), Latin has a basic neutral word order, which they state is as follows:[4]

A "non-referential object" is one like impetum in the phrase impetum facere ("to make an attack") which goes closely with the verb.

Following the theories of generative grammar, Devine and Stephens assume that deviations from this basic unmarked order are made in order to put emphasis on different elements. They use the term "scrambling" if constituents come in a different order from the basic one, and assume that scrambling occurs when an element is moved leftwards, towards the beginning of the sentence. This leftwards movement is called "raising".[5]

Olga Spevak (2010), on the other hand, basing her work on theories of functional grammar, rejects this approach. In her view, there are so many deviations from the so-called neutral order not only between authors but even in the works of the same author that it is not possible to discover what the neutral order must be; and therefore an approach which insists on a basic unmarked order "does not really help a Latinist to better understand Latin constituent order".[6] She stresses that according to the principles of functional grammar, as outlined by the Dutch linguist Simon Dik, words take their positions in a sentence according to a certain template, not by being moved from elsewhere.[7]

However, not all scholars are ready to dismiss syntactic factors entirely. J.G.F. Powell, in his review of Spevak's book, comments that "nobody has yet succeeded in unifying the insights of all the different scholarly approaches to the fascinating and peculiar problem of Latin word order". In his view an approach which combines the various schools of thought on Latin word order "may succeed in finding a more satisfactory solution".

Topic and focus

Several recent books, such as those of Panhuis and Spevak, have analysed Latin sentences from a pragmatic point of view. Syntactic approaches analyse a sentence into Subject and Predicate, but pragmatic analysis considers the Topic and Focus (or Theme and Rheme, as Panhuis (1982) puts it). This subject was also analysed by Sturtevant (1909), who referred to the topic as the "psychological subject".

As with Subject, Object and Verb, Topic and Focus can be arranged in different ways in a sentence.

Topic

Types of topic

The topic is the thing or person that is being talked about in the sentence. Spevak (2010) distinguishes various kinds of topic: discourse topic, sentence topic, sub-topic, future topic, theme, and so on. A sentence topic is one that picks up the immediately preceding context (e.g. ad ea below) and has precedence over the discourse topic (Caesar below):[8]

ad ea Caesar respondit...[9]
"To this Caesar replied..."

A topic will often take precedence over a conjunction, and the following word order where the subject precedes cum "when" is fairly common:[10]

Tubero, cum in Africam venisset, invenit in provincia cum imperio Attium Varum.[11]
"On reaching Africa, Tubero found Attius Varus in the province with military command."

Topicless sentences

Not every sentence has a topic, but some present information which is entirely new. Pinkster gives the following as an example:[12]

erant omnino itinera duo.[13]
"There were two roads in all."

Such sentences are sometimes called "presentative sentences" and often start with a verb.

Focus

The focus is the new information, i.e. the message which is being conveyed to the listener.

Final focus

Often in Latin the topic comes first, and then the focus. For example, in the sentence below, the topic is "in the bathhouse" (balnearea), which has been previously mentioned, and the sub-topic is the hot-room (assa) (since it can be assumed that all bath-houses have a hot room); the new information is that Cicero has moved the hot room, and the place to which he has moved it:

in balneariis assa in alterum apodyteri angulum promovi.[14]
"In the bath-house the hot room I have moved into the other corner of the changing-room."

In the following example, the new information is the sumptuousness of the funerals in question:

funera sunt ... magnifica et sumptuosa.[15]
"Their funerals are magnificent and expensive."

In the following, the sentence answers the unspoken question "What did the general do with all the money he found in the captured city?", the answer being "He sent it to Rome":

omnem pecuniam Romam misit.[16]
"He sent all the money to Rome."

In the following example, where the adverb celeriter "quickly" is placed early in the sentence, the main information is the action "took up arms"; the speed is subsidiary information (Devine and Stephens use the terms "nuclear focus" and "weak focus" for this):[17]

nostri celeriter arma ceperunt.[18]
"Our men quickly took up arms."

Often the verb can be part of the topic,[19] as in the following example. The new information, or focus, is the person who followed and the number of ships he brought:

hunc secutus Marcius Rufus quaestor navibus duodecim.[20]
"Following him came the quaestor Marcius Rufus with twelve ships."

Penultimate focus

Another place the focus is often found is in penultimate position, just before the verb or another element. In the example below, Alba has been mentioned in the previous sentence, and the fact that cities have rulers can be assumed; the new information is name of the ruler at that time, which is therefore the focus. In this sentence, as in the previous one, the verb itself acts as a topic:

imperitabat tum Gaius Cluilius Albae.[21]
"The ruler of Alba at that time was Gaius Cluilius."

When an unemphatic argument, neither focus nor topic, such as Albae above, follows the focussed word in this way, it is known as a "tail".[22]

In the following example the fact that these regions have winters is already known, and the new information is the fact that they come early:

in his locis ... maturae sunt hiemes.[23]
"In this region, winters (hiemes) are early"

In the following, the fact that the road has been measured can be assumed (Cicero has just mentioned the measurement); the new information is that he measured it himself:

sum enim ipse mensus.[24]
"For I myself measured it."

Similarly in the following, the fact that orders were given has already been mentioned, and the fact that they were carried out can be assumed; the new information is that they were carried out quickly:[25]

illi imperata celeriter fecerunt.[26]
"They carried out his instructions quickly."

Initial focus

Occasionally, the focus can be given extra emphasis by being placed before the topic.[27] In the following pair of sentences, the focus of one is at the beginning, and of the other at the end:

Samia mihi mater fuit; ea habitabat Rhodi.[28]
"My mother was Samian; (but at that time) she was living in Rhodes."

In the following, the fire has already been mentioned; the new information is that it continued day and night:

nocte ac die continuatum incendium fuit.[29]
"The blaze continued by night and day."

Another example of a reversed focus sentence is the following from the same letter of Cicero to his brother Quintus quoted above. The fact that Quintus's new villa had a portico was already known to him; the information which Cicero wishes to convey (hence the focus) is that it was very elegant:

summam dignitatem pavimentata porticus habebat.[30]
"The paved portico had the greatest elegance."

In the sentence below from Livy, the sentence topic ("that year") and discourse topic ("the war") are in the middle of the sentence. The fact that war was waged on both land and sea is a weak focus placed in penultimate position; but the new and surprising information is that the number of Roman legions was no fewer than 23, and this comes at the beginning of the sentence before the topic:

tribus et viginti legionibus Romanis eo anno bellum terra marique est gestum.[31]
"That year war was waged on land and sea with (no fewer than) 23 Roman legions."

In sentences such as the following with antithesis, two topics, "the land journey" and "the journey by sea", are contrasted; but the main emphasis is on the focus, "short":

breve terra iter eo, brevis navigatio ab Naupacto est.[32]
"The journey there by land is short, and the sea journey from Naupactus is also short."

Similar is the following, where the contrasted topics are "when I was a young man" and "now that I am an old one":

defendi rem publicam adulescens, non deseram senex.[33]
"I defended the republic as a young man, I shall not desert her as an old one."

Devine and Stephens refer to such emphatic topics used contrastively as "co-focus".[34]

Another example with emphatic topic is the following, where the topic "this place" (namely the city of Laurentum which was mentioned in the previous sentence) is in the emphatic penultimate position as though it were the focus:

Troia et huic loco nomen est.[35]
"This place also is called Troy."

No recordings exist of Latin from the classical period, but it can be assumed that differences in emphasis in Latin were shown by intonation as well as by word order.[36][37]

Euphony and rhythm

Euphony and rhythm undoubtedly played a large part in Roman writers' choice of word order, especially in oratory, but also in historians such as Livy. Statements from the writers themselves make it clear that the important consideration was the clausula or rhythm of the final few syllables of each clause.

Cicero himself, commenting on a speech of the tribune Gaius Carbo, quotes the sentence below, which apparently caused the audience to burst into shouts of approval:[38]

patris dictum sapiens temeritas fili comprobavit.
"The wise words of the father have been proved by the rash behaviour of his son."

He notes that the sentence would be ruined rhythmically if the word order of the last three words were changed to comprobavit fili temeritas. What was apparently admired here was the clausula of comprobavit with its double trochaic – u – – rhythm; whereas temeritas would make a rhythm of u u u –, which Cicero says would produce an unsatisfying effect in Latin, despite being recommended by Aristotle.

The 1st-century A.D. teacher of oratory, Quintilian, remarks that hyperbaton (switching words round) is often used to make a sentence more euphonious. He gives the example of the following sentence from the opening of Cicero's pro Cluentio:[39]

animadverti, iudices, omnem accusatoris orationem in duas divisam esse partis.
"I noticed, judges, that accuser's speech is divided into two parts (duas partis)."

Quintilian says that in duas partis divisam esse would be correct, but "harsh and inelegant".

In another place he says that to end a sentence with the verb is best, because the verb is the most forceful part of the sentence (in verbis enim sermonis vis est); but if putting a verb finally is rhythmically harsh, the verb is frequently moved.[40]

Another example where euphonic considerations may have played a part in word order is the following, from a letter by Pliny the Younger:

magnum proventum poetarum annus hic attulit.[41]
"It is a big crop of poets this year has brought."

Since hic was pronounced hicc, the unusual order with the demonstrative following the noun produces a favourite double cretic clausula (– u – – u –).[42] There is also a pleasing assonance of the vowels a-u-i a-u-i in the last three words.

Individual style

Another factor affecting word order was the individual style of different authors. Devine and Stephens note for example that Livy is fond of putting the object after the verb at the end of the clause (e.g. posuit castra "he placed a camp", rather than castra posuit, which Caesar preferred).[43]

Other differences between authors have been observed. For example, Caesar frequently places a number after a noun (in about 46% of cases), but this is rarer in Cicero (only 10% of cases).[44]

Verb position

Several scholars have found it fruitful to consider Latin sentences from a syntactic point of view, in particular the position of the verb.

Final verb

In sentences with Subject, Object, and Verb, any order is possible. However, some orders are more common than others. In a sample of 568 sentences of Caesar containing all three elements examined by Pinkster, the proportions were:[45]

  • SOV : 63%
  • OSV : 21%
  • OVS : 6%
  • VOS : 5%
  • SVO : 4%
  • VSO : 1%

An example of the typical Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) word order in Caesar is:

Caesar suas copias in proximum collem subducit.[46]
"Caesar withdrew his forces to the nearest hill."

A dependent infinitive, such as interfici "to be killed" below, also in Caesar usually precedes its verb:[47]

magnam partem eorum interfici iussit.[48]
"He ordered the majority of them to be killed."

However, in other genres of Latin, especially more colloquial types such as the comic dialogues of Plautus, Cicero's letters, or Petronius's satiric novel, the final position for the verb is much less common.[49] Marouzeau comments: "In certain texts the medial position of the verb seems more normal than the final."[50]

Linde (1923) counted the verb final clauses in various texts and produced the following figures:[51]

AuthorMain clausesSubordinate clauses
Caesar (book 2)84%93%
Sallust (ch. 1–36)75%87%
Cato (ch. 1–27)70%86%
Tacitus (ch. 1–37)64%86%
Livy (30.30–45)63%79%
Seneca (letters 1–9)58%66%
Cicero (de Inventione 1–22)50%68%
Cicero (de Re Publica 1–32)35%61%

In all authors, the verb tends to be final more often in subordinate clauses than in main clauses.

Over the centuries, verb-final main clauses became less common. In the writing of Egeria (Aetheria) of about A.D. 380, only 25% of main clauses and 37% of subordinate clauses are verb-final.

The verb sum "I am" (or its parts) is an exception to the rule that verbs tend to come at the end of the sentence in Caesar and Cicero. According to one investigation, in Caesar, when the verb is sum, only 10% of main clauses end with the verb. With other verbs, the figure is 90%.[52]

In Cicero the verb sum is used at the end of a sentence slightly more often, in 20%–35% of main clauses. However, this is less than with other verbs, for which the figure is 55%–70%.

The above figures apply to sentences where sum is used as in independent verb (e.g. difficile est "it is difficult"), rather than as an auxiliary to another verb (e.g. profectus est "he set out"), when it frequently ends the clause.

Different authors have different preferences. In Sallust, who has a rather conservative style, the verb sum (except where existential) tends to go at the end of the sentence.[53] Cato also usually puts the verb sum finally, except in specificational and identity sentences, such as the following:[54]

haec erunt vilici officia.[55]
"The following will be the duties of the farm-manager."

Penultimate verb

Quite commonly, especially in certain authors such as Nepos and Livy, the verb can come in penultimate position, followed by the object, as in this example:

Popilius virga quam in manu gerebat circumscripsit regem. (Livy)[56]
"Popilius with a stick which he was holding in his hand drew a circle round the king."

This stylistic feature, consisting of Verb + Object at the end of a clause, is referred to by Devine and Stephens as "V-bar syntax". It is much less common in Caesar than in Livy. In Caesar the phrase castra posuit/ponit "placed a camp" always comes in that order, but in Livy it is found as posuit castra in 45 out of 55 examples (82%).[57]

Even in Caesar, however, it is not uncommon for a locative phrase of goal or source to follow the verb, especially when the locative is focussed:[58]

exercitum reducit ad mare.[59]
"He led the army back to the sea."
Pompeius ... Luceria proficiscitur Canusium.[60]
"Pompey from Luceria departed for Canusium."
nemo egreditur e castris.[61]
"No one went out of the camp."

Other prepositional phrases can also sometimes follow the verb:

eo proficiscitur cum legionibus.[62]
"He set off for that place with the legions."

Other types of phrases which can sometimes follow a verb are relative clauses:[63]

eadem cogitans quae ante senserat.[64]
"Thinking the same as he had felt before."

Dependent clauses with ut almost always follow the verb:[65]

Ubiis imperat ut pecora deducant.[66]
"He orders the Ubii to bring in their cattle."

Another kind of situation where the verb commonly comes in penultimate position is when it is followed by a strongly focussed negative pronoun such as nemo "no one" or quisquam "anyone":[67]

quod ante id tempus accidit nulli.[68]
"Which had never happened to anyone before."
emptor ... inventus est nemo.[69]
"No buyer at all was found."

The grammatical subject can come after the verb in sentences of the following kind where it is focussed, and the verb itself forms part of the topic:[70]

Africam initio habuere Gaetuli et Libyes.[71]
"The original inhabitants of Africa were the Gaetulans and Libyans."

Similarly in sentences such as the following, it is reasonable to suppose that the object is focussed:[72]

nos provinciae praefecimus Caelium.[73]
"The person I have put in charge of the province is Caelius."

This type of sentence where the focus is on the object at the end should be distinguished from sentences with V-bar syntax such as circumscripsit regem "he drew a circle round the king" mentioned above, in which the object is not focussed.

Initial verb

Sudden actions

Initial verbs are often used in sentences such as the following, which describe a sudden or immediate consequence of a previous event:[74]

profugiunt statim ex urbe tribuni plebis.[75]
"The tribunes immediately fled the city."
videt imminere hostes ... capit arma a proximis ...[76]
"He sees the enemy threatening ... he immediately seizes weapons from those next to him ..."
dum titulos perlegimus, complosit Trimalchio manus.[77]
"While we were reading the labels, Trimalchio suddenly clapped his hands."
conclamat vir paterque![78]
"There was an immediate shout from husband and father!"

Such sentences are of a type known as "thetic" sentences, which answer "What happened?" rather than "What did the subject do?" Frequently they are in the historic present tense (in Caesar the historic present is six times as common in verb-initial sentences as the perfect tense).[79]

Sometimes, even if the verb does not come at the beginning, the suddenness of the action can be shown by raising it partially. Thus the final words of this sentence, which would normally be de loco superiore impetum faciunt "they make an attack from higher ground", are changed to faciunt de loco superiore impetum to emphasise the element of surprise:

statim complures cum telis in hunc faciunt de loco superiore impetum.[80]
"Immediately several men with weapons make a (sudden) attack on my client from higher ground."

Agentless verbs

The agent of the verb in thetic sentences tends to be less important than the verb; consequently, verb-initial sentences often have a verb in the passive voice. In Caesar, the passive verb mittitur ("is sent") is much commoner sentence-initially than mittit ("he sends"):[81]

defertur ea res ad Caesarem.[82]
"The matter was reported to Caesar."
pugnatum est ab utrisque acriter.[83]
"There was fierce fighting on both sides."
itur in antiquam silvam.[84]
"They entered an ancient forest."

Intransitive verbs of the type called unaccusative verbs, that is, verbs which have no voluntary agent, such as maneo "remain", cresco "grow", sto "stand", pateo "be open", mano "spread", also often begin thetic sentences:[85]

manat tota urbe rumor.[86]
"A rumour spread all over the city."
fit magna caedes.[87]
"A great slaughter took place."

Situations

Thetic sentences with initial verb can also be explanatory or give background information:[88]

miserat enim Pharnaces coronam auream.[89]
"For Pharnaces had sent a golden crown."
crescebat interim urbs.[90]
"Meanwhile the city was growing."

Presentational verbs (e.g. erat "there was") are also usually sentence-initial:[91]

erat vallis inter duas acies.[92]
"There was a valley between the two battle-lines."
venerat ad eum ... Laetilius quidam.[93]
"There had come to him a certain Laetilius."

Emphatic verb

A verb at the beginning of the sentence is often emphatic, perhaps expressing something surprising:

laudat Africanum Panaetius...; quidni laudet?[94]
"Panaetius praises Africanus...; why should he not praise him?"

Another situation favouring initial verb position is where the verb is in contrastive focus (antithesis), as in the following:[95]

excisa est enim arbor, non evulsa.[96]
"For the tree was cut down, not uprooted."

The verbs also come initially in sentences like the one below, in which there is a double antithesis.[97] These are examples of sentences with initial focus (see above):

contempsisti L. Murenae genus, extulisti tuum.[98]
"You scorned Lucius Murena's family and you exalted your own."

Another reason for using a sentence-initial verb is when the speaker is emphatically asserting the truth of a fact:[99][100]

num negare audes? ... fuisti igitur apud Laecam illa nocte, Catilina![101]
"Do you dare deny it? ... You were therefore at Laeca's house that night, Catiline!"
erit, erit illud profecto tempus.[102]
"It will come, that time will certainly come."
vidi, simul cum populo Romano, forum comitiumque adornatum....[103]
"(With my own eyes) I saw, together with the Roman people, the forum and comitium adorned..."
est enim sine dubio domus iuris consulti totius oraculum civitatis.[104]
"For without doubt, the house of a legal expert is (like) an oracle of the whole city."

Verbs with meanings such as "move", "offend", "make anxious" etc., known as "psych" verbs, also often come sentence-initially. In Livy, the verb movit ("moved") frequently (although not always) comes first if it is used in the metaphorical sense:[105]

movit aliquantum oratio regis legatos.[106]
"The king's speech persuaded the ambassadors to a certain extent."

But when the sense is literal, it always come finally:

castra ab Thermopylis ad Heracleam movit.[107]
"He moved camp from Thermopylae to Heraclea."

Verb as topic

Another reason for putting the verb first is that it represents the topic of the sentence, while the grammatical subject which follows it is the focus.[108] For example, after mentioning that he has been upset by the death of someone, Pliny goes on to say:

decessit Corellius Rufus.[109]
"The person who died was Corellius Rufus."

Other examples of this are given above in the section on topic and focus.

Questions and imperatives

An initial verb can also be used (without emphasis) in yes-no questions:

estne frater intus?[110]
"Is my brother inside?"

Imperatives also often (but not always) come at the beginning of a sentence:[111]

da mi basia mille, deinde centum![112]
"Give me a thousand kisses, then a hundred!"

The verb "to be"

The verb sum ("I am") can be used as an auxiliary verb (e.g. interfectus est "he was killed"), as a copula (e.g. dives erat "he was rich") or as an existential verb, specifying the existence of something.

Existential

As an existential verb, est (or its past tense erat) often goes at the beginning of the sentence:[113]

erat a septentrionibus collis.[114]
"On the north side, there was a hill."
erat vallis inter duas acies.[115]
"There was a valley between the two armies."

Of these two orders, the first (with the locative phrase between the verb and the noun) is by far the most common. The second example above is unusual in that it does not present new information but merely reminds the reader of what has already been said ("There was a valley, as mentioned above...").[116]

In other sentences, the verb est or erat follows the word which it is presenting, or comes in the middle of a phrase in hyperbaton:[117]

flumen est Arar, quod ... in Rhodanum influit.[118]
"There is a river called the Arar, which flows into the Rhone."
in eo flumine pons erat.[119]
"On that river there was a bridge."
palus erat non magna inter nostrum atque hostium exercitum.[120]
"There was a marsh, not particularly large, between our army and the enemies' one.
apud eos magnae sunt ferrariae.[121]
"In their country there are large iron-mines."

Auxiliary

When est is an auxiliary, it normally follows the participle which it is used with:

in summo otio rediens a cena Romae occisus est.[122]
"In the middle of peace-time, he was killed in Rome while returning from dinner."
statim Romam profectus est.[123]
"He immediately departed for Rome."

Sometimes, however, the auxiliary can move forward to follow some significant item of information, such as a quantity phrase or focussed word:[124]

magnusque eorum numerus est occisus.[125]
"and a large number of them were killed."
inde Quinctius Corinthum est profectus.[126]
"From there Quinctius departed for Corinth."

In subordinate clauses the auxiliary frequently raises to the position directly after the conjunction or relative pronoun:[127]

eodem unde erant profectae.[128]
"to that same place from where they had set out"

But if there is a focus word following the conjunction or relative pronoun, the auxiliary follows that and does not raise to the second position:

quae ad ancoras erant deligatae.[129]
"which had been tied to anchors

In a negative sentence, the auxiliary tends to attach itself to the word non, and does not move forward of it. Non est can either precede or follow the participle:[130]

qua perfectum opus non erat.[131]
"where the work had not been completed".
conloquendi Caesari causa visa non est.[132]
"There didn't seem to Caesar to be any reason for parlaying."
Pollicem, si adhuc non est profectus, quam primum fac extrudas.[133]
"If Pollux still hasn't departed, set him on his way as soon as you can."

Copula

When est is a copula, it tends to be unemphatic and to be placed after a stronger word, or between two strong words:[134]

horum omnium fortissimi sunt Belgae[135]
"Of all these the most warlike are the Belgae."
cuius pater Caesaris erat legatus[136]
"whose father was a legate of Caesar"

This strong word which est follows can also be the subject:[137]

Gallia est omnis divisa in partis tris.[138]
"Gaul, considered as a whole, is divided into three parts."

It is also possible for the subject to follow the copula:[139]

plena erant omnia timoris et luctus.[140]
"Everything was full of fear and mourning."

Or the order may be Adjective, Subject, Copula:[141]

quamquam regi infesta plebes erat.
"Although the common people were hostile to the king.[142]

In some sentences, the copula may begin the sentence:[143]

erat eo tempore Antonius Brundisii.[144]
"At that time, Antonius was in Brundisium."

When the sentence is negative, however, the verb est follows non and tends to be clause-final:[145]

id autem difficile non est.[146]
"Moreover, this isn't difficult."

Adjective position

In Latin, an adjective can either precede or follow its noun: for example, "a good man" can be both bonus vir[147] or vir bonus.[148] Some kinds of adjectives are more inclined to follow the noun, others to precede, but "the precise factors conditioning the variation are not always obvious".[149]

In Caesar and Cicero, it has been found that the majority (60%–80%) of ordinary adjectives, not counting pronominals and numerals, precede their nouns.[150]

Factors affecting adjective position

Semantic

One factor affecting the order is semantic. As a general rule, adjectives which express an inherent property of the noun, such as "gold" in "gold ring", tend to follow it.[151] Where the adjective is more salient or important than the noun, as "Appian" in "Appian Way" (via Appia), it also tends to follow it.[152]

Adjectives which express a subjective evaluation, such as gravis "serious", on the other hand, usually go before the noun.[153] Adjectives of size and quantity also usually precede (in 91% of examples in Caesar, 83% in Cicero), as do demonstrative adjectives such as hic "this" and ille "that" (99% in Caesar, 95% in Cicero).[154]

Adjectives where there is a choice between two alternatives, such as "left" or "right", or "preceding" and "following", also tend to go before the noun. However, the opposite order (e.g. manu sinistra "with left hand", Catullus 12) is also found.

Contrast and focus

Other factors such as focus and contrast may also affect the order. When there is contrastive focus the adjective will precede, even if it is one such as a geographical name which normally follows:

utrum bonus vir est an malus?[155]
"Is he a good man or a bad one?"
unus in Falisco, alter in Vaticano agro.[156]
"One in the Faliscan and the other in Vatican territory."

Even when the contrast is not explicit, a strong focus may cause the adjective to come first:

Aurelia via profectus est.[157]
"It is the Aurelian Way that he has set out on (not any other)."

On the other hand, an adjective which normally precedes, such as a number, can follow the noun when it is focussed or emphasised:

naves sunt combustae quinque[158]
"No fewer than five ships were burnt out."

Contrast the following, where the emphasis is on triremes:

praeterea duae sunt depressae triremes.[159]
"In addition, two triremes were also sunk."

Diachronic change

Over time the position of adjectives can be seen changing, for example, between Cato the Elder (2nd century BC) and Columella (1st century AD). Adjectives describing the type of something, such as ligneus "wooden", olearius "designed for oil" or novus "new" always follow the noun in Cato, but can come either before or after in Columella.[160]

In Cato, the adjective magnus "big" follows its noun in 7 out of 9 examples, e.g. tempestates magnas "big storms", but in Caesar about 95% of examples go before the noun.[161]

Livy uses this antique word order at a dramatic moment in his history when he reports the words of the magistrate announcing the news of the disaster at the battle of Lake Trasimene in 217 BC:

tandem haud multo ante solis occasum M. Pomponius praetor ‘pugna’ inquit ‘magna victi sumus’.[162]
"At last not long before sunset, Marcus Pomponius the praetor announced: 'We have been defeated in a great battle'."

Another adjective which changes over time is omnis "all". In Cato this word goes before or after the noun with equal frequency, but in Cicero's speeches 80% of the time it precedes, and in Caesar it goes before the noun even more commonly.[163]

Stylistic preferences

As with other aspects of word order, stylistic preferences also play a part in adjective order. For example, the adjective superior in its literal sense of "higher" (e.g. ex loco superiore "from a higher place") usually comes after the noun in Cicero and in Caesar, but in Livy the position before the noun (ex superiore loco) is much commoner.[164] Vitruvius and Seneca the Younger also preferred the earlier position.[165]

Commonly used phrases

In certain commonly used phrases, the adjective comes after the noun without variation:[166]

res publica
"the Republic"
populus Romanus
"the Roman people"
pontifex maximus
"the chief priest"
di immortales
"immortal gods"

In others, the position after the noun is more common but not fixed. The phrase bellum civile "civil war" has the adjective following in about 60% of Cicero's examples.[167]

In other commonly used phrases, the adjective always comes first. These include certain terms of relative position and certain adjectives of time:[168]

dextrum cornu
"the right wing"
novissimum agmen
"the rearmost (part of the) column of soldiers"
hesterno die
"yesterday"
postero die
"the following day"

In other common phrases, such as prima luce "at first light", the adjective usually comes first, but luce prima is also found.

Hyperbaton

Often adjectives are emphasised by separating them from the noun by other words (a technique known as hyperbaton). This is especially true of adjectives of size and quantity, but also superlatives, comparatives, demonstratives, and possessives.[169]

Premodifier hyperbaton

Often the adjective precedes the noun:

omnibus his adfuit pugnis.[170]
"He was present at all these battles."

The separation can sometimes be a long one:

multa de Hieronis regis fide perpetua erga populum Romanum verba fecerunt.[171]
"They spoke at great length about the constant loyalty of King Hiero towards the Roman people."

Premodifying adjectives in hyperbaton often have focus or contrastive emphasis.[172] In the following example, "these particular" floods are contrasted with some earlier ones which lasted a shorter time:

hae permanserunt aquae dies complures.[173]
"This time the flood waters lasted several days."

Sometimes they are merely brought to the front to emphasise them. So in the following example, the adjective cruentum "bloody" is raised to the beginning of the sentence to highlight it and make it stand out:

cruentum alte tollens Brutus pugionem.[174]
"Brutus, raising high the bloodstained dagger (cruentum ... pugionem)".

Sometimes both the noun and the adjective are important or focussed:[175]

magnus omnium incessit timor animis.[176]
"Great fear overcame the minds of all of them."

This last sentence is an example of double hyperbaton, since omnium ... animis "everyone's minds" is an example of genitive hyperbaton.

Postmodifier hyperbaton

Hyperbaton is also possible when the adjective follows the noun.[177] Often with postmodifier hyperbaton, the noun is indefinite:[178]

tempestates coortae sunt maximae.[179]
"Some very great storms arose."
praeda potitus ingenti est.[180]
"He obtained an enormous amount of booty."

If the noun is definite, the adjective can be predicative:[181]

agros deseruit incultos.[182]
"He abandoned the fields, leaving them uncultivated."

Sometimes the noun, not the adjective, is focussed, and the adjective is a mere tail, as in the following:[183]

multum te in eo frater adiuvabit meus, multum Balbus.[184]
"My brother will help you a lot in this, and so will Balbus."

Numbers

Cardinal numbers tend to come before the noun in Cicero (90% of examples), but in Caesar only 54% come before the noun.[185] When following the noun, the numeral is often focussed, as in the following, where the important information is in the number "three":

Gallia est ... divisa in partis tris.[186]
"Gaul is divided into three parts."

Distributive or pluralia tantum numerals usually precede the noun, both in Cicero and Caesar:

Octavius quinis castris oppidum circumdedit.[187]
"Octavius surrounded the town with five camps."

Ordinals precede the noun in 73% of Caesar's examples. But when used with hora, they follow:

ab hora septima ad vesperum pugnatum sit.[188]
"The fight continued from the seventh hour until evening."

Possessive adjectives

Personal possessives

Possessive adjectives, such as meus "my", suus "his/their", are fairly evenly distributed (68% preceding in Caesar, 56% in a sample of Cicero speeches).[189] When a possessive follows the noun it is unemphatic:[190]

per C. Valerium, ... familiarem suum, cum eo conloquitur.[191]
"He spoke with him through his friend Gaius Valerius."
quo usque tandem abutēre, Catilina, patientiā nostrā?[192]
"For how long, Catiline, will you continue to abuse our patience?"

When it is more emphatic, or in contrastive focus, it precedes:

si, in tanta scriptorum turba, mea fama in obscuro sit.[193]
"If, in such a great crowd of writers, my own fame is hidden..."
non ad alterius praescriptum, sed ad suum arbitrium.[194]
"not according to someone else's dictation, but at their own discretion".

However, the possessive adjective preceding the noun is not always emphatic: when it is tucked away between two more emphatic words it is usually unemphatic:[195]

domum mei fratris incenderat.[196]
"He had set fire to my brother's house."

It is also usual for the possessive to precede the noun when vocative:

'Quid est,' inquit, 'mea Tertia? quid tristis es?' – 'Mi pater,' inquit,'Persa periit'.[197]
"'What is it, my Tertia? Why are you sad?' – 'My father,' she said, 'Persa has died'."

eius and eorum

The 3rd person genitive pronouns, eius "his" and eorum "their", tend to precede their noun in Caesar (in 73% of instances).[198] Unlike the possessive adjectives, however, there is often no particular emphasis when they are used before a noun:

eius adventu ... cognito.[199]
"when his arrival was learnt about"

With certain nouns, such as frater eius "his brother" or familiaris eius "his friend", however, the position after the noun is slightly more usual.

Pronominal adjectives

Pronominal adjectives are those which can serve both as pronouns and adjectives, such as hic "this", alius "another", quidam "a certain (man)" and so on. These adjectives generally have genitive singular -ius and dative singular -i.

The most frequent position for pronominal adjectives is before the noun.

Demonstratives

Demonstratives, such as ille ("that") and hic ("this"), almost always precede the noun in both in Caesar (99%) and in Cicero's speeches (95%).[200]

When it follows a noun in unemphatic position, hic can often mean "the aforementioned":[201]

Gavius hic quem dico Consanus.[202]
"This Gavius of Consa that I am talking about."
status hic non dolendi.[203]
"this state of freedom of pain (which we are discussing)"

In the same way, when it follows a noun, ille can sometimes mean "that famous":[204]

marmorea Venus illa[205]
"that famous marble statue of Venus"

But more frequently, even when it means "the aforementioned", and also when it means "this one here", hic will precede the noun:

hoc nuntio[206]
"with this news (just mentioned)"
hic A. Licinius[207]
"this Aulus Licinius (whom you see here)"

alius and nullus

The pronouns alius "another", alter "another (of two)", ullus "any", and nullus "no", when used adjectivally, precede the noun in most cases (93% in both Caesar and Cicero).[208]

sine ulla dubitatione
"without any hesitation"
nullo modo
"in no way"
alio loco

"in another place"

illa altera pars orationis
"that second part of the speech"

Occasionally, however, when emphatic, they may follow:

certe huic homini spes nulla salutis esset.[209]
"Certainly this man would have no hope at all of being saved."

In the following, there is a chiasmus (ABBA order):

animus alius ad alia vitia propensior.[210]
"Different minds are disposed towards different vices."

ipse

Ipse in phrases such as ipse Alexander ("Alexander himself") usually precedes the noun in Caesar, as also in Cicero, although Cicero's preference is not as strong.[211]

quidam and aliquis

The word quidam "a certain" can either precede or follow its noun:

quidam homo nobilis[212]
"a certain nobleman"
scriba quidam Cn. Flavius[213]
"a certain scribe, by the name of Gnaeus Flavius"

When it is used with a person's name, it always follows, or else goes between forename and surname:

Epicrates quidam[214]
"a certain Epicrates"
Decimus quidam Verginius[215]
"a certain Decimus Verginius"

In such a position it is unemphatic, and the emphasis is on the name.

The other indefinite pronoun, aliqui (the adjectival form of aliquis), similarly can either follow or precede its noun:

a Flamma, si non potes omne, partem aliquam velim extorqueas.[216]
"From Flamma, even if you can't get everything, at least I should like you to extort some part of the money."
si non omnem at aliquam partem maeroris sui deponeret.[217]
"If not all, at least he should put aside some part of his grief"

Of these two, the phrase aliquam partem is slightly more common; and the phrase aliquo modo "somehow or other" is always in that order.[218]

Stacked adjectives

It is been noted that in various languages when more than one adjective precedes a noun, they tend to come in a particular order.[219][220] In English the order usually given is: Determiner > Number > Opinion > Size > Quality > Age > Shape > Colour > Participle forms > Origin > Material > Type > Purpose (for example, "those two large brown Alsatian guard dogs").[221] In general an adjective expressing a non-permanent state (such as "hot") will go further from the noun than an adjective of type or material which expresses an inherent property of the object.[222]

In Latin, when adjectives precede, they generally have the same order as in English:[223]

calida bubula urina
"warm cow urine"
virides pineas nuces
"green pine nuts"
multos formosos homines
"many handsome people".

When the adjectives follow, the opposite order is usually used:

patera aurea gravis
"a heavy gold dish"
ovum gallinaceum coctum
"a cooked hen's egg"
epigramma Graecum pernobile
"a famous Greek inscription"

There are some apparent exceptions, however, such as the following, in which the adjective sumptuosam "luxurious" is placed next to the noun:[224]

nullam suburbanam aut maritimam sumptuosam villam
"no suburban or sea-side luxurious villa"[225]

The demonstrative hic "this" normally goes before a number, as in English. However, the reverse order is also possible:[226]

in his tribus urbibus
"in these three cities"[227]
una ex tribus his rebus
"one of these three things"[228]

When hic follows a noun, it goes close to it:[229]

avus hic tuus
"this grandfather of yours/your grandfather here"
vitam hanc rusticam
"this country life"

Adjectives of the same semantic class are usually joined by a conjunction in Latin:[230]

aquam bonam et liquidam
"good clear water"
nationes multae atque magnae
"many great nations"

Quite commonly also, one adjective precedes and another follows, as in:

eruditissimos homines Asiaticos
"very learned Asiatic men"

Preposition, adjective, noun

When a preposition, adjective and noun are used together, this order is the most common one (75% of Caesar's examples):[231]

ex humili loco ad summam dignitatem[232]
"from a humble position to the highest dignity"

More rarely, a monosyllabic preposition may come between an adjective and noun in hyperbaton:

hac de causa[233]
"for this reason"
magno cum fremitu et clamore[234]
"with a great deal of noise and shouting"

However, this is mainly true only of the prepositions cum, de, ex, and in and mainly with interrogatives and relatives and a limited number of adjectives.[235]

The order preposition, noun, adjective is also less common:

ad bellum Parthicum[236]
"to the war against the Parthians"

Genitive position

Possessive genitive

Just as with adjectives, a genitive such as hostium "of the enemies" can either precede or follow its head-noun. Thus for "camp of the enemies", both castra hostium and hostium castra are found. Overall, however, there is a slight tendency for a genitive to come after a noun in both Caesar and Cicero (57% of examples).[237]

Individual preferences play a part in genitive position. In Livy books 1–10, castra hostium "the camp of the enemies" (74% of examples) is more common than hostium castra.[238] Caesar, on the other hand, seems to prefer hostium castra (69% of examples).[239] But when a name is used with castra, Caesar usually puts it after the noun (86% of examples), for example castra Labieni "Labienus's camp".[240]

Relationship terms

With relationship terms, such as uxor "wife", the genitive can go either before or after the noun. Often when it follows, the genitive is unemphatic:[241]

patruus pueri
"the boy's uncle" (referring to a previously mentioned boy).

Often (but not always) when the genitive precedes, it is focussed:[242]

Rosci fuit discipulus
"he was a pupil of Roscius".

One noun which almost always has a preceding genitive is filius/filia "son/daughter":[243]

Pericles Xanthippi filius
"Pericles son of Xanthippus".

Objective genitive

When the genitive is an objective one, e.g. spem victoriae "hope of victory" or conservatorem Asiae "the saviour of Asia", it normally follows the noun. However, considerations of focus or emphasis can cause it to precede:[244]

rerum auctores, non fabularum
"authors of facts, not of fables".

Subjective genitive

Subjective genitives can precede or follow the noun. For example, with memoria "memory", a subjective genitive usually (but not always) precedes:[245]

hominum memoria
"in people's memory".

However, with spes "hope", a subjective genitive usually follows, unless focussed:[246]

spem Catilinae
"Catiline's hope".

If a phrase has both a subjective and objective genitive, the subjective one (whether it comes before or after the noun) will usually precede the objective one:[247]

in desperatione omnium salutis
"in everyone's despair of being saved".

Partitive genitive

Partitive genitives usually follow the noun:[248]

magna pars militum.[249]
"the majority of the soldiers"
magnus numerus hostium.[250]
"a large number of enemies"

However, the genitive can also sometimes precede, especially if it is a topic or sub-topic:[251]

equitatus magnam partem ... praemisit "he sent the majority of the cavalry on ahead"[252]

Adjective, genitive, noun

Another place a genitive is often found is between an adjective and the head-noun, especially when the adjective is an emphatic one such as omnis "all":[253]

ex omnibus urbis partibus.[254]
"from all parts of the city"
magnas Gallorum copias[255]
"large forces of Gauls"

This also applies when a participle is used instead of an adjective:[256]

productis Romanorum copiis.[257]
"the forces of the Romans having been led out".

The orders Adjective-Noun-Genitive and Adjective-Genitive-Noun are both common in Caesar and Cicero; but Genitive-Adjective-Noun is infrequent.[258]

Enclitic words

Typical enclitic words

There are certain words that are enclitic, that is to say, they always follow a stronger word. Typical of these are enim "for", autem "however, moreover", and vero "indeed", which virtually always come after the first full word of the sentence (not counting prepositions), never first.[259]

est enim profectus in Hispaniam.[260]
"for he has set out for Spain"
de morte enim ita sentit...[261]
"for his view of death is the following..."
Quintus enim Ligarius...".[262]
"indeed Quintus Ligarius..."

Other words which require a stronger word to lean on are quoque "also" and quidem "indeed". These can never begin a sentence, therefore.[263] Other words, such as fere "approximately" and etiam, are frequently enclitic:

media fere nocte
"around the middle of the night"

In the phrase ne ... quidem "not even", the word quidem generally follows the first word of the emphasised phrase, rather than the whole phrase:[264]

ne deos quidem immortalis.[265]
"not even the immortal gods"
ne homines quidem probi.[266]
"not even decent people"

Weak pronouns

Personal pronouns such as me "me" and mihi "to me" can have weak and strong forms in Latin. When weak they tend to be found early in the sentence, either after the first word (which can be a conjunction such as cum "when" or et "and") or after an enclitic such as enim, if present:[267]

interim venit Philotimus et mihi a te litteras reddidit.[268]
"Meanwhile Philotimus has just come and given me a letter from you."
hoc enim sibi Staienus cognomen ... delegerat.[269]
"for this was the surname which Staienus had chosen for himself"
duas sibi hereditates venisse arbitratus est.[270]
"He considered that two inheritances had come to him."

Contrast sentences like the following, where the indirect object is a full noun, and follows the direct object (which according to Devine and Stephens is the neutral word order):[271]

quia obsides Larisaeis dederant.[272]
"because they had given hostages to the Larisaeans"

Unlike true enclitics, however, pronouns can also sometimes begin a sentence:[273]

ei statim rescripsi.[274]
"I wrote back to him at once."

As with the copula est (see above), when a focus phrase or emphatic delayed topic phrase intervenes, the weak pronoun will usually follow that, rather than the first word of the sentence:[275]

aliud enim vocis genus iracundia sibi sumat.[276]
"Anger assumes for itself a different tone of voice."

However, sometimes the pronoun will be found in second position, leaving est to follow the focussed phrase:[277]

nunc mihi tertius ille locus est relictus orationis. (Cicero, pro Mur. 54)
"Now what remains of my speech is that third topic."

And in the following example, the pronoun follows not the focussed word, but the conjunction si "if":[278]

haec si tibi tuus parens diceret....[279]
"If your father were saying this to you..."

In terms of transformational grammar, the sentence can be analysed as being derived from *si tuus parens haec tibi diceret by raising haec and tibi to earlier in the sentence. A functionalist, on the other hand, would say that haec naturally comes first as the topic, then si in its normal place, then the unemphatic pronoun, without anything being moved.

See also

References

  1. ↑ D&S, preface.
  2. ↑ Sturtevant (1909), pp. 26–7.
  3. ↑ Spevak (2010), pp. 29–31.
  4. ↑ D&S, p. 79
  5. ↑ D&S, p. 99.
  6. ↑ Spevak (2010), pp. 3–4.
  7. ↑ Spevak (2010), p. 8, footnote 21.
  8. ↑ Spevak (2010), p. 68.
  9. ↑ Caesar, B.C., 1.85.1
  10. ↑ Spevak (2010), p. 14.
  11. ↑ Caesar, B.C. 1.31.2.
  12. ↑ Pinkster (1990b), §9.3.2.5.
  13. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 1.6.1.
  14. ↑ Cicero, ad Qu. fr. 3.1.2.
  15. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 4.19.4.
  16. ↑ Livy, 26.40.13.
  17. ↑ D&S, p. 102.
  18. ↑ Caesar, B.G., 3.28.
  19. ↑ Sturtevant (1909), p. 26.
  20. ↑ Caesar, B.C. 2.23.5.
  21. ↑ Livy, 1.22.4.
  22. ↑ D&S, p. 17.
  23. ↑ Caesar B.G. 4.20.1.
  24. ↑ Cicero, ad Quintum fratrem, 3.1.4.
  25. ↑ D&S, p. 102.
  26. ↑ Caesar, B.G., 5.20.
  27. ↑ Panhuis (1982), p. 52.
  28. ↑ Terence, Eun. 107
  29. ↑ Livy, 26.27.
  30. ↑ Cicero, ad Q.Fr. 3.1.1.
  31. ↑ Livy, 26.1.1.
  32. ↑ Livy 26.26.
  33. ↑ Cicero, Phil. 2.118.
  34. ↑ D&S, p. 147.
  35. ↑ Livy, 1.1
  36. ↑ D&S, p. 98.
  37. ↑ Skopeteas (2011), p. 6.
  38. ↑ Cicero, Orator 63.214, discussed by Cunningham (1957), p. 498.
  39. ↑ Quintilian, 8.6.65
  40. ↑ Quintilian 9.4.26; quoted in Greene (1908b), p. 10.
  41. ↑ Pliny, Letters, 1.13.1.
  42. ↑ "a clausula of cretic plus cretic, a favorite with Pliny": Selatie E. Stout, Scribe and Critic at Work in Pliny's Letters (1954), p. 150.
  43. ↑ D&S, pp. 125–6.
  44. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 648.
  45. ↑ Pinkster (1990a), reported in Skopeteas (2011), p. 3.
  46. ↑ Caesar, B.G., 1.22
  47. ↑ D&S, p. 143; Skopeteas (2011), p. 4.
  48. ↑ Caesar, B.C., 2.44.
  49. ↑ Hopper (1985), p. 468.
  50. ↑ Marouzeau (1938), p. 82, quoted in Panhuis (1982), p. 27.
  51. ↑ Linde (1923), pp. 154–156, as reported in Scrivner (2015), p. 32.
  52. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 654.
  53. ↑ D&S, pp. 216–7.
  54. ↑ D&S, pp. 218–9.
  55. ↑ Cato, de re Rus. 5.1.
  56. ↑ Livy, 45.12.
  57. ↑ D&S, pp. 125-6.
  58. ↑ D&S, p. 120.
  59. ↑ Caesar, B.G., 5.23.
  60. ↑ Caesar, B.C., 1.24.1.
  61. ↑ Caesar, B.G., 1.81.
  62. ↑ Caesar, B.G., 5.21.
  63. ↑ D&S, p. 123.
  64. ↑ Caesar, B.G., 7.53.
  65. ↑ D&S, p. 124.
  66. ↑ Caesar, B.G., 6.10
  67. ↑ D&S, p. 172.
  68. ↑ Caesar, B.G., 2.35.
  69. ↑ Cicero, Phil. 11.13.
  70. ↑ D&S, p. 177.
  71. ↑ Sallust, Jug., 18.1.
  72. ↑ D&S, p. 177.
  73. ↑ Cicero, ad Att., 6.6.3.
  74. ↑ D&S, p. 159.
  75. ↑ Caesar, B.C. 1.5
  76. ↑ Caesar, B.C. 6.38
  77. ↑ Petronius, Sat. 34.
  78. ↑ Livy 1.58.12.
  79. ↑ D&S, p. 159.
  80. ↑ Cicero, in Milonem 29.
  81. ↑ D&S, p. 154.
  82. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 5.25.
  83. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 3.21.
  84. ↑ Virgil, Aeneid 6.175.
  85. ↑ D&S, pp. 151–2.
  86. ↑ Livy, 2.49.1.
  87. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 7.70
  88. ↑ D&S, p. 161.
  89. ↑ de Bello Alexandrino 70.
  90. ↑ Livy, 1.8.4.
  91. ↑ D&S, p. 150.
  92. ↑ Caesar, Civ. 2.24.1.
  93. ↑ Cicero, Verr. 2.2.64.
  94. ↑ Cicero, de Off., 2.76.
  95. ↑ D&S, p, 147.
  96. ↑ Cicero, ad Att. 15.4.2
  97. ↑ D&S, p, 147.
  98. ↑ Cicero, pro Mur. 15.
  99. ↑ D&S, pp. 145–147.
  100. ↑ Spevak (2010), p. 47.
  101. ↑ Cicero, Cat. 1.9.
  102. ↑ Cicero, pro Milone, 69.
  103. ↑ Cicero, Verr. 2.1.58.
  104. ↑ Cicero, de Orat. 1.200.
  105. ↑ D&S, p. 155.
  106. ↑ Livy, 39.29.
  107. ↑ Livy, 36.22.
  108. ↑ Sturtevant (1909), p. 26.
  109. ↑ Pliny, Letters, 1.12.
  110. ↑ Terence, Adelphi 571.
  111. ↑ D&S, p. 149.
  112. ↑ Catullus 5.
  113. ↑ Skopeteas (2011), p. 16.
  114. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 7.83.
  115. ↑ Caesar, B.C. 2.34.1.
  116. ↑ D&S, pp. 209–10.
  117. ↑ D&S, pp. 211–2.
  118. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 1.12.1.
  119. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 2.5
  120. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 2.9.
  121. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 7.22.
  122. ↑ Cicero, pro Rosc. 126.
  123. ↑ Cicero, Att. 12.18.1.
  124. ↑ D&S, pp. 182, 189.
  125. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 4.37.4.
  126. ↑ Livy, 32.40.
  127. ↑ D&S, pp. 184–5.
  128. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 4.28.
  129. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 4.29
  130. ↑ D&S, pp. 183–4.
  131. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 3.63.
  132. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 1.47.2.
  133. ↑ Cicero, Fam. 14.6.
  134. ↑ D&S, pp. 198–201.
  135. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 1.1.
  136. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 1.8.
  137. ↑ D&S, p. 201.
  138. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 1.1.
  139. ↑ D&S, p. 199.
  140. ↑ Caesar, B.C' 2.41
  141. ↑ D&S, p. 200.
  142. ↑ Sallust, Jug. 33.3.
  143. ↑ D&S, p. 172.
  144. ↑ Caesar, B.C. 3.24
  145. ↑ D&S, p. 202.
  146. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 3.86.
  147. ↑ e.g. Cicero Att. 7.7.1.
  148. ↑ e.g. Cicero, Verr. 2.3.166.
  149. ↑ D&S, p. 403.
  150. ↑ See table by Mabel Merryman, reported in Walker (1918), p. 648.
  151. ↑ D&S, p. 411.
  152. ↑ McFadden: review of Spevak (2014).
  153. ↑ McFadden: review of Spevak (2014).
  154. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 648.
  155. ↑ Seneca, de Ben. 4.40.3.
  156. ↑ Livy, 10.26.15.
  157. ↑ Cicero, Cat. 2.6.
  158. ↑ Caesar B.C. 3.101.4.
  159. ↑ Caesar B.C. 3.101.6.
  160. ↑ D&S, pp. 405–14; 449-452.
  161. ↑ D&S, pp. 471–2.
  162. ↑ Livy, 22.7.
  163. ↑ D&S, p. 509.
  164. ↑ D&S, p. 452. (Their statistics omit some examples, however.)
  165. ↑ Perseus PhiloLogic search.
  166. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 649.
  167. ↑ D&S, p. 442.
  168. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 649.
  169. ↑ D&S, pp. 542–44.
  170. ↑ Cicero, Phil. 2.75.
  171. ↑ Livy, 26.30.
  172. ↑ D&S, p. 544.
  173. ↑ Caesar, B.C. 1.50.1.
  174. ↑ Cicero, Phil. 2.28.
  175. ↑ D&S, p. 547.
  176. ↑ Caesar, B.C. 2.29.
  177. ↑ D&S, p. 534.
  178. ↑ D&S, p. 538.
  179. ↑ Cicero, Verr. 2.1.46.
  180. ↑ Livy 40.49.1.
  181. ↑ D&S, 539.
  182. ↑ Cicero, de Fin. 5.87.
  183. ↑ D&S, p. 540.
  184. ↑ Cicero, ad Fam. 7.7.2.
  185. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 648.
  186. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 1.1.1.
  187. ↑ Caesar, B.C. 3.9.4.
  188. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 1.26.2.
  189. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 648.
  190. ↑ Ullman (1919), pp. 408–9.
  191. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 1.19.3.
  192. ↑ Cicero, Cat. 1.1.
  193. ↑ Livy, 1 pr. 3.
  194. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 1.36.1.
  195. ↑ Ullman (1919), p. 411.
  196. ↑ Cicero, Mil. 87.
  197. ↑ Cicero, Div. 1.103.
  198. ↑ Ullman (1919), p. 414.
  199. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 7.88.1
  200. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 648.
  201. ↑ D&S, pp. 513–4.
  202. ↑ Cicero, Verr. 2.5.160.
  203. ↑ Cicero, de Fin. 2.32.
  204. ↑ Ullman (1919), p. 417.
  205. ↑ Cicero, Verr. 4.135
  206. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 7.40.
  207. ↑ Cicero, pro Arch. 1.
  208. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 648.
  209. ↑ Cicero, Verr. 2.3.168.
  210. ↑ Cicero, Tusc. 4.81.
  211. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 650.
  212. ↑ Cicero, de Domo sua 111.
  213. ↑ Cicero, Murena 25.
  214. ↑ Cicero, Verr. 2.2.53.
  215. ↑ Cicero, Rep. 2.63.
  216. ↑ Cicero, Fam. 16.24.1.
  217. ↑ Cicero, Sest. 7.
  218. ↑ Perseus PhiliLogic search.
  219. ↑ Paul Flanagan (2014), "A Cross-Linguistic Investigation of the Order of Attributive Adjectives". Edge Hill University PhD Thesis.
  220. ↑ Alexandra Teodorescu (2006), "Adjective Ordering Restrictions Revisited". Proceedings of the 25th West Coast Conference on Formal Linguistics, ed. Donald Baumer, David Montero, and Michael Scanlon, 399-407.
  221. ↑ John Eastwoood (1994), Oxford Guide to English Grammar, §202.
  222. ↑ D&S, p. 478.
  223. ↑ D&S, pp. 476–81.
  224. ↑ D&S p. 481.
  225. ↑ Nepos Att. 14.3.
  226. ↑ D&S, p. 497.
  227. ↑ Livy, 10.45.11.
  228. ↑ Cicero, de Orat. 2.310.
  229. ↑ D&S, p. 516.
  230. ↑ D&S, pp. 477, 473.
  231. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 648.
  232. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 7.39.1.
  233. ↑ Caesar, B.C. 1.82, 5.
  234. ↑ Cicero, Att. 2.19.2
  235. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 651.
  236. ↑ Cicero, Att. 6.1.3.
  237. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 648.
  238. ↑ Perseus PhiloLogic search.
  239. ↑ D&S, p. 365.
  240. ↑ D&S, p. 363.
  241. ↑ D&S, p. 356.
  242. ↑ D&S, p. 358.
  243. ↑ D&S, p. 352.
  244. ↑ D&S, p. 349.
  245. ↑ D&S, p. 317.
  246. ↑ D&S, p. 317.
  247. ↑ D&S, p. 316.
  248. ↑ D&S, pp.368–376.
  249. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 5.30.1
  250. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 5.34.
  251. ↑ D&S, p. 370.
  252. ↑ Caesar, B.C. 3.38.
  253. ↑ D&S, p. 371.
  254. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 7.47.
  255. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 5.53; D&S, p. 366.
  256. ↑ D&S, p. 366.
  257. ↑ Caesar, B.G. 3.24.
  258. ↑ Walker (1918), p. 648.
  259. ↑ Spevak (2010), p. 16.
  260. ↑ Cicero, Fam. 7.23.4.
  261. ↑ Cicero, Tusc. 5.88.
  262. ↑ Cicero, pro Lig. 2.
  263. ↑ D&S, p. 275.
  264. ↑ D&S, p. 271.
  265. ↑ Cicero, de Prov. 14.
  266. ↑ Cicero, de Div. 2.54.
  267. ↑ D&S, pp. 277–292.
  268. ↑ Cicero, Att. 10.11.1.
  269. ↑ Cicero, Clu. 72.
  270. ↑ Cicero, Verr. 2.1.90.
  271. ↑ D&S, p. 281.
  272. ↑ Livy 42.53.7.
  273. ↑ D&S, p. 280.
  274. ↑ Cicero, Att. 8.1.2.
  275. ↑ D&S, p. 295.
  276. ↑ Cicero, de Orat. 3.217.
  277. ↑ D&S, 299.
  278. ↑ D&S, p. 303.
  279. ↑ Cicero, Verr. 2.5.138.

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