Lectitō › Fabulae Faciles › Fabulae Faciles: Hercules
Fabulae Faciles 46
Hercules asks Atlas for help
Ritchie, Fabulae Faciles: Hercules. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in Lectitō46.1Herculēs quamquam quiētem vehementer cupiēbat, tamen Eurystheō pārēre cōnstituit, et simul ac iussa eius accēpit, proficīscī mātūrāvit.
Although Hercules greatly wanted rest, he still decided to obey Eurystheus, and as soon as he received his orders, he hurried to set out.
Note. simul ac = simul atque, 'as soon as'.
46.2Ā multīs mercātōribus quaesīverat quō in locō Hesperidēs habitārent, nihil tamen certum reperīre potuerat.
He had asked many merchants where the Hesperides lived, but had not been able to find out anything for certain.
46.3Frūstrā per multās terrās iter fēcit et multa perīcula subiit; tandem, cum in hīs itineribus tōtum annum cōnsūmpsisset, ad extrēmam partem orbis terrārum, quae proxima est Ōceanō, pervēnit.
In vain he traveled through many lands and underwent many dangers; at last, when he had spent a whole year on these journeys, he reached the farthest part of the world, which is next to the Ocean.
46.4Hīc stābat vir quīdam, nōmine Atlās, ingentī magnitūdine corporis, quī caelum (ita trāditum est) umerīs suīs sustinēbat, nē in terram dēcideret.
Here stood a man named Atlas, of enormous size, who (so the story goes) held up the sky on his shoulders, so that it would not fall onto the earth.
Note. (ita trāditum est): 'so the story goes'. nē … dēcideret: 'so that it would not fall'.
46.5Herculēs tantās vīrīs magnopere mīrātus statim in conloquium cum Atlante vēnit, et cum causam itineris docuisset, auxilium ab eō petiit.
Hercules, greatly amazed at such strength, at once came to talk with Atlas, and when he had explained the reason for his journey, he asked him for help.
Vocabulary
| quamquam, conj. | however much, although |
| quiēs, quiētis, f. | rest, repose |
| vehementer, adv. | violently, vehemently; earnestly; exceedingly, greatly |
| cupiō, -ere, -īvī, -ītus | desire, long for, wish |
| tamen, adv. | however, yet, nevertheless |
| pāreō, -ēre, -uī | obey |
| cōnstituō, -stituere, -stituī, -stitūtus | set together or up; appoint; determine |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| simul, adv. | at the same time; simul atque or ac, as soon as |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| iussum, -ī, n. | order, command |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| accipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take to oneself, receive, accept; hear; suffer |
| proficīscor, -ficīscī, -fectus sum | set out, depart, march |
| mātūrō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | ripen; hasten |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| multus, -a, -um | much, great; plur., many |
| mercātor, -ōris, m. | trader, merchant |
| quaerō, quaerere, quaesīvī, quaesītus | seek; ask, inquire |
| quī, quae, quod, interrog. pron. adj. | what? |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n. | place, situation |
| habitō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | dwell, inhabit |
| nihil, n., indecl. | nothing |
| certus, -a, -um | determined, fixed, certain; certiōrem facere, to make more certain, inform |
| reperiō, reperīre, repperī, repertus | find, discover |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| frūstrā, adv. | in vain |
| per, prep, with ace. | through, by means of |
| terra, -ae, f. | land, earth |
| iter, itineris, n. | a going, journey, march; iter facere, to journey, march |
| faciō, facere, fēcī, factus | make, do; iter facere, see iter |
| perīculum, -ī, n. | danger, peril, risk |
| subeō, -īre, -iī, -itus | go under; undergo, submit to, sustain, bear, endure |
| tandem, adv. | at length or last, finally |
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| tōtus, -a, -um | all the, the whole or entire |
| annus, -ī, m. | year |
| cōnsūmō, -sūmere, -sūmpsī, -sūmptus | take completely, use up, consume, spend |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| extrēmus, -a, -um | last, extreme, furthest |
| pars, partis, f. | part, side, direction |
| orbis, -is, m. | circle; orbis terrae or terrārum, circle of the earth or lands, earth, world |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| proximus, -a, -um | nearest, next |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| perveniō, -venīre, -vēnī, -ventus | come through, come, arrive, reach |
| hīc, adv. | here; hereupon |
| stō, stāre, stetī, status | stand |
| vir, virī, m. | man |
| quīdam, quaedam, quoddam, indef. pron. | a certain, certain |
| nōmen, -minis, n. | name (that by which one is known) |
| ingēns, -gentis, adj. | huge, vast |
| magnitūdō, -tūdinis, f. | greatness, size |
| corpus, corporis, n. | body |
| caelum, -ī, n. | heaven, sky |
| ita, adv. | in this manner, thus, so; ita ut, as |
| trādō, -dere, -didī, -ditus | give across, over, or up, deliver; hand down, relate, report |
| umerus, -ī, m. | shoulder |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| sustineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold or bear up, sustain, withstand |
| nē, adv. | not; nē ... quidem, not ... even; conj., that not, lest |
| dēcidō, -cidere, -cidī | fall down |
| tantus, -a, -um | so great or much |
| vīs, vīs, f. | violence, force; virtue, potency, efficacy; plur. vīrēs, -ium, strength; omnibus vīribus, with all one's strength, with might and main |
| magnopere, adv. | greatly, very much, exceedingly; earnestly |
| mīror, -ārī, -ātus | wonder, wonder at |
| statim, adv. | on the spot, forthwith, at once, immediately |
| conloquium, -ī, n. | conversation |
| cum, prep, with abl. | with |
| veniō, venīre, vēnī, ventus | come |
| causa, -ae, f. | cause, reason; abl. causā, for the sake of |
| doceo, -ēre, -uī, -tus | teach, explain |
| auxilium, -ī, n. | help, aid |
| petō, -ere, -īvī or -iī, -ītus | seek, ask; attack |