Lectitō › Fabulae Faciles › Fabulae Faciles: Hercules
Fabulae Faciles 47
Hercules holds up the sky
Ritchie, Fabulae Faciles: Hercules. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in Lectitō47.1Atlās autem Herculī maximē prōdesse potuit; ille enim cum ipse esset pater Hesperidum, certō scīvit quō in locō esset hortus.
Atlas could help Hercules more than anyone; for since he was himself the father of the Hesperides, he knew for certain where the garden was.
Note. certō scīvit: 'knew for certain'.
47.2Postquam igitur audīvit quam ob causam Herculēs vēnisset, "Ipse," inquit, "ad hortum ībō et fīliābus meīs persuādēbō ut pōma suā sponte trādant."
So after he heard why Hercules had come, he said, “I will go to the garden myself and persuade my daughters to hand over the apples of their own accord.”
Note. suā sponte: 'of their own accord'.
47.3Herculēs cum haec audīret, magnopere gāvīsus est; vim enim adhibēre nōluit, sī rēs aliter fierī posset.
When Hercules heard this, he was very glad; for he did not want to use force, if the thing could be done another way.
Note. gāvīsus est: gaudeō is active in the present but uses passive forms in the perfect: 'he rejoiced'.
47.4Cōnstituit igitur oblātum auxilium accipere.
So he decided to accept the help that was offered.
47.5Atlās tamen postulāvit ut, dum ipse abesset, Herculēs caelum umerīs sustinēret.
Atlas, however, demanded that while he was away, Hercules should hold up the sky on his shoulders.
47.6Hoc autem negōtium Herculēs libenter suscēpit, et quamquam rēs erat summī labōris, tōtum pondus caelī continuōs complūrīs diēs sōlus sustinēbat.
Hercules gladly undertook this task, and although it was a matter of the greatest effort, he held up the whole weight of the sky alone for several days on end.
Note. continuōs complūrīs diēs: 'for several days on end'.
Vocabulary
| autem, conj. | moreover; but, however; now |
| maximē, adv. | very greatly, exceedingly, especially |
| prōsum, prōdesse, prōfuī | be of advantage, profit, avail, assist |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| ille, illa, illud, dem. pron. | that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc |
| enim, conj. | for |
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| ipse, ipsa, ipsum, intensive pron. | self, himself, herself, itself, themselves; often to be rendered by very |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| pater, patris, m. | father |
| certō, adv. | with certainty, for certain, certainly |
| sciō, -īre, -īvī, -ītus | know |
| 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 |
| hortus, -ī, m. | garden |
| postquam, conj. | later than, after, when |
| igitur, conj. | therefore |
| audiō, -īre, -īvī, -ītus | hear; listen or attend to |
| ob, prep. with acc. | on account of, for; in compounds, to, against |
| causa, -ae, f. | cause, reason; abl. causā, for the sake of |
| veniō, venīre, vēnī, ventus | come |
| inquam, inquis, inquit, defective verb | I say, you say, he says |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| eō, īre, iī, itus | go |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| fīlia, -ae, f. | daughter |
| meus, -a, -um | my, mine |
| persuādeō, -suādēre, -suāsi, -suāsus | persuade, prevail upon, induce |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| pōmum, -ī, n. | fruit, apple |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| sponte, f. abl. sing., modified by meā, tuā, suā | of one's own accord, voluntarily |
| trādō, -dere, -didī, -ditus | give across, over, or up, deliver; hand down, relate, report |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| magnopere, adv. | greatly, very much, exceedingly; earnestly |
| gaudeō, gaudēre, gāvīsus | be glad, rejoice |
| vīs, vīs, f. | violence, force; virtue, potency, efficacy; plur. vīrēs, -ium, strength; omnibus vīribus, with all one's strength, with might and main |
| adhibeō, -hibēre, -hibuī, -hibitus | hold to, employ, show |
| nōlō, nōlle, nōluī | not wish, be unwilling |
| sī, conj. | if |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| aliter, adv. | in another way, otherwise, differently |
| fīō, fierī, factus sum | be done or made, become, happen |
| cōnstituō, -stituere, -stituī, -stitūtus | set together or up; appoint; determine |
| offerō, offerre, obtulī, oblātus | bear to, proffer, offer |
| auxilium, -ī, n. | help, aid |
| accipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take to oneself, receive, accept; hear; suffer |
| tamen, adv. | however, yet, nevertheless |
| postulō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | ask, request, demand |
| dum, conj. | while, as; as long as; until |
| absum, abesse, āfuī, āfutūrus | be away, be absent, be distant; be wanting |
| caelum, -ī, n. | heaven, sky |
| umerus, -ī, m. | shoulder |
| sustineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold or bear up, sustain, withstand |
| negōtium, -ī, n. | business, matter; task, trouble, difficulty |
| libenter, adv. | willingly, gladly |
| suscipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | undertake |
| quamquam, conj. | however much, although |
| summus, -a, -um | uppermost, highest, greatest |
| labor, -ōris, m. | labor, toil |
| tōtus, -a, -um | all the, the whole or entire |
| pondus, ponderis, n. | weight |
| continuus, -a, -um | continuous, successive |
| complūrēs, -plūra, plur. adj. | several, many |
| diēs, -ēī, m. and f. | day |
| sōlus, -a, -um | alone |