Lectitō › Phaedrus › Fables, Book 1
Phaedrus 1.6
The frogs complain of the Sun's wedding
Phaedrus, Fabulae I. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
Tap any word for its meaning and grammar, save words to review, and track your reading.
Read in LectitōPhaedr. 1.6.1Vīcīnī fūris celebrēs vīdit nūptiās
Aesopus et continuō narrāre incipit:
uxōrem quondam Sōl cum vellet dūcere,
clāmōrem rānae sustulēre ad sīdera.
Aesop saw the lavish wedding of a neighbour, a thief, and at once began to tell this story: once, when the Sun wanted to take a wife, the frogs raised an outcry to the stars.
Note. Aesop is at a thief's wedding and tells a pointed story: the more thieves, the worse for everyone. uxōrem dūcere: 'to marry (a wife)'. sustulēre = sustulērunt, from tollō.
Phaedr. 1.6.5Convīciō permōtus quaerit Iuppiter
causam querēlae.
Disturbed by the clamour, Jupiter asks the reason for the complaint.
Note. Convīciō: 'by the uproar'. causam querēlae: 'the reason for the complaint'.
Phaedr. 1.6.6Quaedam tum stagnī incola:
nunc inquit omnēs ūnus exūrit lacūs
cōgitque miserās āridā sēde ēmorī.
Then one dweller in the pond said: 'As it is, one sun dries up all the lakes and forces us poor creatures to die in a parched home.
Note. stagnī incola: 'a dweller in the pond', i.e. a frog. ūnus: one sun. exūrit lacūs: 'dries up the lakes'. miserās (nōs): 'us poor creatures'.
Phaedr. 1.6.9Quidnam futūrum est, sī creārit līberōs?
What will become of us if he has children?'
Note. Quidnam futūrum est: 'what will happen?'. crearit = creāverit, future perfect, 'if he produces children'. The thief's wedding means more thieves.
Vocabulary
| vīcīnus, -ī m. | neighbor |
| fūr, fūris m. | thief |
| celeber, celebris, celebre | frequented; renowned, celebrated |
| videō, vidēre, vīdī, vīsus | see; pass., seem |
| nūptiae, -ārum f. pl. | wedding, marriage |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| continuō (adv.) | at once, immediately |
| narrō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | tell, relate, narrate |
| incipiō, -ere, incēpī, inceptum | begin |
| uxor, -ōris, f. | wife |
| quondam (adv.) | once, formerly, at one time |
| sōl, sōlis, m. | sun |
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| volō, velle, voluī | wish |
| dūcō, dūcere, dūxī, ductus | lead; make, dig; with or without in mātrimōnium, marry |
| clāmor, -ōris, m. | shout, cry |
| rāna, -ae f. | frog |
| tollō, tollere, sustulī, sublātus | lift, raise; take away, remove; ancorās tollere, to weigh anchor |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| sīdus, -eris n. | star, constellation |
| convīcium, -ī n. | loud noise, wrangling; abuse |
| permoveō, -ēre, -mōvī, -mōtum | move deeply, influence |
| quaerō, quaerere, quaesīvī, quaesītus | seek; ask, inquire |
| causa, -ae, f. | cause, reason; abl. causā, for the sake of |
| querēla, -ae f. | complaint, lament |
| quīdam, quaedam, quoddam, indef. pron. | a certain, certain |
| tum, adv. | then, at that time |
| stagnum, -ī n. | pool, standing water |
| incola, -ae, m. and f. | inhabitant |
| nunc, adv. | now |
| inquam, inquis, inquit, defective verb | I say, you say, he says |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| ūnus, -a, -um | one; only, alone |
| exūrō, -ere, -ussī, -ustum | burn down |
| lacus, -ūs, m. | lake |
| cōgō, cōgere, coēgī, coāctus | drive together, collect; compel |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| miser, misera, miserum | wretched, unhappy |
| āridus, -a, -um | dry; as a noun (āridum, -ī n.): dry land |
| sēdēs, -is, f. | seat, abode |
| ēmorior, -morī, -mortuus sum | die, die off, perish |
| quidnam, quaenam, quodnam (interrog.) | what (then)?, what in the world? |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| sī, conj. | if |
| creō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | elect, appoint |
| līberī, -ōrum, m. plur. | children |