Pliny, Letter 4.29

A warning to attend court

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Ep. 4.29.1Hēia tū!Come on, you! Ep. 4.29.1cum proximē rēs agentur, quōquō modō ad iūdicandum venī: nihil est quod in dextram aurem fīdūciā meī dormiās.next time the court sits, come and serve as a judge by any means you can: there is no reason for you to sleep on your right ear, trusting in me. Ep. 4.29.1Nōn impūne cessātur.Idling does not go unpunished. Ep. 4.29.2Ecce Licinius Nepōs praetor!Look at Licinius Nepos the praetor! Ep. 4.29.2Ācer et fortis et praetor, multam dīxit etiam senātōrī.Keen and brave, and a praetor too, he has imposed a fine even on a senator. Ep. 4.29.2Ēgit ille in senātū causam suam, ēgit autem sīc ut dēprecārētur.The senator pleaded his case in the senate, but pleaded it in such a way as to beg for mercy. Ep. 4.29.2Remissa est multa, sed timuit, sed rogāvit, sed opus veniā fuit.The fine was remitted, but he was afraid, but he begged, but he needed pardon. Ep. 4.29.3Dīcēs: "Nōn omnēs praetōrēs tam sevērī.You will say: 'Not all praetors are so strict.' Ep. 4.29.3Falleris;You are wrong; Ep. 4.29.3nam vel īnstituere vel redūcere eiusmodī exemplum nōn nisi sevērī, īnstitūtum reductumve exercēre etiam lēnissimī possunt.for to set or revive a precedent of this kind is possible only for strict men, but once it is set or revived even the most lenient can apply it.

Ep. 4.29.3Valē.Farewell.

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Grammar in this passage: gerunds and gerundives ×1

Latin vocabulary for this passage (61 words)

ēia (heia), interj.	come on! quick!
tū, tuī, pers. pron.	thou, you
cum, conj.	when, while, after; since; although
proximē (adv.)	most recently; nearest
rēs, reī, f.	thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really
agō, agere, ēgī, āctus	drive; do; pass, lead; grātiās agere, see grātia
quisquis, quidquid (quicquid)	whoever, whatever
modus, -ī, m.	way, manner
ad, prep. with acc.	to, toward; at, near; for
iūdicō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum	judge, decide
veniō, venīre, vēnī, ventus	come
nihil, n., indecl.	nothing
sum, esse, fuī, futūrus	be
quī, quae, quod, rel. pron.	who, which
in, prep. with acc. and abl.	with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on
dexter, -tra, -trum	right
auris, -is, f.	ear
fīdūcia, -ae f.	confidence, trust, reliance
ego, meī, pers. pron.	I
dormiō, -īre, -īvī	sleep
nōn, adv.	not
impūne (adv.)	without punishment
cessō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum	stop, cease, rest; be idle
ecce (interj.)	look! see! here is
praetor, -ōris m.	praetor (legātus prō praetōre: officer with a praetor's powers)
ācer, ācris, ācre	sharp, shrill
et, conj.	and; et ... et, both ... and
fortis, -e	brave
multa, -ae f.	fine, penalty
dīcō, dīcere, dīxī, dictus	say, speak; diem dīcere, to appoint or set a day
etiam, adv.	and now, also, too, even
senātor, -ōris m.	senator, elder
ille, illa, illud, dem. pron.	that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc
senātus, -ūs m.	senate
causa, -ae, f.	cause, reason; abl. causā, for the sake of
suus, -a, -um	his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their
autem, conj.	moreover; but, however; now
sīc, adv.	so, thus
ut, conj.	as; when; that; ita ut, as
dēprecor, -ārī, -ātus sum	beg to be spared, plead
remittō, -ere, -mīsī, -missum	send back; give up, remit
sed, conj.	but
timeō, -ēre, -uī	fear
rogō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	ask
opus, operis, n.	work, task
venia, -ae f.	pardon, forgiveness
omnis, -e	all, every
tam, adv.	so
sevērus, -a, -um	stern, strict, severe
fallō, fallere, fefellī, falsus	deceive
nam, conj.	for
vel	or; vel … vel: either … or
īnstituō, -stituere, -stituī, -stitūtus	decide upon, determine
redūcō, -dūcere, -dūxī, -ductus	lead or bring back; restore
eiusmodī (adv.)	of that kind, such
exemplum, -ī n.	example, precedent
nisi, conj.	if not, unless
exerceō, -ercēre, -ercuī, -ercitus	exercise
lēnis, -e	gentle
possum, posse, potuī	be able, have power, can
valeō, -ēre, -uī, -itūrus	be strong or effectual, have effect, prevail

Pliny, Epistulae IV. Latin text: the Perseus digital text of Pliny's Letters, public domain; digital text from the Perseus Digital Library, CC BY-SA. Word analysis: drafted by our own tagger (trained on the hand-checked texts on this site), with every doubtful word checked by hand. English translation and section titles: written for this app, each checked against the Latin by a second reader.