Pliny, Letter 6.15

Javolenus Priscus interrupts a reading

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Ep. 6.15.1Mīrificae reī nōn interfuistī;You were not present at a marvellous affair; Ep. 6.15.1nē ego quidem, sed mē recēns fābula excēpit.nor was I, but the story reached me fresh. Ep. 6.15.1Passennus Paulus, splendidus eques Rōmānus et in prīmīs ērudītus, scrībit elegōs.Passennus Paulus, a distinguished Roman knight and an exceptionally learned man, writes elegies. Ep. 6.15.1Gentīlicium hoc illī: est enim mūniceps Propertī atque etiam inter maiōrēs suōs Propertium numerat.It runs in his family: for he is a fellow townsman of Propertius and even counts Propertius among his ancestors. Ep. 6.15.2Is cum recitāret, ita coepit dīcere: "Prīsce, iubēs...".When he was giving a reading, he began thus: 'Priscus, you bid me…'. Ep. 6.15.2Ad hoc Iavolēnus Prīscus - aderat enim ut Paulō amīcissimus -: "Ego vērō nōn iubeō."At this Javolenus Priscus — for he was there as a close friend of Paulus — said: 'For my part, I bid you nothing.' Ep. 6.15.2Cōgitā quī rīsus hominum, quī iocī.Imagine people's laughter, their jokes. Ep. 6.15.3Est omnīnō Prīscus dubiae sānitātis, interest tamen officiīs, adhibētur cōnsiliīs atque etiam iūs cīvīle pūblicē respondet: quō magis quod tunc fēcit et rīdiculum et notābile fuit.Priscus is in fact of doubtful sanity, yet he takes part in public duties, is called to councils, and even gives opinions on the civil law publicly: all the more was what he did then both ridiculous and remarkable.

Ep. 6.15.4Interim Paulō aliēna dēlīrātiō aliquantum frīgoris attulit.Meanwhile another man's madness cast a considerable chill over Paulus. Ep. 6.15.4Tam sollicitē recitātūrīs prōvidendum est, nōn sōlum ut sint ipsī sānī vērum etiam ut sānōs adhibeant.So carefully must those who are going to give readings take thought, not only that they are sane themselves, but also that they invite the sane. Ep. 6.15.4Valē.Farewell.

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Grammar in this passage: gerunds and gerundives ×1

Latin vocabulary for this passage (80 words)

mīrificus, -a, -um	wonderful, remarkable
rēs, reī, f.	thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really
nōn, adv.	not
intersum, -esse, -fuī, -futūrus	be or lie between
nē, adv.	not; nē ... quidem, not ... even; conj., that not, lest
ego, meī, pers. pron.	I
quidem, adv.	in fact, indeed, certainly; nē ... quidem, not ... even
sed, conj.	but
recēns, -entis	recent, fresh
fābula, -ae, f.	story
excipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus	take out or up, receive, welcome, entertain
splendidus, -a, -um	bright, magnificent
eques, equitis m.	horseman; (pl.) cavalry
Rōmānus, -a, -um	Roman
et, conj.	and; et ... et, both ... and
in, prep. with acc. and abl.	with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on
prīmus, -a, -um	first, foremost
ērudiō, -rudīre, -rudīvī, -rudītus	instruct
scrībō, scrībere, scrīpsī, scrīptus	write
elegī, -ōrum m. pl.	elegiac verses
gentīlicius, -a, -um	belonging to a family, hereditary
hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron.	this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter
ille, illa, illud, dem. pron.	that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc
sum, esse, fuī, futūrus	be
enim, conj.	for
mūniceps, -cipis m.	citizen of a municipium, townsman
atque, ac (conj.)	and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants)
etiam, adv.	and now, also, too, even
inter, prep, with acc.	among, between
maiōrēs, -um m. pl.	ancestors
suus, -a, -um	his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their
numerō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	count, number; reckon, count as
is, ea, id, dem. pron.	this, that; he, she, it, they
cum, conj.	when, while, after; since; although
recitō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	read aloud
ita, adv.	in this manner, thus, so; ita ut, as
coepī, coepisse, coeptus (used in tenses of completed action)	have begun, began
dīcō, dīcere, dīxī, dictus	say, speak; diem dīcere, to appoint or set a day
iubeō, iubēre, iussī, iussus	bid, order, command
ad, prep. with acc.	to, toward; at, near; for
adsum, adesse, adfuī	be present, be at hand
ut, conj.	as; when; that; ita ut, as
amīcus, -ī, m.	friend
vērō, adv.	in truth, indeed; however
cōgitō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	consider, think over
quī, quae, quod, interrog. pron. adj.	what?
rīsus, -ūs m.	laughter
homō, hominis, m.	man
iocus, -ī m.	joke, jest
omnīnō, adv.	altogether, wholly, entirely
dubius, -a, -um	doubtful, uncertain
sānitās, -tātis, f.	soundness; right reason, sanity
tamen, adv.	however, yet, nevertheless
officium, -ī, n.	service; duty
adhibeō, -hibēre, -hibuī, -hibitus	hold to, employ, show
cōnsilium, -ī, n.	advice; plan, design, purpose; prudence
iūs, iūris, n.	right, justice, law; iūs dīcere, to pronounce judgment; iūs iūrandum, iūris iūrandī, oath
cīvīlis, -e	of citizens; bellum cīvīle: civil war
pūblicē (adv.)	officially, as a state
respondeō, -spondēre, -spondī, -spōnsus	reply, answer
quī, quae, quod, rel. pron.	who, which
magis, comp. adv.	more, rather
tunc (adv.)	then, at that time
faciō, facere, fēcī, factus	make, do; iter facere, see iter
rīdiculus, -a, -um	laughable, absurd
notābilis, -e	noteworthy, remarkable
interim (adv.)	meanwhile
aliēnus, -a, -um	belonging to another, out of place
dēlīrātiō, -ōnis f.	madness, dotage, folly
aliquantus, -a, -um	some, a fair amount (aliquantum itineris: some way)
frīgus, -oris n.	cold
afferō, afferre, attulī, allātum	bring, bring to; cause
tam, adv.	so
sollicitē (adv.)	anxiously, carefully, with great care
prōvideō, -ēre, -vīdī, -vīsum	foresee; provide for
sōlum (adv.); solum, -ī n.	only (nōn sōlum … sed etiam: not only … but also); ground, soil
ipse, ipsa, ipsum, intensive pron.	self, himself, herself, itself, themselves; often to be rendered by very
sānus, -a, -um	healthy, sane (prō sānō: sensibly)
vērum (conj.)	but, but in fact; nōn modo ... vērum etiam: not only ... but also
valeō, -ēre, -uī, -itūrus	be strong or effectual, have effect, prevail

Pliny, Epistulae VI. 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.