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Latin 2015
Term | Definition |
---|---|
A.D./anno Domini | "in the year of the Lord," designating the time period after Christ's birth |
A.M./ante meridiem | "before midday |
Achilles' heel | a weakness |
ad infinitum | "to infinity," to continue forever, without limit |
ad nauseam | to the point of sickness |
Aegean Sea | sea to the west of Greece; named after King Aegeus after he drowned himself in the sea thinking his son Theseus was dead |
agenda | things that must be done |
agora/forum | market place/business center;(forum center part of rome |
ambrosia and nectar | food and drink of the gods |
Aphrodite/Venus | (form of the sea)goddess of love and beauty |
Apollo/Apollo | god of the sun, light, reason, and the lyre,music,medicine,punishment,pladge |
apple of discord | something that causes strife. It was the fruit thrown by the goddess Eris/Discord into the marriage of Peleus and Thetis because she wasn't invited. It was inscribed "for the fairest goddess" and Hera/Juno, Athena/Minerva, Aphrodite/Venus famously fought |
aqueduct | a conduit that resembles a bridge but carries water over a valley |
Arachne | fear of spider;challenged Athena to a weaving contest and was turned into a spider for her excessive pride |
Ares/Mars | Greek/Roman names of the god of war and bloodshed. |
Ariadne | the daughter of king Minos of Crete, who helped Theseus escape from the labyrinth after he killed the minotaur |
Artemis/Diana | Greek/Roman names of goddess of the hunt, moon, woods. Twin sister of Apollo. |
Athena/Minerva | Greek/Roman names of the goddess of wisdom, strategy, handicrafts. daughter of Metis and Zeus/Jupiter who swallowed her before her birth, fearing her strength. She was born from Zeus' skull, fully armed and grown. Favored Odysseus and Greece in the Trojan |
Athens/Acropolis | a polis (city |
Atlas | The Titan who holds the world upon his shoulders |
atrium | the first major room in roman house |
Augustus | Caesar |
Caesar | Julius caesar |
carpe diem | seize the day |
Carthage | City located in present |
cave canem | beware of the dog |
Cerberus | A three |
Chaos | a state of disorganized matter from which the gods and the world were created |
Charon | The ferryman of Hades who carries souls of the newly deceased to the Underworld. |
Circus Maximus | The Circus Maximus |
Colosseum | A large stadium in ancient Rome where athletic events took place |
consul | In the Roman republic, one of the two powerful officials elected each year to command the army and direct the government |
cornucopia | "horn of plenty" a symbol of food and abundance |
Cronus/Saturn | one of the 12 Titans, father of Zeus/Jupiter, who swallowed his children in an attempt to keep from being overthrown |
Cyclops | (Greek mythology) one of a race of giants having a single eye in the middle of their forehead |
Delphic Oracle | ancient temple sites to Apollo where a Sibyl (priestess of Apollo) would issue vague prophecies to those seeking guidance. |
Demeter/Ceres | goddess of grain, the harvest, and the seasons; mother of Persephone/Proserpina |
Dionysus/Bacchus | god of wine and revelry; son of Zeus and Semele |
e pluribus unum | One from many |
e.g./exempli gratia | "for the sake of an example" |
ego | I, myself |
Elysian Fields/Elysium | place of blessed after death |
epic | long poem about a hero |
Eros/Cupid | god of love and desire; son of Aphrodite |
Et tu, Brute? | "and you, Brutus?" famous last words of Julius Caesar as the Senate members assassinated him; Brutus was supposed to be a friend of his, but had a hand in the killing |
etc./et cetera | "and the rest" |
ex libris | from the books of |
fates | The three Parcae visualized as the three women spinning the thread of human life. These figures ultimitely control the destiny of mortals |
finis | end or boundary. |
fresco/mosaic | literally "cool, fresh" painting done on drying plaster |
furies | avenging spirits |
gladiator | a swordsman |
Golden Fleece | The fleece of the gold |
Gorgons | 3 monstrous sisters with snakes for hair and eyes that turned all to stone |
Hades/Pluto | god of the Underworld/Tartarus |
Hannibal | Carthaginian general who attacked Italy by crossing the Italian Alps in the 2nd Punic War; he was eventually defeated by Scipio at the Battle of Zama |
Hector | Trojan, supreme commander of Trojan forces, eldest son of Priam and Hecuba, husband of Andromache, father of Astyanax and killed by Achilles. |
Helen | Wife of Menelaus, Queen of Sparta |
Hephaestus/Vulcan | the god of the fire. Born to Hera, he was hated by Zeus and cast from Mt. Olympus resulting in deformities. |
Hera/Juno | the goddess of marriage, childbirth, family. She is the wife and sister of Zeus and famously suffered his many infidelities badly. |
Heracles/Hercules | the greatest hero in mythology. Hated by Hera, offspring of Zeus and Alcmene. Performed a series of 12 labors to serve King Eurystheus. Eventually deified. |
Hermes/Mercury | the messenger god; god of thieves and travelers; son of Zeus; invented the lyre; escorted people to the Underworld when they died(Eng:merchant) |
Hestia/Vesta | goddess of the hearth |
Homer | Ancient Greek epic poet who is believed to have written the Iliad and the Odyssey (circa 850 BC) |
I, V, X, L, C, D, M | roman numerals for 1, 5, 10, 50, 100, 500, 1000 |
i.e./id est | ."that is" |
Icarus and Daedalus | father and son held prisoner, escaped using feathered wings but icarus doesn't listen and dies flying to close to the sun |
Ides of March | 15th of March. day Caesar was assassinated. Now it means a day of reckoning. |
Iliad | a Greek epic poem (attributed to Homer) describing the siege of Troy |
Jason | Famous as the leader of the Argonauts and their quest for the Golden Fleece. |
Jove, jovial | happy name that came from Jupiter (married, cheery) |
labyrinth | a complicated network of winding passages; a maze |
M.D./Medicinae Doctor | The degree earned by someone who completes medical school. A doctor of medicine as opposed to PhD (doctor of philosophy). |
marathon | a 26 mile running event. Named for the city of Marathon in Greece. Pheidippides ran from Marathon to Athens to announce the Greek victory over Persia which happened in that city. Legend has it that he dropped dead upon giving the news. |
mea culpa | My fault, I am guilty |
Minotaur | Man |
Mt. Olympus | home of the Greek gods; highest mountain in Greece |
Mt. Vesuvius | ancient volcano |
muses | the 9 goddesses who looked after the arts and inspired men in those arts (poetry, history, drama, etc.) |
Nike | goddess of victory |
Odysseus/Ulysses | a great Greek hero of the Trojan war. Favored by Athena. |
Odyssey | a Greek epic poem (attributed to Homer) describing the journey of Odysseus after the fall of Troy |
Orpheus and Eurydice | Orpheus, a celebrated Greek poet, enchanted with his lyre wild beasts, trees, and even rocks. When his wife Eurydice died, he was able, with the charm of his music, to enter Hades and bring her back, only to lose her again when he gazed back. |
P.M./post meridiem | "after midday," afternoon |
P.S./post scriptum | writing after the body of a letter |
Pandora | out of her curiosity, she opened a box containing all the bad things in the world; she put the lid on just in time, so that hope did not escape from the box, too |
Pantheon | a temple to all the gods |
papyrus | paper made from the papyrus plant by cutting it in strips and pressing it flat |
Paris | Son of Priam, king of Troy. Probably the best |
Parthenon | Athena's temple |
paterfamilias | male dominance in the family |
Pax Romana | 200 year period of peace in Rome. |
Pegasus | winged horse which flew from the neck of Medusa the Gorgon after Perseus cut off her head |
Penelope | Wife of Odysseus, Mother of Telemachus;universal symbol of fidelity |
Persephone/Proserpina | daughter of Demeter;queen of the underworld;Pluto's wife |
Perseus and Medusa | this person kills this monster who turns people to stone when looking at them |
Pompeii | Roman city near Naples, Italy, which was buried during an eruption of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79. |
Poseidon/Neptune | god of the sea; favors seafaring peoples; helped build the walls of Troy |
post mortem | after death |
Prometheus | the Titan who stole fire from Olympus and gave it to mankind(普罗米修斯) |
quid pro quo | "something for something," a fair trade |
Romulus and Remus | founders of rome;753 BC(VERY IMPORTANT DATE) |
semper fidelis | always faithful |
semper paratus | always prepared |
Spartacus | a gladiator who lead a slave revolt |
Styx | River in the Underworld by which the Gods swear binding oaths |
sub poenā | under penalty/punishment |
summa cum laude | with highest praise |
Tantalus | chef of the gods. Tricked them into eating human flesh by killing and cooking his son Pelops. Only demeter ate it, distracted by her grief over Persephone. Was punished with eternal hunger and thirst in Hades. |
Tartarus | the Underworld; in early mythology, everyone went to Tartarus after they died; in later mythology, only bad people went to Tartarus after they died |
tempus fugit | time flies |
terra firma | solid ground |
terra incognita | unknown territory/land |
Theseus | Athenian prince who killed the Minotaur(as 14 sacrifices);He falls in love with Minotaur's daughter. |
Tiber | Tiber River |
Titans | the first gods; children of Gaea (12 of them) |
toga | a one |
Trojan Horse | a large hollow wooden figure of a horse (filled with Greek soldiers) left by the Greeks outside Troy during the Trojan War |
Troy | kingdom in Asia Minor that fought against Greece in Homer's Iliad |
Uranus | the god of the sky; created the Titans with Gaia, Mother Earth |
valedictorian | "the one who says farewell" |
veni, vidi, vici | I came, I saw, I conquered |
veto | to forbid |
vs./versus | against |
via | Road, way |
Zeus/Jupiter | the king of the gods; god of thunder and lightning |