PART II

WORDS AND FORMS

[ LESSON I]
FIRST PRINCIPLES

[19.] Subject and Predicate. 1. Latin, like English, expresses thoughts by means of sentences. A sentence is a combination of words that expresses a thought, and in its simplest form is the statement of a single fact. Thus,

Galba is a farmer
Galba est agricola
The sailor fights
Nauta pugnat

In each of these sentences there are two parts:

Subject Galba
Galba
The sailor
Nauta
Predicate is a farmer
est agricola
fights
pugnat

2. The subject is that person, place, or thing about which something is said, and is therefore a noun or some word which can serve the same purpose.

a. Pronouns, as their name implies (pro, “instead of,” and noun), often take the place of nouns, usually to save repeating the same noun, as, Galba is a farmer; he is a sturdy fellow.