The Latin phrase modus operandi means “mode of operating” or “method of working.” In modern English, it commonly describes the characteristic way a person,…
Criminal law often turns on more than what a person did. It also asks what that person knew, intended, believed, or consciously disregarded at the time. The…
Few Latin expressions have traveled so easily from formal religious language into everyday speech as mea culpa. Literally translated, it means “through my…
Some Latin expressions survive because they name an idea with unusual precision. Magnum opus is one of them. Literally translated, the phrase means “great…
A sudden verbal mistake can change the meaning of a sentence, produce an unintended joke, or reveal how quickly the mind constructs language. Latin gives this…
A story does not always begin where its events begin. Sometimes it opens with a character facing a crisis, a kingdom already at war, or a detective standing…
“Ex nihilo nihil fit” is a compact Latin expression meaning “nothing comes from nothing.” The saying presents a powerful philosophical intuition: whenever…
“Et cetera” is one of the most recognizable Latin expressions in modern English. Often shortened to “etc.,” it appears in conversation, academic writing,…
“E pluribus unum” is one of the best-known Latin phrases in American public life. Usually translated as “Out of many, one,” it expresses the idea that separate…