Latin expressions often give a precise shape to feelings that are difficult to describe. When an event is disturbing, surprising, or almost too unpleasant to…
The Latin phrase homo hominis amicus can be translated as “a person is a friend to another person” or, more naturally, “human beings should be friends to one…
Latin has a particular way of sharpening a sentence. Few expressions cut as cleanly as hoc volo, sic iubeo, a phrase that rolls off the tongue like a gavel and…
When a colleague finally admits they were hurt by a passing remark, or when a friend suddenly sees the truth behind an old grudge, Romans had a tidy expression…
Two Latin words, four syllables in total, manage to hold an entire philosophical position inside their compressed geometry. Hic et nunc — "here and now" — has…
Few Latin expressions have travelled as far from their original setting as habeas corpus. The phrase is usually translated as “you shall have the body”, a…
When someone says Hannibal ad portas, they are warning that a serious threat is close, advancing, or already pressing against the boundaries of ordinary life.…
Gratia plena, two Latin words that echo through centuries of Christian worship, form the heart of one of the most repeated prayers in the Western world. The…
“Gloria in excelsis Deo” is one of the best-known Latin phrases associated with Christmas. It means “Glory to God in the highest” and comes from the angelic…