Notes on Pronouns
1. relative, interrogative, indefinite
The relative pronoun is qui, quae, quod which can also be used as an adjective.
quam palmam utinam di immortales, Scipio, tibi reservent, ut avi reliquias persequare! de Sen 19
The relative pronoun or adjective very often begins a sentence in Latin to show the close connection with the previous thought. It is usually best to translate a relative pronoun at the beginning of a sentence as if it were ademonstrative.
quae cum ita sint. "since these things are so"
quae nisi essent in senibus, non summum consilium maiores nostri appellassent senatum. de Sen 19
quem quidem probe meminisse potestis... de Sen 14
The interrogative pronoun is quis, quid; the interrogative adjective is qui, quae, quod (declined like the relative)
quid feci? "what have I done?"
quod facinus admisi? "what crime have I done?"
Other Interrogative words
ecquis, ecquid is there anyone who?
quisnam, quaenam, quidnam who pray?
uter which of two?
qualis of what kind?
quantus how great?
quantum how much
quotus which in a series?
Indefinite pronouns and adjectives
aliquis, aliquid someone, anyone
aliqui, aliqua, aliquod (adj.) some, any
[declined like qui, quae, quod except that aliqua is used instead of aliquae except in the nom. pl. fem.]
quis, quid someone, anyone (after si, nisi, num, ne)
qui, qua, quod (adj.) some, any
quispiam someone, anyone
quisquam anyone (at all) quicquam (neut.)
quidam a certain
[indicates a person not (necessarily) named, but known to the speaker: it is the most definite of the indefinite pronouns]
quivis anyone you will
quisque each (one)
uterque each of two, both
nonnulli some few, more than one
nescio quis (prn), nescio qui (adj)
these are used as if they were single words and they play the part of indefinite pronouns, differing from quidam in that they are often contemptuous:
Alcidamas quidam "one Alcidamas (whom I need not stop to describe further"
Alcidamas nescio quis "an obscure person called Alcidamas" [M's B's A = Mountford's Bradley's Arnold, 362]
The phrases nescio quid, nescio quo modo, nescio quo pacto, quodam modo are used to indicate something that is not easily defined or accounted for. [M's B's A 363]
nescio quid something (which I cannot define)
nescio quo modo somehow or other
quicumque whoever (indefinite relative)
quisquis whoever (indefinite relative)
both parts are declined, but only quisquis, quidquid (quicquid), quoquo are common (rare are quemquem, quibusquibus) see A&G 151b
unusquisque (gen. uniuscuiusque) every single one
See A&G 147-151
Study A&G 152
2. Personal, Demonstrative, Reflexive
Expressions of Possession
1. The personal pronouns of the first and second persons (singular and plural) also serve as reflexives. This means that if the subject of the verb is "I" then you translate the word me as "myself" and so forth.
The suffix -met is sometimes added to the personal pronouns for emphasis egomet, vosmet, etc.
2. The genitives of the personal pronouns are not used for possession. To say my, our, your, his/her/its own, use the possessive adjectives: meus, noster, tuus, vester, suus.
The genitives of the personal pronouns are used for other genitive relationships: mei, tui, nostri, vestri are used as objective genitives: pars mei, memor tui. Nostrum and vestrum are used as partitive genitives nemo nostrum.
3. The demostratives can be used as pronouns or adjectives. As adjectives they mean this, that and agree with nouns. As pronouns they mean this/that man, this/that woman, this/that thing and do not agree with nouns. In order to express possession you must put the pronoun in the genitive (eos libros habeo means "I have those books"; eius libros habeo means "I have his/her books").
The demonstratives are:
- hic haec hoc this, the latter
- ille illa illud/illuc that, the former, that famous...
- iste ista istud/istuc that, that of yours (often used with a sneer)
- is ea id he / she, this, that
- idem eadem idem the same, likewise
4. The intensive pronoun
- ipse ipsa ipsum -self (as in "we ourselves"), very
5. The reflexive pronoun has the same forms for singular and plural. How can you tell which is meant? [Look at the subject.]
- sui sibi se / sese se / sese himself, herself, itself; themselves
GEN. sui DAT. sibi ACC. se, sese ABL. se, sese
The reflexive pronoun has no nominative. It refers to the subject of the verb in its clause; sometimes it refers to the subject of a main clause rather than the subject of the verb in its own clause (this is called "indirect reflexive"). The reflexives may be emphasized by the addition of ipse. The genitive is not used for possession, but for other genitive relations. To say his own, her own, its own, their own use the possessive adjective suus, -a, -um in agreement with the noun.