Sunday, April 10, 2011

Servandus Modus In Utraque Fortuna


486     -     487     -     488


This little poem comes from Disticha de Educatione of Urbano Appendini, published in 1834; you can see the whole book at Google Books.

Servandus Modus In Utraque Fortuna
Me dextra elatum videat, fractumve sinistra,
Adsit Fortunae certus utrique modus.


The vocabulary is keyed to the DCC Latin Vocabulary list. There is only one word in this poem that is not on the DCC list:

ēlātus, -a, -um: lifted up, raised, exalted
sinister, sinistra, sinistrum: left, unlucky

adsum adesse affuī: be present
certus -a -um: sure, fixed; certē, certainly, surely
dexter -tra -trum: right; dextera -ae f.: right hand
ego meī mihi mē: I, me
fortūna -ae f.: fortune
frangō frangere frēgī frāctum: break, shatter
in: in, on (+ abl.); into, onto (+ acc)
modus -ī m.: measure, manner, kind
servō -āre: save, watch over
uter- utra- utrumque: each of two
ve (enclitic): or
videō vidēre vīdī vīsum: see