Saturday, July 30, 2011

Cupido Immodica

This is a poem from Melchior Sylvester Eckhard's Epigrammata, published in 1629; you can read the book online.

Cupido Immodica
Immodica ductus quicumque cupidine habendi,
Perpetuo premitur divite pauperie.

The vocabulary is keyed to the DCC Latin Vocabulary list. There are two words in this poem that are not on the DCC list:

immodicus, -a, -um: excessive, immoderate
pauperies (pauperiēī, f.): poverty

cupīdo -inis f.: desire, eagerness, craving
dīves, dīvitis: rich (poet. dīs, dītis)
dūcō dūcere dūxī ductum: lead; uxōrem dūcere, marry
habeō habēre habuī habitum: have, hold
perpetuus -a -um: unbroken, perpetual
premō premere pressī pressum: press, pursue, overwhelm
quī- quae- quodcumque: who-, whatever