Friday, July 29, 2011

Epigrammata Scribere

This is a poem from John Stradling's Epigrammatum Libri Quattuor, publishing in 1607. You can read the book online at Dana Sutton's website.

Epigrammata Scribere
Quae scripsi dicis non esse epigrammata; nescis,
Nam scio quod tu vix scribere gramma potes.

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

epigramma (epigrammatis, n.): epigram
gramma (grammtis, n.): letter, piece of writing

dīcō dīcere dīxī dictum: say; causam dicere, plead a case; diem dicere, appoint a day
nam or namque: for, indeed, really
nesciō -scīre: not know, be ignorant
nōn: not
possum posse potuī: be able
qui quae quod: who, which, what / quis quid: who? what? which?
sciō -īre -īvī/-iī -ītum: know
scrībō scrībere scrīpsī scrīptum: write
sum, esse, fuī: be, exist
tū tuī tibi tē: you (sing.)
vix: scarcely