Monday, June 18, 2012

Cum Carum Moneas


169     -     170     -     171


Cum Carum Moneas
Cum moneas aliquem nec se velit ille moneri,
Si tibi sit carus, noli desistere coeptis.


In warning one who fain would not attend,
Drop not the endeavor, should he be your friend.
(Duff)

When thou giv'st counsel, cease not till the end,
Though it unwelcome be, e'en to thy friend.
(Chase)

Source: The Distichs of Cato (4th century), 1.9. Meter: Dactylic Hexameter. Note that the verb desistere takes an ablative complement: noli desistere coeptis, "don't leave off what you have begun."

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:

dēsistō, dēsistere: leave off, cease, stop

aliquis -quae -quod: some, any; si quis, si quid: anyone who, anything that
cārus -a -um: dear
coepī coepisse coeptus: have begun
cum: with (prep. + abl.); when, since, although (conjunction + subj.)
ille illa illud: that
moneō monēre monuī monitum: warn, advise
neque nec: and not, nor; neque . . . neque, neither . . . nor
nōlō nōlle nōluī: be unwilling
sī: if
sui, sibi, sē: him- her- itself
sum, esse, fuī: be, exist
tū tuī tibi tē: you (sing.)
volō velle voluī: wish, be willing