Gerunds
Like the infinitive, gerunds are neuter singular verbal nouns. However, while the infinitive can be the nominative subject or accusative direct object, the gerund fills all the other syntactic roles of the verbal noun. It appears in the genitive, dative, and ablative cases and in the accusative only as the object of a preposition and it is usually translated into English by adding -ing to the verb.
The gerund is formed using the second principal part. In the case of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd conjugations, we take the present stem (the infinitive minus -re) and add -nd to form the gerund stem:
- amō, amāre, amāvī, amātus –> amā- –> ama-nd-
We, then, add the appropriate 2nd declension neuter singular case endings to form the gerund:
| Case | Singular |
|---|---|
| Nominative | – |
| Genitive | ama-nd-ī |
| Dative | ama-nd-ō |
| Accusative | ama-nd-um |
| Ablative | ama-nd-ō |
In the case of the 3rd -io and 4th conjugations, we take the present stem (the infinitive minus -re), chop off the trailing vowel (either -e for 3rd -io or -i for 4th), and add -iend to form the gerund stem:
- capiō, capere, cēpī, captus –> cape- minus e –> cap- –> cap-iend-
We, then, add the appropriate 2nd declension neuter singular case endings to form the gerund:
| Case | Singular |
|---|---|
| Nominative | – |
| Genitive | cap-iend-ī |
| Dative | cap-iend-ō |
| Accusative | cap-iend-um |
| Ablative | cap-iend-ō |
Below are some examples of how gerunds work in Latin sentence:
- Ars legendī est bona animō. (“The art of reading is good for the soul.”)
- Rex currendō fūgit. (“The king fled by (means of) running.”)
- Note that currendō is in the ablative case, and its use is as an ablative of means. The ablative of means (sometimes “ablative of instrument”) is an ablative used without a preposition to indicate with what or by means of what the action of the verb was completed, and it is usually translated with “by”, “by means of”, or “with”.
- Ad scribendum vēnit. (“He came for the purpose of writing.”)
- ad + the accusative gerund and causā / gratiā + the genitive gerund are frequently used to express purpose. Note that causā/gratiā is post-positive, which means it follows the word that it governs. So, we can rewrite the sentence as: scribendī causā vēnit.
GRGs (Gerund-Replacing Gerundives)
What if, in the example, ars legendī est bona animō mentioned above, we wanted to specify that it is the “art of reading books” that is good for the soul?
The simplest solution would seem to be adding a direct object after the gerund:
- Ars legendī librōs est bona animō (“The art of reading books is good for the soul.”)
However, for some reason, Latin does not like using this construction and instead prefers to use a gerundive phrase instead. A gerundive is a verbal adjective that looks very much like a gerund (both can be identified easily by the -nd infix). It has the same stem as a gerund, but it can appear in any case, number, and gender and is declined as a 2-1-2 adjective:
- amō, amāre, amāvī, amātus –> amā- –> ama-nd- –> amandus, amanda, amandum
In a gerundive phrase, the gerundive agrees with the noun that would have been the direct object in number and gender BUT takes its case from its role in the sentence. In the example above, ars legendī librōs would be expressed as follows using a gerundive phrase:
- Ars legendōrum librōrum (explanatory genitive with ars, masculine and plural from librōs) = the art of reading books
The gerundive phrase is usually called a gerund-replacing gerundive (GRG for short). When translating GRGs, the gerundive is translated just like a gerund and the noun that agrees with it as its a direct object. Below are a few examples:
- Terit tempus scrībendīs epistulīs. (“He wastes time by writing letters.”)
- Consilium urbis capiendae (“A plan for taking the city.”)
- Veniunt ad pācem petendam. (“They come for the purpose of seeking peace.”)
Other Uses of Gerundives
In addition to functioning like gerunds, gerundives have two other important usages. They can function as adjectives modifying a noun and as part of a verbal construction known as the passive periphrastic.
Gerundive as Verbal Adjective
Like all other adjectives, the gerundive will usually be paired with a noun. However, unlike most adjectives, the gerundive has two additional characteristics due to its verbal nature: voice and tense. The gerundive is always passive and forward-looking (the reason for this is that gerundive is technically the future passive participle – more on that in the second semester). Consequently, we translate the gerundive “to be [verb]ed”, which often carries a sense of necessity or obligation. Consider the following examples:
- Carmen audiendum (“a song to be heard”)
- Urbs videnda (“a city to be seen”)
- Puella librum legendum scrīpsit. (“The girl wrote a book to be read (i.e. a book that ought to/must be read)”)
When used as an adjective, the gerundive is usually appears in either the nominative case (modifying a subject) or in the accusative case (modifying a direct object). The reason for this is to avoid any possible ambiguity with the GRG. The GRG like the gerund appears only in the genitive, dative, and ablative cases and in the accusative as the object of a preposition.
Keep in mind that this use of the gerundive is relatively rare compared to GRGs and the passive periphrastic.
Passive Periphrastic
The use of the gerundive in the passive periphrastic construction is an extension of its use as a verbal adjective. As we saw above, the gerundive is passive and forward looking by nature. In the passive periphrastic, the gerundive is combined with a form of sum to express (forward-looking and passive) verbal obligation and necessity. Take for instance, the following examples:
- Rēgēs pūniendī sunt. (“The kings must be punished.”)
- Regina amanda est. (“The queen must be loved”)
In these sentences, note how the form of the gerundive matches in gender, number, and case with the subject.
Dative of Agent
With the passive periphrastic, you can use an optional dative of agent to indicate who should or must perform the action of the verb. The agent goes into the dative case without any prepositions or other qualifications. For example:
- rēgēs cīvibus pūniendī sunt. The kings must be punished by the citizens.
- rēgīna maritō amanda est. The queen must be loved by her husband.
Note that you will only ever use the dative of agent with a passive periphrastic construction. Any regular passive constructions will use the familiar ablative of agent (ā/ab plus the ablative). So:
- rēgēs cīvibus pūniendī sunt. The kings must be punished by the citizens (dat. of agent). BUT:
- rēgēs ā cīvibus punītī sunt. The kings were punished by the citizens (abl. of agent).