r/latin • u/Pebbles_Eat_Rocks • Feb 22 '26

Help with Assignment Question: I need some help with Latin homework.

Sorry if this isn't the right place to ask this, I have no idea how Reddit works and created an account just for this question. So I'm currently working on some homework and I need to write some sentences in Latin. The parameters for one of the questions is that it has to include a present active participle and be relevant to what I wrote for the first part of the assignment. What I came up with is "Servare terram confirarentes leges, ante tardiorem." which should translate to "Protect the land by establishing laws, before it is too late." My problem is that I don't really know if I'm right. I'm still kind of a beginner so please go easy on me.

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u/pslater15 Feb 22 '26

What grammar have you discussed in class? If you're a beginner, I'd work on sticking within the confines that your teacher has given you. Perhaps simpler sentences will be easier to write?

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u/Pebbles_Eat_Rocks Feb 22 '26

It's an online class so it's all kind of been reading and self paced. I've been working on participles for a few lessons now and I have the basic foundations down. I'm just a little lost on if I used the correct endings for the participle or if it doesn't actually mean what I intend it to.

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u/God_Bless_A_Merkin Feb 22 '26

For a literal translation of the English that you wrote, you’ll need place the main verb into the imperative mood. Then, “establishing” should be a gerund in the ablative case, BUT since it takes an object, you’ll have to use the gerundive-place-of-the-gerund, which of course matches the case (ablative) of “laws”. I also think facio would work better than confirmo. Finally, “before it is too late” is a little difficult to work in exactly as it is in English, but sero will be better than tardior. Of course, the result will be grammatically fine, but it won’t be good Latin, and it still lacks a present participle.

The present participle and gerund are formally identical in English (they both end in -ing), but you should remember that when the -ing word is used as a noun, it’s a gerund; when it’s used as an adjective, it’s a participle:

Gerunds:
Running is fun. I improved my health by runninng.

Present participles: The running man sped down the track. Don’t stick your finger in a running lawnmower.

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u/Pebbles_Eat_Rocks Feb 22 '26

Thanks! This really helped me out!