Dictionary formauctoritas, auctoritatis(feminine)
Translation
authority, influence; warrant
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Grammar
Cases
| Case | singular | plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominativethe subject | auctoritas | auctoritates |
| Vocativecalling someone: O ... | auctoritas | auctoritates |
| Accusativethe direct object; after ad, in (into), per | auctoritatem | auctoritates |
| Genitiveof | auctoritatis | auctoritatum |
| Dativeto, for | auctoritati | auctoritatibus |
| Ablativeby, with, from; after a, ab, cum, de, e, ex, in (in), sine | auctoritate | auctoritatibus |
Examples
.
The authority of the senate was great.
.
He waged the war on his own authority.
.
They did not deny the bishop's authority.
.
He did it by the authority of the law.
.
No mention of authority was made.
Auctoritas, auctoritatis is third declension feminine, built on auctor and behaving like every other -tas abstract: genitive in -tatis, and a genitive plural in -tatum that you will almost never need.
The distinction worth carrying is auctoritas against potestas. Potestas is legal power, the capacity to compel, attached to an office. Auctoritas is weight, the standing that makes people do what you say without a statute behind it, and the Romans treated it as the more valuable of the two. Augustus said as much in his own account of himself: auctoritate omnibus praestiti, potestatis autem nihilo amplius habui. Anyone reading English "authority" straight into it will flatten exactly the thing the Romans cared about.
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auctoritas: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Latin word "auctoritas" (authority, influence; warrant): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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Start your free weekThis word is taught in chapter 8, lesson 3: auctoritas, insignis, pulcher and 5 more words.