Dictionary formcivitas, civitatis(feminine)
Translation
city; state, community; citizenship
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Grammar
Cases
| Case | singular | plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominativethe subject | civitas | civitates |
| Vocativecalling someone: O ... | civitas | civitates |
| Accusativethe direct object; after ad, in (into), per | civitatem | civitates |
| Genitiveof | civitatis | civitatum / civitatium |
| Dativeto, for | civitati | civitatibus |
| Ablativeby, with, from; after a, ab, cum, de, e, ex, in (in), sine | civitate | civitatibus |
Examples
.
The state was great.
.
Many citizens live in the city.
.
He saved the state.
.
The states were waging war among themselves.
.
The laws of the state are ancient.
Civitas, civitatis is third declension feminine, built from civis plus the abstract suffix -tas, the same suffix that gives libertas and veritas. Its senses run in that order: first the status of being a citizen, then the body of citizens taken together, and only last the town they happen to live in.
That gives the distinction against urbs. Urbs is the physical city, walls and streets and buildings; civitas is the community and its rights. Cicero granting somebody civitas is granting citizenship, not a town. The drift worth watching is medieval: by the time of the charters in this corpus civitas usually does just mean the town, and often specifically a town with a bishop, which is why French cité and Spanish ciudad mean what they do. Family: civis, civilis, civicus. English city, citizen, civic, civil, civilian, civilisation.
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Latin · Free printables
civitas: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Latin word "civitas" (city; state, community; citizenship): 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 3, lesson 3: civitas, sacer, pes and 7 more words.