Translation
rock, cliff; crag
Examples
supra .
A high cliff stands above the sea.
rupem .
The ship came up to the rock.
.
He fell from the cliff.
.
They made their way among the crags.
.
Birds live in the rocks.
Rupes, rupis is third declension feminine, from rumpo, "I break", so a rupes is properly a broken face of rock: a cliff, a crag, a place where the ground has torn open. That is the difference from its neighbours. Saxum is a boulder or a mass of stone, lapis is a stone you could pick up or set in a wall, rupes is a rock face with a drop attached.
The nominative singular and the nominative plural are both rupes, so only the verb tells you which you have: rupes stat is one cliff, rupes stant is several. The family is worth knowing: English rupture, erupt, abrupt and route all descend from rumpo, and rupes is their close cousin rather than their source.
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rupes: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Latin word "rupes" (rock, cliff; crag): 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 part of lesson 16.