inquam
Latin
Etymology
From Old Latin īnseque, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁enskʷet, *h₁en-prefixed form of the thematic aorist of Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- (“to say”).
Pronunciation
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈin.kʷam/, [ˈɪŋkʷä̃ˑ]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈin.kwam/, [ˈiŋkwäm]
Verb
inquam (perfect active inquiī); irregular conjugation, irregular, highly defective
- to say
- c. 200 BCE – 190 BCE, Plautus, Captivi 3.4.572–573:
- Tun' te Philocratem esse ais? — Ego, inquam.
- So, you claim to be Philocrates, you say? — I certainly say that.
- Tun' te Philocratem esse ais? — Ego, inquam.
- c. 52 BCE, Julius Caesar, Commentarii de Bello Gallico 7.20:
- "Haec ut intellegatis," inquit, "a me sincere pronuntiari, audite Romanos milites"
- "In order that you may be assured," he said, "that I sincerely announce these things, listen to the Roman soldiers!"
- "Haec ut intellegatis," inquit, "a me sincere pronuntiari, audite Romanos milites"
Usage notes
- Used to introduce a quotation, platitude, or logical argument.
Conjugation
This verb is largely conjugated as if it were *inquiō (3rd conjugation) in present tenses and *inquō (also 3rd conjugation) in perfect tenses except 1st person singular. However, there is an unusual first person singular present form inquam (cf. the athematic verb sum). This form was possibly derived from *h₁enskʷom, the 1st person singular indicative form of Proto-Indo-European *h₁enskʷet (an aorist verb).
| Conjugation of inquam (irregular, highly defective) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| indicative | singular | plural | |||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| active | present | inquam | inquis | inquit | inquimus | inquitis | inquiunt |
| imperfect | — | — | inquiēbat | — | — | — | |
| future | — | inquiēs | inquiet | — | — | — | |
| perfect | inquiī | inquistī | inquit | — | — | — | |
| subjunctive | singular | plural | |||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| active | present | — | — | inquiat | — | — | — |
| imperative | singular | plural | |||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| active | present | — | inque | — | — | — | — |
| future | — | inquitō | inquitō | — | — | — | |
| non-finite forms | active | passive | |||||
| present | perfect | future | present | perfect | future | ||
| infinitives | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| participles | inquiēns | — | — | — | — | — | |
Descendants
- Sicilian: nca (interjection)
References
- “inquam”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “inquam”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- inquam in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
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