Vergil’s Verb Tips: Gerunds and Gerundives

 

Gerunds are verbal nouns declined in the four oblique cases of the neuter singular.  Nominative is supplied by the present active infinitive.  Formation: add –ndum etc. to the present stem; 3rd-iō and 4th conjugation keep their –i.

 

 

1st Conj.

2nd Conj.

3rd Conj.

3rd-iō

4th Conj.

Translation

Nom.

portāre

vidēre

crēdere

iacere

audīre

x-ing

Gen.

portandī

videndī

crēdendī

iaciendī

audiendī

of x-ing

Dat.

portandō

videndō

crēdendō

iaciendō

audiendō

to/for x-ing

Acc.

portandum

videndum

crēdendum

iaciendum

audiendum

x-ing

Abl.

portandō

videndō

crēdendō

iaciendō

audiendō

with/by/from/in x-ing

 

Gerundives are verbal adjectives, identical in form to the gerund, but having all three genders, all five cases, and both numbers.  They have the force of “needing to be x-ed” and are also known as the future passive participle (for details on participles, see Vergil’s Verb Tips: The Participle).

 

Nom.

1st Conj.

2nd Conj.

3rd Conj.

3rd-iō

4th Conj.

Translation

Masc.

portandus

videndus

crēdendus

iacendus

audiendus

(needing) to be x-ed

Fem.

portanda

videnda

crēdenda

iacenda

audienda

Neut.

portandum

videndum

crēdendum

iacendum

audiendum

 

Special Use of Gerundive Only: Passive Periphrastic

 

The passive periphrastic (from the Greek for “talking around”) is a unique construction in Latin (and Mrs. Turner’s favorite) formed of the gerundive + a form of sum (+ dative of agent).  It has the force of “must.”

 

Mihi fugiendum est.  I must flee (literally, “for me there is a need to flee”).

 

The force of the gerundive survives in many of its loanwords or derivatives in English.

An addendum to the minutes is that which must be added.  The legend on a map is that which must be read.  A memorandum is that which must be remembered.  A subtrahend is that amount that must be taken away from the minuend, the amount that must be reduced.

 

Gerund or Gerundive?

 

For many instances in Latin, one may use the gerund or gerundive interchangeably, but the Romans invariably preferred the gerundive adjective construction whenever there was a noun involved.  Compare these examples, where gerunds are in this type and gerundives are in this type.

 

Genitive:                amor videndī amīcōs                                                    love for seeing friends

                                amor amīcōrum videndōrum                                       same (lit., “love for friends to be seen”)

 

                                vēnit videndī amīcōs causā/grātiā                         he came for the reason/sake of seeing friends

                                vēnit amīcōrum videndōrum causā/grātiā           (lit., “for the reason/sake of friends to be seen)

                               

                                (equivalent to ad + accusative, purpose clause, and supine [see below])

 

Dative:                   praefert pecūniam videndō amīcōs                      he prefers money to seeing his friends.

praefert pecūniam amīcīs videndīs                        (lit., “to friends to be seen”)

 

Accusative:           vēnit ad videndum amīcōs                                        he came to see friends.

                                vēnit ad amīcōs videndōs                                            (lit., “for friends to be seen”)

 

                                (=  vēnit ut amīcōs vidēret [purpose clause]

                                or vēnit amīcōs vīsum [supine: see Vergil’s Verb Tips: The Supine])

 

Ablative:                narrābat fābulam dē videndō amīcōs                  he told a story about seeing his friends.

                                narrbat fābulam dē amīcīs videndīs                     (lit., “about friends to be seen”)