“Latin Compounds”

Three Types of Stem Compounds

     There are three main types of Stem Compounds:

• In Copulative Compounds, the second part of a compound is simply added to the first (e.g. septendecim, “seventeen,” from septem, “seven,” and decem, “ten”).

• In Determinative Compounds, the first part modifies the second as an adjective or adverb (e.g. omnipotēns, “omnipotent,” from omnis, “all,” and potēns, “powerful”).

• In Objective Compounds, the first part has the force of a case, and the second a verbal force (e.g. cornicen, “horn-blower,” from cornū, “horn,” and -cen, akin to canere, “to play an instrument”).

     Any kind of Stem Compound that has a substantive stem as a second part may be an adjective indicating possession of the quality denoted (e.g. ālipēs, "wing-footed" or "having feel with wings," from āla, "wing," and pēs, "foot").

1. Two Groups of Compound Words in Latin
   1. Stem Compounds
      1. Three Types of Stem Compounds ← You Are Here
      2. Two Main Parts of a Stem Compound
      3. Combining the Parts of a Stem Compound
         1. First Part of a Stem Compound
            1. Latin Substantives
            2. Latin Adjectives
            3. Latin Verbs
            4. Special Combining Forms
         2. Second Part
            1. Nominative Form or Principal Part
            2. Inseparable Second Parts
               1. In Compounded Substantives
               2. In Compounded Adjectives
               3. In Compounded Verbs
            3. Special Terminations
   2. Syntactic Compounds
      1. Cases Forms
      2. Particles
      3. Inseparable Parts
2. Vocabulary
3. Bibliography

Latin Compounds | Pāginae Latīnitātis | DIĒS GAUDIĪ

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