Advice on learning Latin

[Rfmo]

Salve,

I have been learning Latin for almost one year by myself. My vocabulary is intermediate (unfortunately not good enough to fully understand Cicero, Vergil or Seneca) and I think I have mastered most of the grammar.

Are there any advice, texts or resources (preferably available online) you can give me to help me to go on studying Latin and get a better vocabulary?

Cura ut valeas!

[bedwere]

Read the Vulgate. It is generally straightforward reading.

[Nesrad]

Read the Vulgate. It is generally straightforward reading.

Good advice. The gospels are easiest.

Also, read Ritchie's Fabulae Faciles (the Gutenberg edition has nice notes), Lhomond's Epitome and De Viris. That will give enough for Caesar and Cicero's speeches.

[bedwere]

Latine non bene loqui scio, sed certe cotidie ut meliorem in lingua latina sim conor.
Si vides aliquid hoc in scripto erratus esse, rogo ut me corrigas!

meliorem --> melior [but you should rephrase conor with accusative and infinitive]
erratus --> erratum

[Rfmo]

Salvete,

Thank you all for your advice.

I will try to read the Gospels and all texts you recommended.

I hope I am able to learn more of latin to the point of being able to read Cicero and Vergil.

And thank you bedwere for correcting my signature I have already changed it but how could I rephrase it with accusative?

If there is any more advice you can give me please tell me.

Valete

[bedwere]

And thank you bedwere for correcting my signature I have already changed it but how could I rephrase it with accusative?

If there is any more advice you can give me please tell me.

Mihi placet plus "fieri" quam "esse"

Exercitium

discipuli conantur meliores in lingua latina fieri



ego conor ....
tu
is/ea/id
nos
vos
ii/eae/ea

[Rfmo]

Gratias tibia ago exercitio responsoque tuo, bedwere.

Estne nunc certus?
certe cotidie meliorem in lingua latina fieri conor.

Exercitii responsum (ignoro si hoc vocabular certus est):

Ego conor melorem in lingua latina fieri.
Tu conaris meliorem in lingua latina fieri.
Is/ea/id conatur meliorem in lingua latina fieri.
Nos conamur meliores in lingua latina fieri.
Vos conamini meliores in lingua latina fieri.
Ii/eae/ea conantur meliores in lingua latina fieri.

Fortasse quidcumque erratus est, me corrige si potes.

[bedwere]

Gratias tibia ago exercitio responsoque tuo, bedwere.

Estne nunc certus?
certe cotidie meliorem in lingua latina fieri conor.

Exercitii responsum (ignoro si hoc vocabular certus est):

Ego conor melorem in lingua latina fieri.
Tu conaris meliorem in lingua latina fieri.
Is/ea/id conatur meliorem in lingua latina fieri.
Nos conamur meliores in lingua latina fieri.
Vos conamini meliores in lingua latina fieri.
Ii/eae/ea conantur meliores in lingua latina fieri.

Fortasse quidcumque erratus est, me corrige si potes.

Tu corrige te ipsum, amice!

Nota:
Dicimus vero "agere gratias ob (sive propter) aliquid"

[mwh]

"meliorem in lingua latina fieri conor."
melior

[Rfmo]

tibia --> tibi
vocabular --> vocabulum
melorem --> meliorem

Illa tria vocabula errata qui post hanc sententiam sunt propter Auto-correctorem(?) fuerunt.

certus --> certum
erratus --> erratum

Tibi iterum gratias ago

[Rfmo]

Why is it not accusative, mwh?

[mwh]

There’s no reason for it to be accusative.
melior sum
melior fio
melior fieri possum/volo/conor
but
te meliorem fieri volo/dico.
With e.g. scio you’d use acc.&inf., me meliorem fieri scio I know I’m improving, but not with conor, which does not introduce indirect speech.
Confusing, I know. And it's not a good construction. Safer to use e.g. tento.

[Rfmo]

Yes, it's confusing but I think I get it.

I will change it.

Thank you

[mwh]

Sorry, the last bit of my post crossed with yours. Latin's tricky!

I hadn't spotted this but
"Latine non bene loqui scio"
needs "me" (before either latine or non)—acc.&inf. in indirect statement.

[Rfmo]

Isn't "me" implicit in "scio"?

[mwh]

No sorry in Latin you need the acc.

[bedwere]

Thank you, Michael, for refreshing my memory.
Then I think it should be

is conatur melior fieri

if it refers to himself.

[mwh]

Oh and Si vides aliquid should really be Si quid vides.

[mwh]

Then I think it should be

is conatur melior fieri

if it refers to himself.

Yes but it's not a good construction, as I said. Better wd be e.g. is temptat melior fieri

[Rfmo]

It's changed.

Thank you for correcting me.

I will be sure to make my research on latin indirect statement, as I am obviously not very good at it.

[seneca2008]

Perhaps you might ask yourself what you want to read rather what should you read.

Senecan prose is quite straightforward compared to say Tacitus but if you have a love of history rather than philosophy you might be more motivated to read Tacitus.

Catullus is also quite easy to read. Why dont you just read a little of many authors until you find something you really enjoy?

I have never read the vulgate but I cant imagine its going to be very helpful in reading classical authors.

Reading texts on perseus is always helpful because you can click words to look them up in the dictionary.

[Rfmo]

Thats the problem, I enjoy them all (Catullus, Seneca, Tacitus, Vergil, Cicero, and all the others).

I am a lover of classical civilization (and their history, filosofy, poetry, et cetera).

But I find myself in great difficulties when reading them (because I don't have enough vocabulary and skills).

I am trying to find texts to help me acquire that vocabulay (and perhaps more gramatic skills as the recent posts have shown that I need, though I think I have mastered most of them) in order to be, someday, able to read them.

But thank you for your advice, I tried to read Seneca some time ago and, although I could read parts of it, I found myself in some difficulty.

[Jandar]

If acquisition of more vocabulary is your primary goal, perhaps you should first try simpler texts, in large quantities.
I don't know which textbook you used to learn latin, but there are others.... each of them teaching the same grammar, largely the same vocab (but not exactly the same!!), and each providing comprehensible practice texts for their students.
It is those texts that should help you acquire the words you did not learn from your own textbook. Use them as readers.
This will enable you to read considerable amounts of pages per hour, while picking up those few new words on the go. It also will reinforce what you already know. And it gives you the feeling that you are really reading.

Compilations of history and mythology texts from 6 out of print textbooks:
http://www.johnpiazza.net/latin_hist_reader.pdf
http://www.johnpiazza.net/latin_myth_reader.pdf

[seneca2008]

You can only acquire vocabulary by reading and testing yourself. There are lots of on line sites that can help with the testing. Have a look at memrise. I revised my Greek vocabulary by using their North and Hillard test.
There are loads of vocabulary lists there.

After one year of learning Latin by yourself I would have thought it best to work through a textbook rather than just read texts. One year is not a long time to understand even the basic rules of Latin prose. Dont try to rush. Building things up slowly is best.

[Rfmo]

I used the lingua latina series (though when I got to the second book I didn't understand much, perhaps because I rushed it a bit).

Which memorise course is better for testing myself in latin?

Which textbook would you recomend for the rules of latin prose, seneca2008?

I will certainly star reading thise links you sent me jandar.

Thank you for the advice.

[seneca2008]

I dont know the lingua latina series but if you got to the second book and it didnt make sense I think you need to go over book one more carefully. If you are interested in learning grammar then North and Hillard is worthwhile. But i get the impression you want to run before you can walk.

The actual textbook you use in less important, in my view, than being very strict with yourself. Memorise vocabulary and grammar in small chunks as you go and repeatedly test yourself.

Memrise has a lingua latina vocabulary list so you can test yourself there. I cant post the link because I dont have enough posts according to the rules here. Just go to memrise and search for lingua latina.

[Rfmo]

I am actually doing that (going through the first book again) but I will also check out North and Hillard. I will also start using memrise, as it looks usefull.

Your impression is right I am always like that, unfortunately, I always want to run before I can walk. But now I am trying to do things the right way.

Thank you very much for helping me.

[Nesrad]

I used the lingua latina series (though when I got to the second book I didn't understand much, perhaps because I rushed it a bit).

You're not the first person I've heard say that he was unable to use book 2 after completing book 1. I suspect a flaw in the method itself. Admirers of Orberg's method will stone me for this, but I think it might be a good idea to try another textbook, something more traditional in its approach (e.g. Wheelock is great for autodidacts and cheap). Orberg might be great in the hands of a capable teacher, but from what I've seen, it's underwhelming when used by self-learners.

[ÓBuadhaigh]

I am on the cusp of hitting book two but with mixed feelings. I have been told by more experienced people that the method is fine and book one is excellent, but that Orberg didn't really get round to refining book two the way he did for the first volume. Perhaps it should really be a three volume series as the high step between one and two is causing a lot of people to stumble. I'll find out for myself sometime this side of Easter.