Nihil...

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Einhard
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Nihil...

Post by Einhard »

Hey all,

Just looking to clarify something.

"Nihil cum amicitia possum comparare..."

Can I translate this as "Nothing can compare with friendship", or can it only be "I can compare nothing with friendship"?

Thanks,
Einhard.

modus.irrealis
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Re: Nihil...

Post by modus.irrealis »

It can only be the latter -- "nihil" as subject requires the 3rd person so it would have had to have been "potest" rather than "possum". (Plus, I'm not sure whether Latin allows you to use "comparo" without an object, so you might need to use the passive "nihil cum amicitia comparari potest".)

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Einhard
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Re: Nihil...

Post by Einhard »

Thanks for that. Pretty obvious when you think bout it!! Damn brain freeze!!

Einhard.

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ptolemyauletes
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Re: Nihil...

Post by ptolemyauletes »

Grammatically, no, but in real sense, the comparison is the important thing here. 'I can compare nothing with friendship' is essentially the same in meaning as saying 'nothing can be compared with friendship.'

And I also think that 'comparari potest' is ok.
comparo is often used with the gerund/gerundive comparandus, so a passive infinitive seems no stretch. parari is common enough...
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