Hello all, about a month ago I posted here about how i’m attempting (struggling) to learn latin by myself. Which teaching myself is kind of hard as I have virtually no way of checking the sentences I write to make sure they’re correct. I would greatly appreciate if someone could make sure my sentences and their respective translations are correct.
1.) Ericus afflixit et abolevit animalam feram
(Eric struck and destroyed/killed the feral animal.)
2.) (attempting to use the passive tense.)
aedicula aedificabitur Ericum ← should the “agent” be in accusative?
(The building was built by eric.)
3.) (attempting to use infinitives correctly.)
amare non esse emere
(love cannot be bought) I understand that infinitives mean to love, however… can’t the “to’s” be discounted? Also, do I need a form of “to be” in there? would it be esse?
Well, that just about covers all the topics I’m currently learning, the adjectives, passive, and infinitive uses.
Right now i’d say I have about 30% of latin grammar down, and only about .01% of it’s vocabulary… I need to start drilling vocabulary note cards into my brain.
1.) Ericus afflixit et abolevit animalam feram
animal is a neuter noun. animal ferum
aedicula aedificabitur Ericum ← should the “agent” be in accusative?
The agent should be in the ablative, following the preposition a/ab if it is animated, or, if not, when one wants to consider it animated: ab Erico
Further, the perfect passive is constructed with a circumloquium: past participle + present esse. aedificatum est
3.) (attempting to use infinitives correctly.)
amare non esse emere
(love cannot be bought) I understand that infinitives mean to love, however… can’t the “to’s” be discounted? Also, do I need a form of “to be” in there? would it be esse?
You don’t need a form of to be in there. Infinitives passives are rendered by inflection: are->ari; ére->éri; ere->Ã; ire-> iri, be bought is, thus, emi. Also, love is translated as amor, not amare, which means "to love’. so that it can be discounted :-p.
ps: it is lacking the cannot: non potest.
EDIT: Tempus verbi correctum est
No, he’s trying to use animal as and adjective. The adjective is animalis, -e. So it would be “animalem feram”, but I think it’s redundant.
I think I understood most of what the previous replier instructed. Though I’m going to have to read up on present passive formations. The inflextion I just now understood. Thanks 
Right now i’m just going to give up on slamming grammatical rules, I need to build vocabulary. I’m assuming the best way to do this is to use mneumonics and vocabulary cards. Is that the most effective way to learn vocab?
No, he’s trying to use animal as and adjective. The adjective is animalis, -e. So it would be “animalem feram”, but I think it’s redundant.
Given its only meaning, that which breathes, which is a substance, it cannot be used as an adjective.
He says “the feral animal”, feral is qualifying animal, not the opposite.
I’m assuming the best way to do this is to use mneumonics and vocabulary cards. Is that the most effective way to learn vocab?
Vocabulary cards are pretty efective, but mnemonics, at least for me, slow down more than anything else. Other suggestions I can give is to create simple sentences with the words previously acquired, tiny stories, and the like.
There is also a book called Lingva Latina, whereby one learns latin by reading in latin. The words are repeated ad nauseam in the beggining, and later introduced by latin synonyms, by deffinitions in latin, and, when possible, by derivations of previously known stems. You can use it, if you already have a grasp of general grammar. (It would fulfill your self study needs, for the exercises’ aswers are all in the text itself.)