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Bavaria Abitur Latin (gA) study materials
Bavaria Abitur Latin (gA) study resources

Bavaria Abitur Latin (gA) practice questions

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Question 1Latin morphology and syntax

In the sentence "Urbe capta, cives ex oppido fugerunt", what is the function of "urbe capta"?

  1. An ablative absolute describing the attendant circumstance (after the city had been captured) Correct answer.
  2. An ablative of place where, telling where the citizens were
  3. An ablative of agent, telling who captured the city
  4. An ablative of means, telling what the citizens used to flee

Explanation

"Urbe capta" is an ablative absolute: a noun (urbe) plus a perfect passive participle (capta) in the ablative, grammatically independent of the main clause. It sets the temporal or causal frame - "after/because the city had been captured". The ablative absolute is one of the most frequent constructions in Abitur-level texts and must be recognized before translating.

Question 2Latin morphology and syntax

"Dicit hostes mox venturos esse." What construction is "hostes ... venturos esse"?

  1. An ablative absolute marking the enemy's arrival
  2. An accusativus cum infinitivo (AcI) expressing indirect statement Correct answer.
  3. A relative clause with the relative pronoun omitted
  4. A purpose clause introduced by an implied ut

Explanation

After verbs of saying, thinking, and perceiving, Latin uses the AcI: the subject of the reported statement goes into the accusative (hostes) and the verb into the infinitive (venturos esse, future infinitive). In German this becomes a "dass"-clause: "Er sagt, dass die Feinde bald kommen werden."

Question 3Latin morphology and syntax

Which of the following forms is a locative meaning "in Rome / at Rome"?

  1. Romae Correct answer.
  2. Romam
  3. Romā
  4. Roma

Explanation

Romae is the locative of Roma, used without a preposition to mean "in Rome". Names of cities and small islands, plus domus, humus, and rus, use the locative instead of "in" + ablative. For first-declension singular names the locative looks like the genitive (-ae).

Question 4Latin morphology and syntax

In "ars scribendi" ("the art of writing"), what kind of form is "scribendi"?

  1. A present active participle agreeing with ars
  2. A gerundive (future passive participle) modifying ars
  3. A gerund in the genitive case Correct answer.
  4. A supine expressing purpose

Explanation

Scribendi is the gerund: a verbal noun formed from the present stem + -nd- with the endings -i, -o, -um, -o. In the genitive it depends on ars - "the art of writing". Unlike the gerundive, the gerund has no nominative and never agrees with a noun as an adjective.

Question 5Latin morphology and syntax

"Cum Caesar advenisset, hostes fugerunt." Why is the verb "advenisset" in the subjunctive?

  1. Because it expresses an unattainable wish
  2. Because a temporal cum-clause in past narration regularly takes the (imperfect or pluperfect) subjunctive Correct answer.
  3. Because the clause expresses purpose
  4. Because the subjunctive is obligatory after every subordinating conjunction

Explanation

In past-time narrative, a temporal cum-clause ("when") takes the imperfect or pluperfect subjunctive - here the pluperfect advenisset, "when Caesar had arrived". This is the so-called cum temporale in secondary sequence and is part of the consecutio temporum system.

Question 6Latin reading and translation

When first approaching a long Latin sentence in an unseen translation, what is the recommended first analytical step?

  1. Translate the words in their printed order, resolving difficulties as they arise
  2. Look up every unknown word in the dictionary before reading the sentence
  3. Identify the finite verb(s) and map the clause structure (main clause, subordinate clauses, participial constructions) Correct answer.
  4. Rewrite the sentence in German word order before determining any forms

Explanation

Sound method starts with structure: find the finite verb, assign subject and objects, then locate subordinate clauses, AcI constructions, participles, and ablative absolutes. Only with the skeleton clear can forms be determined reliably - LehrplanPLUS explicitly trains the analysis of complex periods with self-chosen methods such as graphical layouts.

Question 7Latin reading and translation

What is generally the best way to render an ablative absolute such as "pace facta" into adequate German?

  1. Word for word: "dem Frieden gemacht"
  2. As a German subordinate clause matching the context: "nachdem der Frieden geschlossen worden war" Correct answer.
  3. Omit it, since German has no ablative
  4. Always as a relative clause: "der Frieden, der gemacht wurde"

Explanation

German has no ablative absolute, so the construction is usually unpacked into a subordinate clause whose conjunction reflects the context - temporal (nachdem/als), causal (weil/da), or concessive (obwohl). Pace facta most naturally becomes "nachdem der Frieden geschlossen worden war". A nominal rendering with a preposition can occasionally work, but a clause is the standard solution.

Question 8Latin reading and translation

How is an AcI such as "putant hostes fugere" normally rendered in German?

  1. With a dass-clause, adjusting the tense to the Latin infinitive: "Sie glauben, dass die Feinde fliehen" Correct answer.
  2. With an infinitive phrase mirroring Latin: "Sie glauben die Feinde fliehen"
  3. With a relative clause: "die Feinde, die fliehen, glauben sie"
  4. With a conditional clause: "wenn die Feinde fliehen, glauben sie es"

Explanation

German cannot reproduce the AcI literally; the standard rendering is a dass-clause (or, stylistically, a verb-first clause). The German tense tracks the Latin infinitive: present infinitive = simultaneous (fliehen/fliehen), perfect infinitive = prior (geflohen seien), future infinitive = subsequent (fliehen würden).

Question 9Latin reading and translation

"Epistula scribenda est." Which German translation captures the gerundive correctly?

  1. "Der Brief wird geschrieben."
  2. "Der Brief wurde geschrieben."
  3. "Der Brief muss geschrieben werden." Correct answer.
  4. "Der Brief ist geschrieben worden."

Explanation

The gerundive with esse expresses necessity or obligation, so German uses müssen/sollen plus a passive infinitive: "Der Brief muss geschrieben werden." Where a dative of agent is present (mihi epistula scribenda est), German can switch to an active paraphrase: "Ich muss den Brief schreiben."

Question 10Latin reading and translation

Latin participial constructions like "Caesar, haec locutus, abiit" are typically best rendered into German by:

  1. Expanding the participle into a subordinate or main clause: "Nachdem Caesar dies gesagt hatte, ging er fort" Correct answer.
  2. Keeping a participle in the same position: "Caesar, dies gesagt habend, ging fort"
  3. Ignoring the participle, since German prefers finite verbs
  4. Always translating the participle as an infinitive with zu

Explanation

German participial attributes quickly become unidiomatic, so participles are usually resolved into clauses whose conjunction matches the context (nachdem, als, weil, obwohl, und dann). The tense of the participle guides the German tense: the perfect participle locutus marks an action prior to abiit.

Question 11Latin vocabulary and etymology

What does the phrase "bellum gerere" mean?

  1. To end a war
  2. To declare peace
  3. To carry weapons
  4. To wage war Correct answer.

Explanation

"Bellum gerere" is the standard idiom 'to wage/carry on war', frequent in historical narrative. Related idioms: bellum indicere ('declare war'), bellum conficere ('finish a war').

Question 12Latin vocabulary and etymology

What does "iter facere" mean in military and travel narratives?

  1. To travel or march Correct answer.
  2. To build a road
  3. To make a mistake
  4. To do business

Explanation

"Iter facere" = 'to make a journey, to march': exercitus magnum iter fecit ('the army made a long march'). It is one of the most common idioms in Roman historical prose.

Question 13Latin vocabulary and etymology

What does "poenas dare" mean?

  1. To give thanks
  2. To pay the penalty, be punished Correct answer.
  3. To make a demand
  4. To offer a reward

Explanation

"Poenas dare" (literally 'to give penalties') is the idiom for 'to pay the penalty, be punished': scelesti poenas dederunt ('the criminals were punished'). The person exacting punishment poenas repetit or sumit.

Question 14Latin vocabulary and etymology

What does "in animo habere" mean, as in "in animo habet proficisci"?

  1. To be angry
  2. To forget
  3. To intend, have in mind Correct answer.
  4. To doubt

Explanation

"In animo habere" + infinitive means 'to intend, have in mind': in animo habet proficisci = 'he intends to set out'. Animus here is the mind's purpose, not emotion.

Question 15Latin vocabulary and etymology

In a military context, what does "castra ponere" mean?

  1. To break camp
  2. To pitch camp Correct answer.
  3. To storm the camp
  4. To guard the camp

Explanation

"Castra ponere" is the standard phrase for 'to pitch camp' - what a Roman army did at the end of each day's march. The opposite, striking camp to depart, is castra movere.

Question 16Latin literature and interpretation

What are the basic formal facts about Vergil's Aeneis, the prescribed reading for Jahrgangsstufe 13 of LehrplanPLUS?

  1. A love elegy in three books written in elegiac distichs
  2. A historical prose account of the late republic
  3. An epic in twelve books composed in dactylic hexameters Correct answer.
  4. A verse satire in eighteen poems

Explanation

The Aeneis is Rome's national epic: twelve books in dactylic hexameter, telling of Aeneas' flight from Troy, his wanderings, and the war in Italy that lays the foundation for Rome. LehrplanPLUS requires knowledge of its themes, structure, and genre features, including the hexameter.

Question 17Latin literature and interpretation

How does the Aeneis begin its hero's story after the fall of Troy?

  1. Aeneas flees the burning city carrying his aged father Anchises on his shoulders and leading his son Ascanius by the hand Correct answer.
  2. Aeneas defends Troy to the last man and is captured by the Greeks
  3. Aeneas is exiled by the Trojans for cowardice before the city falls
  4. Aeneas sails away alone, abandoning his family deliberately

Explanation

The image of Aeneas carrying Anchises and leading Ascanius (Iulus) out of burning Troy - with the household gods rescued as well - is the iconic display of his pietas toward father, son, and gods. It became one of the most reproduced motifs of Roman art.

Question 18Latin literature and interpretation

Who is Dido in the Aeneis?

  1. A Greek princess who guides Aeneas through the underworld
  2. The queen of Carthage, who falls in love with Aeneas and takes her own life after he leaves to fulfill his mission Correct answer.
  3. Aeneas' wife, who dies in the sack of Troy
  4. The goddess who protects Aeneas on his journey

Explanation

Dido, founder and queen of Carthage, is the tragic center of Aeneis 4: inflamed with love for Aeneas, she enters a union with him, but he leaves on Jupiter's command to found a new realm in Italy. Betrayed and dishonored, Dido kills herself - the epic's most famous exploration of furor against fatum.

Question 19Latin literature and interpretation

Aeneas is constantly called "pius Aeneas". What does this pietas consist in?

  1. Personal piety in the modern sense: private prayer and devotion
  2. Dutiful loyalty toward the gods, his family, and his divinely assigned mission - even at the cost of his own happiness Correct answer.
  3. Military ferocity in battle, proving his manliness
  4. Cleverness and cunning, like Odysseus

Explanation

Roman pietas is dutiful respect for the claims of gods, parents, fatherland, and fate. Aeneas embodies it by subordinating his wishes - above all his love for Dido - to the mission of founding the Roman race. The epithet pius thus carries the epic's central value concept, which LehrplanPLUS explicitly includes among the Wertbegriffe to be explained.

Question 20Latin literature and interpretation

What role does fatum play in the Aeneis?

  1. Fate is a minor superstition that the rational hero ignores
  2. Fate is the inescapable divine decree that Aeneas' descendants will found a world-ruling people; it overrides personal wishes and drives the plot, though human resistance (Juno, Dido, Turnus) creates the epic's conflicts Correct answer.
  3. Fate determines only Dido's death, nothing else
  4. Fate can be changed by sufficient sacrifice, which is the poem's message

Explanation

Fatum - what has been spoken by the gods - fixes the teleology of the epic: from Troy's ashes to Rome's world rule. No character can annul it; Juno's resistance and Dido's love only delay it, generating the tragic tension. Vergil thus fuses myth with a justification of Roman (and Augustan) rule as destiny.

Question 21Roman culture, thought and reception

In Stoic ethics, as presented in the LehrplanPLUS Q-phase (Seneca, Epistulae morales), what is the only true good and the goal of life?

  1. Voluptas - pleasure understood as the absence of disturbance
  2. Virtus - moral excellence, living in agreement with nature Correct answer.
  3. Gloria - public recognition for achievements
  4. Otium - complete withdrawal from all activity

Explanation

For the Stoa, virtus is the sole good: everything else (health, wealth, even life) is an "indifferent" (adiaphoron). Living virtuously means living secundum naturam - in agreement with nature and reason - and accepting fate calmly. Seneca's letters constantly return to this teaching.

Question 22Roman culture, thought and reception

What kind of work are Seneca's Epistulae morales ad Lucilium, a prescribed reading in Jahrgangsstufe 12 of LehrplanPLUS?

  1. A verse epic on the founding of Rome
  2. A collection of philosophical letters to a friend, guiding him toward Stoic wisdom with a didactic-educational intent Correct answer.
  3. A series of courtroom speeches
  4. A satirical novel about Roman dinner parties

Explanation

The Epistulae morales are 124 letters addressed to Lucilius, in which Seneca acts as a philosophical mentor: he exhorts, corrects, and encourages his friend-pupil on the way to Stoic wisdom. LehrplanPLUS asks students to identify precisely this erzieherisch-didaktische Grundhaltung in the letters.

Question 23Roman culture, thought and reception

Which of these works is a philosophical treatise by Cicero, one of the two authors prescribed for the topic "Philosophandum est" in Jahrgangsstufe 12?

  1. Aeneis
  2. Satyrica
  3. Epistulae morales ad Lucilium
  4. Tusculanae disputationes Correct answer.

Explanation

The Tusculanae disputationes are one of Cicero's great philosophical works, named in LehrplanPLUS alongside De finibus and De natura deorum for the topic "Philosophandum est – philosophische Haltungen" in Jahrgangsstufe 12. The five books treat contempt for death, endurance of pain, and the sufficiency of virtue for happiness.

Question 24Roman culture, thought and reception

How does Stoic doctrine evaluate the affectus (emotions such as passionate love, grief, anger)?

  1. They are natural goods to be indulged moderately
  2. They are false judgments and disturbances that the wise person overcomes; the ideal is freedom from destructive passions (apatheia) Correct answer.
  3. They are commands of the gods that must be obeyed
  4. They are irrelevant to ethics because they are involuntary

Explanation

The Stoa analyzes passions as mistaken value judgments - treating externals as true goods or evils - and trains the soul to replace them with rational assent. The wise person's apatheia is not coldness but freedom from enslaving emotion; this is why a Stoic would criticize a figure like Vergil's Dido, whose furor destroys her.

Question 25Roman culture, thought and reception

What attitude did the Epicureans take toward engagement in politics and the state - a point tested in the ISB's illustrierende Prüfungsaufgaben for Latein?

  1. They demanded that every wise person hold office, since virtue proves itself only in action
  2. They advised against political engagement, seeking happiness in a withdrawn life among friends, because public activity brings toil, burden, and unrest that disturb voluptas Correct answer.
  3. They supported only monarchies, which spare the citizen participation
  4. They considered politics irrelevant because the gods forbid human government

Explanation

Epicureans withdrew from public life: office and ambition generate effort, burdens, and anxiety - the opposite of the painless tranquility that is their highest good. Happiness is found privately, in the circle of friends. This contrasts sharply with Cicero's insistence in De re publica that the individual owes active service to the community.

Question 26Latin morphology and syntax

"Rogo, quid facias." ("I ask what you are doing.") Why is "facias" in the present subjunctive?

  1. It is an indirect question in primary sequence, which requires the subjunctive Correct answer.
  2. It expresses a polite command
  3. It is a potential subjunctive expressing possibility
  4. It marks a wish for the future

Explanation

Quid facias is an indirect question depending on rogo, and indirect questions always take the subjunctive. Because the main verb rogo is primary sequence (present), the present subjunctive facias expresses simultaneous action according to the consecutio temporum.

Question 27Latin morphology and syntax

Which grammatical interpretations can the form "servī" (from servus) have?

  1. Genitive singular and nominative plural Correct answer.
  2. Dative singular and accusative plural
  3. Ablative singular and genitive plural
  4. Vocative singular and dative plural

Explanation

In the o-declension, the ending -ī is ambiguous: servī can be genitive singular ("of the slave") or nominative plural ("the slaves"). Only context - for example whether a singular or plural verb follows - decides. This kind of ambiguity must be resolved before translating.

Question 28Latin morphology and syntax

"Me duce, hostes vincentur." ("With me as leader, the enemy will be defeated.") What is "me duce" grammatically?

  1. An ablative of agent, because the speaker performs the action
  2. An ablative of manner with an implied cum
  3. An ablative absolute consisting of a pronoun and a noun, without a participle Correct answer.
  4. A dative of advantage referring to the speaker

Explanation

Me duce is an ablative absolute without a participle: Latin can juxtapose two nouns (or a pronoun and a noun) in the ablative, with the participle "being" understood - "me being the leader". The same pattern appears in phrases like Cicerone consule ("in Cicero's consulship").

Question 29Latin morphology and syntax

What does Cato's famous phrase "Carthago delenda est" literally express?

  1. Carthage will be destroyed (future passive)
  2. Carthage must be destroyed (obligation, gerundive with esse) Correct answer.
  3. Carthage was destroyed (perfect passive)
  4. Carthage is being destroyed (present passive)

Explanation

Delenda est is the passive periphrastic: the gerundive (delenda) plus esse expresses necessity or obligation - "Carthage must be destroyed". The person who must act would stand in the dative (dative of agent), as in mihi scribendum est, "I must write".

Question 30Latin morphology and syntax

"Dixit se epistulam scripsisse." What does the perfect infinitive "scripsisse" tell us about the time of the writing?

  1. The writing was already completed before the moment of speaking Correct answer.
  2. The writing was happening at the same time as the speaking
  3. The writing would happen after the speaking
  4. The infinitive gives no temporal information in an AcI

Explanation

In an AcI the infinitive tense is relative to the main verb: the perfect infinitive (scripsisse) marks an action completed before the main verb - "He said that he had written the letter". The present infinitive would mark simultaneity (se scribere), the future infinitive posteriority (se scripturum esse).

Question 31Latin morphology and syntax

Which sentence correctly expresses purpose ("in order to see the city") in Latin?

  1. Venit ut urbem videat. Correct answer.
  2. Venit quod urbem videt.
  3. Venit videns urbem.
  4. Venit cum urbem videret.

Explanation

Purpose is expressed by ut plus the subjunctive (final clause): venit ut urbem videat, "he comes in order to see the city". Alternatives include the gerundive with ad (ad urbem videndam) or, after verbs of motion, the supine (urbem visum venit).

Question 32Latin morphology and syntax

"Tam fortis erat ut omnes eum laudarent." What kind of clause is "ut omnes eum laudarent"?

  1. A consecutive (result) clause: he was so brave that everyone praised him Correct answer.
  2. A final (purpose) clause: he was brave in order to be praised
  3. A temporal clause: when everyone praised him
  4. A causal clause: because everyone praised him

Explanation

The signal word tam ("so") plus ut with the subjunctive marks a consecutive clause expressing result: "he was so brave that all praised him". Result clauses typically correlate with demonstratives such as tam, ita, tantus, or sic.

Question 33Latin morphology and syntax

"Vereor ne hostes veniant." What is the correct German sense of this fear clause?

  1. "Ich fürchte, dass die Feinde kommen." - ne after verbs of fearing means "that" Correct answer.
  2. "Ich fürchte, dass die Feinde nicht kommen." - ne negates the fear clause
  3. "Ich fürchte die Feinde, wenn sie kommen." - ne is temporal here
  4. "Ich fürchte mich vor den kommenden Feinden." - ne introduces an object clause of the thing feared

Explanation

After verbs of fearing, ne introduces the feared event ("I fear that the enemies will come"), while ut (or ne ... non) expresses fear that something will NOT happen. The clause takes the subjunctive following the consecutio temporum.

Question 34Latin morphology and syntax

"Dum in horto ambulat, cantat." What is notable about the verb in the dum-clause?

  1. Dum meaning "while" regularly takes the present indicative, even when referring to the past (historic present) Correct answer.
  2. Dum always requires the subjunctive because it is a subordinating conjunction
  3. Dum here means "until", so the verb must be future
  4. The indicative is wrong; correct Latin would be dum ambulet

Explanation

When dum means "while" (during the time that), it takes the indicative - characteristically the present, the so-called historic present, even in past narrative: dum in horto ambulat, cantat, "while he was walking in the garden, he was singing". Only dum meaning "until" or "provided that" takes the subjunctive.

Question 35Latin morphology and syntax

In which situation does a temporal cum-clause take the indicative rather than the subjunctive?

  1. In past narrative after a perfect or imperfect main verb
  2. When the clause has a causal or concessive shade of meaning
  3. In present/future time reference or in general, iterative statements ("whenever") Correct answer.
  4. Whenever the main clause is negative

Explanation

Purely temporal cum-clauses in present or future time, and iterative/general statements (cum ... "whenever"), take the indicative: cum te video, gaudeo. In past narration Latin prefers the (im)perfect/pluperfect subjunctive, and cum causale or cum concessivum always takes the subjunctive.

Question 36Latin morphology and syntax

"Nescio, quis hoc fecerit." Which two features must a translator note about "fecerit"?

  1. It is an indirect question, so the subjunctive is required; the perfect subjunctive marks prior action Correct answer.
  2. It is a future perfect indicative, because fecerit can only be indicative
  3. It is a deliberative subjunctive, asking what should be done
  4. It is a potential subjunctive in an independent sentence

Explanation

Quis hoc fecerit is an indirect question after nescio, and indirect questions always take the subjunctive. The perfect subjunctive fecerit (not the future perfect indicative) marks the action as prior to the knowing. Morphologically the perfect subjunctive and future perfect indicative look identical except in the first person singular, so syntax must decide.

Question 37Latin morphology and syntax

"Orator locutus est." What is the meaning of "locutus est"?

  1. "He has been spoken" - a regular passive perfect
  2. "He spoke / has spoken" - perfect of the deponent loqui with active meaning Correct answer.
  3. "He will speak" - a periphrastic future
  4. "He had been spoken" - a pluperfect passive

Explanation

Loqui is a deponent verb: it has passive forms but active meaning. Locutus est therefore means "he spoke/has spoken", not "he has been spoken". Other common deponents are conari, uti, sequi, and vereri. Deponents also have an active-meaning perfect participle (locutus, "having spoken").

Question 38Latin morphology and syntax

"Caesar ab amicis occisus est." What does the preposition "ab" mark here?

  1. The ablative of means (the instrument of the killing)
  2. The ablative of agent (the persons by whom Caesar was killed) Correct answer.
  3. The ablative of separation (movement away from friends)
  4. The ablative of comparison (more than friends)

Explanation

With a passive verb, the person who performs the action stands in the ablative of agent with a/ab: ab amicis, "by (his) friends". An inanimate instrument would take the bare ablative without a preposition (gladio occisus est, "killed with a sword").

Question 39Latin morphology and syntax

Which is the correct classical Latin way to say "for the purpose of seeking peace"?

  1. ad pacem petendum
  2. ad pacem petendam Correct answer.
  3. ad petere pacem
  4. ad pacem petens

Explanation

When a gerund would govern an accusative object, classical Latin normally prefers the gerundive agreeing with the noun: ad pacem petendam (literally "for peace-to-be-sought"). The construction ad + accusative of the gerundive with its noun is a standard way of expressing purpose.

Question 40Latin morphology and syntax

"Sciebam eum venturum esse." How should the infinitive phrase be understood and translated?

  1. Future infinitive in an AcI: "I knew that he would come" Correct answer.
  2. Perfect infinitive in an AcI: "I knew that he had come"
  3. Present infinitive of purpose: "I knew him in order to come"
  4. Supine of purpose: "I knew him, going to come"

Explanation

Venturum esse is the future active infinitive (future participle venturum + esse) inside an AcI depending on sciebam. Relative to the past main verb it expresses posteriority, so English/German uses the conditional: "I knew that he would come" ("Ich wusste, dass er kommen werde/würde").

Question 41Latin morphology and syntax

"Non dubito quin verum dixerit." What is the function of "quin" here?

  1. It introduces a comparative clause meaning "than"
  2. It means "why not" and introduces a question
  3. After a negated expression of doubt it introduces an object clause meaning "that" (with the subjunctive) Correct answer.
  4. It introduces a purpose clause with negative sense

Explanation

After negated or questioned expressions of doubting (non dubito, quis dubitat?), quin introduces a content clause with the subjunctive: non dubito quin verum dixerit, "I do not doubt that he has spoken the truth". The subjunctive follows the consecutio temporum.

Question 42Latin morphology and syntax

"Dicit fore ut urbs capiatur." Why is this periphrasis used, and what does it mean?

  1. Latin lacks a future passive infinitive in common use, so fore ut + subjunctive replaces it: "He says that the city will be captured" Correct answer.
  2. Fore is the future infinitive of facio, so the sentence means "He says that he will make the city be captured"
  3. Ut here introduces a wish: "He says: may the city be captured!"
  4. Fore ut marks a past unreal condition: "He says the city would have been captured"

Explanation

The future passive infinitive is practically nonexistent in classical Latin, so indirect statements about future passive events use fore (the future infinitive of esse) with an ut-clause: fore ut urbs capiatur, "that the city will be captured". The subjunctive in the ut-clause follows the consecutio temporum.

Question 43Latin morphology and syntax

"Nemo est qui hoc nesciat." Why does the relative clause take the subjunctive "nesciat"?

  1. Because it is indirect speech depending on an AcI
  2. Because relative clauses always take the subjunctive after nemo
  3. Because the clause is generic/consecutive: "no one of the sort who would not know this" Correct answer.
  4. Because nescire is a deponent verb requiring the subjunctive

Explanation

After general or negative antecedents (nemo est, nihil est, sunt qui), a relative clause with the subjunctive characterizes a class rather than a concrete fact: nemo est qui hoc nesciat, "there is no one who would not know this". This is the generic (or consecutive) relative clause.

Question 44Latin morphology and syntax

"Utinam adesset!" What does this sentence express?

  1. A fulfillable wish for the future: "may he be present!"
  2. An unattainable wish in the present: "if only he were here (but he is not)" Correct answer.
  3. A past command: "he should have been present!"
  4. A rhetorical question: "surely he is present?"

Explanation

Utinam with the imperfect subjunctive expresses an unattainable wish relating to the present: "would that he were here!" - implying that he is not. The present subjunctive after utinam marks a fulfillable wish, the pluperfect an unattainable wish about the past.

Question 45Latin morphology and syntax

"Miror, quid facturus sit." How does Latin express future time in this indirect question?

  1. With the future perfect indicative, as in all indirect questions
  2. With the present subjunctive, which is always future in meaning
  3. With the periphrastic subjunctive (future participle + sit): "what he will do / is about to do" Correct answer.
  4. With the future infinitive, as in an AcI

Explanation

The future tense has no subjunctive, so in subjunctive-governing clauses Latin uses the active periphrastic: the future participle plus the subjunctive of esse (facturus sit). Miror, quid facturus sit means "I wonder what he will do". This periphrasis is essential for the consecutio temporum with future meaning.

Question 46Latin morphology and syntax

"Marcus fortior est quam Lucius." What rule governs the case of "Lucius" after "quam"?

  1. The word after quam always stands in the accusative
  2. The word after quam always stands in the ablative
  3. The word after quam takes the same case as the word being compared (here nominative, matching Marcus) Correct answer.
  4. The word after quam takes the genitive of comparison

Explanation

In a comparison with quam ("than"), the compared item takes the same case as the item it is compared with: Marcus fortior est quam Lucius - both nominative. Without quam, Latin can use the ablative of comparison instead: Marcus fortior est Lucio.

Question 47Latin morphology and syntax

"Mihi est liber." How is this sentence correctly understood?

  1. "I have a book" - dative of possession with esse Correct answer.
  2. "A book is given to me" - passive of dare
  3. "I am a book" - dative of purpose
  4. "My book is there" - dative of agent

Explanation

Esse with the dative expresses possession: mihi est liber, "a book is to me", i.e., "I have a book". The thing possessed is the nominative subject (liber). This dative of possession is common where German or English uses "haben/have".

Question 48Latin morphology and syntax

"Noli timere!" - what does this form express?

  1. A negative command: "Do not be afraid!" Correct answer.
  2. A wish: "May you not fear!"
  3. A statement: "You do not fear."
  4. A question: "Don't you fear?"

Explanation

Noli (the imperative of nolle) plus the infinitive is the standard way to form a negative command: noli timere, "do not be afraid!". The plural is nolite timere. A more elevated alternative is ne with the perfect subjunctive (ne timueris).

Question 49Latin reading and translation

Why does the consecutio temporum cause particular difficulty for translation into German?

  1. Because German has no subjunctive forms at all
  2. Because Latin subjunctive tenses encode relative time (simultaneous/prior/subsequent to the main verb), whereas German renders these relations with its own tense system, so the translator must convert the Latin sequence into German tense logic Correct answer.
  3. Because the consecutio temporum applies only to poetry and not to prose
  4. Because Latin subordinate clauses in the subjunctive can never be translated literally and must be omitted

Explanation

In Latin subordinate clauses the subjunctive tense is chosen by the sequence of tenses: after a past main verb, the imperfect subjunctive marks simultaneous/subsequent action and the pluperfect marks prior action. German instead uses indicative tenses (or Konjunktiv for reported speech) with absolute time reference. The translator must therefore read the Latin sequence as a timeline and rebuild it with German tenses - e.g., rogavit quid facerem → "er fragte, was ich tue/tat/mache" depending on context.

Question 50Roman culture, thought and reception

Seneca writes in Epistula 3 (the text used in the ISB's illustrierende Prüfungsaufgaben): "Post amicitiam credendum est, ante amicitiam iudicandum." What principle of friendship does he formulate?

  1. Trust everyone immediately, because suspicion destroys friendship
  2. Judge carefully before accepting someone as a friend, but once friendship is established, trust completely Correct answer.
  3. Never trust even friends, because all people are fickle
  4. Friendship should be based on usefulness, so judge and trust simultaneously

Explanation

Seneca distinguishes the phases: before friendship, careful judgment (iudicandum); after the commitment, full trust (credendum) - one should speak with a friend as with oneself. He criticizes both vices: trusting everyone indiscriminately and trusting no one at all.