Requiem aeternam

Eternal Rest

Level 1

A prayer for the dead, learned whole.

How It Works

LatinEnglish
Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine,Eternal rest grant them, O Lord,
et lux perpetua luceat eis.and let perpetual light shine upon them.
Requiescant in pace. Amen.May they rest in peace. Amen.

Aeternam sounds like eh-TEHR-nahm in Church Latin and eye-TEHR-nahm in classical Latin. Luceat is LOO-cheh-aht in Church Latin and LOO-keh-aht in classical Latin.

Requiem is the first word of the whole Mass for the dead, so people call that Mass a Requiem. Requiescat in pace is on many gravestones, shortened to RIP.

Eis is to them. It appears in both lines.

Examples (5)

  1. Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine.

    Eternal rest grant them, O Lord.

    Requiem aeternam is the object of dona. Eis means to them.

  2. Et lux perpetua luceat eis.

    And let perpetual light shine upon them.

    Luceat is a wish: let it shine. Lux perpetua is the subject.

  3. Requiescant in pace.

    May they rest in peace.

    The ending -ant means they, and the verb is a wish.

  4. Requiescat in pace.

    May he or she rest in peace.

    The singular form, shortened to RIP on gravestones.

  5. Requiem aeternam.

    Eternal rest.

    Requiem is the accusative, and aeternam agrees with it.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving the adjective in the masculine form.

    Requiem aeternus dona eis.
    Requiem aeternam dona eis.

    Aeternus is masculine nominative. It must agree with requiem, which is feminine accusative, so it becomes aeternam.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Requiem aeternamLevel 1Eternal Rest

Learn This First

Requiem aeternam is an object in the accusative, and the text is sung with Church sounds.

Words in This Pattern

requiesaeternusrequiescat in pacerequiescant in pace