Fear: timeo ne, timeo ut

Level 5

Ne is the thing you fear will happen, and ut is the thing you hope for that may not happen.

How It Works

LatinEnglish
Timeo ne veniat.I fear that he will come.
Timeo ut veniat.I fear that he will not come.
Timeo ne non veniat.I fear that he will not come.

The verbs are timeo, vereor and metuo, and phrases such as periculum est ne (there is danger that).

The tense follows the sequence of tenses: Timebam ne veniret (I feared that he would come). A fear about something already done takes the perfect subjunctive: Timeo ne venerit (I fear that he has come).

Be careful with ne. It starts the thing you fear will happen, although it looks like a negative word.

Examples (5)

  1. Timeo ne veniat.

    I fear that he will come.

    Ne with the subjunctive names the thing feared.

  2. Timeo ut veniat.

    I fear that he will not come.

    Ut after a verb of fearing means that not: the hoped-for event may not happen.

  3. Timebat Iulia ne pater irasceretur.

    Iulia was afraid that her father would be angry.

    The main verb is past, so the imperfect subjunctive irasceretur follows. Irascor is a deponent.

  4. Vereor ne Marcus fessus sit.

    I am afraid Marcus is tired.

    Vereor is a deponent verb of fearing, and sit is the present subjunctive.

  5. Timentes ne in Syrtim inciderent.

    Afraid that they would run into the Syrtis.

    Acts 27:17. The sailors fear a sandbank off the coast of Africa. Timentes is a present participle.

Common Mistakes

  • Using ut where the English says that.

    Timeo ut Marcus veniat.
    Timeo ne Marcus veniat.

    Timeo ut Marcus veniat is correct Latin for the opposite meaning: I fear that Marcus will not come. Use ne for a fear that something will happen.

How It Connects

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Fear: timeo ne, timeo utLevel 5

Learn This First

A fear clause uses ne and ut with the subjunctive.

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Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

timeoneut