Second Declension Neuter: verbum
A neuter noun has one form for the subject and the object.
How It Works
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | verbum | verba |
| genitive | verbi | verborum |
| dative | verbo | verbis |
| accusative | verbum | verba |
| ablative | verbo | verbis |
| vocative | verbum | verba |
The plural ending -a looks like a feminine singular, but the noun is neuter plural and takes a plural verb: Dona sunt bona. The other forms follow amicus.
Common neuter nouns of this type are bellum (war), donum (gift), templum (temple), regnum (kingdom), caelum (sky) and vinum (wine). Church texts are full of them.
The dative and the ablative plural both end in -is: verbis, donis, templis. This is the same as the masculine.
Examples (4)
- Templum magnum est.
The temple is big.
Templum is nominative singular, and the adjective magnum is neuter.
- Marcus donum videt.
Marcus sees the gift.
Donum is the accusative singular, the same as the nominative.
- Verba bona sunt.
The words are good.
Verba is neuter plural, so the verb is plural.
- Dona in templo sunt.
The gifts are in the temple.
Dona is nominative plural, and templo is ablative.
Common Mistakes
Giving a neuter plural a singular verb.
Verba est bona.Verba sunt bona.The ending -a looks singular, but verba means words. It needs the plural verb sunt.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Neuter nouns are second-family nouns with their own gender, so servus and the genders come first.
Related Patterns
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice Second Declension Neuter: verbum in Bubblegum
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