| Mos I |
Freedom in the arrangement of words allows Latin to use word order to show the relative importance of the ideas in a sentence. sed some expressions have an invariable order: e.g., res publica, populus Romanus, honoris causa. |
| Mos II |
The Subject tends to stand first, the Predicate last, with the verb placed last of all. sed many writers avoid the monotony of this arrangement by putting the verb last but one, followed by a single word of the predicate. |
| Mos III |
In connected discourse the word most prominent in a speaker’s mind comes first, and so on in order of prominence. The more important word is never placed last for emphasis—where this seems to be the case, it is because the later word is added as an afterthought. |
| Mos IV |
In any word-group the determining and most significant word comes first: e.g., Adjectives-Nouns and Word-with-Modifying Case. sed numeral adjectives, adjectives of quantity, demonstratives, relatives, and interrogative pronouns and adverbs tend to precede the word or words which they belong without signaling special emphasis. A written Latin sentence has all the clearness and expression of an English speech delivered by the best actor or orator. |
| Mos V |
When sum is used as the Substantive verb (i.e., “it is/there are”), it regularly stands first, or at any rate before its subject (e.g., est vir, “there is a man”). |
| Mos VI |
The verb may come first or have a prominent position, and so be emphatic, because of: (A) the main idea; or (B) it is the logical foundation for the whole statement; or (C) its tense. |
| Mos VII |
Modifiers of a phrase are often embedded within the phrase (e.g., de hominum memoria). |
| Mos VIII |
Prepositions regularly precede their nouns sed monosyllabic prepositions are regularly placed between a noun and its adjective or limiting genitive. |
| Mos IX |
Often the connection of two emphatic phrases is brought about by giving the precedence to the most prominent part of each and leaving the less prominent parts to follow. Likewise, relative clauses often come first and usually contain the antecedent noun. |
| Mos X |
Antithesis between two ideas is indicated by placing the pairs in… (A) the same order (anaphora) or (B) in exactly the opposite order (chiasmus) sed poets frequently use interlocking word order (synchysis), perhaps joined with chiasmus. |
| Mos XII |
The copula (i.e. connecting word, usually a form of sum, esse) is generally felt to be of such little importance that is may come anywhere it sounds appropriate, usually cloaked by proximity to more emphatic words. |
| Mos XIII |
The negative precedes the word it especially affects sed if it belongs to no one word in particular, it generally precedes the verb. |
| Mos XIV |
Kindred words (e.g., figura etymologica; personal and demonstrative pronouns) tend to stand together in a sentence (e.g., voce vocavi). |
