31 Adjectives have either distinct terminations for the three genders, or only two sets of terminations, by which the neuter is distinguished in the N. A. V. from the masculine and feminine.

(a) Adjectives of three terminations.

32 We have (a) masculines in -us or -er, like dominus and puer or magister; feminines in -a, like musa; and neuters in -um, like regnum: or (B) masculines in -er, like pater; feminines in -is, like puppis; and neuters in -e, like mare. Thus, we have (a) bonus, 'good;' tener, 'tender.'

If the fem. has no e before r, the e is omitted in the oblique cases, as in niger, nigra, nigrum, ‘black;' pulcher, pulcra, pulcrum, 'beautiful.' The only adjective of this class, in which r is preceded by u for ě is satur, satura, saturum, 'full,' 'sated,' 'stuffed.'

33 (8) There are thirteen adjectives of this class, namely: acer, 'keen;' alăcer, 'active;' campester, 'belonging to the field;' celeber, much frequented;' celer, 'swift;' equester, belonging to horsemen ;' paluster, 'marshy;' pedester, going on foot;' puter, 'rotten;' saluber, 'wholesome;' silvester, wooded;' terrester,' belonging to the land;' volucer, 'winged.' All of these, except celer, drop the e of the termination in every case except the nom. sing. masc. For example, acer, 'keen,' is thus declined by the side of celer, 'swift.'

But we have celerum in the gen. pl., when celeres signifies the old Roman knights.'

Some of these adjectives have -ris for -er in the nom. sing. masc., as in annus salubris, collis silvestris; but this is of rare occurrence, and mostly poetical.

Obs. 2 The names of months, as September, are masc. substantives in the nom. sing., but are used as adjectives agreeing with fem. nouns in such phrases as Kalendae Septembres, libertate Decembri, &c.

(b) Adjectives of two terminations.

34 Some, as tristis, 'sad' (declined like puppis and mare), mělior, 'better' (declined like flos and os, oris), distinguish the masculine from the neuter in the N. A. V. of both numbers; but if the N. sing. ends in -x, -rs, -as, or -ns, it serves for all three genders, as in felix, 'happy;' sollers, 'sagacious;' Larinas, 'of Larinum;' ingens, 'big' (declined like urbs and animal). In the comparative the neuter plural always ends in -ra, but although plus makes plura, complures makes both compluria and complura. The only adjective of this class, which has a for -ia in the neuter plural of the positive, is vetus, for veter, 'old,' which is declined like opus, and has vetera in the plural. Of those adjectives, which have a neuter plural, only vetus, bipes, quadrupes, versicolor, anceps, and praeceps have the gen. pl. in -um for -ium. But this form is regularly adopted for adjectives which have no neuter plural, and thus we have caelebs, caelib-um; dives, divit-um; inops, inop-um; pauper, paupĕr-um; memor (immemor), memor-um; sospes, sospitum; uber, ubĕr-um; compos, compot-um; supplex, supplic-um; anceps, ancipit-um; vigil, vigil-um; degener, degener-um; &c. Some nouns in -ns and even is occasionally shorten the gen. pl. from -ium to -um, in the poets, as parentum for parentium, sapientum for sapientium, and caelestum for caelestium. The following are the rules for the ablative singular of this class of adjectives:

(1) The regular form of the ablative in adjectives of classes a, B, and b is the same as that of the dative; but the. comparatives and adjectives of one ending in the nom. sing. have both e and in the ablative; thus we have celer, abl. celeri; tristis, abl. tristi; but melior, abl. meliore and meliori; felix, abl. felice and felici; though in the comparative the abl. in e is more usual.

(2) The adjectives. par, memor, immemor have only in the abl.; the compounds compar, impar, dispar have both e and i.

(3) The following adjectives have e only: compos, impos, abl. compote, impote; hospes, sospes, abl. hospite, sospite; pauper, puber, abl. paupĕre, pubère; senex, superstes, abl. sẽne, superstite. So also the compounds of corpus and pes, e. g. bicorpor, tricorpor, bipes, tripes; but quadrupes has both quadrupede and quadrupědi.

(4) The present participle in -ns, when it is not used as a mere adjective or epithet, but refers at once to the meaning of its verb, has generally an abl. in e only; thus, although we may write either sapiente or sapienti from sapiens the participle of sapio, used as a mere adjective signifying 'wise,' we must write imperante Augusto, 'when Augustus was ruling.'

(5) Adjectives of one ending in the nom. sing., which are sometimes used as substantives, generally have an abl. in e in that usage, but an abl. in i when they are construed with other substantives; such words are artifex, nutrix, victrix, vigil.

The adjectives, which have a gen. plur. in -ium, form their accus. pl. m. and f. in -îs or -eis in some MSS. of the best Latin authors, e. g. we have tris, omnis, fortis instead of tres, omnes, fortes.

Obs. 1 Some adjectives in is have by-forms in us; as acclivis, acclivus, rising,' 'sloping upwards;' hilaris, hilarus, 'merry;' bijugis, bijugus, with two horses' (similarly, quadrijugus or is); exanimis, exanimus, lifeless;' imbecillis (rare), imbecillus, 'weak;' inermis, inermus, 'unarmed;' unanimis, unanimus, 'of one mind,' &c.

Obs. 2 A few adjectives in -ns have by-forms in -ntus, as opulens, opulentus, 'rich;' violens, violentus, 'violent.'

Obs. 3 Dives, 'rich,' makes ditia in the neuter plural.

Obs. 4 Some adjectives, which have no neuter plural of the nom. and accus., are construed with neuter-substantives in the dat. and abl. pl.; thus we have discoloribus signis, supplicibus verbis, puberibus foliis.

Obs. 5 Substantives are occasionally used as adjectives with various degrees of irregularity; thus artifex, which means 'one who makes by art,' is used as an adjective in the sense 'artificial,' i. e. 'made by art;' as artifices motus, 'artificial motions;' artifices boves, 'oxen made by art.' By a curious apposition, we have incola turba, 'a crowd of inhabitants;' and even agricola aratrum, 'the plough which cultivates the fields.'

Obs. 6 Substantives in -tor have feminines in -trix, and both are used as adjectives with corresponding masculine and feminine nouns; as victor exercitus, Mars ultor, victrix causa, ultrices deae. But the poets treat the feminine as a regular adjective after the model of felix, and we have neuter plurals, as victricia arma, 'the victorious arms;' ultricia tela, 'the avenging weapons.' So also hospes, 'the guest,' gives a neuter plural, as in hospita aequora, the hospitable seas.'

35 Certain distinctive adjectives, which might be termed pronouns, follow the declension of the pronouns in the G. and D. singular, which they form in -ius and -i; such as unus, 'one;' alius, 'another;' uter, which of two;' alter, one of two ;' ullus, any at all;' nullus, none at all;' solus, 'alone;' totus, 'whole;' neuter, neither;' uterque, both;' utervis, uterlibet, 'whichever you please,' &c. Alius (like ille, 'that other,' of which it is a by-form; see below, 62) makes the N. A. sing. neut. in -ud,