see your target and strike swiftly

Latin translation: inimicum conspectum cito caede.

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
English term or phrase:see your target and strike swiftly
Latin translation:inimicum conspectum cito caede.
Entered by: David Wigtil

21:18 Jun 11, 2002
English to Latin translations [Non-PRO]
Art/Literary
English term or phrase: see your target and strike swiftly
motto
jennie morris
inimicum conspectum cito caede.
Explanation:
USAGE:
Use "inimicum conspectum cito caede" if speaking/writing to just one person (singular). Use "inimicum conspectum cito caedite" if more than one (plural). Mottoes are often poetic, so the alliteration of three C- words here adds a lilt.

VOCABULARY:
Rather literally this means, "Strike (down) the enemy quickly, once seen/spotted." "Inimicum" means a personal enemy ("hostem" would be an enemy army) -- no Latin word means "target" and "goal" simultaneously, as "target" itself can. If the Romans were going to "strike" something/someone, it must have been a hostile! The Latin phrase does not sound like your average New Year's Resolution.

GRAMMAR:
Latin typically rolls up multi-verb expressions into a single clause with one verb only, with the additional verb(s) rendered as participles, gerundives, or other verb-derived adjectives or nouns. These verbal "thingies" generally are the sense-focus in Latin, even if their exactly corresponding constructions in English seem to focus on the noun, instead. So the force of "inimicum conspectum" really is, "Spot the enemy!"

--Loquamur
Ph. D. in ancient Greek
College professor of Greek and Latin



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Note added at 2002-06-12 14:31:53 (GMT)
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PRONUNCIATION:
Classical Latin pronunciation (Cicero, Caesar, Vergil, and other first-century B.C. writers) would sound approcimately like this: \"inn-ih-MEE-koom kohn-SPECK-toom KITT-oh KY-deh\" (where KY- rhymes with \"my\" and \"bye\" and \"sigh\").
Medieval or ecclesiastical Latin pronunciation (roughly 6th-8th century time frame, and in church usage even today) would pronounce the phrase approximately as: \"een-ee-MEE-koom kohn-SPECK-toom CHITT-oh CHAY-day\" (where each \"ay\" rhymes with \"day\" and \"bay\" and \"sleigh\".) This loses the alliterative effect, of course, that I noted earlier.
Selected response from:

David Wigtil
United States
Local time: 12:25
Grading comment
Many thanks for your trouble!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
5inimicum conspectum cito caede.
David Wigtil
4Vide nimicum et cito age
Nicola (Mr.) Nobili


  

Answers


10 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
Vide nimicum et cito age


Explanation:
I have modified it a bit, just for the hell of it, I hope you don't mind. :-)
Literally, it means: "See your enemy and act quickly".

Nicola (Mr.) Nobili
Italy
Local time: 17:25
Native speaker of: Native in ItalianItalian

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Antoinette Verburg: I think that should be 'inimicum'...
2 hrs
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16 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
inimicum conspectum cito caede.


Explanation:
USAGE:
Use "inimicum conspectum cito caede" if speaking/writing to just one person (singular). Use "inimicum conspectum cito caedite" if more than one (plural). Mottoes are often poetic, so the alliteration of three C- words here adds a lilt.

VOCABULARY:
Rather literally this means, "Strike (down) the enemy quickly, once seen/spotted." "Inimicum" means a personal enemy ("hostem" would be an enemy army) -- no Latin word means "target" and "goal" simultaneously, as "target" itself can. If the Romans were going to "strike" something/someone, it must have been a hostile! The Latin phrase does not sound like your average New Year's Resolution.

GRAMMAR:
Latin typically rolls up multi-verb expressions into a single clause with one verb only, with the additional verb(s) rendered as participles, gerundives, or other verb-derived adjectives or nouns. These verbal "thingies" generally are the sense-focus in Latin, even if their exactly corresponding constructions in English seem to focus on the noun, instead. So the force of "inimicum conspectum" really is, "Spot the enemy!"

--Loquamur
Ph. D. in ancient Greek
College professor of Greek and Latin



--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-06-12 14:31:53 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

PRONUNCIATION:
Classical Latin pronunciation (Cicero, Caesar, Vergil, and other first-century B.C. writers) would sound approcimately like this: \"inn-ih-MEE-koom kohn-SPECK-toom KITT-oh KY-deh\" (where KY- rhymes with \"my\" and \"bye\" and \"sigh\").
Medieval or ecclesiastical Latin pronunciation (roughly 6th-8th century time frame, and in church usage even today) would pronounce the phrase approximately as: \"een-ee-MEE-koom kohn-SPECK-toom CHITT-oh CHAY-day\" (where each \"ay\" rhymes with \"day\" and \"bay\" and \"sleigh\".) This loses the alliterative effect, of course, that I noted earlier.


David Wigtil
United States
Local time: 12:25
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in pair: 60
Grading comment
Many thanks for your trouble!
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