The fourth conjugation is small but includes verbs you meet constantly - audire (to hear), venire (to come), dormire (to sleep), scire (to know).
Can recognize Fourth conjugation present in a short Latin prompt
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
Audīmus vōcēs in viā.
We hear voices in the street.
Puer ad lūdum venit.
The boy comes to school.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
The fourth conjugation is small but includes verbs you meet constantly - audire (to hear), venire (to come), dormire (to sleep), scire (to know). Its mark is the long i in the infinitive ending -ire, and that i stays loud and clear through the present tense.
Here is the present tense of audio (I hear):
| Person | Latin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 1st sg. | audio | I hear |
| 2nd sg. | audis | you hear |
| 3rd sg. | audit | he/she/it hears |
| 1st pl. | audimus | we hear |
| 2nd pl. | auditis | you (all) hear |
| 3rd pl. | audiunt | they hear |
Examples: Vocem audio. - I hear a voice. Amici veniunt. - The friends are coming.
For English speakers: the trap is the "they" form. You might expect "audint", but the fourth conjugation slips in an extra u: the ending is -iunt, giving audiunt, veniunt. Remember too that the single Latin present covers three English shades - venit means "he comes", "he is coming", and "he does come" - so choose the English that fits the sentence; Latin does not spell out that difference.
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises
Practice ExercisesAudīmus vōcēs in viā.
We hear voices in the street.
Audimus - the long i holds through almost every form, which makes the fourth conjugation easier than the third. The exception is before -t and -nt: audit, audiunt.
Puer ad lūdum venit.
The boy comes to school.
Venit here is present. The Roman word for a child's school is ludus - the same word as 'game'; schola in classical Latin is a lecture or philosophical school.
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Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises