ROM: Lesson - Sight Reading Passage - Ignis!

The image shows a painting of a fire in Rome.

Sight Reading Passage - Ignis!

Help Decimus assist the fire brigade to put out the fire before it spreads throughout the city!

It is very important to practice reading and understanding Latin sentences. Below you will find a sight reading passage. Read each sentence aloud. Think about the case and use of the nouns? Is the noun functioning as an indirect object or showing possession? Is the noun the subject or the object of a preposition? Then practice translating each sentence into English. As you meet new vocabulary words in the story, think about English cognates and context within the sentences to help you decipher the meaning. Once you have read through the story, please use the Roma Sight Passage Reading Guide to take a closer look at the passage. The Reading Guide contains several vocabulary and grammar notes to help you understand what you are reading more clearly. The reading guide will help prepare you for the module test.

Painting: Indecendie de Rome by Hubert Robert, 1785, depicting a fire in Rome around the 1st century CE.

If you would like additional practice with the sight passage, please download the Roma Sight Passage Work File. It contains questions and exercises about the content and grammar found in the passage. Join Decimus at the dinner party and discover Roman hospitality.

Sight Passage

Please listen to the narration of the Latin passage as you read along with the text below.

Sight Reading Passage - Ignis!
Latin Text Translation and Vocabulary Help

Note: words/phrases that are in bold are explained in the Notes section

Mox Imperator Titus Decimum in Praetorianos initiavit. Decimus iam erat miles privatus Imperatoris.  Primum officium erat custodire Imperatorem. Multa officia vere habuit: cives a furibus in Foro Romano servavit et maleficos interrogavit; regiam Imperatoris in Colle Palatino curavit et hospites inimicos ab portis detinuit reppulitque; pugnas inter populos destitit et seditiones post cursus prope Circum Maximum etiam deposuit; et Imperatorem et turbam ad ludos custodivit; vigiles ignibus adiuvit. Opera nova Decimum valide delectaverunt. In officiis Decimus erat doctus et aequus et certus.
  • Praetorianos - Praetorian Guard (praetorianii, praetorianorum, m. pl.)
  • Primum - First, Primary, Main
  • erat custodire - was to guard
  • maleficos - criminals (maleficus, malefici, m.)
  • Colle Palatino - Palatine Hill
  • detinuit reppulitque - he kept away and removed
  • destitit - he stopped (destisto, destistere, destiti, destitus)
  • seditiones - riots (seditio, seditionis, f.)
  • post cursus - after the races
  • deposuit - put down, ended (depono, deponere, deposui, depositus)
  • turbam - crowd (turba, turbae, f.)
  • ad ludos - at the games
  • vigiles - firemen (vigil, vigilis, m.)
  • valide - greatly, strongly

Una nocte Decimus in vico, nomine Subura, circuitiones faciebat. Subura in valle inter Collem Viminalem et Collem Esqualinum iacet. Multi populi in Subura habitabant: plebes, mercatores, et etiam maleficos multos. Multi in Insulis habitabant.  Insulae erant aedificia alta cum multis viris et feminis et liberis. Multa tabulata habuerunt et erant periculosae: fabricatores Insulas materia arida aedificaverant. Multae Insulae tabernas in primo tabulato habuit.

Dum Decimus circumambulat, clamorem et magnas voces audivit. Subito fumam sensit: et ubi fumus, ibi ignis!
  • Una nocte - One night (ablative of time when)
  • Decimus in vico...circuitiones faciebat - Decimus was patrolling in a district (circuitionem facere is an idiom meaning - to make a round)
  • nomine Subura - called the Subura
  • Collem Viminalem - Viminal Hill
  • Collem Esqualinum - Esqualine Hill
  • iacet - lies, is situated (iaceo, iacere, iacui, iacitus)
  • plebes - common people (plebs, plebis, m/f)
  • Insulis - apartments (insulae, insularum, f.)
  • tabulata - stories (of a building), floors (tabulatum, tabulati, n.)
  • fabricatores - builders (fabricator, fabricatoris, m.)
  • materia arida - with dry wood (ablative of means)
  • in primo tabulato - on the ground floor
  • magnas voces - loud voices, shouting (magnus + sound = loud)
  • ubi fumus, ibi ignis - where there is smoke, there is fire! (note: Latin sometimes omits the linking verb from a common or short phrase. In this case, est should be used for both phrases)

Ignes in Subura saepe evenerunt. Flammae multas Insulas prius vastaverat et multos populous interfecerat. Paucos abhinc annos fuerat magnus ignis dum Nero regnat: flammae magnam partem urbis vastaverant. Nero consilium ceperat: auream regiam in loco ignis aedificavit. Regiam appellavit: “Domus Aurea”. Imperator superbus populum Romanum irritavit. Neronem non amaverunt quod regiam aedificaverat.

Incendium autem in Subura non erat historia! Decimus cum celeritate ad flagrantiam cucurrit. Non timebat. Vigiles invenit et dixit, “Quid facio?”

Vigil longus viris imperabat. Praetorianum vidit et respondit, “Duc populos ad salutem. Porta aquam. Coge viros. Flammae sunt valide calidae: custodi te.” Decimus statim paruit.
  • evenerunt - happened (evenio, evenire, eveni, eventus)
  • Paucos abhinc annos - A few years ago (accusative of time)
  • dum Nero regnat - while Nero was ruling
  • consilium ceperat - he had formed a plan (idiom: consilium capere = to form a plan)
  • auream - golden (aureus, aurea, aureum)
  • Domus Aurea - The Golden House
  • superbus - proud, haughty, arrogant (superbus, superba, superbum)
  • Quid facio? - What do I do?
  • Duc - Lead (imperative singular from the verb duco, ducere, duxi, ductus)
  • valide calidae - extremely hot (valide = strongly, but here is best used to create a superlative sense)

Ignis tres dies ardebat. Ad multas partes Romae tetendit. Decimus dure laboravit et multos populos servavit. Vix dormivit. Decimus memoriam Pompeiorum bene tenuit. Experientia docet! Quamquam Decimus et vigiles magnum laborem fecerunt, ignis multa aedificia aut corrupit aut vastavit: Aedem Iovis Optimi Maximi in Colle Capitolino et multa aedificia in Campo Martio: Pantheon Agrippae et Theatrum Pompeii et Saeptam Iuliam diribitoriumque. Modo Collis Caelius et Collis Aventinus et Collis Quirinalis calamitatem effugerunt.
  • tres dies - for three days (accusative of duration)
  • partes Romae - parts of Rome (this is a partitive genitive)
  • tetendit - it spread (tendo, tendere, tetendi, tentus)
  • memoriam Pompeiiorum...tenuit - (Decimus) remembered Pompeii (idiom: memoriam tenere = to remember, literally, it means "to hold the memory of" and so is completed with a genitive noun)
  • Experientia - Experience
  • Quamquam - Although
  • laborem fecerunt - (Decimus) made an effort (idiom: laborem facere - to make an effort)
  • aut...aut - either...or
  • corrupit - damaged (corrumpo, corrumpere, corrupi, corruptus)
  • Aedem - Temple (aedis, aedis, f. - temple. This is a synonum of templum, templi, n.)
  • Iovis Optimi Maximi - of Jupiter Optimus Maximus
  • Colle Capitolino - the Capitaline Hill
  • diribitoriumque - and the diribitorium (this was the place to cast votes)
  • et...et - et was sometimes used like we use a comma in a list: the Caelian Hill, the Aventine Hill and the Quirinal Hill 
  • calamitatem - damage (calamitas, calamitatis, f.)

Tandem tamen vigiles flagrantiam magnam concluserunt. Decimus ad Castra Praetoria reddidit. Pauca vulnera parva habuit sed iniuriam severam effugerat. Interim multos cives servaverat et vigiles magnopere adiuverat. Famae virtutis Decimi augebant. Imperator Titus de factis Decimi iterum audivit et militem laudavit.
  • concluserunt - (vigiles) stopped (concludo, concludere, conclusi, conclusus)
  • Interim - Meanwhile
  • magnopere - greatly
  • Famae - Rumors, Reports (fama, famae, f.)
  • virtutis - bravery (virtus, virtutis, m.)

Practice Activity