Uses of the Supine - Dative/Ablative

The Supine can be used in the Accusative or Dative/Ablative.

Dative/Ablative Uses of the Supine

Of the two uses, the dative/ablative is less common and highly restricted in use. Ironically, it is also the more notable of the two uses. This is a form of dative of purpose (or ablative of specification), and is used with certain adjectives and a handful of specific nouns (fas (right), nefas (wrong), opus (useful)). In the introduction, we saw the phrase mirabile visu (amazing to see), which is one of the possible adjective + verb combinations utilizing the dative/ablative supine.

Only a handful of verbs typically form the dative/ablative supine, namely:

auditu - to hear
dictu - to say, report, tell
factu - to do
inventu - to find
memoratu - to remember
natu - to be born, to begin
visu - to see

Examples

Est fas memoratu.
- It is right to remember.
rem non modo visu foedam, sed etiam auditu (Cicero, Philippics, 2.63)
- a thing not only shocking to see, but even to hear of

Note: with adjectives like facilis or difficilis, it is often more common to see ad + gerund, though the supine can be used. Compare the supine use to the gerund use:

Nec visu facilis nec dictu adfabilis ulli. (Vergil, Aeneid, 3.621)
- He is not pleasant for any man to look at nor is he easy to address.
difficilis ad distinguendum similitudo (Cicero, De Oratore, 2.212)
- a likeness difficult to distinguish