LATIN NOTES ETYMOLOGY
AD HOC FOR THIS PURPOSE A temporary assignment; For a specific task
AD HOMINEM AGAINST THE MAN Attack the man, not the issue
AD INFINITUM WITHOUT LIMIT Forever; endlessly
AD LIBITUM (AD LIB) AT PLEASURE Extemporaneous speech
AD NAUSEAM TO SEASICKNESS To the point of causing nausea
ANNUIT COEPTIS HE HAS FAVORED OUR UNDERTAKING Motto on the US dollar bill
ALMA MATER NOURISHING MOTHER Romans used this to refer to the country of their birth; Reference to one’s college or university
ALTER EGO ANOTHER SELF An inseparable friend; Another aspect of one’s personality
ALUMNUS (ALUMNA, ALUMNAE, ALUMNI) FOSTER SON; PUPIL Graduate
AMOR VINCIT OMNIA LOVE CONQUERS ALL From works by Virgil and Chaucer (prologue in The Canterbury Tales)
ANNO DOMINI (A.D.) IN THE YEAR OF THE LORD Used to indicate that a time division falls within the period dating from the birth of Christ; sometimes written as CE (common era); BCE (before common era) predates AD/CE
A POSTERIORI FROM WHAT COMES AFTER Inductive reasoning from particular to general; Generalization based on assumptions
A PRIORI FROM WHAT COMES BEFORE Deductive reasoning; consequences deduced from principles derived from prior knowledge
ARS GRATIA ARTIS ART FOR ART’S SAKE Creating something just to create it, there is no specific purpose; MGM studio trademark
ARS LONGA, VITA BREVIS ART IS LONG, LIFE IS SHORT Art will last after the artist is gone; axiom coined by Hippocrates
BONA FIDE IN GOOD FAITH Honest; sincere offer; Documentation; credentials
CARPE DIEM SEIZE THE DAY Take action now; “Strike while the iron is hot”
CASUS BELLI CAUSE OF WAR An act or event that provokes or is used to justify war
CAVEAT LET HIM BEWARE Warning; Admonition
CAVEAT EMPTOR LET THE BUYER BEWARE Get it in writing
CIRCA (C.) ABOUT, AROUND “This book was written circa 1870.”
COGITO ERGO SUM I THINK THEREFORE I AM Descartes “Discourse on Reasoning”; starting point for Cartesian philosophy known as Idealism (Plato) or Realism (Aristotle)
CUM LAUDE WITH PRAISE Earned by student with a of GPA 3.0 - 3.49
MAGNA CUM LAUDE WITH GREAT PRAISE Earned by student with a of GPA 3.5 - 3.79
SUMMA CUM LAUDE WITH HIGHEST PRAISE Earned by student with a of GPA 3.8 – 4.0