science

Latin conditional clauses

Latin conditional clauses is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Latin conditional clauses rather than just read about it. In short: Conditional clauses in Latin are clauses which start with the conjunction sī 'if' or the equivalent. The 'if'-clause in a conditional sentence is known as the protasis, and the consequence is called the apodosis.

Key takeaways

Latin conditional clauses belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Latin conditional clauses to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Latin conditional clauses from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Conditional clauses in Latin are clauses which start with the conjunction sī 'if' or the equivalent. The 'if'-clause in a conditional sentence is known as the protasis, and the consequence is called the apodosis. Conditional clauses are generally divided into three types: open conditions, when the truth of the condition is unknown ('if it is true that...'); ideal conditions, in which the speaker imagines a situation or event which might occur in the future ('if this were to happen...'); and unreal conditions, referring to an event or situation in the present or past known to be contrary to fact ('if it were true that...'). These three are also sometimes referred to as Type 1, Type 2, and Type 3 respectively. Open conditional clauses in turn can be divided into particular and general. Open conditional sentences generally use the indicative mood in both protasis and apodosis, although in some general conditions the subjunctive mood is used in the protasis. Ideal and unreal conditionals use the subjunctive in the protasis, and usually they also use the subjunctive in the apodosis, though sometimes the indicative may be used. Conditional clauses of comparison ('as if') also use the subjunctive mood in the protasis. Conditional clauses sometimes overlap in meaning with other types of clause, such as concessive ('although'), causal ('in view of the fact that'), or temporal ('whenever'). The conjunction sī is only rarely used in classical Latin to introduce indirect questions, although this usage is found in medieval Latin and is common in Greek and in modern Romance languages such as French and Italian. The use of 'if' to make a wish, found in ancient Greek, is not usual in Latin, except sometimes in poetry.

Main types of conditional clause A summary of the main types of conditional clause is given in the table below. The subjunctive is used in the protasis of ideal and unreal conditions, and also in some types of general conditions. In the apodosis of ideal and unreal conditions, the verb is usually subjunctive, but sometimes the indicative is used. A difference from English grammar is that in open future conditions, it is usual in Latin to use one of the future tenses, when English has the present tense. Apart from the types mentioned below it is also possible to have mixed conditionals, for example with different tenses in protasis and apodosis.

Conditional conjunctions

Positive conjunctions The usual conjunction in a conditional clause is sī, for which see the examples below.

sīn The conjunction sīn 'but if', 'if on the other hand' is used for the second of two opposite conditions:

haec igitur, sī es Rōmae; sīn abes aut etiam sī ades, haec negōtia sīc sē habent (Cicero) 'so this is how it is, if you are at Rome; but if you are away or even if you are there, the business is as I say'

sīve ... sīve The pair sīve ... sīve (or Livy's preferred form seu ... seu) 'whether ... or' often does not introduce a full conditional clause and an appropriate verb has to be supplied by the reader:

sīve cāsū sīve cōnsiliō deōrum immortālium (Caesar) 'whether (it happened) by chance or by some plan of the immortal gods' Sometimes, however, a verb is added:

bella ista, seu falsa seu vēra sunt (Livy) 'those wars of yours, whether they are imaginary or real' Sometimes the two words can introduce two alternative apodoses, in the same way as sī ... sīn:

seu tū deus es, potes esse Cupīdō; sīve es mortālis, quī tē genuēre beātī (Ovid) 'if you are a god, you may be Cupid; or if you are mortal, blessed are those who bore you'

quod sī The combination quod sī 'but if' or 'if, however' can also introduce an alternative:

quod sī maior is tumor est, commodius tōtum excīditur (Celsus) 'if, however, the tumor is a large one, it is better for it to be completely cut out'

etsī, etiamsī The combination etsī means 'although', and it is often followed in the apodosis by tamen 'nonetheless':

Datamēs etsī longē aberat ab iīs regiōnibus, tamen rēgis voluntātī mōrem gerendum putāvit (Nepos) 'although Datames was a long way away from that region, yet he thought it best to humour the king's wish' Another frequent combination, slightly more emphatic, is etiam sī (or etiamsī) 'even if', 'even though':

nec minus līber sum quam vōs, etiam sī pauperem pater mē relīquit (Petronius) 'and I am just no less free than you, even though my father left me poor'

siquidem The conjunction siquidem or sī quidem means 'if indeed' or 'if it's true that':

et causa iūsta est, siquidem ita est ut praedicās (Plautus) 'and the cause is a good one, if indeed it is as you claim' siquidem mēcum fābulārī vīs, subsequere (Plautus) 'if you want to talk to me, follow me' siquidem pol mē quaeris, adsum praesēns praesentī tibī (Plautus) 'if you're looking for me, here I am, present in your presence' It also can have a causal meaning, 'in view of the fact that':

obscūra est historia Rōmāna, siquidem istīus rēgis mātrem habēmus, ignōrāmus patrem (Cicero) 'Roman history is obscure, in view of the fact that we know that king's mother, but have no idea who his father was'

sī modō Another combination, sī modō 'if indeed', expresses doubt that the situation mentioned is in fact true:

quid sit quod sē ā mē remōvit, sī modō remōvit, ignōrō (Cicero) 'what has caused him to keep away from me, if indeed he has done so, I have no idea' In other sentences it has the meaning similar to dummodo 'provided that':

facilem esse rem, seu maneant seu proficīscantur, sī modō ūnum omnēs sentiant ac probent (Caesar) '(he said) there was no difficulty, whether they stayed or marched, provided that they all shared and approved one plan' Varrō ... inclūdētur in aliquem locum, sī modō erit locus (Cicero) 'Varro ... will be fitted in somewhere provided there is room'

sī quis Indefinite conditional clauses often use the combinations sī quis 'if anyone', sī quid 'if anything', sī quī 'if any', sī quisquam 'if anyone at all', sī quicquam 'if anything at all', sī quandō 'if at any time', 'if ever', sī quā 'if in any way':

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Latin conditional clauses

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Latin conditional clauses claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Latin conditional clauses before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Latin conditional clauses ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Latin conditional clauses

In research: Latin conditional clauses appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Latin conditional clauses in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Latin conditional clauses is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Clauses, Latin grammar, Natural language conditionals, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Latin conditional clauses outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Latin conditional clauses in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Latin conditional clauses means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Latin conditional clauses out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Latin conditional clauses in simple terms?

Why does Latin conditional clauses matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Latin conditional clauses?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Latin conditional clauses.