ad astra per aspera to the stars through troubles
ad infinitum onward with no end
ad nauseam to the point of disgust
alma mater school that you used to go to
alter ego another personality
ante bellum before the war (American Civil War)
ars artis gratia art for the sake of art
ars longa, vita brevis art is long, life is short
(art endures when life is gone)
bona fide in good faith, true or genuine
carpe diem seize the day, take every opportunity
cave canem beware of the dog
corpus delicti body of the crime
cum grano salis with a grain of salt
cum laude with praise (diploma)
de facto concerning the fact, actual (but not official)
de iure by right, legally
de mortuis nil nisi bonum speak only good of the
dead
dramatis personae characters of a play
e pluribus unum one out of many
errare est humanum to err is human
"Et tu, Brute?" "Even you, Brutus?" (Said by Julius
Caesar as he died.)
exit; exeunt he (she) goes out; they go out
ex libris from the books (of)
ex officio by virtue of office (said of a condition
due not to merit but to position)
ex post facto enacted after the fact; retroactive
ex tempore without time, with little preparation,
on the spur of the moment
"Festina lente" "Hurry slowly!" (A favorite expression
of Augustus)
homo sapiens human being (species name)
in absentia in absence, acting in place of (the person
who is absent)
"In hoc signo vinces." "In this sign you will conquer."
(From a dream of Constantine I, these words were seen by a cross in the
sky.)
in loco parentis in the place of a parent (legal
phrase for guardian)
in memoriam to the memory of
in re in the matter of; concerning
in toto on the whole, entirely (taking into
consideration all parts)
ipso facto by the very fact itself (with no other
considerations)
lapsus linguae slip of the tongue (or pen or keyboard)
magna cum laude with great praise (diploma)
magnum opus great work (usually a masterpiece, a
great work of art)
"mens sana in corpore sano" "a sound mind in a sound
body" (Juvenal's idea of all that man should hope for.)
modus operandi method of operation
multum in parvo much in something small
non compos mentis not possessing a (sound) mind
"Pater Noster" "Our Father" (beginning of Lord's
Prayer in Latin)
pater patriae father of the country
pax tecum; pax vobiscum peace go with you (singular);
peace go with you (plural)
per annum per year, yearly
per capita by heads, per person
per diem per day, daily
per se by itself, essentially
persona non grata an unacceptable (or unpleasing)
person
post mortem after death
prima facie on first sight or appearance (which of
course can be deceiving)
pro and con(tra) for and against
pro bono publico for the common good
pro forma for the sake of appearance (without real
purpose or function)
pro tem(porem) for the time being, temporarily
quid pro quo something for something, "I'll scratch
your back, if you scratch mine."
semper fi(delis) always faithful (motto of U.S. Marines)
semper paratus always ready
sic transit gloria mundi thus passes the glory
of the world, in this way the world's splendor ends
sine die indefinitely, without setting a day
sine qua non something essential
S.P.Q.R. (Senatus Populusque Romanus) The Senate and Roman
People (like U.S.A.)
status quo the existing state of affairs
sub poena summons to court ("under penalty")
summa cum laude with the highest praise (diploma)
tempus fugit time flies
terra firma strong (or steady) earth, the dry land
terra incognita unknown land
vade mecum a go-with-me, a constant companion (this
is said of anything which you carry everywhere you go)
"Veni, vidi, vici" "I came, I saw, I conquered"
(Said by Julius Caesar after the battle of Zela.)
verbatim word for word
via by way of
vice versa in reverse, the other way around
viva voce by spoken word, by word of mouth
vox populi, vox Dei the voice of the people is the
voice of God
Degree Titles
B.A. (Baccalaureus Artium) B.A. (non-science 4-year degree)
B.S. (Baccalaureus Scientiae) B.S. (science 4-year degree)--
sometimes B.Sc.
M.A. (Magister Artium) M.A. (non-science mid-level degree)
M.S. (Magister Scientiae) M.S. (science mid-level degree)--
sometimes M.Sc.
L.L. D. (Legum Doctor) Lawyer's degree
M. D. (Medicinae Doctor) Medical doctor's degree
Ph. D. (Philosophiae Doctor) Highest academic degree
More Abbreviations
A.D. - anno Domini in the year of our Lord
ad lib. - ad libitum at pleasure
A.M. - ante meridiem before noon
cf. - confer compare
e.g. - exempli gratia for example
et al. - et alii and others
etc. - et cetera and the rest, and so forth
ibid. - ibidem in the same place
i.e. - id est that is
N.B. - nota bene note well, take note of
op. cit. - opere citato in the work mentioned
per cent. - per centum by the hundred
P.M. - post meridiem after noon
pro tem. - pro tempore for the time being
P.S. - post scriptum postscript, written afterwards
q.v. - quid vide which see, see this thing
viz. - videlicet one may see, namely, ("duh")
vs. - versus against
FINIS (end)