Classical Languages - Latin - Morphology - Verbs - Indicative Active: Present System

Indicative Active: Present System

This page covers the three tenses built on the present stem: the present, the imperfect and the future, in the active voice of the indicative, for all five conjugation types. It also covers the verb sum, which is needed from the first sentence, and the imperative, the mood of commands. The perfect tenses are on the next page, and the passive follows after that. The complete conjugation tables are collected in Paradigms: regular verbs.

Building a verb form

Every form in the present system is made in the same way:

present stem + tense sign + personal ending

1. Find the present stem from the second principal part (the infinitive without -re): amā-, monē-, rege-, cape-, audī-.
2. Add the tense sign. The present has none; the imperfect and the future each have their own.
3. Add the personal ending: -ō/-m, -s, -t, -mus, -tis, -nt.
4. Check the vowel length. A long vowel before a final -t or -nt is shortened: amāt becomes amat, amānt becomes amant.

The tense signs

Tense	1st	2nd	3rd	3rd in -iō	4th
Present	stem vowel ā	ē	i / u	i / iu	ī / iu
Imperfect	-bā-	-bā-	-ēbā-	-iēbā-	-iēbā-
Future	-bi- (-bō, -bunt)	-bi-	-a-, -ē-	-ia-, -iē-	-ia-, -iē-

Two points stand out in this table. The imperfect is regular everywhere (-bā- added to the stem). The future has two patterns: the 1st and 2nd conjugations use the -bi- future (amābō, monēbō), and the 3rd, -iō and 4th conjugations use the -a-/-ē- future (regam, regēs).

Present indicative active

Person	1st: amō	2nd: moneō	3rd: regō	3rd -iō: capiō	4th: audiō
1st sing.	amō	moneō	regō	capiō	audiō
2nd sing.	amās	monēs	regis	capis	audīs
3rd sing.	amat	monet	regit	capit	audit
1st pl.	amāmus	monēmus	regimus	capimus	audīmus
2nd pl.	amātis	monētis	regitis	capitis	audītis
3rd pl.	amant	monent	regunt	capiunt	audiunt

Notes

1. Meaning. The Latin present covers I love, I am loving and I do love. Context chooses.
2. The stem vowel is long in the 1st and 2nd conjugations (amās, amāmus, amātis; monēs, monēmus, monētis) and short before -t and -nt (amat, amant; monet, monent).
3. The 3rd conjugation has a short i as a connecting vowel (regis, regit, regimus, regitis), and u in the third person plural (regunt). The first person has none: regō.
4. The -iō verbs look like the 3rd in the second person singular and in the first and second person plural (capis, capimus, capitis), but keep the i in the first person and the third person plural (capiō, capiunt).
5. The 4th conjugation has a long ī in audīs, audīmus, audītis and a short i in audit and audiunt. The long ī is what distinguishes capis, capimus, capitis from audīs, audīmus, audītis.
6. Accent follows the rule of the penult, so it moves along the verb: A-mō, A-mās, A-mat, a-MĀ-mus, a-MĀ-tis, A-mant.

Examples

Videō meliōra probōque, dēteriōra sequor.

I see the better and approve it, I follow the worse. (Ovid, Metamorphoses 7.20–21; videō is 2nd, probō 1st; sequor is a deponent)

Nesciō, sed fierī sentiō.

I do not know, but I feel it happening. (Catullus 85.2, first half; sentiō and nesciō are 4th)

Arma virumque canō.

I sing of arms and the man. (Vergil, Aeneid 1.1; canō, 3rd)

Homō sum: hūmānī nihil ā mē aliēnum putō.

I am a man: I think nothing human foreign to me. (Terence, Heauton Timorumenos 77)

Imperfect indicative active

Person	amō	moneō	regō	capiō	audiō
1st sing.	amābam	monēbam	regēbam	capiēbam	audiēbam
2nd sing.	amābās	monēbās	regēbās	capiēbās	audiēbās
3rd sing.	amābat	monēbat	regēbat	capiēbat	audiēbat
1st pl.	amābāmus	monēbāmus	regēbāmus	capiēbāmus	audiēbāmus
2nd pl.	amābātis	monēbātis	regēbātis	capiēbātis	audiēbātis
3rd pl.	amābant	monēbant	regēbant	capiēbant	audiēbant

Notes

1. Formation. Present stem + -bā- + personal ending, and for the 3rd, -iō and 4th conjugations a long ē before the -bā-: reg-ē-bā-s, capi-ē-bā-s, audi-ē-bā-s.
2. Meaning. The imperfect describes a continuing, repeated or background action in the past: I was loving, I used to love, I kept loving. It is the tense of scene-setting and description, in contrast to the perfect, which reports an event.
3. Length of the a. In -bā- the vowel is long except before a final -m, -t or -nt: amābam, amābat, amābant, but amābās, amābāmus, amābātis.
4. No ambiguity with the future. The imperfect always has -bā- or -ēbā-. The -bi- of the future is a different element.

Example

Ūnus erat tōtō nātūrae vultus in orbe.

There was one face of nature in the whole world. (Ovid, Metamorphoses 1.6; erat is the imperfect of sum, setting the scene before creation)

Future indicative active

Person	amō	moneō	regō	capiō	audiō
1st sing.	amābō	monēbō	regam	capiam	audiam
2nd sing.	amābis	monēbis	regēs	capiēs	audiēs
3rd sing.	amābit	monēbit	reget	capiet	audiet
1st pl.	amābimus	monēbimus	regēmus	capiēmus	audiēmus
2nd pl.	amābitis	monēbitis	regētis	capiētis	audiētis
3rd pl.	amābunt	monēbunt	regent	capient	audient

Notes

1. Two patterns. The 1st and 2nd conjugations form the future with -bi-: amā-bi-s, with -bō in the first person and -bunt in the third plural. The 3rd, -iō and 4th conjugations use -a- in the first person singular and -ē- in the other persons: reg-a-m, reg-ē-s, reg-e-t.
2. Watch the first person. regam is future, I shall rule. Never form the future of a 3rd conjugation verb with -bi-.
3. Possible confusion with the present. monēs is the present of moneō, you warn, while regēs is the future of regō, you will rule. The same ending belongs to different tenses depending on the conjugation, so the dictionary form decides.
4. Meaning. I shall love, I will love. (English shall in the first person and will in the others is the traditional pairing, though both are usually acceptable.)
5. Length of vowels. -bi- has a short i (amābis, amābit, amābimus); the ē of the 3rd and 4th conjugations is long except before final -t and -nt (reget, regent).

Examples

Forsan et haec ōlim meminisse iuvābit.

Perhaps one day it will be pleasing to remember even this. (Vergil, Aeneid 1.203; iuvābit, 1st conjugation future)

Nōn omnis moriar, multaque pars meī vītābit Lībitīnam.

I shall not wholly die, and a great part of me will escape Libitina. (Horace, Odes 3.30.6–7; vītābit, 1st conjugation future; moriar is a deponent)

The verb sum

The verb sum, esse, fuī, futūrus, be, is irregular and is the most frequent verb in Latin. Its present system:

Person	Present	Imperfect	Future
1st sing.	sum	eram	erō
2nd sing.	es	erās	eris
3rd sing.	est	erat	erit
1st pl.	sumus	erāmus	erimus
2nd pl.	estis	erātis	eritis
3rd pl.	sunt	erant	erunt

The stem is es-, which becomes er- between vowels. The imperfect and the future are made with er-, and the endings are regular.

Uses of sum:

1. Linking verb. It joins the subject to a noun or adjective in the nominative: Gallia est magna, Gaul is large. Both the subject and the predicate are in the nominative.
2. Existence. Deus est, God exists; Ūnus erat tōtō nātūrae vultus, there was one face of nature.
3. Auxiliary. sum is also used to build the perfect tenses of the passive, which the passive page covers.

sum is intransitive, so it has no passive. The other forms and compounds (possum and the rest) are treated on the page Irregular verbs.

The imperative

The imperative expresses a command. The present imperative has only the second person:

Conjugation	Singular	Plural
1st	amā	amāte
2nd	monē	monēte
3rd	rege	regite
3rd in -iō	cape	capite
4th	audī	audīte
sum	es	este

The singular is the bare present stem. The plural adds -te, with -i- in the 3rd conjugation: regite.

Irregular imperatives

Four verbs drop the final -e of the singular:

Verb	Singular	Plural
dīcō	dīc	dīcite
dūcō	dūc	dūcite
faciō	fac	facite
ferō	fer	ferte

The future imperative

A future imperative exists, with endings in -tō, -tōte and -ntō: amātō, amātōte, amantō, estō, suntō. It is used in laws, rules and solemn instructions, for example lēx estō in the legal maxim salūs populī suprēma lēx estō (Cicero, De Legibus 3.3.8).

Negative commands

A negative command is not made with nōn and the imperative. The usual form is the imperative of nōlō followed by the infinitive: nōlī amāre, do not love; nōlīte amāre. The verb nōlō is treated on the page Irregular verbs, and the other negative constructions come with the subjunctive.

Examples

Carpe diem.

Seize the day. (Horace, Odes 1.11.8; carpe, 3rd)

Cavē canem.

Beware of the dog. (cavē, 2nd)

Dā mī bāsia mīlle.

Give me a thousand kisses. (Catullus 5.7; dā, imperative of dō, with mī for mihi)

Parsing practice

Give the person, number, tense and the dictionary entry of each form.

1. amābit
2. regēbat
3. audient
4. monēs
5. capiēs
6. regēs
7. eritis
8. audiēbāmus
9. capimus
10. vidēmus

Answers

1. Future, 3rd singular: amō, amāre.
2. Imperfect, 3rd singular: regō, regere.
3. Future, 3rd plural: audiō, audīre.
4. Present, 2nd singular: moneō, monēre.
5. Future, 2nd singular: capiō, capere.
6. Future, 2nd singular: regō, regere. Compare 4: the same ending is a present in the 2nd conjugation and a future in the 3rd.
7. Future, 2nd plural: sum, esse.
8. Imperfect, 1st plural: audiō, audīre.
9. Present, 1st plural: capiō, capere (short i, unlike audīmus).
10. Present, 1st plural: videō, vidēre.

Common pitfalls

• Confusing amābit (future) with amāvit (perfect). One letter separates them: b is the future sign, v the perfect sign.
• Forming the future of the 3rd conjugation with -bi-. The correct form is regam, regēs, not regēbō.
• Mixing monēs and regēs. The same ending is present or future according to the conjugation.
• Taking capis for a 4th conjugation form. Compare audīs: the 4th has a long ī.
• Forgetting that the imperfect is a description tense. Was loving is common, but used to love and kept loving are often better English.
• Ignoring the shortening before -t and -nt. amat, not amāt.
• Using nōn with the imperative. Use nōlī or nōlīte with an infinitive.
• Adding -e to dīc, dūc, fac, fer.

Self-test

1. Write the full present, imperfect and future of moneō in the 3rd person plural.
2. Give the 1st person singular, 2nd person singular and 3rd person plural of the future of regō and audiō.
3. How do you tell capis from audīs?
4. What tense is regēs, and why is the form not a present?
5. Translate: Nautae aquam portant. Dominus servōs monēbat. Magister librōs legit. Puer rosam capiet. Puella agricolam audiet.
6. Give the singular and plural imperatives of vocō, videō, mittō, dormiō and faciō.
7. Conjugate sum in the present, imperfect and future in the 3rd person singular and plural.
8. Why is dā (not dāte) the form used in the Catullus line, and what is its dictionary entry?
9. Say what the imperfect erat contributes to Ovid's Ūnus erat tōtō nātūrae vultus in orbe.

Answers

1. monent, monēbant, monēbunt.
2. regō: regam, regēs, regent (1st sing., 2nd sing., 3rd pl.); audiō: audiam, audiēs, audient.
3. The 3rd conjugation -iō verb has a short i (capis), the 4th a long ī (audīs); the infinitives capere and audīre show the same difference.
4. Future, 2nd singular of regō. The 3rd conjugation present has -is (regis); -ēs is the future ending.
5. The sailors carry water. The master was warning the slaves. The teacher reads books. The boy will take the rose. The girl will hear the farmer.
6. vocā, vocāte; vidē, vidēte; mitte, mittite; dormī, dormīte; fac, facite.
7. est, sunt; erat, erant; erit, erunt.
8. Catullus addresses one person (Lesbia), so he uses the singular. The entry is dō, dare, dedī, datum.
9. It sets the scene: it describes the state of the world in the past, before the creation, rather than reporting an event.

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