In Latin grammar, the ablative absolute (Ablativus absolutus) is a noun phrase cast in the ablative case. It indicates the time, condition, or attending circumstances of an action being described in the main sentence. Jump to: navigation, search Latin is an Indo-European language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ... Grammar is the discovery, enunciation, and study of rules governing the use of language. ... A noun, or noun substantive, is a word or phrase that refers to a person, place, thing, event, substance or quality. ... A phrase is a group of words that functions as a single unit in the syntax of a sentence. ... For the physical process, see ablation. ...

It takes the place of, and translates, many phrases that would require a subordinate clause in English. The unfamiliarity of this construction makes it sometimes difficult for Latin students to grasp; however, mastery of this construction is needed to write Latin well, and its availability makes Latin prose quite concise. The closest English equivalent is the nominative absolute (see below). A clause is a group of words consisting of a subject and a predicate, although, in non-finite clauses, the subject is often not explicitly given. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... A nominative absolute is a free-standing (absolute) part of a sentence that describes or modifies the main subject and verb. ...

The ablative absolute is grammatically independent of the rest of the sentence. It typically combines a noun or pronoun with an adjective, which is often a participle. A common translation strategy for this type of ablative absolute is "with the NOUN having been VERBed." The translation can then be finessed into more common English based upon context: A noun, or noun substantive, is a word or phrase that refers to a person, place, thing, event, substance or quality. ... Jump to: navigation, search In linguistics and grammar, a pronoun is a pro-form that substitutes for a noun or noun phrase with or without a determiner, such as you and they in English. ... Jump to: navigation, search An adjective is a part of speech which modifies a noun, usually making its meaning more specific. ... In linguistics, a participle is an adjective derived from a verb. ...

Urbe capta, Aeneas fugit

"The city having been captured, Aeneas fled."

"With the city having been captured, Aeneas fled."

"When the city was captured, Aeneas fled."

Nouns, also, are often found in the ablative absolute construction: Jump to: navigation, search Aeneas (or Aineias) was a Trojan hero, the son of prince Anchises and the goddess Aphrodite (Venus in Roman sources). ... Jump to: navigation, search Aeneas (or Aineias) was a Trojan hero, the son of prince Anchises and the goddess Aphrodite (Venus in Roman sources). ... Jump to: navigation, search Aeneas (or Aineias) was a Trojan hero, the son of prince Anchises and the goddess Aphrodite (Venus in Roman sources). ...

Cn. Pompeio M. Crasso consulibus. . .

"When Gnaeus Pompey and Marcus Crassus were consuls. . ."

Ovidio exule Musae planguntur.

"The Muses wept because Ovid was an exile."

as are adjectives: Jump to: navigation, search Pompey the Great Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (Latin: CN·POMPEIVS·CN·F·SEX·N·MAGNVS¹) (September 29, 106 BC – September 29, 48 BC), commonly referred to in English as either Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a distinguished and ambitious Roman military leader, provincial administrator and politician... Marcus Licinius Crassus Dives (c. ... Jump to: navigation, search For other uses see Muse (disambiguation). ... Jump to: navigation, search Engraved frontispiece of George Sandyss 1632 London edition of Publius Ovidius Naso (Sulmona, March 20, 43 BC â€“ Tomis, now Constanta AD 17) Roman poet known to the English-speaking world as Ovid, wrote on topics of love, abandoned women, and mythological transformations. ...

vivo Caesare. . .

"when Caesar was alive. . ."

The ablative absolute, as shown above, indicates the time when things happened, or the circumstances when they occurred. It also indicates the causes of things, as in:

Ira calefacta, sapientia dormit.

"Wisdom sleeps because anger is kindled."

Domino absente, fenestram penetravit.

"The homeowner being absent, he came in through the window."

"Since the homeowner was away, he came in through the window."

It can be used to add descriptions:

Passis palmis pacem petiverunt.

"Hands outstretched, they sued for peace."

"They sued for peace with hands outstretched."

Sometimes an infinitive or clause occurs in the ablative absolute construction, especially in Livy and later authors: In grammar, the infinitive is the form of a verb that has no inflection to indicate person, number, mood or tense. ... Bust of Livy Titus Livius (around 59 BC - 17 AD), known as Livy in English, wrote a monumental history of Rome, Ab urbe condita, from its founding (traditionally dated to 753 BC). ...

audito eum fugisse...

"Having heard that he had fled..."

"when they heard he had fled..."

The ablative absolute construction is sometimes imitated in English in a construction called the nominative absolute: "The Americans, their independence secured, formed a government." But the construction is rarer and less natural in English than it is in Latin. It was introduced by early modern authors heavily influenced by Latin, for example, John Milton whose Paradise Lost is an example of the construction. A nominative absolute is a free-standing (absolute) part of a sentence that describes or modifies the main subject and verb. ... Jump to: navigation, search John Milton, English poet John Milton, Jr. ... Jump to: navigation, search Title page of the first edition Paradise Lost (1667) is an epic poem by the 17th century English poet John Milton. ...

There is a similar construction in Ancient Greek which is called genitive absolute. This is built - as the name says - with the genitive rather than the ablative, since Ancient Greek did not have an ablative case. Ancient Greek refers to the stage in the history of the Greek language corresponding to Classical Antiquity, which normally applies on two ancient periods of Greek history: Archaic and Classic Greece. ... In Ancient Greek grammar, the genitive absolute is a noun, often with a participle in the genitive case. ...

See also

• Infinitive
• sede vacante