Classicalia

All things Classics, in one place
by Lawrence McNally
LESSON 8.2

Perfect Tense (continued)

More ways to form the perfect tense

📚 Review: Perfect tense with -v-

In Chapter 7, you learned that the perfect tense often uses -v- in the ending:

Present tense Perfect tense
ego sorōrem quaerō
I am looking for my sister 		ego sorōrem quaesīvī
I looked for my sister
māter intrat
My mother comes in 		māter intrāvit
My mother came in
iuvenēs Aucissam salūtant
The young men are greeting Aucissa 		iuvenēs Aucissam salūtāvērunt
The young men greeted Aucissa

✨ New: Other ways to form the perfect tense

Not all verbs use -v- for the perfect tense. Study these examples:

Present tense Perfect tense Pattern
ego ē vīcō currō
I am running out of the settlement 		ego ē vīcō cucurrī
I ran out of the settlement 		Reduplication
soror tua discēdit
Your sister is leaving 		soror tua discessit
Your sister has left 		-ss-
amīcī gladium habent
The friends have a sword 		amīcī gladium habuērunt
The friends had a sword 		-u-
māter et pater gladium faciunt
Mother and father are making a sword 		māter et pater gladium fēcērunt
Mother and father made a sword 		Vowel change

📖 Using the dictionary

When you look up a verb in the dictionary, you'll find three parts:

The Three Parts of a Verb

  • First part: Present tense (I do something)
  • Second part: Infinitive (to do something)
  • Third part: Perfect tense (I did something)

Examples:

  • vocō, vocāre, vocāvī - call
  • discēdō, discēdere, discessī - leave
  • currō, currere, cucurrī - run
  • habeō, habēre, habuī - have
  • faciō, facere, fēcī - make/do

🔧 How to form the perfect tense

To create any perfect tense form, you need the perfect stem plus the correct ending.

Step 1: Find the perfect stem

Take the third part from the dictionary and remove the -ī ending:

  • vocāvī → vocāv- (perfect stem)
  • discessī → discess- (perfect stem)
  • cucurrī → cucurr- (perfect stem)
  • habuī → habu- (perfect stem)
  • fēcī → fēc- (perfect stem)

Step 2: Add the perfect endings

Person Singular Plural
1st (I/we) -ī (I did) -imus (we did)
2nd (you) -istī (you did) -istis (you all did)
3rd (he/she/it/they) -it (he/she/it did) -ērunt (they did)

Example: Making the perfect of vocō (to call)

Dictionary: vocō, vocāre, vocāvī

Perfect stem: vocāv- (from vocāvī minus -ī)

  • vocāv + ī = vocāvī (I called)
  • vocāv + istī = vocāvistī (you called)
  • vocāv + it = vocāvit (he/she called)
  • vocāv + imus = vocāvimus (we called)
  • vocāv + istis = vocāvistis (you all called)
  • vocāv + ērunt = vocāvērunt (they called)

💡 Tips for recognising perfect tense

These endings are definitely or highly likely to be perfect tense:

  • • -ī (first person singular)
  • • -istī (second person singular)
  • • -istis (second person plural)
  • • -ērunt (third person plural)

Common perfect stem patterns to watch for:

  • -v- or -u- (related sounds in Latin)
  • -ss- or -x- (remember: Sussex!)
  • Reduplication (repeating the first syllable, like cu-currī)
  • Vowel changes in the stem

When in doubt: Look it up! Check the third part of the verb in your dictionary to confirm the perfect form.

✏️ Practice Activity

Change these sentences from present tense to perfect tense. Use the vocabulary hints provided.

1
puer ad forum currit.
The boy is running to the forum. → The boy ran to the forum.
puer ad forum cucurrit.
Hint: currō, currere, cucurrī (to run)
2
māter cibum facit.
Mother is making food. → Mother made food.
māter cibum fēcit.
Hint: faciō, facere, fēcī (to make/do)
3
servī vīnum habent.
The slaves have wine. → The slaves had wine.
servī vīnum habuērunt.
Hint: habeō, habēre, habuī (to have)
4
fīlia ē vīllā discēdit.
The daughter is leaving from the house. → The daughter left from the house.
fīlia ē vīllā discessit.
Hint: discēdō, discēdere, discessī (to leave)
5
amīcī senātōrem salūtant.
The friends are greeting the senator. → The friends greeted the senator.
amīcī senātōrem salūtāvērunt.
Hint: salūtō, salūtāre, salūtāvī (to greet)
6
dominus servum vocat.
The master is calling the slave. → The master called the slave.
dominus servum vocāvit.
Hint: vocō, vocāre, vocāvī (to call)
7
puella aquam quaerit.
The girl is looking for water. → The girl looked for water.
puella aquam quaesīvit.
Hint: quaerō, quaerere, quaesīvī (to look for/seek)
8
iuvenēs in thermīs sedent.
The young men are sitting in the baths. → The young men sat in the baths.
iuvenēs in thermīs sēdērunt.
Hint: sedeō, sedēre, sēdī (to sit)

📝 Remember:

  • While some Latin verbs use -v- to form their perfect tense, others use -u-, -ss-, -x-, or change in different ways
  • Always check the dictionary's third part to find the correct perfect form
  • Look for telltale endings like -ī, -istī, and -ērunt to identify perfect tense
  • The mnemonic Sussex can help you remember the -ss- and -x- patterns