Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.

Or 'Whatever is said in Latin sounds profound.'

There are two kinds of Latin speaker. There is the kind who slowly forms an appreciation and understanding of the language, finding the right word to use and learning to conjugate verbs. In advanced stages of learning the language, this results in Latin professorship. The second kind of Latin speaker just memorises lists of quotations, and merely uses them to impress. Given time, they lose track of which quotes correspond to which translation, and eventually end up whispering Aio, quantitas magna frumentorum est! into the ears of hopeful young ladies, instead of something more traditionally romantic. This affliction is easily remedied, generally by placing the offender next to a Latin professor at a dinner party.

However, this guide is for the third kind of Latin speaker. The kind who will say Braccae tuae aperiuntur to spot the fakes. The kind who can make a Latino laugh with a well-placed Te capiam, cunicule sceleste!

The important thing is to always insist that you only know a few handy Latin sayings for everyday use that anyone could pick up. Any more will put you firmly in category two, and you don't want that. More to the point, we don't want that either.

Useful Phrases

So, you've suddenly found that you need to say a few choice words in Latin. Here are the phrases¹, with handy English translations.

Bumper Stickers and Vanity Plates

Advanced Quotations

The following phrases are for those who can speak Latin while at the same time maintaining a cheesy accent. This is harder than you think. Despite all your best intentions to do a perfect rendition of Clint Eastwood from the film Dirty Harry, celebrity Latin accents invariably transform into something more akin to Manuel from Fawlty Towers.

Names and Titles

Translations of the names of some famous bands and television shows.