Latin for Beginners · Lesson XVII · Part 3: Possessives, pronouns and the ablative
17. The demonstrative is, ea, id
Goal: Your child declines is, ea, id, uses it for "he, she, it, they", and chooses between suus and eius.
You'll need
- The book, open to this lesson
- The special vocabulary page for this lesson (near the back of the book; the lesson tells you the page)
- A notebook for Latin, and a pencil
- Index cards for new words (optional)
What's in the book
The demonstrative is, ea, id ("this, that") and its use as the pronoun "he, she, it". Then when to say suus (his own) and when eius (his, someone else's). Twelve English sentences to put into Latin and a dialogue. A note at the end points to the second review (Lessons IX–XVII).
The lesson, step by step
Review
Recite the nine irregular adjectives.
is, ea, id
Section 114 declines it. The singular, masculine:
is, eius, eī, eum, eō
feminine:
ea, eius, eī, eam, eā
neuter:
id, eius, eī, id, eō
The book says eius is pronounced "eh'yus". Chant all three genders, then the plural.
He, she, it
is, ea, id is also the usual way to say he, she, it, they. eum is "him", eam is "her", eōs and eās are "them".
suus or eius?
Read section 116. The book's examples:
Galba suum fīlium vocat
"Galba calls his (own) son".
Galba eius fīlium vocat
"Galba calls his son" (another man's son). suus points back to the subject; eius (or eōrum, eārum) means someone else.
Vocabulary
From the special vocabulary for Lesson XVII:
fēmina, woman
lacrima, tear
numerus, number
arat, he (she, it) plows
quō, whither
an, or (in a double question)
English to Latin
Section 117 is all English to Latin. Do numbers 4 to 7 especially carefully: they test suus against eius.
The dialogue
Read "Cornelius and Marcus" in two voices. It begins:
Quis est vir, Cornēlī, cum puerō parvō?
Estne Rōmānus et līber?
Afterwards
Two days: is, ea, id and suus/eius on day one; vocabulary, exercise and dialogue on day two. Then, if you like, a review day with the second review at the back of the book (sections 506–509).