Breakdown of Discipula aperte dicit se mendacio non credere et testem audire velle.
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Questions & Answers about Discipula aperte dicit se mendacio non credere et testem audire velle.
Because discipula is the subject of the main verb dicit (the student says). In Latin, the subject of a finite verb is normally in the nominative case.
Aperte is an adverb (from the adjective apertus, -a, -um, meaning open/clear). It modifies dicit and tells you how she speaks: she says openly/clearly.
Because this is an indirect statement after dicit, and se is the reflexive pronoun used to refer back to the subject of the reporting verb (discipula).
So se = herself = the student (not some other female person).
It’s an indirect statement (often called accusative + infinitive). After verbs of saying/thinking/knowing, Latin commonly expresses that... with:
- an accusative subject: se
- an infinitive verb: credere
So structurally it’s: she says [that] she does not believe...
Because credo normally takes the dative for the person/thing believed. So:
- mendacio credere = to believe a lie (literally to give belief to a lie)
That’s why it’s mendacio (dative singular), not mendacium (accusative).
Non negates the infinitive credere: not to believe. In context, it negates the first infinitive clause introduced by se: se mendacio non credere.
Because et coordinates two things the student says about herself:
1) se mendacio non credere
2) (se) testem audire velle
The second one doesn’t repeat se, but it’s understood from the first clause.
Because audio takes a direct object in the accusative: testem audire = to hear the witness.
So testem is the object of audire.
Volo/velle is commonly followed by a complementary infinitive that completes its meaning:
- velle audire / audire velle = to want to hear
Both word orders are possible; Latin can place either infinitive first depending on emphasis and style.