Adjectives agree with their nouns
bona puella, nauta bonus: the adjective matches the noun's gender, number and case.
LatinBeginning Latin · NounsAbout 3 min: 1 reading, 2 practiceUpdated
- Explain what it means for an adjective to agree
- Choose bona or bonus for a noun
- See why agreement is about gender, not matching endings
Latin Level 1: nouns and cases: lesson 5 of 13
- Beginning Latin · Sounds
- Saying Latin out loud 4 min
- Beginning Latin · How sentences work
- Endings do the work 3 min
- The five cases 3 min
- Beginning Latin · Nouns
- The first declension 3 min
- Adjectives agree with their nouns 3 min
- Beginning Latin · The second declension
- The second declension 4 min
- Predicate nouns and apposition 3 min
- Adjectives in all three genders 3 min
- Nouns in -ius, -er and -ir 4 min
- Beginning Latin · Pronouns and adjectives
- My, your, his, our 3 min
- Beginning Latin · The ablative
- Four ways to say "with" 3 min
- Beginning Latin · Pronouns and adjectives
- The nine irregular adjectives 4 min
- is, ea, id: this, that, he, she, it 3 min
Try first
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Pairs with D'Ooge, Latin for Beginners (Ginn, 1909), Lessons VII–VIII ("Agreement of Adjectives", "Word Order") and Lesson XI ("Adjectives of the First and Second Declensions"), pp. 25–30 and 36–37
What it is
A Latin adjective agrees with the noun it describes: it takes the same gender, number and case.
- With a feminine noun, bonus (good) becomes bona: puella bona, a good girl.
- With a masculine noun it stays bonus: nauta bonus, a good sailor.
The adjective often comes after its noun, but it can come first, especially for emphasis and with words of size or number, such as magna casa (a big cottage).
Quick check
Tap an answer to check it.
Which is "a good girl"?
- bonus is the masculine form; puella is feminine
Show answer
puella bona. The adjective matches the noun's gender: feminine bona.
Why it matters
Agreement is how you know which adjective goes with which noun, even when words are spread across a sentence. It is the same idea as the endings in the earlier lessons: the forms carry the meaning.
Worked example
- Puella bona rosam pulchram habet. → The good girl has a beautiful rose. (bona agrees with puella; pulchram agrees with rosam, both feminine accusative singular.)
- Agricola bonus nautam laudat. → The good farmer praises the sailor. (agricola is masculine, so bonus.)
Common mistake
Making the adjective's ending look like the noun's: agricola bona. Agricola ends in -a but is masculine, so the adjective takes its masculine form: agricola bonus. Agreement is about gender, number and case, not about matching letters.
Key terms
- agree
- match the noun in gender, number and case
- bona
- good (feminine)
- bonus
- good (masculine)
- pulchra
- beautiful (feminine)
Practise the key terms
Tap a card to turn it over. 4 cards.
| Front | Back |
|---|---|
| agree | match the noun in gender, number and case |
| bona | good (feminine) |
| bonus | good (masculine) |
| pulchra | beautiful (feminine) |
Practice
Quick quiz
Tap an answer to check it.
"a good sailor"
- Matched the -a ending; nauta is masculine
Show answer
nauta bonus. nauta is masculine, so the adjective is bonus.
"the beautiful island" (īnsula, feminine)
- pulcher is the masculine form
Show answer
īnsula pulchra. Feminine noun, feminine adjective: pulchra.
In Puella rosam pulchram habet, which word does pulchram describe?
- puella is nominative; pulchram is accusative
Show answer
rosam. Both are accusative singular feminine: they agree.
Build the sentence
Build "The good farmer praises the girl", in the order subject, adjective, object, verb.
Show answer
Agricola bonus puellam laudat.. agricola is masculine: bonus.
Practise speaking
Studyfern has no voice tools of its own. To practise out loud, copy this prompt into a voice-capable AI assistant and talk with it.
You are a patient Latin tutor. Use the classical pronunciation only, never the Church one: c is always k, g is always hard, v sounds like w, ae like the ai in aisle, and long vowels are held longer. Speak slowly. Use only these Latin words: puella, nauta, agricola, bona, bonus, pulchra. Say an English phrase like 'a good girl', 'a good sailor' or 'a pretty girl', and I will say it in Latin, making the adjective agree. Do 6 phrases. After each answer, tell me what kind of mistake I made, if any, and let me try again, then tell me one thing to improve. Keep every reply under 2 sentences. If I need a name or a town, I will make one up. Speak English except for the Latin itself.
Listen too. Listen to native speakers before and after: see the free listening and shadowing links.
Good to know. AI feedback on pronunciation is hit and miss, so check yourself against native recordings. This course teaches the classical pronunciation (see lesson 1); AI voices may mix it with the Church (Italian-style) one, so ask for classical and check against lesson 1. Don't share personal details: use a made-up name and town.
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In short
- An adjective agrees with its noun in gender, number and case.
- Feminine: bona, pulchra. Masculine: bonus, pulcher.
- Masculine -a nouns (nauta, agricola) take masculine adjectives.
- Adjectives often follow their noun, but can come first for emphasis.
Mastery check
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Check yourself
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How do you say "a good poet" (poēta, masculine)?
Show answer
poēta bonus.
Why is it rosam pulchram and not rosam pulcher?
Show answer
The adjective must be feminine accusative singular, like rosam.
Where does the adjective often go?
Show answer
After the noun, though it can come first, for emphasis or with words of size and number.
Further reading
- D'Ooge, Latin for Beginners, Lessons VII–VIII and XI. Public domain; Project Gutenberg.
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