# Elephantus est potentissimus omnium militum.



## rafaaa

< Topic sentence:  Elephantus est potentissimus omnium militum. 
Added to post by moderator. >

Hi.
Did I write this sentence well?

Thanks.


----------



## Scholiast

salvete sodales -  and especially, welcome rafaaa to the Latin Forum.

Grammatically, this statement, _Elephantus est potentissimus omnium militum_, is impeccable - "An elephant is the most powerful of all soldiers". It would not be good Latin, but in the darker districts of the Subura it would be comprehensible.

Σ


----------



## Joca

Why is it 'grammatically impeccable' and at the same time 'not good Latin'?

I'm probably missing something here. Can you please explain?


----------



## Scholiast

salvete omnes, praesertim Joca...

...qui rogat





> Why is it 'grammatically impeccable' and at the same time 'not good Latin'?



Because a statement may perfectly conform to grammatical rules, but still not be idiomatic, or make coherent sense.

_elephantus viridis tibi principes cognatos aluisset, nisi saxum interfecturus esses_. It is syntactically proper, but twaddle.

Do I need to translate this? It is syntactically correct, but utter gibberish.

Σ


----------



## Cagey

The problem is one of terminology.  I tend to interpret 'good Latin' to refer to the word choice or syntax.  I would regard the reasonableness of a statement to be something else. 

(People at all levels in their study of Latin participate in this forum. It is better to include translations of Latin into English, or whatever modern language is being used.)


----------



## Joca

Yes, 


Scholiast said:


> salvete omnes, praesertim Joca...
> 
> ...qui rogat
> 
> Because a statement may perfectly conform to grammatical rules, but still not be idiomatic, or make coherent sense.
> 
> _elephantus viridis tibi principes cognatos aluisset, nisi saxum interfecturus esses_. It is syntactically proper, but twaddle.
> 
> Do I need to translate this? It is syntactically correct, but utter gibberish.
> 
> Σ


Yes, please translate the sentence into English. My Latin is still "weak," you know. Anyway, I seem to gather that you meant to say that the sentence didn't make good sense not only in Latin, but in any other human language.


----------



## Scholiast

salvete omnes!

At request - but not because Joca's Latin is "weak"...



> Yes, please translate the sentence into English.



_elephantus viridis tibi principes cognatos aluisset, nisi saxum interfecturus esses =_

"A green elephant would have nurtured for you princely kinsmen, had you not been on the point of killing a rock".

Σ


----------



## Passante

My two cents... omnium militiarum.


----------



## Flaminius

I don't think Latin had a noun that is _milita_ in nominative, of which the genitive plural _militarum_ would be expected.  The Latin for soldier is _miles_ and it is a third-declension noun.  Its genitive singular is _militis_.


----------



## Passante

Flaminius said:


> The Latin for soldier is _miles_ and it is a third-declension noun.  Its genitive singular is _militis_.


I thought Militia,ae for entire complex of soldiers not only  soldiers so in genitive militiarum. I'd use Militia because in the tense i know: the elephant is the powerfull of all army. (Sorry for my bad english)


----------



## Flaminius

Oh, my mistake.  I didn't see the I between T and A.  : -(


----------



## Passante

No problem, but what do you think about Militia?


----------

