A Latin Grammar [Paperback]

James Morwood (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0198602774 | ISBN-13: 978-0198602774 | Publication Date: July 27, 2000

A Latin Grammar gives clear, concise, and easily understood explanations of all the key points of Latin grammar. With additional features such as a glossary of grammatical terms, a vocabulary list covering all the Latin words found in the main text, study tips, and notes on Roman dates, money, weights and measures, and names, it ensures that students have all the support they need to complement their language learning. A Latin Grammar also offers hundreds of example sentences illustrating grammatical points, an explanation of literary terms, and an invaluable guide to pronunciation. This handy reference helps students bring this influential language to life.

Editorial Reviews

Review

`If you are looking to bin the old Kennedys and restock Latin grammars, then this is certainly worth considering, being competitively priced and easy to use.' Hilary Walters, Jact Review, Series 2, No.27, Summer 00.

`There is a pleasing historical sense to the book, with short articles on Latin pronunciation in England and the development of Kennedy's primer, along with the gender rhymes, offered as a curiosity ... The grammar has a fresher, more modern appearance and style.' Hilary Walters, Jact Review, Series 2, No.27, Summer 00. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

James Morwood, formerly Head of Classics at Harrow School in England, is now a Fellow at Wadham College, Oxford and Grocyn Lecturer for the Literae Humaniores Faculty.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (July 27, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0198602774
• ISBN-13: 978-0198602774
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #231,058 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #64 in Books > Education & Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Foreign Language > Greek
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

83 of 83 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A clear, concise, and very handy Latin Grammar, January 15, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: A Latin Grammar (Paperback)

Intelligently organized and formatted, this Latin grammar is an excellent resource for beginning and intermediate Latin students. In his preface, the author states that he intends the book to supersede the classic Latin grammar written by Benjamin Hall Kennedy. I'm not familiar with that work, apparently a mainstay of British Latin students for generations. My own acquaintance is with the grammars of American Latinists such as Bennett, Gildersleeve, Hadley, and Allen & Greenough.

The author has wisely chosen to leave out cumbersome, needless detail. Instead, clarity and simplicity are everywhere in abundance. Each section describing a specific grammatical point begins with examples of the construction -- if an analogue exists -- in English. In an age where students' knowledge of basic English grammar can no longer be taken for granted, this is a useful feature indeed.

Arguably the best feature of the book is the way in which grammar points are illustrated by short, easily comprehensible Latin sentences in bold type, with accompanying translations. To his credit, Morwood has studiously avoided the approach found in grammars of yesteryear, viz., using much longer sentences pulled out of classical Latin authors such as Caesar or Cicero to illustrate even the most simple grammatical rule.

The value of the book for teachers is enhanced by the inclusion in each chapter of practice sentences in both Latin (some of which are from classical authors) and English. Separate English-Latin and Latin-English vocabularies at the back of the book are designed to accompany the practice exercises. There is also a "reference grammar" overview of the verb system, bordered with a grey margin for ease of reference. The book also contains a very handy Glossary of Grammatical Terms.

In all, a splendid little book of enormous utility; highly recommended for those seeking a clearly written and easy to understand treatment of basic Latin grammar.

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Short and sweet, March 17, 2005

By 

SkookumPete (Canada) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Latin Grammar (Paperback)

This is not a course in Latin but on the other hand it is not a reference grammar either. As the introduction says, "it aims to be a 'primer' (a first book) and at the same time something more than that." In fact, it is a short introduction to all the major grammatical points of the language as well as a handy reference for the accidence, without covering all the fine points you would expect to find in a true reference grammar like Gildersleeve. I particularly like the convenient groupings of things like place words (ubi, hic, illic, inde, etc.) and some of the confusing adverbs and conjunctions like quidem, quin, quominus, and quamuis (not quamvis, note; the letter "v" is not used in this book). There are a few short exercises, but no keys. Appendices cover dates, money, Roman names, literary terms, and weights and measures. A short vocabulary includes only words used in the exercises. All in all, a surprising amount of information is packed into less than 200 pages, yet the book does not feel at all dense or cramped.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Accessible Guide to the Latin Language, January 13, 2002

By 

Thomas L. Cornell (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Latin Grammar (Paperback)

The Latin grammar by James Morwood is a smoothly flowing, accessible guide to the Latin language, providing many short sentence examples and explaining nouns and noun inflection, adjectives, adverbs, verb conjugation, and sentence construction in depth. The readability is excellent, and the information presented is easily utilized.