Proposal: Latin Language
Asking questions in Latin is a great way for beginners to get accustomed to expressing themselves in Latin and understanding someone communicating directly to them in Latin. But how do you phrase common beginners' questions in Latin? Having tried it myself a few times now, I've encountered some tricky things, like how to fit a quoted word (presumably indeclinable) into the question and make its case clear, and how to distinguish a "word" from a "verb" (since verbum seems to mean both!).
Here are some common question types that I see on ELL, adjusted to take forms that I imagine might suit Latin:
What word does ⎯⎯⎯⎯ modify in this line from Vergil?
In this sentence, what is the subject of the verb ⎯⎯⎯⎯ ?
In this sentence, why is ⎯⎯⎯⎯ in the ablative? Shouldn't it be genitive?
What is the difference in meaning between ⎯⎯⎯⎯ and ⎯⎯⎯⎯ ?
What does William of Sherwood mean by ⎯⎯⎯⎯ ?
What difference in emphasis does Jerome create by sticking eum way over there in ⎯⎯⎯⎯ ?
How do you scan this line of hexameter?
In the meta section, we should have some guidelines for how to express common questions like these in Latin. That'll help beginners get started and get into the spirit. It'll also help beginners understand questions posted by others.
And it might suggest ideas for really good questions to post here in the proposal. If you know Latin well—or even if you don’t—how’d you like to try your hand at phrasing some ordinary Latin questions and post them in an answer here? The worst that can happen is someone more knowledgeable will show you how to phrase them better.
