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claude-llpsi/llpsi-c10.md
Jimmy Song f5d5334df9 Initial commit: LLPSI tutoring slash commands
- Umbrella /llpsi command dispatching to per-chapter drills
- All 35 chapters of Familia Romana (llpsi-c1 through llpsi-c35)
- Each chapter file: vocab, grammar, common errors, exercise menu
- Pacing principle baked in: single-concept first, ~80% first-try success

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-05-05 22:11:46 -05:00

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You are drilling Capitulum X — Bestiae et Homines of LLPSI's Familia Romana. The student has read the chapter and Colloquium Personarum X. Job: exercises and error-explanation.

One item at a time. Be terse.

Topic argument supported (e.g. /llpsi-c10 infinitive, /llpsi-c10 acc-inf, /llpsi-c10 posse, /llpsi-c10 third-decl).

Vocabulary (new in Cap. X)

Nouns — 3rd declension (more):

  • m.: leō, leōnis (lion); homō, hominis (man, human); piscis, piscis (fish — i-stem); mercātor, mercātōris (merchant); nūntius -ī m. (messenger — actually 2nd decl.); pēs, pedis (foot); pulmō, pulmōnis (lung); āēr, āeris (air).
  • f.: avis, avis (bird — i-stem); vōx, vōcis (voice).
  • n.: mare, maris (sea — i-stem neuter, abl. sg. , nom./acc. pl. -ia, gen. pl. -ium); flūmen, flūminis (river); animal, animālis (animal — i-stem neuter).

Nouns — 2nd decl.: asinus -ī m. (ass); deus -ī m. (god); nīdus -ī m. (nest); rāmus -ī m. (branch); folium -ī n. (leaf); ōvum -ī n. (egg); pullus -ī m. (chick, young); petasus -ī m. (winged hat).

Nouns — 1st decl.: bēstia -ae f. (beast); aquila -ae f. (eagle); āla -ae f. (wing); cauda -ae f. (tail); anima -ae f. (breath, soul); pila -ae f. (ball).

Adjectives: ferus -a -um (wild); vīvus -a -um (alive) ↔ mortuus -a -um (dead); crassus -a -um (thick, fat) ↔ tenuis -e (thin — note 3rd-decl. adj., -is/-e endings); perterritus -a -um (terrified).

Verbs — note many now given in infinitive form (the chapter's grammar topic):

  • capere (to catch, 3rd -iō): 3sg capit, 3pl capiunt.
  • facere (to make, do): facit, faciunt.
  • parere (to give birth to): parit, pariunt.
  • aspicere (to look at): aspicit, aspiciunt.
  • accipere (to receive): accipit, accipiunt.
  • volāre (to fly, 1st): volat, volant.
  • natāre (to swim, 1st): natat, natant.
  • movēre (to move, 2nd): movet, movent.
  • vīvere (to live, 3rd): vīvit, vīvunt.
  • spīrāre (to breathe, 1st): spīrat, spīrant.
  • lūdere (to play, 3rd): lūdit, lūdunt.
  • canere (to sing, 3rd): canit, canunt.
  • audēre (to dare, 2nd): audet, audent.
  • occultāre (to hide, 1st): occultat, occultant.
  • ascendere (to climb): ascendit, ascendunt.
  • sustinēre (to support, 2nd): sustinet, sustinent.
  • cadere (to fall, 3rd): cadit, cadunt.

Irregular verbs:

  • posse (to be able): potest / possunt.
  • velle (to want): vult / volunt. (Only 3sg/3pl shown.)
  • esse (to be) → infinitive esse; but ēsse = "to eat" (long ē — same form as old "edere" contracted).

Particles: enim (postpositive, "for"); ergō (therefore); cum + indic. (when); quod (because); necesse est + dat. + inf. (it is necessary for).

Pronoun: nēmō (= ne- + homō, "no one").

Grammar introduced in Cap. X

  1. Active infinitive of all four conjugations + irregulars:

    conj. inf. ending example
    [1] -āre vocāre, amāre, portāre
    [2] -ēre vidēre, habēre, movēre
    [3] -ere (short) pōnere, dūcere, vīvere
    [3 -iō] -ere capere, facere, accipere
    [4] -īre audīre, venīre, dormīre
    irreg. esse, ēsse, posse, velle, īre

    Distinguish 2nd-conj. vidēre (long ē) from 3rd-conj. vīvere (short e).

  2. Passive infinitive:

    conj. inf. passive example
    [1] -ārī vocārī, portārī
    [2] -ērī vidērī, tenērī
    [3] pōnī, emī, edī
    [4] -īrī audīrī, reperīrī

    Piscēs numerārī nōn possunt. "The fish cannot be counted."

  3. Accusative + infinitive (introduced informally — formalized in c11) — for indirect statement and after verbs of perception:

    • Mārcus Quīntum cadere videt. "Marcus sees Quintus fall(ing)."
    • Iūlius puerum vocāre audit. "Julius hears the boy calling."
    • Aemilia Quīntum ā Iūliō portārī videt. "Aemilia sees Quintus being carried by Julius."
  4. posse (irregular) — only 3sg potest and 3pl possunt drilled here; full paradigm in c11.

    • Hominēs ambulāre possunt. "Men can walk."
    • Piscēs in āere spīrāre nōn possunt.
  5. velle (irregular) — only vult (3sg) and volunt (3pl).

    • Pueri nīdōs quaerere volunt.
  6. Third-declension neuters in -us, -en: corpus, corporis; flūmen, flūminis. Plural in -a: flūmina, corpora. (Fully detailed in c11; appear here.)

  7. i-stem neuters mare and animal: abl. sg. (not -e), nom./acc. pl. -ia, gen. pl. -ium.

  8. 3rd-decl. -iō nouns: leō, leōnis (gen. drops -n then re-adds it: stem leōn-); pulmō, pulmōnis; homō, hominis (note vowel change to i).

  9. Causal quod (= quia): "because." Canis volāre nōn potest, quod ālās nōn habet.

  10. necesse est + dat. of person + infinitive: "it is necessary for X to ___." Spīrāre necesse est hominī. "Breathing is necessary for a human."

Common error patterns

  • Confusing infinitive endings -ere vs. -ēre (3rd vs. 2nd conj.): vidēre (2nd, long ē) vs. vīvere (3rd, short e). Without macrons, only memory tells you. vidēre potest, vīvere potest.
  • Wrong passive infinitive: pōnāre — wrong; 3rd-conj. passive inf. is just -ī: pōnī. Same: emī, edī, claudī.
  • Treating posse as regular: Hominēs ambulāre potent — wrong; 3pl is possunt. Iūlia volāre nōn potest. (3sg, not poteset.)
  • Forgetting acc. in acc.+inf.: Mārcus videt Quīntus cadere — wrong; should be Mārcus Quīntum cadere videt (acc. subject of inf.).
  • esse vs. ēsse: Mēdus servus ēsse nōn vult — wrong if you mean "to be"; should be esse (short e). Nēmō gemmās ēsse potest (long ē, "to eat").
  • i-stem neuter abl. sg. -ī forgotten: in mare est — abl. of mare is marī, so in marī. Same for animal → animālī.
  • Gen. pl. of i-stem neuter -ium forgotten: plēna piscium — correct; piscium not piscum. Same marium, animālium, flūminum (wait — flūmen is consonant-stem n., so gen. pl. flūminum is right; mare is i-stem n. → marium).
  • homō declension: homō, hominis — student writes homonem — wrong; acc. is hominem (vowel change in stem). Pl. hominēs, hominum.
  • quod (because) vs. quod (n. relative): same form. Context: quod + clause with finite verb usually = "because"; quod with antecedent noun = relative.
  • Translating "wants" with present of amāre: Iūlia lūdere amat — wrong; use vult: Iūlia lūdere vult.

Exercise menu

  1. Give the infinitive of a known verb: "Infinitive of portat?" → portāre. "Of videt?" → vidēre. "Of pōnit?" → pōnere. "Of capit?" → capere. "Of audit?" → audīre. Cycle through all 4 conjugations + -iō.
  2. Identify conjugation from infinitive: "movēre — which conj.?" → 2nd. "vīvere?" → 3rd. "aperīre?" → 4th. "facere?" → 3rd -iō.
  3. Active → passive infinitive: "portāre → ?" → portārī. "vidēre → ?" → vidērī. "pōnere → ?" → pōnī. "audīre → ?" → audīrī.
  4. potest / possunt fill: "Pisces in āere spīrāre nōn ___." → possunt. "Iūlia natāre nōn ___." → potest. "Aquila parvās avēs capere ___." → potest.
  5. Acc. + inf. simple: "Translate: 'Julius hears the boy.'" → Iūlius puerum audit. Then: "'Julius hears the boy calling.'" → Iūlius puerum vocāre audit. Then passive: "'Aemilia sees Quintus being carried.'" → Aemilia Quīntum portārī videt.
  6. PENSVM A fill: "Avēs in āer- vol-. Pisc- in aquā nat-." → āere, volant, piscēs, natant. "Spīr- necesse est homin-." → spīrāre, hominī.
  7. Spot the error: "Hominēs vidēre deōs nōn potest." → possunt (subject is plural). "Pisces ēsse possunt gemmās." — wrong; gemmae edī nōn possunt or nēmō gemmās ēsse potest. "Iūlia volāre amat." → Iūlia volāre vult.
  8. 3rd-decl. forms (more): "Decline homō sg + pl." → homō, hominem, hominis, hominī, homine; hominēs, hominēs, hominum, hominibus, hominibus. Same for leō, vōx, pēs, mare, animal.
  9. PENSVM C Q&A: "Quae bēstiae ōva pariunt?" → Avēs (ōva pariunt). "Cūr rāmus Quīntum sustinēre nōn potest?" → Quia rāmus tenuis est et Quīntus crassus est. "Quid agit Mercurius?" → Mercurius volat / imperia deōrum (ad hominēs) portat.
  10. Translate (using acc.+inf.): "Marcus sees Quintus fall to the ground." → Mārcus Quīntum ad terram cadere videt. "Aemilia sees Quintus being placed on the bed." → Aemilia Quīntum in lectō pōnī videt / aspicit. "Julius hears the boy shouting." → Iūlius puerum clāmāre audit.

Session start

Bare (/llpsi-c10): "Cap. X — Bestiae et Homines. Two huge new things: the infinitive (active and passive, all 4 conjugations) and the accusative + infinitive construction (with vidēre, audīre, etc.). Plus posse / velle (only 3sg/3pl) and more 3rd-decl. nouns including i-stem neuters mare and animal. Where do you want to start — infinitives, acc.+inf., posse, or new nouns?"

With topic: jump in.

After ~68 items, offer continue/switch/move on.