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Latin for Beginners by Benjamin Leonard D'Ooge
page 44 of 649 (06%)
English we use such words as _from_, _with_, _by_, _to_, _for_, _in_,
_at_.[1]

[Footnote 1: Words like _to_, _for_, _by_, _from_, _in_, etc., which
define the relationship between words, are called «prepositions».]

Latin, too, makes frequent use of such prepositions; but often it
expresses these relations without them by means of case forms which
English does not possess. One of the cases found in the Latin declension
and lacking in English is called the _dative_.

«42.» When the nominative singular ends in «-a», the dative singular
ends in «-ae» and the dative plural in «-īs».

NOTE. Observe that the _genitive singular_, the _dative singular_, and
the _nominative plural_ all have the same ending, «-ae»; but the uses of
the three cases are entirely different. The general meaning of the
sentence usually makes clear which case is intended.

_a._ Form the dative singular and plural of the following nouns:
«fuga», «causa», «fortūna», «terra», «aqua», «puella», «agricola»,
«nauta», «domina».

«43.» «The Dative Relation.» The dative case is used to express the
relations conveyed in English by the prepositions _to_, _towards_,
_for_.

These prepositions are often used in English in expressions of motion,
such as _She went to town_, _He ran towards the horse_, _Columbus sailed
for America_. In such cases the dative is not used in Latin, as _motion
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