Latin Phrases



nota bene - "Note well" "N.B."
percent - "over 100"
Per diem - "by the day, a daily fee"
ante meridiem - "before noon" "a.m."
post meridiem - "after noon" "p.m."
requiescat in pace - "Rest in Peace" "R.I.P."
vice versa - "changed and turned about"
per capita - "by heads"
in camera - "in a chamber, in private"
ex libris - "from the library of"
E Pluribus Unum - "one from many"
mea culpa - "the blame is mine"
quid fit? - "what's happening?"
labra lege - "read my lips"
abeo" - "I'm out of here"
quod erat demonstrandum - "was demonstrated" "Q.E.D."
ad infinitum - “to infinity,” a process is to be carried out endlessly.
a fortiori - “With stronger reason.” 
a posteriori - “From effect to cause.” from evidence or reasoning.
a priori - evident by logic alone from what is already known.
exempli gratia - “For example.” ‘e.g.’ 
id est - “that is.” ‘i.e.’ 
ipso facto -“by that very fact.” 
nota bene - “note well.”  ‘n.b.’, “take note of this.”
per impossibile - “As is impossible.” cannot be true.
quod erat demonstrandum - "QED" “What has been proved.”
quod erat faciendum - “That which was to have been shown.”  "QEF" 
ab initio - "From the beginning."
accessit - "Honorable mention."
ad hoc - "For the immediate purpose." 
ad hominem - “To the man.” Attack person and not arguments.
ad nauseam - Goes on so long you become sick of it.
alma mater - The university or college which granted your degree.
alumnus/alumna  - A former grad of a university or college.
anno domini - AD “In the year of Our Lord.” 
bona fide - “In good faith.” Establishing one’s credentials.
carpe diem - “Seize the day.” Live in the now, not waste time.
circa - "Approximately" Used with dates  circa 400 AD.
confer - “Compare.” "cf"   Compare with the one referred to.
cum laude - “With praise.” With exceptional academic standing.
de facto - “In reality.” The reality is as indicated here.
de jure - “In law.” Contrast to de facto.
dixi -  “I have spoken.”  That settles it. 
emeritus/emerita - Served and retired honorably.
ergo -Therefore.
erratum/errata - “error/errors,” Corrections for minor errors in text.
et al. - “and others.” An unstated list of contributing authors.
et cetera - "And so forth." 
ex post facto - “From what is done afterward.”
ibidem - “In the same place.” The reference is as before.
in re - “In regards to.”  When only "re", it means “regarding.”
inter alia - "Among other things".
in toto - " in its entirely".
in vacuo - “in a vacuum.”  “in the absence of other conditions.” 
magna cum laude - "With great praise".
modus operandi  Manner or method of work or professional habits.
mutatis mutandis - With necessary changes. 
non sequitur - “Not following.” A conclusion that does not clearly follow.
per se - “In and of itself.” 
post hoc, ergo propter hoc - “After, thus because of.” A fallacy in reasoning.
post scriptum - “Written after.” A footnote to a main text with p.s.
prima facie - “On its face.” Conclusion is not necessarily proved.
pro forma - “For form’s sake.” For proper appearance.
qua - “In the capacity of.”  
quod vide - "q.v.'  This is to direct the reader to a reference.
sine qua non - “That without which nothing.” An essential condition.
summa cum laude - With greatest praise. 
tabula rasa - “Blank Slate.” A person without prejudices.
verbatim - "Word-for-word" A precise transmission of text.
videlicet - "viz." “namely.”  
Nescio quid dicas - I don't know what you're talking about
Nemo hic adest illius nominis - There is no one here by that name
Ita erat quando hic adveni. - It was that way when I got here
Noli me vocate. Ego te vocabo. - Don't call me. I'll call you.
Canis meus id comedit - My dog ate it
Die dulci freure - Have a nice day
Fac ut vivas - Get a life
Quo signo nata es? - What's your sign?
Magister mundi sum! - I am the master of the universe!
Radix lecti - Couch potato
Cogito ergo sum - I think, therefore I am
Perscriptio in manibus tabellariorum est - The check is in the mail
Non illigitamus carborundum - Don't let the bastards grind you down
Nonne macescis? - Have you lost weight?
Minime senuisti! - You haven't aged a bit!
Id tibi praebet speciem lepidissimam! - It looks great on you!
Heus, hic nos omnes in agmine sunt! - Hey, we're all in line here!
Mihi ignosce - Excuse me
Credo me insequentem esse - I believe I'm next
Quid agis, medice? - What's up, Doc?
Fac ut gaudeam - Make my day
Diabolus fecit, ut id facerem! - The devil made me do it!