List of Latin phrases (V)

This page lists English translations of notable Latin phrases, such as veni vidi vici and et cetera. Some of the phrases are themselves translations of Greek phrases, as Greek rhetoric and literature reached its peak centuries before that of ancient Rome.

This list covers the letter V. See List of Latin phrases for the main list.

Contents
References

V [edit]

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versus (vs) or (v.) towards Literally "in the direction". Mistakenly used in English as "against" (probably from "adversus"), particularly to denote two opposing parties, such as in a legal dispute or a sports match.
veto I forbid The right to unilaterally stop a certain piece of legislation. Derived from ancient Roman voting practices.
vexilla regis prodeunt inferni Forth go the banners of the king of hell Used by Dante in Canto XXXIV of the Inferno, the phrase is an allusion to and play upon the Latin Easter hymn Vexilla Regis, and is itself repeatedly referenced in the works of Walter M. Miller, Jr.
vi coactus under constraint used to indicate an agreement signed under duress
vi et animo With heart and soul Or "Strength with Courage". Motto of Ascham School and the McCulloch clan crest.
vi veri universum vivus vici by the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe Magickal motto of Aleister Crowley.
via by the road "by way of" or "by means of"; e.g. "I'll contact you via e-mail."
via media middle road Can refer to the radical center political stance.
via, veritas, vita The Way, the Truth and the Life From the words of Jesus in the Gospel of John 14:6; motto of many institutions
vice in place of "one who acts in place of another"; can be used as a separate word, or as a hyphenated prefix: "Vice President" and "Vice-Chancellor".
vice versa
versa vice		 with position turned
For other uses, see vice versa		 Thus, "the other way around", "conversely", etc. Historically, vice is properly pronounced as two syllables, but the one-syllable pronunciation is extremely common. Classical Latin pronunciation dictates that the letter C can only make a hard sound, like K, thus vee-keh vehr-sah. (Note that in classical times, the V was pronounced like a W.)[2]
victoria aut mors Victory or death! similar to aut vincere aut mori.
victoria concordia crescit Victory comes from harmony The official club motto of Arsenal F.C.
victrix causa diis placuit sed victa Catoni the victorious cause pleased the gods, but the conquered cause pleased Cato Lucan, Pharsalia 1, 128. Dedication on the south side of the Confederate Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery.
vide "see" or "refer to"
vide infra (v.i.) "see below"
vide supra (v.s.) "see above" Or "see earlier in this writing". Also shortened to just supra.
videlicet (viz.) "namely", "that is to say", "as follows" Contraction of videre licet: "permitted to see".
video et taceo I see and keep silent The motto of Queen Elizabeth I of England.
video meliora proboque deteriora sequor I see and approve of the better, but I follow the worse From the Metamorphoses VII. 20–21 of Ovid. A summary of the experience of akrasia.
video sed non credo I see it, but I don't believe it Caspar Hofmann after being shown proof of the circulatory system by William Harvey.
videre licet "it is permitted to see", "one may see"
vim promovet insitam promotes one's innate power Motto of University of Bristol taken from Horace Ode 4.4.
vince malum bono Overcome Evil with Good Partial quotation of Romans 12:21 also used as a motto for Old Swinford Hospital and Bishop Cotton School, Shimla.
vincere scis Hannibal victoria uti nescis you know [how] to win, Hannibal; you do not know [how] to use victory According to Livy, a cavalry colonel told Hannibal this after the victory at Cannae in 216 BC, meaning that Hannibal should have marched on Rome directly.
vincit omnia veritas Truth conquers all Motto of Augusta State University in Augusta, GA
vincit qui patitur he conquers who endures First attributed to Roman scholar and satirst Persius; frequently used as motto.
vincit qui se vincit he/she conquers who conquers himself/herself Motto of many educational institutions. Also "bis vincit qui se vincit" ("he/she who prevails over himself/herself is twice victorious"). Also the motto of The Beast in Disney's Beauty and the Beast as seen on the castle's stained glass window near the beginning of the film.
vinculum juris "the chain of the law", i.e. legally binding "A civil obligation is one which has a binding operation in law, vinculum juris." Bouvier's Law Dictionary, 1856, "Obligation."
vinum et musica laetificant cor Wine and music gladden the heart Asterix and Caesar's Gift; a variation on "vinum bonum laetificat cor hominis".
vir prudens non contra ventum mingit "[A] wise man does not urinate [up] against the wind"
virile agitur "The manly thing is being done" As used in the motto of Knox Grammar School
viriliter agite "Act in a manly way" As used in the motto of St Muredach's College
viriliter agite estote fortes "Quit ye like men, be strong" As used in the motto of Culford School
virtus et scientia virtue and knowledge Frequently used as a motto, preeminently as that of La Salle University of Philadelphia, PA.
virtus in media stat Virtue stands in the middle. Idiomatically: Good practice lies in the middle path. There is disagreement as to whether "media" or "medio" is correct.
virtus sola nobilitas virtue alone [is] noble Christian Brothers College, St Kilda's school motto
virtus tentamine gaudet Strength rejoices in the challenge. The motto of Hillsdale College.
virtus unita fortior virtue united [is] stronger State motto of Andorra.
virtute et armis by virtue and arms Or "by manhood and weapons". State motto of Mississippi. Possibly derived from the motto of Lord Gray De Wilton, virtute non armis fido ("I trust in virtue, not in arms"). Also virtute et labore, as by manhood and by work motto of Pretoria Boys High School
vis legis power of the law
visio dei Vision of a god
vita ante acta a life done before Thus, a previous life, generally due to reincarnation.
vita, dulcedo, spes [Mary our] life, sweetness, hope Motto of University of Notre Dame.
vita incerta, mors certissima Life is uncertain, death is most certain In simpler English, "The most certain thing in life is death".
vita mutatur, non tollitur Life is changed, not taken away. The phrase is in the preface of the first Catholic rite of the Mass for the Dead.
vita patris During the life of the father Hence the term "decessit vita patris" (d.v.p) or "died v.p." seen in genealogy works such as Burke's Peerage.
vita summa brevis spem nos vetat incohare longam the shortness of life prevents us from entertaining far-off hopes A wistful refrain, sometimes used ironically. From the first line of Horace's Ode I; later used as the title of a short poem by Ernest Dowson.
vitai lampada tradunt They hand on the torch of life From Lucretius' poem De rerum natura II.77–79; the normal spelling "vitae" (two syllables) had to be changed to "vitaï" (three syllables) to fit the requirements of the poem's dactylic hexameters. Motto of the Sydney Church of England Grammar School and others.
viva voce living voice An oral, as opposed to a written, examination of a candidate.
vivat crescat floreat may it live, grow, and flourish!
vivat rex May the King live! Usually translated "Long live the King!" Also Vivat Regina ("Long live the Queen!").
vive memor leti live remembering death Persius. Compare with "memento mori"
vive ut vivas live so that you may live The phrase suggests that one should live life to the fullest and without fear of possible consequences.
vivere est cogitare To live is to think Cicero. Compare with "cogito ergo sum".
vivere est vincere To live is to conquer Captain John Smith's personal Motto.
vivere militare est To live is to fight Seneca (Epist. 96,5). Compare with "militia est vita hominis" Book of Job 7:1
vocatus atque non vocatus Deus aderit called and not called, God will be present or "called and even not called, God approaches"; attributed to the Oracle at Delphi. Used by Carl Jung as a personal motto adorning his home and grave.
volenti non fit injuria to one willing, no harm is done or "to him who consents, no harm is done"; used in tort law to delineate the principle that one cannot be held liable for injuries inflicted on an individual who has given his consent to the action that gave rise to the injury.
votum separatum separate vow An independent, minority voice.
vox clamantis in deserto the voice of one shouting in the desert or traditionally, "the voice of one crying in the wilderness"; from Isaiah 40, and quoted by John the Baptist in the Gospels. Usually the "voice" is assumed to be shouting in vain, unheeded by the surrounding wilderness. However, in this phrase's use as the motto of Dartmouth College, it is taken to denote an isolated beacon of education and culture in the "wilderness" of New Hampshire.
vox nihili voice of nothing Applied to a useless or ambiguous phrase or statement.
vox populi voice of the people Short non-prearranged interview with an ordinary person (e.g. on the street); sometimes shortened to "vox pop".

Notes [edit]

  1. ^ Image at York University, Department of Languages, Literatures & Linguistics.
  2. ^ "Latin Pronunciation Demystified" by Michael A. Covington. Program in Linguistics, University of Georgia. December 31, 2005]

References [edit]
Latin phrases
Others

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