Most common Latin words: 100 basic words
In short
These 100 words occur most often in the exercises of Disce ludens and Verte ludens: above all esse (to be), is (he, this) and in, plus words such as servus, magnus, pater and vincere. All of them come from the Disce ludens I vocabulary trainer with 574 words relevant for reading, which Thomas Wegener put together for his teaching.
How the list was made
We counted how often each word from the Disce ludens I vocabulary trainer occurs in the Latin sentences and answers of all exercises – with all its forms: est and fuit count for esse, vicit for vincere. That verbs such as monere, audire or capere rank high is due to the conjugation exercises, where they serve as model verbs.
The 100 words by part of speech
The English meanings on this page are translations for this website. The app is in German: exercises, hints and meanings are German, as in the original.
Verbs (46)
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| addere | to add |
| adiuvare | to support, to help |
| agere | to drive, to carry on, to negotiate |
| audire | to hear |
| caedere | to fell, to kill |
| capere | to catch, to take, to seize |
| cogere | to force, to gather |
| cognoscere | to recognise, to learn |
| complere | to fill up, to fill |
| consulere | to ask for advice, to advise, to decide |
| creare | to elect, to create |
| cupere | to wish, to want, to desire |
| dare | to give |
| debere | to have to, must, to owe, to be indebted for |
| dicere | to say |
| discere | to learn |
| ducere | to lead, to think |
| esse | to be |
| excitare | to startle, to wake |
| exercere | to practise, to train |
| facere | to make, to do |
| fugere | to flee, to avoid |
| imperare | to command |
| instruere | to draw up, to equip |
| invenire | to find, to discover |
| iubere | to order, to tell |
| laborare | to work |
| mittere | to send, to let go |
| monere | to admonish, to warn |
| parare | to prepare, to procure |
| parere | to obey |
| pellere | to push, to strike, to drive away |
| ponere | to set, to place, to put |
| prohibere | to keep away, to prevent |
| servare | to save |
| solvere | to loosen, to pay |
| spectare | to look at, to watch |
| stare | to stand |
| superare | to overcome, to defeat |
| timere | to fear, to be afraid |
| trahere | to pull, to drag |
| venire | to come |
| videre | to see |
| vincere | to win, to defeat |
| vivere | to live |
| vocare | to call |
Nouns (20)
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| clamor | shouting, noise |
| dies | day |
| dominus | master, lord |
| filius | son |
| frater | brother |
| labor | work |
| liber | book |
| liberi | children |
| mater | mother |
| miles | soldier |
| mulier | woman |
| pater | father |
| puer | boy |
| res | thing, matter, property |
| servus | slave |
| spes | hope |
| tempus | time |
| terror | terror |
| victor | victor, winner |
| vir | man |
Adjectives (16)
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| acer | sharp, fierce |
| altus | high, deep |
| amicus | friend, friendly |
| apertus | open |
| bonus | good |
| brevis | short |
| celer | fast |
| difficilis | difficult |
| fortis | brave |
| ingens | huge |
| magnus | great, important |
| malus | bad, evil |
| miser | poor, wretched |
| multi | many |
| novus | new |
| parvus | small |
Pronouns (10)
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| is | this, he |
| mecum | with me |
| noster | our |
| quem | whom |
| qui | who, which |
| quid | what |
| quis | who |
| secum | with himself, with herself, with themselves |
| suus | his, her, its, their (own) |
| vos | you (plural) |
Small words: prepositions, conjunctions, adverbs (8)
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| a, ab (+ abl.) | from, by |
| e, ex (+ abl.) | out of, from |
| et | and, also |
| in (+ abl.) | in, on |
| nam | for |
| -ne (enclitic) | (enclitic) question particle, whether |
| non | not |
| paulum | a little |
How to learn the list
- Ten new words a day, plus the reviews that are due.
- Recall instead of just reading: cover the English, look at the Latin, say the meaning – and the other way round.
- In the app: the Disce ludens I vocabulary trainer contains all 100 words. For free you can put up to 20 of them into a card box of your own; the 20 free words of the vocabulary trainer are the first ones in the alphabetical list.
Try it
A real exercise from Disce ludens:
Disce ludens I · Vocabulary trainer, German → Latin
What is the Latin for “slave” (German: Sklave)?
Error points: 0
© Disce ludensWhat Disce ludens does – and what it doesn’t
What Disce ludens does
- Tests all 100 words in the vocabulary trainer, with a flashcard box and in both directions.
- Shows all forms of each word under “Grammatik” (grammar).
- Lets you put the words into a card box of your own.
What it doesn’t do
- Is not an official word list and not a frequency list for all Latin texts.
- Does not contain the chapter vocabulary of individual textbooks.
- Does not replace a dictionary.
Frequently asked questions
Which Latin words should you learn first?
The common basic words: esse, is, qui, the most important prepositions and conjunctions, then common verbs, nouns and adjectives. This list sorts them by part of speech.
How many words do you need for Latin?
According to Thomas Wegener, 500 different words cover about 80% of Caesar. The Disce ludens I vocabulary trainer contains 574, the Disce ludens II trainer 991 words relevant for reading.
Can I learn the list for free?
Yes. The list is freely available here; in the app, 20 words and a card box of your own with up to 20 words are free.