Romance verbs

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Romance verbs are the most inflected part of speech in the language family. In the transition from Latin to the Romance languages, verbs went through many phonological, syntactic, and semantic changes. Most of the distinctions present in classical Latin continued to be made, but synthetic forms were often replaced with more analytic ones. Other verb forms changed meaning, and new forms also appeared.

## Overview

[edit]

The following tables present a comparison of the conjugation of the regular verb amare "to love" in Classical Latin, and Vulgar Latin (reconstructed as Proto-Italo-Western Romance, with stress marked), and nine modern Romance languages. The conjugations below were given from their respective Wiktionary pages.

Because the verb "to love" in Romanian is iubi, of which goes back to Proto-Slavic origin and it is in 4th conjugation; while in Romansh is avair gugent which composed from the irregular verb avair, the conjugations in Romanian and Romansh only give the endings.

The comparison of Romance conjugations of the verb "to love"  Form  | Classical Latin  | Vulgar Latin  |  | Major languages  |  | Minor languages

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Spanish | Portuguese | Italian | French
(written)  | French
(spoken)  | Romanian | Sardinian
(Logudorese)  | Sicilian | Catalan | Romansh
Infinitive | amāre  | *amáre  | amar | amar | amare | aimer | /ɛme/ | (-a)  | amare | amari | amar | (-ar)
Present participle[a] | amandus  | *amándo  | amando  | amando  | amando  | aimant  | /ɛmɑ̃/ | (-ând)  | –  | amannu  | amant  | (-ond)
amāns  | *amánte  | amante  | amante  | amante[b] | –  | –  | –  | amende  | –  | –  | –
Past participle | amātum  | *amáto  | amado  | amado  | amato  | aimé  | /ɛme/ | (-at)  | amadu  | amatu  | amat  | (-à)
Indicative | Present | amō
amās
amat
amāmus
amātis
amant  | *ámo
*ámas
*ámat
*amámos
*amátes
*ámant  | amo
amas
ama
amamos
amáis
aman  | amo
amas
ama
amamos
amais
amam  | amo
ami
ama
amiamo
amate
amano  | aime
aimes
aime
aimons
aimez
aiment  | /ɛm/
/ɛm/
/ɛm/
/ɛmɔ̃/
/ɛme/
/ɛm/ | (-∅)
(-i)
(-ă)
(-ăm)
(-ați)
(-ă)  | amo
amas
amat
amamus
amades
amant  | amu
ami
ama
amamu
amati
àmanu, àmunu  | amo
ames
ama
amem
ameu
amen  | (-∅)
(-as)
(-a)
(-ain)
(-ais)
(-an)
Imperfect | amābam
amābās
amābat
amābāmus
amābātis
amābant  | *amába
*amábas
*amábat
*amábamos
*amábates
*amábant  | amaba
amabas
amaba
amábamos
amabais
amaban  | amava
amavas
amava
amávamos
amáveis
amavam  | amavo
amavi
amava
amavamo
amavate
amavano  | aimais
aimais
aimait
aimions
aimiez
aimaient  | /ɛmɛ/
/ɛmɛ/
/ɛmɛ/
/ɛmjɔ̃/
/ɛmje/
/ɛmɛ/ | (-am)
(-ai)
(-a)
(-am)
(-ați)
(-au)  | amaia
amaias
amaiat
amaiamus
amaiades
amaiant  | amava, amavu
amavi
amava
amàvamu
amàvavu
amàvanu, amàvunu  | amava
amaves
amava
amàvem
amàveu
amaven  | (-ava)
(-avas)
(-ava)
(-avan)
(-avas)
(-avan)
Preterite | amāvī
amāvistī
amāvit
amāvimus
amāvistis
amāvērunt  | *amái
*amásti
*amáut
*amámos
*amástes
*amáront  | amé
amaste
amó
amamos
amasteis
amaron  | amei
amaste
amou
amámos
amastes
amaram  | amai
amasti
amò
amammo
amaste
amarono  | aimai
aimas
aima
aimâmes
aimâtes
aimèrent[c] | /ɛme/
/ɛma/
/ɛma/
/ɛmam/
/ɛmat/
/ɛmɛʁ/ | (-ai)
(-ași)
(-ă)
(-arăm)
(-arăți)
(-ară)  | amesi
amesti
amesit
amemus
amezis
ameint  | amai
amasti
amau, amò
amammu, amamu
amastivu
amàrunu, amaru  | amí
amares
amà
amàrem
amàreu
amaren  | –
Pluperfect | amāveram
amāveras
amāverat
amāverāmus
amāverātis
amāverant  | *amára
*amáras
*amárat
*amáramos
*amárates
*amárant  | amara
amaras
amara
amáramos
amarais
amaran[d] | amara
amaras
amara
amáramos
amáreis
amaram[e] | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | amirìa
amirissi
amirìa
amirìamu
amirìavu
amirìanu[f] | –  | –
Future[g] | amābō
amābis
amābit
amābimus
amābitis
amābunt  | –  | amaré
amarás
amará
amaremos
amaréis
amarán  | amarei
amarás
amará
amaremos
amareis
amarão  | amerò
amerai
amerà
ameremo
amerete
ameranno  | aimerai
aimeras
aimera
aimerons
aimerez
aimeront  | /ɛmʁe/
/ɛmʁa/
/ɛmʁa/
/ɛmʁɔ̃/
/ɛmʁe/
/ɛmʁɔ̃/ | –  | –  | amirò, amirogghiu
amirai
amirà
amiremu
amireti, amiriti
amirannu  | amaré
amaràs
amarà
amarem
amareu
amaran  | –
Future perfect | amāverō
amāveris
amāverit
amāverimus
amāveritis
amāverint  | *amáre
*amáres
*amáret
*amáremos
*amáretes
*amárent  | amare
amares
amare
amáremos
amareis
amaren[h][i] | amar
amares
amar
amarmos
amardes
amarem[h] | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –
Subjunctive | Present  | amem
amēs
amet
amēmus
amētis
ament  | *áme
*ámes
*ámet
*amémos
*amétes
*áment  | ame
ames
ame
amemos
améis
amen  | ame
ames
ame
amemos
ameis
amem  | ami
ami
ami
amiamo
amiate
amino  | aime
aimes
aime
aimions
aimiez
aiment  | /ɛm/
/ɛm/
/ɛm/
/ɛmjɔ̃/
/ɛmje/
/ɛm/ | (-∅)
(-i)
(-e)
(-ăm)
(-ați)
(-e)  | ame
ames
amet
amemus
amedes
ament  | amu
ami
ama
amamu
amati
àmanu, àmunu  | ami
ami
ama
amem
ameu
amin  | (-ia)
(-ias)
(-ia)
(-ian)
(-ias)
(-ian)
Perfect  | amāverim
amāveris
amāverit
amāverimus
amāveritis
amāverint  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –
Imperfect  | amārem
amārēs
amāret
amārēmus
amārētis
amārent  | *amáre
*amáres
*amáret
*amáremos
*amáretes
*amárent  | –  | amar
amares
amar
amarmos
amardes
amarem[j] | –  | –  | –  | –  | amere
ameres
ameret
ameremus
amerezes
amerent  | –  | –  | –
Pluperfect[k] | amāvissem
amāvissēs
amāvisset
amāvissēmus
amāvissētis
amāvissent  | *amásse
*amásses
*amásset
*amássemos
*amássetes
*amássent  | amase
amases
amase
amásemos
amáseis
amasen  | amasse
amasses
amasse
amássemos
amásseis
amassem  | amassi
amassi
amasse
amassimo
amaste
amassero  | aimasse
aimasses
aimât
aimassions
aimassiez
aimassent[i] | /ɛmas/
/ɛmas/
/ɛma/
/ɛmasjɔ̃/
/ɛmasje/
/ɛmas/ | (-asem)
(-aseși)
(-ase)
(-aserăm)
(-aserăți)
(-aseră)  | –  | amassi
amassi
amassi
amàssimu
amàssivu
amàssiru  | amés
amessis
amés
améssim
améssiu
amessin  | (-ass)
(-asses)
(-ass)
(-assen)
(-asses)
(-assen)
Imperative[l] | amā
amāte  | *áma
*amáte  | ama
amad  | ama
amai  | ama
amate  | aime
aimez  | /ɛm/
/ɛme/ | (-ă)
(-ați)  | ama
amade  | ama
amati  | ama
ameu  | (-a)
(-ai)

1. ^ Both amandus and amāns change to their accusative forms amandum and amāntem.
2. ^ Functions as gerund in Italian.
3. ^ Literary.
4. ^ Its meaning has mostly shifted to that of an imperfect subjunctive in modern Spanish. It is now usually interchangeable with amase, amases, amase, etc. Nevertheless, a few rare uses as a pluperfect subsist.
5. ^ Fell into disuse in modern Portuguese, now found only in literary texts. Nowadays largely replaced by the compound forms tinha amado or havia amado (had loved).
6. ^ Its meaning has shifted to that of a conditional in Sicilian.
7. ^ The future indicative tense of the modern languages does not derive from the Latin form (which tended to be confounded with the preterite due to sound changes in Vulgar Latin), but rather from an infinitive + habeō periphrasis (*amáre ábio), later reanalysed as a simple tense. The conditional tense was formed similarly from the imperfect of habeō.
8. ^ a b Its meaning has shifted to that of a future subjunctive in Spanish and Portuguese.
9. ^ a b Disused.
10. ^ Reanalysed as a personal infinitive. See below.
11. ^ Its meaning has shifted to that of an imperfect subjunctive in most Romance languages, but as a pluperfect in Romanian and as a conditional in Romansh. But note the normal use, in modern south-eastern Umbrian of amassimo instead of standard Italian amammo to express an indicative past perfect.
12. ^ Only the second person singular and plural given on these examples. Other forms, the first person plural and third persons are usually supplied by the subjunctive present tense, but indicative present tense and only supplies the first plural in French.

Note that the Vulgar Latin reconstructions are believed to have regularized word stress within each tense (except the present and imperative tenses). Word-final ⟨e⟩ probably converged on /ə/. Many verb forms undergoes elisions, like the indicative pluperfect amāveram > *amára and the subjunctive imperfect amāvissem > *amásse.

The verb "to love" in Old French amer, the early form of modern French is rather irregular but still follows its regular sound changes, with having aim- in stressed forms (namely the singular and third person plural of indicative and subjunctive present tenses, and the second person singular imperative), and the stem changes again to ain- before -s and -t in subjunctive present. In Catalan, the verb amar has replaced by synonymous estimar, the former usually used only in poetic contexts.

## Vulgar Latin

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In this section, "Vulgar Latin" is actually reconstructed as reconstructed Proto-Italo-Western Romance, most notably the shift from Classical Latin -i- and -u- to -e- /e/ and -o- /o/, as opposed to inherited /ɛ/ and /ɔ/ respectively. The developments include:

* The -v- of the perfect tenses were dropped or elided, but sometimes become /u/ after vowels.
* The past participle were sometimes sporadically rounded to *-ū-, this situation is preserved in French.
* The "unstressed" indicative imperfect is very likely from shortened *-bămus, *-bătis, yielding to the stress on the third-from-last syllable (amābāmus), as opposed to Classical Latin stress on the second-from-last syllable (amābāmus). Languages which retains this irregular stress were the languages of Iberia, Sicilian, and French.
* Romance metaphony. In forms containing -ī next to mid-open vowels, especially in preterite forms were heightened.

In the Proto-Romance grammatical tradition, the second and third conjugation are known as third conjugation, similarly to French.

### First conjugation

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Verbs in the first conjugation are in -āre (*-áre), later evolved to -are in Italian, -ar in most Romance languages and -er in French.

Vulgar Latin conjugation of *-áre Infinitive  | *-áre

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Present participle  | *-ánte
Gerund  | *-ándo
Supine  | *-áto
| 1st singular  | 2nd singular  | 3rd singular  | 1st plural  | 2nd plural  | 3rd plural
Indicative  | Present  | *-o[a] | *-as[a] | *-at[a] | *-ámos | *-átes | *-ant[a]
Imperfect  | *-ába | *-ábas | *-ábat | *-ábamos | *-ábates | *-ábant
Preterite  | *-áui | *-áusti | *-áut | *-ámos | *-ástes | *-áront
Pluperfect  | *-ára | *-áras | *-árat | *-áramos | *-árates | *-árant
Future perfect  | *-áro | *-áres | *-áret | *-áremos | *-áretes | *-árent
Subjunctive  | Present  | *-e[a] | *-es[a] | *-et[a] | *-émos | *-étes | *-ent[a]
Imperfect  | *-áre | *-áres | *-áret | *-arémos | *-arétes | *-árent
Pluperfect  | *-ásse | *-ásses | *-ásset | *-assémos | *-assétes | *-ássent
Imperative  |  | *-a[a] |  |  | *-áte |

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Causes the previous syllable to be stressed (*amáre → *ámo).

### Second conjugation

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Verbs in the second conjugation are in -ēre (*-ére), later evolved to -ere in Italian, -er in most Romance languages and -oir in French (no "regular" -oir verbs). Another infinitive -ere has merged into this paradigm.

Vulgar Latin conjugation of *-ére Infinitive  | *-ére

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Present participle  | *-énte
Gerund  | *-éndo
Supine  | *-eto[a]
| 1st singular  | 2nd singular  | 3rd singular  | 1st plural  | 2nd plural  | 3rd plural
Indicative  | Present  | *-io[a] | *-es[a] | *-et[a] | *-émos | *-étes | *-ent[a]
Imperfect  | *-éba | *-ébas | *-ébat | *-ébamos | *-ébates | *-ébant
Preterite  | *-í | *-ísti | *-ét | *-émos | *-éstes | *-éront
Pluperfect  | *-éra | *-éras | *-érat | *-éramos | *-érates | *-érant
Future perfect  | *-éro | *-éres | *-éret | *-éremos | *-éretes | *-érent
Subjunctive  | Present  | *-ia[a] | *-ias[a] | *-iat[a] | *-iámos | *-iátes | *-iant[a]
Imperfect  | *-ére | *-éres | *-éret | *-éremos | *-éretes | *-érent
Pluperfect  | *-ésse | *-ésses | *-ésset | *-essémos | *-essétes | *-éssent
Imperative  |  | *-é[a] |  |  | *-éte |

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Causes the previous syllable to be stressed (*amáre → *ámo).

### Third conjugation

[edit]

Verbs in the third conjugation are in -ere (*-ere, caused stress in previous syllable), later merged with -ere (*-ere, causes stress in antepenultimate syllable), but -re in French and Catalan. The suffix -re in French are in the third group, also known as irregular verbs.

The -iō variant (*-io in Vulgar Latin) now defunct, later merged with the second conjugation; the paradigm now only exists in some descendants of the verb faciō.

Vulgar Latin conjugation of *-ere Infinitive  | *-ere[a]

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Present participle  | *-énte
Gerund  | *-éndo
Supine  | *-eto[a]
| 1st singular  | 2nd singular  | 3rd singular  | 1st plural  | 2nd plural  | 3rd plural
Indicative  | Present  | *-o[a] | *-es[a] | *-et[a] | *-émos | *-étes | *-ont[a]
Imperfect  | *-éba | *-ébas | *-ébat | *-ébamos | *-ébates | *-ébant
Preterite  | *-í | *-ísti | *-ét | *-émos | *-éstes | *-érent
Pluperfect  | *-éra | *-éras | *-érat | *-éramos | *-érates | *-érant
Future perfect  | *-éro | *-éres | *-éret | *-éremos | *-éretes | *-érent
Subjunctive  | Present  | *-a[a] | *-as[a] | *-at[a] | *-ámos | *-átes | *-ant[a]
Imperfect  | *-ére | *-éres | *-éret | *-éremos | *-éretes | *-érent
Pluperfect  | *-ésse | *-ésses | *-ésset | *-essémos | *-essétes | *-éssent
Imperative  |  | *-e[a] |  |  | *-éte |

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Causes the previous syllable to be stressed (*amáre → *ámo).

### Fourth conjugation

[edit]

Verbs in the fourth conjugation are in -īre (*-íre), later evolved to -ire in Italian, and -ir in most Romance languages. This conjugation type are infixed with once-inchoative -īsc- → *-ísc- in some languages, but its placement varies.

Vulgar Latin conjugation of *-íre Infinitive  | *-íre

|

Present participle  | *-iénte
Gerund  | *-iéndo
Supine  | *-íto
| 1st singular  | 2nd singular  | 3rd singular  | 1st plural  | 2nd plural  | 3rd plural
Indicative  | Present  | *-io[a] | *-is[a] | *-it[a] | *-ímos | *-ítes | *-iont[a]
Imperfect  | *-iéba | *-iébas | *-iébat | *-iébamos | *-iébates | *-iébant
Preterite  | *-i | *-ísti | *-it | *-ímos | *-ístes | *-íront
Pluperfect  | *-íra | *-íras | *-írat | *-íramos | *-írates | *-írant
Future perfect  | *-íro | *-íres | *-íret | *-íremos | *-íretes | *-írent
Subjunctive  | Present  | *-ia[a] | *-ias[a] | *-iat[a] | *-iamos | *-iates | *-iant[a]
Imperfect  | *-íre | *-íres | *-íret | *-íremos | *-íretes | *-írent
Pluperfect  | *-ísse | *-ísses | *-ísset | *-íssemos | *-íssetes | *-íssent
Imperative  |  | *-i[a] |  |  | *-íte |

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Causes the previous syllable to be stressed (*amáre → *ámo).

In Italian, Catalan, and Romanian, the infix -isc-; -esc-, -eix- (Catalan), and -ăsc- (Romanian) is placed on once-stressed indicative and subjunctive present forms (the first-, second-, third-singular and third plural present tenses), and stressed imperatives. In French, the infix -iss- is placed on all indicative present forms, the indicative imperfect, the subjunctive present, and plural imperatives.

While there are few non-infixed -īre verbs (also known are pure -īre verbs), in French the infixed verbs are the only regular verbs, otherwise irregular.

## Modern languages

[edit]

While the nominal morphology in Romance languages is primarily agglutinative, the verbal morphology is fusional. The verbs are highly inflected for numbers (singular and plural), persons (first-, second-, and third-person), moods (indicative, conditional, subjunctive, and imperative), tenses (present, past, future), and aspects (imperfective and perfective).

Because of the complexities in Romance conjugation, certain languages have a separate article regarding these conjugations:

* Italian conjugation
* Spanish verbs
* Portuguese verb conjugation
* Romanian verbs
* French conjugation
* Catalan verbs
* Occitan conjugation
* Sardinian conjugation

While there are 4 regular infinitives in Classical Latin, namely -āre, -ēre, -ere, and -īre, some of these infinitive were merged. In many Romance languages including Spanish and Portuguese, the main infinitives are -ar, -er, and -ir, with addition of -ôr (Portuguese only) which only exists in the verb pôr, traditionally considered as -er verbs. While in Italian, the infinitives are -are, -ere, -ire. The infinitives -er and -ere (Italian) resulted from the merge of Latin infinitives -ēre and -ere. In French, the infinitives are -er, -oir, -re, -ir, but verbs with -oir and -re are in the third group, also known as irregular verbs.

Latin deponent verbs like sequor and nascor (infinitive sequī, nascī) changed to active counterparts *séquo and *násco (infinitive *séquere, *nascere), as in Portuguese seguir, Spanish seguir, and Italian seguire; and Portuguese nascer, Spanish nacer, and French naître.

## Irregularities

[edit]

Spanish  Hard  | Soft

|

Back vowels  | Front vowels  | Back vowels  | Front vowels
c- | quV- | z- | c-
g- | guV- | j- | g-

In many Romance languages, verb stems ending in -c, -z shown above were regularly altered to preserve its pronunciation. However, it is not considered irregular.

### True irregular verbs

[edit]

#### Copula

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Main article: Romance copula

While the passive voice became completely periphrastic in Romance, the active voice has been morphologically preserved to a greater or lesser extent. The tables below compare the conjugation of the Latin verbs sum and stō in the active voice with that of the Romance copulae, their descendants. For simplicity, only the first person singular is listed for finite forms. Note that certain forms in Romance languages come from the suppletive sources sedeo (to be seated) instead of sum, e.g. subjunctive present: sedea > sia, sea, seja... (medieval Galician-Portuguese, for instance, had double forms in the whole conjugation: sou/sejo, era/sia, fui/sevi, fora/severa, fosse/sevesse...)

Form  | Latin  |  | Italian  | French1 | Spanish  | Portuguese  | Logudorese  | Catalan  | Sicilian  | Romansh  | Romanian

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Indicative  | Present | sum  | stō  | sono  | sto  | suis  | –  | soy  | estoy  | sou  | estou  | so  | isto  | sóc  | estic  | sugnu  | staiu  | sun  | sunt
Imperfect | eram  | stābam  | ero  | stavo  | –  | étais  | era  | estaba  | era  | estava  | essia  | istaia  | era  | estava  | era  | stava  | era  | eram
Preterite | fuī  | stetī  | fui  | stetti  | fus  | –  | fui  | estuve  | fui  | estive  | essesi  | istesi  | fui  | estiguí  | fui  | stesi  | –  | fui, fusei
Pluperfect | fueram  | steteram  | –  | –  | –  | –  | fuera  | estuviera  | fora  | estivera  | –  | –  | fóra  | estigués  | fora  | –  | –  | –
Future2 | erō  | stābō  | sarò  | starò  | serai  | –  | seré  | estaré  | serei  | estarei  | –  | –  | seré  | estaré  | –  | –  | –  | –
Subjunctive  | Present | sim  | stem  | sia  | stia  | sois  | –  | sea  | esté  | seja  | esteja  | sia  | iste  | sigui, siga  | estigui, estiga  | –  | –  | saja  | să fiu
Perfect3 | fuerim  | steterim  | –  | –  | –  | –  | fuere  | estuviere  | for  | estiver  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –
Imperfect | essem  | starem  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | ser  | estar  | essere  | istere  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –  | –
Pluperfect | fuissem  | stetissem  | fossi  | stessi  | fusse  | –  | fuese  | estuviese  | fosse  | estivesse  | –  | –  | fos  | estigués  | fussi  | stassi  | fiss  | fusesem
Infinitive | esse  | stāre  | essere  | stare  | être  | –  | ser  | estar  | ser  | estar  | essere  | istare  | ser, ésser  | estar  | siri  | stari  | esser  | fire, a fi
Supine | –  | statum  | –  | stato  | –  | été  | sido  | estado  | sido  | estado  | essidu  | istadu  | estat, sigut, sét  | estat  | statu  | statu  | stà  | fost
Gerund | –  | standum  | essendo  | stando  | –  | étant  | siendo  | estando  | sendo  | estando  | essende  | istande  | sent, essent  | estant  | sennu  | stannu  | essend, siond  | fiind

1. In French the outcomes of sum and stō merged into a single verb paradigm; here the various forms are separated according to which root they descend from.
2. The future indicative tense does not derive from the Latin form (which tended to be confounded with the preterite due to sound changes in Vulgar Latin), but rather from an infinitive + habeō periphrasis, later reanalysed as a simple tense.
3. Formally identical to the future perfect indicative, the two paradigms merged in Vulgar Latin.

#### Other irregular verbs

[edit]

* "To have": The verb habeō was regularly conjugated in Classical Latin, but later tends to be highly irregular in the Romance languages. The verb later transformed to *haveō in many Romance languages (but etymologically Spanish haber), resulting in irregular indicative present forms *ai, *as, and *at (all first-, second- and third-person singular), but ho, hai, ha in Italian and -pp- (appo) in Logudorese Sardinian in present tenses.

In Logudorese Sardinian, two -b-es lost in imperfect tenses.
In French, the past participle eu including the perfect stems (past historic and subjunctive imperfect stems) eu-/eû- rather evolved from earlier *habū-.

This is the Vulgar Latin conjugation of the verb *avére:

Vulgar Latin conjugation of *avére Infinitive  | *avére

|

Present participle  | *avénte
Gerund  | *avéndo
Supine  | *áuto
| 1st singular  | 2nd singular  | 3rd singular  | 1st plural  | 2nd plural  | 3rd plural
Indicative  | Present  | *áio | *áus | *áut | *avémos | *avétes | *áunt
Imperfect  | *avéba | *avébas | *avébat | *avébamos | *avébates | *avébant
Preterite  | *áui | *avésti | *áut | *avémos | *avéstes | *áuront
Pluperfect  | *avéra | *avéras | *avérat | *avéramos | *avérates | *avérant
Future  | *avére áio | *avére áus | *avére áut | *avére avémos | *avére avétes | *avére áunt
Conditional  | *avére avéba | *avére avéba | *avére avébat | *avére avébamos | *avére avébates | *avére avébant
Future perfect  | *avéro | *avéres | *avéret | *avéremos | *avéretes | *avérent
Subjunctive  | Present  | *áia | *áias | *áiat | *aiámos | *aiátes | *áiant
Imperfect  | *avére | *avéres | *avéret | *avéremos | *avéretes | *avérent
Pluperfect  | *avésse | *avésses | *avésset | *avessémos | *avessétes | *avéssent
Imperative  |  | *áu |  |  | *avéte |

Notice that these forms sometimes also have an inconsistent form, as the table above more resembling with that of French.

* "To do": The verb faciō is also irregular in Classical Latin, with fēc- before perfect tenses (although the passive form of the verb was supplied by fīō, this suppletion is not included as the passive voice became periphrastic). This verb is one of the few verbs that retains perfect ablaut in Romance languages, with some changing the perfect stem to fi- due to metaphony rules.

## Semantic changes

[edit]

In spite of the remarkable continuity of form, several Latin tenses have changed meaning, especially subjunctives.

* The verbal noun became a present participle in all Romance languages except in Italian and Romanian, where it became a gerund, and Sardinian, where it does not exist. However, the French and Catalan suffixes -ant conflate with the accusative of present active participle suffix -āntem.
* The supine became a past participle in all Romance languages.
* The pluperfect indicative became a conditional in Sicilian, and an imperfect subjunctive in Spanish.
* The pluperfect subjunctive developed into an imperfect subjunctive in all languages except Romansh, where it became a conditional, and Romanian, where it became a pluperfect indicative.
* The future perfect indicative became a future subjunctive in Old Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician.

The Latin imperfect subjunctive underwent a change in syntactic status, becoming a personal infinitive in Portuguese and Galician.[1] An alternative hypothesis traces the personal infinitive back to the Latin infinitive, not to a conjugated verb form.[2]

## Periphrases

[edit]

In many cases, the empty cells in the tables above exist as distinct compound verbs in the modern languages. Thus, the main tense and mood distinctions in classical Latin are still made in most modern Romance languages, though some are now expressed through compound rather than simple verbs. Some examples, from Romanian:

* Perfect indicative: am fost, ai fost, a fost, am fost, ați fost, au fost;
* Future indicative: voi fi, vei fi, va fi, vom fi, veți fi, vor fi;
* Future perfect indicative: voi fi fost, vei fi fost, va fi fost, vom fi fost, veți fi fost, vor fi fost.

New forms also developed, such as the conditional, which in most Romance languages started out as a periphrasis, but later became a simple tense. In Romanian, the conditional is still periphrastic: aș fi, ai fi, ar fi, am fi, ați fi, ar fi.

## See also

[edit]

* Romance languages
* Vulgar Latin

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ Williams (1962); Wireback (1994)
2. ^ Maurer (1968); Osborne (1982)

## References

[edit]

* Maurer, Theodoro H. (1968). O infinitivo flexionado português: estudo histórico-descritivo (in Portuguese). São Paulo: Companhia Editora Nacional.
* Paola Monachesi, The Verbal Complex in Romance: A Case Study in Grammatical Interfaces. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.
* Osborne, Bruce (1982). "On the origin of the Portuguese inflected infinitive". In Anders Ahlqvist (ed.). Papers from the Fifth International Conference on Historical Linguistics, Galway, April 6–10, 1981. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company. pp. 243–48. ISBN 978-90-272-3514-5.
* Williams, Edwin Bucher (1962). From Latin to Portuguese: Historical phonology and morphology of the Portuguese language (2nd ed.). Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
* Wireback, Kenneth J. (1994). "The Origin of the Portuguese Inflected Infinitive". Hispania. 77 (3): 544–554. doi:10.2307/344992. JSTOR 344992.

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