Genesis 38:21

Posted on February 7, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

21 interrogavit homines loci illius: Ubi est mulier quæ sedebat in bivio? Respondentibus cunctis: Non fuit in loco ista meretrix.

he asked the men of that place, “Where is the woman who sat at the crossroads?” And when all answered, “There was no prostitute in that place.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 interrogavit he asked V.3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 homines men NOUN.ACC.PL.M
3 loci of the place NOUN.GEN.SG.M
4 illius of that PRON.DEM.GEN.SG.M
5 Ubi where ADV.INTERROG
6 est is V.3SG.PRES.IND.ACT
7 mulier woman NOUN.NOM.SG.F
8 quæ who PRON.REL.NOM.SG.F
9 sedebat was sitting V.3SG.IMPERF.IND.ACT
10 in in / at PREP+ABL
11 bivio crossroads NOUN.ABL.SG.N
12 Respondentibus while answering PART.PRES.ACT.ABL.PL.M
13 cunctis all ADJ.ABL.PL.M
14 Non not ADV.NEG
15 fuit was V.3SG.PERF.IND.ACT
16 in in / at PREP+ABL
17 loco place NOUN.ABL.SG.M
18 ista this / that (woman) PRON.DEM.NOM.SG.F
19 meretrix prostitute NOUN.NOM.SG.F

Syntax

Main Clause 1: interrogavit homines loci illius — main narrative action. The object homines (“men”) is qualified by the genitive phrase loci illius (“of that place”), specifying whom he questioned.

Indirect Question: Ubi est mulier quæ sedebat in bivio? — introduced by the interrogative adverb ubi (“where”), forming a direct speech question. The relative clause quæ sedebat in bivio modifies mulier.

Subordinate Clause (Ablative Absolute): Respondentibus cunctis — “as all answered” or “when all had replied,” an ablative absolute expressing the background circumstance to the following clause.

Main Clause 2: Non fuit in loco ista meretrix — the reported answer of the locals. The nominative ista meretrix functions as subject, and in loco gives the locative sense “in that place.”

Morphology

  1. interrogavit — Lemma: interrogō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect indicative active; Function: main verb; Translation: “he asked”; Notes: Marks a completed speech act by Judah’s messenger.
  2. homines — Lemma: homō; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of interrogavit; Translation: “men”; Notes: Refers to the inhabitants of the local area.
  3. loci — Lemma: locus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessive genitive; Translation: “of the place”; Notes: Defines location.
  4. illius — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies loci; Translation: “of that”; Notes: Refers to the previously mentioned area.
  5. Ubi — Lemma: ubi; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: interrogative; Function: introduces question; Translation: “where”; Notes: Direct inquiry about location.
  6. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular present indicative active; Function: copula in question; Translation: “is”; Notes: Links subject and predicate.
  7. mulier — Lemma: mulier; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of est; Translation: “woman”; Notes: Refers to Thamar.
  8. quæ — Lemma: quī, quae, quod; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of sedebat; Translation: “who”; Notes: Introduces relative clause modifying mulier.
  9. sedebat — Lemma: sedeō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular imperfect indicative active; Function: verb of relative clause; Translation: “was sitting”; Notes: Imperfect tense implies ongoing state at the time.
  10. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses location; Translation: “in / at”; Notes: Standard locative preposition.
  11. bivio — Lemma: bivium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: object of in; Translation: “crossroads”; Notes: Literally “two-way road.”
  12. Respondentibus — Lemma: respondeō; Part of Speech: participle; Form: ablative plural masculine present active; Function: ablative absolute; Translation: “when (they were) answering”; Notes: Indicates contemporaneous background action.
  13. cunctis — Lemma: cunctus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: ablative plural masculine; Function: agrees with Respondentibus; Translation: “all”; Notes: Adds emphasis to unanimity of reply.
  14. Non — Lemma: nōn; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: negates verb; Translation: “not”; Notes: Introduces the locals’ denial.
  15. fuit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect indicative active; Function: main verb; Translation: “was”; Notes: Perfect tense indicating completed past statement.
  16. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: denotes location; Translation: “in / at”; Notes: Repetition for emphasis of place.
  17. loco — Lemma: locus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of in; Translation: “place”; Notes: Same location queried earlier.
  18. ista — Lemma: iste; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: modifies meretrix; Translation: “this / that”; Notes: Slightly contemptuous nuance in Latin.
  19. meretrix — Lemma: meretrix; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: predicate nominative; Translation: “prostitute”; Notes: Used generically for a woman offering intercourse for payment.

 

About Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Born around 346 A.D. in Stridon, St. Jerome was a scholar fluent in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew whose ascetic discipline and deep engagement with Scripture prepared him for a monumental task: translating the Bible into Latin. Commissioned by Pope Damasus I around 382 A.D., Jerome began by revising the flawed Old Latin Gospels, then expanded his work to the entire Bible. For the New Testament, he corrected Latin texts using Greek manuscripts; for the Old Testament, he translated most books directly from Hebrew—a controversial but principled choice. His final Psalter, however, followed the Greek Septuagint tradition for liturgical use. This composite translation, later known as the Vulgate (editio vulgata), became the authoritative biblical text of the Western Church, formally endorsed at the Council of Trent in 1546. The Vulgate’s influence extends beyond theology into textual criticism and Latin education. As one of the earliest translations grounded in original-language scholarship, it offers a vital witness to the state of biblical texts in late antiquity. Jerome’s lexical and syntactic decisions are studied to trace manuscript history and assess variant readings. Its elegant Latin, consistent in grammar and rich in vocabulary, became a model for medieval and Renaissance learning, bridging classical and ecclesiastical Latin. More than a translation, the Vulgate helped define Christian doctrine, preserved the Latin language, and laid essential groundwork for the critical study of Scripture—remaining indispensable to students of Latin, theology, and textual history.
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