List of Latin phrases (F)



LatinTranslationNotes
'every man is the artisan of his own fortuneAppius Claudius Caecus; motto of Fort Street High School in Petersham, Sydney, Australia
'do and hopemotto of Clan Matheson
'do brave deeds and enduremotto of Prince Alfred College in Adelaide, Australia
'make a similar thingorigin of the word facsimile, and, through it, of fax
'I will make them into one nationappeared on British coinage following the Union of the Crowns
'I'll do whatever it takes
'I'll make you remember mefrom Plautus, Persa IV.3–24; used by Russian hooligans as tattoo inscription
'easily the firstsaid of the acknowledged leader in some field, especially in the arts and humanities
'It is easier to do many things, than one thing consecutivelyQuintilian, Institutio Oratoria 1/12:7
'"I make free adults out of children by means of books and a balance."motto of St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland, and Santa Fe, New Mexico
'deeds, not wordsFrequently used as motto
'It is impossible for a deed to be undoneTerence, Phormio 5/8:45
falsus in uno, falsus in omnibusfalse in one, false in allA Roman legal principle indicating that a witness who willfully falsifies one matter is not credible on any matter. The underlying motive for attorneys to impeach opposing witnesses in court: the principle discredits the rest of their testimony if it is without corroboration.
'family over everythingfrequently used as a family motto
'It is lawful to be taught even by an enemyOvid, Metamorphoses 4:428
'He who flies from justice acknowledges himself a criminal.Under such circumstances the presumption is one of guilt.
'fever of loveHypochromic anemia or chlorosis, once described as the "fever of love", which was believed to stem from the yearning for passion in virgins. First written about in 1554 by the German physician Johannes Lange. Also known as "Disease of the Virgins".
'I have done what I could; let those who can do better.Slight variant found in James Boswell's An Account of Corsica, there described as "a simple beautiful inscription on the front of Palazzo Tolomei at Siena". Later, found in Henry Baerlein's introduction to his translation of The Diwan of Abul ʿAla by Abul ʿAla Al-Maʿarri ; also in Anton Chekhov's Three Sisters, act 1. Also in Alfonso Moreno Espinosa, Compendio de Historia Universal, 5. ed..
'NN made a formula used traditionally in the author's signature by painters, sculptors, artisans, scribes etc.; compare pinxit
'"From differing peoples you have made one native land"Verse 63 from the poem De reditu suo by Rutilius Claudius Namatianus praising emperor Augustus.
felicior Augusto, melior Traiano"be more fortunate than Augustus and better than Trajan"ritual acclamation delivered to late Roman emperors
'Happiness, Integrity and KnowledgeThe motto of Oakland Colegio Campestre school through which Colombia participates of NASA Educational Programs
felix culpafortunate faultfrom the "Exsultet" of the Catholic liturgy for the Easter Vigil
felix qui potuit rerum cognoscere causashappy is he who can ascertain the causes of thingsVirgil. "Rerum cognoscere causas" is the motto of the London School of Economics, University of Sheffield, and University of Guelph.
felo de sefelon from himselfarchaic legal term for one who commits suicide, referring to early English common law punishments, such as land seizure, inflicted on those who killed themselves
fere libenter homines id quod volunt creduntmen generally believe what they want toPeople's beliefs are shaped largely by their desires. Julius Caesar, The Gallic War 3.18
festina lentehurry slowlyAn oxymoronic motto of Augustus. It encourages proceeding quickly, but calmly and cautiously. Equivalent to "more haste, less speed". Motto of the Madeira School, McLean, Virginia and Berkhamsted School, Berkhamsted, England, United Kingdom
'it is bad to hurry, and delay is often as bad; the wise person is the one who does everything in its proper time.Ovid
'dregs of the city, law of the worldattributed to Saint Jerome by Victor Hugo in Les Misérables
fiatArbitrary or authoritative command or order to do something; an effectual decree3rd-person singular present passive subjunctive from Latin facio
fiat justitia"Let justice be done"warrant, petition; motto of several institutions
fiat iustitia, et pereat munduslet justice be done, even if the world should perishmotto of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor
fiat justitia ruat caelumlet justice be done, even if the sky should fallattributed to Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus
fiat luxlet there be lightfrom the Genesis, "dixitque Deus fiat lux et facta est lux" ; frequently used as the motto of schools.
'be it done to me according to thy wordVirgin Mary's response to the Annunciation
'let there be breadMotto of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization
'May God's will be donemotto of Robert May's School; see the next phrase below
'Thy will be doneQuotation of the third petition of the Pater Noster prayer dictated by Jesus Christ and his response to the Father during the Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane; motto of Archbishop Richard Smith of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Edmonton.
'fictions meant to please should approximate the truthHorace, Ars Poetica
Fidei Defensor or Defender of the FaithA title given to King Henry VIII of England by Pope Leo X on 17 October 1521, before Henry broke from the Roman Church and founded the Church of England. British monarchs continue to use the title, which is still inscribed on all British coins, and usually abbreviated.
'by fidelity and valormotto of Kingswood College, Kandy
'he knows the faithsometimes mistranslated to "keep the faith" when used in contemporary English writings of all kinds to convey a light-hearted wish for the reader's well-being
'the faith by which it is believedRoman Catholic theological term for the personal faith that apprehends what is believed, contrasted with fides quae creditur, which is what is believed; see next phrase below
'the faith which is believedRoman Catholic theological term for the content and truths of the Faith or "the deposit of the Faith", contrasted with fides qua creditur, which is the personal faith by which the Faith is believed; see previous phrase
'faith seeking understandingmotto of St. Anselm; Proslogion
'faithful Achatesrefers to a faithful friend; from the name of Aeneas's faithful companion in Virgil's Aeneid
'may our daughters be as polished as the corners of the templemotto of Francis Holland School
'the end crowns the workA major part of a work is properly finishing it. Motto of Poole Grammar School in Dorset, UK; St. Mary's Catholic High School in Dubai, United Arab Emirates; on the coat of arms of Seychelles; and of the Amin Investment Bank
'the end depends upon the beginningone of the mottos of Phillips Academy
'the end of life, but not of loveunknown
'the scourge of Godtitle for Attila the Hun, the ruthless invader of the Western Roman Empire
flatus vocis breath of voicea mere name, word, or sound without a corresponding objective reality; expression used by the nominalists of universals and traditionally attributed to the medieval philosopher Roscelin of Compiègne
flectere si nequeo superos, Acheronta moveboif I can not reach Heaven I will raise HellVirgil, Aeneid, Book VII.312
floreat Etonamay Eton flourishMotto of Eton College, England, United Kingdom
floreat nostra scholamay our school flourisha common scholastic motto
floreat picamay the Magpie flourishMotto of Collingwood Football Club
floruit one flourishedindicates a date on which a person is known to have been alive, often the period when a historic person was most active or was accomplishing that for which he is famous; may be used as a substitute when the dates of his birth and/or death are unknown.
fluctuat nec mergiturit is tossed by the waves but does not founderMotto of the City of Paris, France
fons et origothe spring and sourcealso: "the fountainhead and beginning"
fons sapientiae, verbum Deithe fount of knowledge is the word of Godmotto of Bishop Blanchet High School
fons vitae caritaslove is the fountain of lifemotto of Chisipite Senior School and Chisipite Junior School
formosam resonare doces Amaryllida silvasteach the woods to re-echo "fair Amaryllis"Virgil, Eclogues, 1:5
formosum pastor Corydon ardebat Alexinthe shepherd Corydon burned with love for the handsome AlexisVirgil, Eclogues, 2:1. Highlighted by various authors as a reference to same-sex love. Also Alexim.
forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabitperhaps even these things will be good to remember one dayVirgil, Aeneid, Book 1, Line 203
fortes Fortuna adiuvatFortune favors the braveFrom Terence's comedy play Phormio, line 203. Also spelled as fortis fortuna adiuvat. The motto of and.
fortes Fortuna iuvatFortune favors the braveFrom the letters of Pliny the Younger, Book 6, Letter 16. Often quoted as fortes fortuna juvat. The motto of the Jutland Dragoon Regiment of Denmark.
fortes in fidestrong in faitha common motto
fortis cadere, cedere non potestthe brave may fall, but can not yieldmotto on the coat of arms of the Fahnestock Family and of the Palmetto Guard of Charleston, South Carolina
fortis est veritastruth is strongmotto on the coat of arms of Oxford, England, United Kingdom
fortis et liberstrong and freemotto of Alberta, Canada
fortis in arduisstrong in difficulties/adversarymotto of the Municipal Borough of Middleton, from the Earl of Middleton and of Syed Ahmad Shaheed House of Army Burn Hall College in Abbottabad, Pakistan
fortiter et fideliterbravely and faithfullya common motto
fortiter in re, suaviter in modoresolute in execution, gentle in mannera common motto
fortius quo fideliusstrength through loyaltyMotto of St Kilda Football Club
fortunae meae, multorum faberartisan of my fate and that of several othersmotto of Gatineau
fraus omnia vitiatfraud vitiates everythinga legal principle: the occurrence or taint of fraud in a transaction entirely invalidates it
Frustra legis auxilium quaerit qui in legem committitin vain does he who offends the law seek the law's aida legal principle: one cannot invoke the law to assist in an illegal purpose. Inscribed on the facade of the Quebec Court of Appeal in Montreal.
fui quod es, eris quod sumI once was what you are, you will be what I amAn epitaph that reminds the reader of the inevitability of death, as if to state: "Once I was alive like you are, and you will be dead as I am now." It was carved on the gravestones of some Roman military officers.
fumus boni iurispresumption of sufficient legal basisa legal principle
fundamenta inconcussaunshakable foundation