MALUS

The notes here are taken from the actual Scala, so be warned that references to the "previous" proverb refer to its order in the Scala, not its order here. You can read more about the word at the Verbosum blog: MALUS.

Qui sibi malus, cui bonus? ~ Note: Note the two pronouns: interrogative pronoun, cui, asking the question "for whom?" or "to whom?" - and also the relative pronoun, qui. That's hard to do in English, where we would probably use a hypothetical instead: If a man is bad to himself, for whom is he good?

Bonus esse non potest aliis malus sibi. ~ Note: Note the parallel structure: bonus/aliis and malus/sibi. The adjectival phrase "bonus...aliis" wraps around the verb phrase, "esse non potest," while "malus sibi" is the subject.

Audies male, si male dicas. ~ Note: Note that this is the adverbial form of the adjective malus: male. Note also the combination of subjunctive (dicas) and future indicative (audies) to express a condition.

Qui sibi malus, nulli bonus. ~ Note: Note that the unambiguously dative sibi gives you a nice little reminder that the form nulli is also dative. (Nullus is one of those sneaky adjectives that takes mostly first-second declension endings, but which has -ius in the genitive and -i in the dative.)

Mors nec bonum nec malum est. ~ Note: You can find this sentiment expressed by the Roman philosopher, Seneca, in his treatise De Consolatione.

Malum quidem nullum sine aliquo bono. ~ Note: The words are adapted from Pliny the Elder's Natural History, 27.

Quaerite bonum et non malum. ~ Note: The words are from the Biblical book of Amos, 5.

Nulli malum pro malo. ~ Note: See the previous proverb; with with the information provided by the cases (dative, accusative), it is possible to express this idea without a stated verb.

Bonum ex malo non fit. ~ Note: This is a contention advanced by the philosopher Seneca in his Epistles, 87.

Malum bono vince. ~ Note: This is the Hay family motto.

Male creditis hosti. ~ Note: You can find this observation of the danger of trusting one's enemies in Ovid's Fasti, 2: Quo ruitis, generosa domus? Male creditis hosti: / simplex nobilitas, perfida tela cave.

Mare malorum. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings that Erasmus included in his Adagia, 1.3.28.

Male vivunt qui se semper victuros putant. ~ Note: The saying is one of those collected by Publilius Syrus.

Saepe malum petitur; saepe bonum fugitur. ~ Note: This is also a parallel proverb: malum/bonum and petitur/fugitur. Note also that the adjectives are being used substantively, "(the) evil (thing)" and "(the) good (thing)."

Lex mala, lex nulla. ~ Note: This saying supposes that there is a higher law, a perfect natural justice - and flawed human laws that fall short of that standard are no law at all. This particular formulation of the notion is attributed to the medieval theologian and philosopher, Thomas Aquinas.

Ex malis moribus fiunt bonae leges. ~ Note: As you can see by comparing this proverb to the previous proverb, the world of proverbs is full of contradictions. That is not surprising, of course, since human life itself is full of contradictions and paradoxes, such as the paradox expressed here - that good laws might come from bad habits.

Qui numquam male, numquam bene. ~ Note: Note that you have adverbs here (male, bene), but no expressed verb. Most generally, the idea is "Someone who never does wrong, never does right" - but if the saying is being used in some specific context, it could imply a more specific verb. For example, if you are trying to speak Latin and find yourself making some mistakes, don't worry: qui numquam male (loquitur), numquam bene (loquitur).

Malum bene positum ne moveas. ~ Note: Note that the phrase "bene positum" modifies the object of the verb: don't disturb an evil thing that is well arranged (or, we might say in English, "under control"). Compare a similar saying in Erasmus's Adagia, 1.1.62: Malum bene conditum ne moveris.

Nulli malum pro malo reddete. ~ Note: This saying is not only good advice, but provides a nice way to remember the dative form of nullus: nulli.

Alia ex aliis mala oriuntur. ~ Note: This is another of those "aliud…aliud" sayings, providing a more pessimistic variation on the previous saying, "One bad thing arises from another" - although the Latin has the plural, mala, which is harder to render in English with our idiom of "one...another."

Non facias malum, ut inde fiat bonum. ~ Note: This is a Latin legal maxim that applies to human life in general. Note the use of the subjunctive, non facias, to express the idea of a command: You should not do something bad...

Non bonus est ulli qui malus ipse sibi. ~ Note: This expresses the same ideas as the previous saying, but with a different choice of words: bonus/ulli and malus/sibi.

Sibi parat malum, qui alteri parat. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 4.8.56. Here you can see that alteri is the dative of alter; the unambiguous sibi gives you a clue to expect the dative: Sibi parat malum, qui alteri parat (malum).

Bona nemini hora est, ut non alicui sit mala. ~ Note: This is another one of the sayings collected by Publilius Syrus.

Quae fecit sibimet mala quisque, pati quoque debet. ~ Note: Note that quae is neuter plural, agreeing with mala, "evil things."

Nihil agendo, homines male agere discunt. ~ Note: Here you have the gerund used in the ablative, nihil agendo: by doing nothing, while doing nothing, etc.

Cedendum est malis. ~ Note: You can find this sentiment expressed in Seneca's tragic play, The Trojan Women, as Andromache sends her son Astyanax into Hector's tomb. The idea that we must yield to evils is definitely a tragic way of seeing the world!

Non cedendum malis. ~ Note: This expression is collected by Erasmus in his Adagia, 3.8.85. It shows the gerundive being used impersonally to express a command; we might say in English: "You should not yield to evils."

Ne cede malis. ~ Note: The negative imperative "ne cede" expresses the same kind of prohibition as in the previous saying, "non cedendum."

Numquam cede malis; fortunam vince ferendo. ~ Note: Note the gerund in the ablative: ferendo, "by bearing, by suffering, by enduring."

Summum malum dolor. ~ Note: You can find this sentiment discussed in Cicero's Tusculan Disputations, 5. Be careful to distinguish between subject and predicate here, since the verb is not expressed: summum malum (est) dolor.

Dulce est socios habuisse malorum. ~ Note: Note the use of the perfect infinitive: habuisse, "to have had." The infinitive is being used as a noun here, the subject of "dulce est."

Noli vinci a malo, sed vince in bono malum. ~ Note: Note the passive infinitive with noli: do not be conquered, refuse to be defeated. The words come from Paul's letter to the Romans, 12.

Bonos boni, malos mali diligunt. ~ Note: The masculine plural endings let you know that this is a saying about people: Good people (boni) love good people (bonos)...

Tu ne cede malis, sed contra audentior ito. ~ Note: The words are from Vergil's Aeneid, 6. It is also the motto of the Ludwig von Mises Institute.

Ad mala facta malus socius socium trahit. ~ Note: Such elegant word play here: mala-malus-socius-socium, with "malus socius" as a noun phrase that is the subject of the sentence.

O quam bonum tempus in re mala perdis! ~ Note: The words are from Seneca's treatise On Anger. The angry person is someone who did not heed the advice of the sundial from the previous saying! Instead of making good use of time, the angry person wastes time in a truly bad way.

Brevis ipsa vita est, sed malis fit longior. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings collected by Publilius Syrus.

E duobus malis, eligendum est minus. ~ Note: The gerundive is being used to express a sense of necessity or a command: eligendum est minus (malum), "choose the lesser (evil)!"

Satius fugere quam male manere. ~ Note: Notice that satius here is a comparative - more than enough - and the things being compared are the two infinitive phrases: fugere (running away) and male manere (remaining in a bad situation).

Omnes dies pauperis mali. ~ Note: The words are from the Biblical book of Proverbs, 15.

Malum est consilium, quod mutari non potest. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings collected by Publilius Syrus.

Ne male loquere absenti amico. ~ Note: The words are from Plautus's Trinummus. Here you have the dative, absenti amico, with the phrase male loqui, which means to speak ill or curse someone (compare the similar verb: maledico, which also takes the dative case). Just before, the same character, Charmides, had insisted: "Te potius bene dicere aequomst homini amico, quam male," "(I told) you rather to speak well and rightly about a man who is our friend, rather than badly." The other character does not take Charmides' advice either time!

Sunt bona mixta malis, sunt mala mixta bonis. ~ Note: Notice the parallel structure: bona-mala, malis-bonis.

Beatus qui non cogitavit, non fecit, non docuit mala. ~ Note: Notice how mala serves as the object for all three verbs: cogitavit, fecit, and docuit.

Cum recte vivas, ne cures verba malorum. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings included in the distichs attributed to the so-called "Cato." Here is the complete distich: Cum recte vivas, ne cures verba malorum: / arbitrii non est nostri, quid quisque loquatur.

Cum recte vivas, ne cures verba malorum. ~ Note: Cum recte vivas, ne cures verba malorum; / arbitrii nostri non est, quid quisque loquatur.

Aliud ex alio malum nascitur. ~ Note: This is another of those "aliud…aliud" sayings. Sometimes this proverb is simply shortened to "Aliud ex alio malum!" - something like the English saying "One bad thing after another!"

Ex malis moribus bonae leges natae sunt. ~ Note: This is a variation on a proverb you saw earlier: Ex malis moribus fiunt bonae leges.

Bona nasci ex malo non possunt. ~ Note: Note here the infinitive form of the deponent verb: nasci, "to be born." Combine the infinitive with non possunt and you get "cannot be born, cannot be created."

Malum alienum tuum ne feceris gaudium. ~ Note: You can see here the perfect subjunctive used to express a negative command: ne feceris. Notice also the way the phrase "tuum gaudium" wraps around the verbal phrase.

Bonum est fugienda aspicere in alieno malo. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings collected by Publilius Syrus.

Alienis malis discimus. ~ Note: The phrase alienis malis is in the ablative: "We learn by means of other people's mistakes" (which is better than having to make the mistakes yourself... and suffer the consequences!).

Aliud ex alio malum gignitur. ~ Note: This is another of those "aliud…aliud" sayings; in English, we would say: "One evil comes from another."

Malo malum non addendum. ~ Note: This is another way of stating the idea, this time with a gerundive, neuter singular, agreeing with the subject: malum. You can also see here where we got the word "addendum" in English!

Ne ad malum addas malum. ~ Note: Note the nice alliteration with the ad malum prepositional phrase and the compound verb, addas: ne ad malum ad-das malum.

Ubi peccat aetas maior, male discit minor. ~ Note: This is another one of the sayings collected by Publilius Syrus.

Bonis nocet qui malis parcit. ~ Note: As often, the antecedent of the relative pronoun is omitted: Bonis nocet (is) qui malis parcit. You can also find this saying with the future tense parcet, for the sake of the rhyme: Bonis nocet qui malis parcet. Such a use of the future is not really a problem; the future can easily convey a sense very similar to the subjunctive, both as a hypothetical and also as an implied command.

Tarde venientes, male sedentes. ~ Note: Here you see the adverbial form of the adjective, tardus: tarde.

Voluptas malorum mater omnium. ~ Note: Voluptas is a feminine noun, so it makes sense that "she" is a mother of things - wicked things, at least according to this proverb.

Male irato ferrum committitur. ~ Note: Note the substantive use of irato: to an angry (man). Ferrum, "iron," stands by metonymy for a sword: "It's a bad idea to entrust an angry man with a sword" (lit. "a sword is badly entrust to an angry man").

Vicinum habere malum magnum est malum. ~ Note: Note that the infinitive is being used as a noun here, "vicinum habere malum" which is the subject of the verb. Note also how the object of the infinitive is wrapped around the infinitive, while the predicate noun phrase (magnum...malum) is wrapped around the verb. Very elegant!

Aliquid mali est vicinum malum habere. ~ Note: Note that aliquid can take a partitive genitive, as here: something (of) bad = something bad. This saying is included by Polydorus in his Adagia, A154.

Hoc sustinete, maius ne veniat malum. ~ Note: These words come from Phaedrus's version of the fable of the frogs who wanted a king.

Malo tacere mihi quam mala verba loqui. ~ Note: This proverb plays with the verb malo and the adjective malus, which you can see here in the noun phrase "mala verba."

Bonum est potentior malo. ~ Note: Note the substantive use of the adjective, bonum - it means "the good," as an abstract idea ("that which is good").

Bonus potentior malo. ~ Note: Here the word bonus is being used substantively to mean a good man (masculine singular), a good person.

Ne malorum memineris. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 2.1.94.

Malum virum semper pati malum decet. ~ Note: The impersonal verb decet takes an accusative complement, malum virum, along with an infinitive, pati: it is fitting that the evil man (malum virum) always suffer evil (semper pati malum).

Mala arbor fructus malos facit. ~ Note: This is how you can know a tree by its fruit: an apple tree produces appears, a pear tree produces pears, and, metaphorically, an evil tree (mala arbor) produces evil fruits (fructus malos). The structure is a parallel: mala/malos and arbor/fructus, with a chiastic inversion.

Ex bono aliquando sequitur malum. ~ Note: This is one of those paradoxical proverbs; you have seen many proverbs about how like gives rise to like, but here, paradoxically, out of good can come something bad.

Quam malus est, culpam qui suam alterius facit! ~ Note: The word quam here is being used in exclamation: How wicked is the man who...

Iucunda memoria est praeteritorum malorum. ~ Note: You can find this sentiment expressed in Cicero's De Finibus, 2. It is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 4.9.27.

Dulcis malorum praeteritorum memoria. ~ Note: This is another one of the sayings collected by Publilius Syrus.

Mali principii malus finis. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 4.9.86.

Libera nos a malo. ~ Note: This forms part of the Lord's Prayer as given in the Gospel of Matthew, 6.

Elige ex malis minima. ~ Note: You can also find the idea expressed with the gerundive: Minima de malis eligenda.

E malis, minimum eligendum. ~ Note: This expresses the same idea with a superlative: minimum eligendum, "choose the least" of the evils.

Ex malis eligere minima oportet. ~ Note: The verb oportet is another impersonal way to express a command: eligere oportet, "you should choose," "one should choose," "it is appropriate to choose," etc.

Potius est honeste pauperem esse, quam divitem male. ~ Note: Here you see quam being used in an explicit comparison between two infinitive phrases, "honeste pauperem esse" and "divitem male (esse)." Note also the parallelism with a chiastic inversion: honeste/male and pauperem/divitem.

Mala malis eveniunt. ~ Note: Compare the saying you saw earlier: Digna dignis eveniunt. This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 5.2.31.

Malus homo de malo thesauro profert mala. ~ Note: This is the flipside of the previous saying, also from the Gospel of Matthew, 12. It is included by Polydorus in his Adagia, B420.

Caritas non cogitat malum. ~ Note: This is from the famous passage about love, caritas, in Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, 13.

Mala lingua plus gladio laedit. ~ Note: Note that mala lingua is in the ablative case, just as the word gladio is; the subject is not expressed. Compare this version in which a subject is expressed: Plus gladio mendax offendit lingua minaci.

Longa senectus plena malis. ~ Note: The words are adapted from Juvenal: Sed quam continuis et quantis longa senectus / plena malis!

Dum male pastori vadit, vadit male gregi. ~ Note: The German humanist Heinrich Bebel included this saying in his Proverbia Germanica. He described it as "barbarissime versificatus" - the line is, in fact, a dactylic hexamter. It is also one of the sayings collected by Wegeler, 293.

Ut mala vitentur, aliquando vera tacentur. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings collected by Wegeler, 1412. Note the internal rhyme: vitentur-tacentur.

Bonum est faciendum et malum vitandum. ~ Note: Here is another parallel proverb: bonum/malum and faciendum/vitandum. The neuter forms faciendum and vitandum agree with the neuter subjects: bonum, "the good thing" or just "the good," and malum, "the bad thing" or "evil."

Melius mala ferre silendo. ~ Note: This is a sentiment expressing Ovid's Tristia, 5. Note the use of the gerund (verbal noun), in the ablative: silendo, "by remaining silent."

Praestat silere quam male loqui. ~ Note: The verb praestare literally means to "stand out in front," and as such it naturally invites the idea of comparison (compare the English word "outstanding). So, as you can see here praestat...quam... means (something) is better than (something).

Post mala, prudentior. ~ Note: The idea is that you become wiser, prudentior, after suffering setbacks, post mala. This is one of the sayings that Erasmus included in his Adagia, 1.3.99.

Vas malum non frangitur. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 4.2.99. Plus, it is a great way to remember the gender of the third-declension noun vas: neuter.

Abi hinc in malam crucem! ~ Note: This item is listed in Tosi, 1186.

Eloquentia male sine moribus discitur. ~ Note: The words are from one of the letters of Pliny the Younger, 3.3.

Medico male est, si nemini male est. ~ Note: Note the parallel use of datives here: medico... nemini.

Non est opus valentibus medico, sed male habentibus. ~ Note: Here you see the ablative complement with opus est (medico), as well as the dative complements (valentibus, male habentibus). This saying is included by Polydorus in his Adagia, B150.

Labitur e mente cito res bona, sed mala lente. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings collected by Wegeler, 580.

Malorum seminum malae segetes. ~ Note: The idea is that bad crops come from bad seeds. Saint Gregory of Nazianzus compares the bad crops that come from bad seeds to the bad teachings of bad teachers: malorum magistrorum malae doctrinae sunt.

Tollenda mali occasio. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 3.10.41.

Effugi malum, inveni bonum. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 3.1.2.

Duobus malis resistere, difficillimum. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 3.8.78.

Serum est cavendi tempus in mediis malis. ~ Note: The word cavendi is a gerund in the genitive case, "time of taking care," "time for taking precautions," etc.

Sero venientes, male sedentes. ~ Note: Note the parallel structure: sero/male and venientes/sedentes.

Vince malum patientia. ~ Note: This time, patientia is again in the ablative, and the adjective malum is being used substantively: evil.

Malis mala succedunt. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 3.9.97.

Malo accepto, stultus sapit. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings that Erasmus included in his Adagia, 1.1.31.

Praesertim durant quae didicere mala. ~ Note: This is one of the moral sayings of Michael Verinus.

Non luctu, sed remedio opus in malis. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 3.9.41. Here opus (opus est) again takes ablative complements: luctus (fourth declension) and remedio (second declension).

Saepe mora remedium est mali. ~ Note: Notice how the predicate phrase, remedium mali (a cure for trouble), wraps around the verb.

Patientia remedium malorum. ~ Note: Here you again have a genitive complement with remedium: remedium malorum, "a cure for troubles."

Extremis malis, extrema remedia. ~ Note: Here again remedia is taking a dative complement: extremis malis.

Etiam post malam segetem serendum est. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 4.4.62. The impersonal neuter gerundive, serendum est, expresses the idea of necessity or command: you have to plant seeds, even (etiam) after a bad crop.

Urgentibus malis, celeritas optima est. ~ Note: Compare the saying in the Adagia of Erasmus, 5.1.85: Celeritas in malis optima.

Esca omnium malorum voluptas. ~ Note: Here you have two noun phrases: Esca omnium malorum (est) voluptas. The idea, of course, is that wickedness needs something to feed on - and what it feeds on is our sense of pleasure. Yikes!

Mala est inopia, ex copia quae nascitur. ~ Note: This saying also plays on the relationship between copia and inopia, this time in the course of an individual person's life. The saying is one of those collected by Publilius Syrus.

Omnis enim qui male agit, odit lucem. ~ Note: You can find these words in the Gospel of John, 3.

Omnis qui male agit, odit lucem. ~ Note: This can be literally true (as thieves in the night) or metaphorically, when wrongdoers hate the light of truth that would reveal their wrong-doing. This saying is included by Polydorus in his Adagia, B39.

Corrumpunt bonos mores mala colloquia. ~ Note: This saying is included by Polydorus in his Adagia, B149.

A radice mala nascuntur pessima mala. ~ Note: This takes the same idea as in the previous saying, and gives the negative side of things.

Avaritia est radix omnium malorum. ~ Note: Note the substantive use of the adjective malorum: "bad (things)."

Invidia est radix malorum omnium. ~ Note: As you can see, there are different things competing to be the root of all evil! Which do you think: avaritia? invidia?

Radix omnium malorum est cupiditas. ~ Note: Here is yet another candidate for the root of all evil: cupiditas; this statement comes from the Paul's first letter to Timothy, 1. (The earlier candidates were avaritia and invidia.)

Nullus dies omnino malus. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 4.10.88.

Ab Aquilone pandetur omne malum. ~ Note: This saying is included by Polydorus in his Adagia, B303.

Remedium aliquando peius est quam malum. ~ Note: This saying goes along with the idea of the previous saying: if the cure really is worse than the illness, then no medicine might indeed be best!

De malo in peius. ~ Note: Compare the English saying, "From bad to worse."

Post mala, cautior. ~ Note: The word cautior is a comparative form of the adjective cautus. The idea is that after bad mistakes, you learn to become more cautious!

Semper metuendom, sapiens evitat malum. ~ Note: Note the use of the gerund in the ablative: semper metuendo, "by being always afraid."

Noxa malus vicinus. ~ Note: Note that, as often, the verb "est" has been omitted, leaving only the subject and predicate noun phrases: Noxa | malus vicinus (est).

Fama repleta malis velocibus evolat alis. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings collected by Wegeler, 416.

Pro cane malo porcum postulas. ~ Note: Compare the saying in the Adagia of Erasmus, 3.6.12: Pro malo cane suem reposcis.

Superbia initium est omnium malorum. ~ Note: Compare the words of Sirach, 10: Initium omnis peccati est superbia.

Non est in silva peior fera quam mala lingua. ~ Note: Non est in silva peior fera quam mala lingua; de lingua stulta veniunt incommoda multa.

Mali corvi malum ovum. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 1.9.25.

Qui seminat iniquitatem metet mala. ~ Note: You can find this saying in the famous debate between Marcolf and King Solomon.

Mala praevisa vitantur facilius. ~ Note: The neuter comparative form, facilius, is being used as an adverb: more easily.

Mala praevisa minus nocent. ~ Note: Here you have a different comparative adverb, minus. As with facilius in the previous saying, the neuter form is used as an adverb; minus is the neuter form of the comparative adjective minor.

Semper Ilio mala. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 4.1.20.

Male parta male dilabuntur. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 1.7.82.

Omnium malorum stultitia est mater. ~ Note: This is included by André Rouillé in his anthology of Cicero's notable sententiae.

Malum consilium consultori pessimum est. ~ Note: This saying is included by Polydorus in his Adagia, A187.

Lerna malorum. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings that Erasmus included in his Adagia, 1.3.27; it is included by Polydorus in his Adagia, A114.

Mala ad se trahit, ut Caecias nubes. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 1.5.62; it is included by Polydorus in his Adagia, A150.

Bonae leges ex malis moribus procreantur. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 1.10.61; it is included by Polydorus in his Adagia, A52.

Quod male lucratur, male perditur et nihilatur. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings collected by Wegeler, 1097.

Insipientia nullum maius malum est. ~ Note: This is included by André Rouillé in his anthology of Cicero's notable sententiae.

Mare proluit omnia mortalium mala. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings Erasmus included in his Adagia, 3.4.9.

Malum malo medicatur. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings that Erasmus included in his Adagia, 1.2.6.

Ilias malorum. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings that Erasmus included in his Adagia, 1.3.26.

Turdus ipse sibi malum cacat. ~ Note: This is one of the sayings that Erasmus included in his Adagia, 1.1.55.