There are certain Latin roots that cause Latin students to be confused because they look similar in spelling. For example there’s the root “ar-“ which can mean ”plow”/”till” or “be dry”. Here’s a little quiz for you: which of these Latin words means “to plow”? Which of these means “to be dry”?

1)     arāre

2)    ārēre

The root “coll-“ can mean “hill” or “neck”. Can you guess as to which of these Latin words means “hill” and which means “neck”?

1)     collis

2)    collum

The root “equ” can mean “even/level” or “horse”. So which of these means “equal”? Which means “horse”?

1)     equus

2)    aequus

The root “fund-“ can mean “pour” or “bottom”. Which of these Latin words do you think means “to pour out” and which of these means “bottom”?

1)     fundere

2)    fundus

The root “man-“ means “flow” or “stay”. So which of these means “to flow”? What about “to stay”?

1)     manēre

2)    manare

The root “non-“ can mean “ninth” or “not”. Which one is “not” and which one is “ninth”?

1)     non

2)    nonus

The root “nov-“ can mean “nine”, but it can mean “new”. Which of these Latin words means “nine”? What about “new”?

1)     novus

2)    novem

The root “plac-“ can mean “calm”, but it can also mean “please”. So which one of these Latin words means “to pacify” and which one means “to please”?

1)     placēre

2)    placare

The root “sed-“ can mean “settle/calm” or “sit”. Which one of these words mean “to calm” and which one of these words mean “to sit”?

1)     sedere

2)    sedare

The root “sen-“ means “old man” or “six each”. Which one of these words mean “old/aged” and what is the Latin term for “six each”?

1)     seni

2)    senex

The root “sept-“ means “fence/enclosure” or “seven.” Which of these words means “fence/wall”? Which of these means “seven”?

1)     septem

2)    saeptum