2160. The infinitive is in its origin a verbal substantive.
2161. The present infinitive active is an ancient dative, closely resembling in meaning and use the English infinitive with to. It originally marked action merely in a general way, without indication of voice or tense. In virtue of this original timeless character, the present often represents action which is really past or future; in such cases the time must be inferred from the context.
2162. The present infinitive active gradually approached the character of a verb, and the original substantive nature being forgotten, it was supplemented by a passive, and by forms for completed and for future action, active and passive.
2163. The infinitive has furthermore two other properties of the verb: (a.) it is modified by an adverb, not by an adjective; and (b.) it is followed by the construction of its verb.
2164. The infinitive denotes purpose: (a.) when loosely added to a substantive in old Latin, (b.) with verbs of motion, eō, veniō, currō, mittō, in old or poetical Latin, and (c.) in the combination dō bibere, give to drink, in old, colloquial, or poetical Latin: as,
(a.) occāsiō benefacta cumulāre, Pl. Cap. 423, a chance to pile up kindnesses. Parallel with a gerund: summa ēlūdendī occāsiōst mihi nunc senēs et Phaedriae cūram adimere argentāriam, T. Ph. 885, I’ve now a splendid chance the greybeards of eluding and Phaedria to rescue from his money cares. (b.) recurre petere rē recentī, Pl. Tri. 1015, run back to get it ere it is too late. voltisne eāmus vīsere? T. Ph. 102, do you think we’d better go to call? parasītum mīsī nudiusquārtus Cāriam petere argentum, Pl. Cur. 206, my parasite I sent four days ago to Caria, to fetch the cash. nec dulcēs occurrent ōscula nātī praeripere, Lucr. 3, 895, nor shall thy children dear come running kiss on kiss to snatch. nōn nōs ferrō Libycōs populāre penātīs vēnimus, V. 1, 527, we are not come with steel to harry Libya’s hearths. (c.) bibere dā usque plēnīs cantharīs, Pl. Per. 821, keep giving on to drink with brimming bowls. bibere is thus used by Plautus, Terence, Cato, and Livy, and by Cicero once with ministrō. In classical prose, purpose is expressed by the subjunctive with ut or a relative pronoun, or by a gerund or gerundive with ad or causā.
2165. In poetry, the infinitive of purpose is used with synonymes of dō also, and with verbs of leaving, taking away, taking up, &c.
huic lōrīcam dōnat habēre, V. 5, 259, on him a corselet he bestows to wear. trīstitiam et metūs trādam protervīs in mare Crēticum portāre ventīs, H. 1, 26, 1, sadness and fears I’ll to the wanton winds consign, to sweep into the Cretic sea. quis sibi rēs gestās Augustī scrībere sūmit? H. E. 1, 3, 7, who takes it on himself Augustus’ deeds to pen? quem virum aut hērōa lyrā vel ācrī tībiā sūmis celebrāre? H. 1, 12, 1, what hero or what demigod dost thou take up, to ring his praises on the rebec or the piercing pipe?
THE INFINITIVE WITH ADJECTIVES.
2166. The infinitive is sometimes used with adjectives, chiefly by poets of the Augustan age, and late prose writers, often in imitation of a Greek idiom: as,
indoctum iuga ferre nostra, H. 2, 6, 2, not taught our yoke to bear. avidī committere pugnam, O. 5, 75, hot to engage in fight. sōlī cantāre perītī Arcades, V. E. 10, 32, Arcadians alone in minstrelsy are skilled. vitulus niveus vidērī, H. 4, 2, 59, a bullock snow-white to behold, i.e. vīsū (2274). These infinitives are of different kinds, some of them resembling a complementary infinitive, others a gerund or gerundive construction, the supine in -tū (-sū), &c., &c.
2167. The infinitive is ordinarily used either as object or as subject of a verb.
2168. The present infinitive is often used to complete the meaning of certain kinds of verbs which imply another action of the same subject: as,
prō Pompēiō ēmorī possum, Fam. 2, 15, 3, I could die the death for Pompey (1495). quid habēs dīcere? Balb. 33, what have you to say? scīre volēbat, V. 1, 131, he wanted to know. hoc facere dēbēs, RabP. 7, you ought to do this. Caesar Rhēnum trānsīre dēcrēverat, 4, 17, 1, Caesar had resolved to cross the Rhine. fugā salūtem petere contendērunt, 3, 15, 2, they tried to save themselves by flight. num negāre audēs? C. 1, 8, do you dare deny it? vereor dīcere, T. Andr. 323, I am afraid to tell. num dubitās id facere? C. 1, 13, do you hesitate to do that? mātūrat ab urbe proficīscī, 1, 7, 1, he makes haste to leave Rome. Dīviciācus Caesarem obsecrāre coepit, 1, 20, 1, Diviciacus began to entreat Caesar. Dolābella iniūriam facere persevērat, Quint. 31, Dolabella persists in doing wrong. illī pecūniam pollicērī nōn dēsistunt, 6, 2, 1, these people did not stop offering money. diem ēdictī obīre neglēxit, Ph. 3, 20, he failed to keep the day named in the edict. īrāscī amīcīs nōn temere soleō, Ph. 8, 16, I am not apt to get provoked with friends without just cause. illī rēgibus pārēre didicerant, Ph. 3, 9, the men of old were trained to bow the knee to kings (1615). dextram cohibēre mementō, J. 5, 71, remember that you keep hands off.
2169. The verbs or verbal expressions which are supplemented by an infinitive are chiefly such as mean can, will or wish, ought, resolve, endeavour, dare, fear, hesitate, hasten, begin, continue, cease, neglect, am wont, learn, know how, remember, forget, seem. The infinitive in this combination contains the leading idea. For the occasional use of the perfect infinitive with some of these verbs, see 2223.
Some of the commonest of these verbs are possum, queō, nequeō; volō, nōlō, mālō, cupiō, studeō; dēbeō; cōgitō, meditor, statuō, cōnstituō, dēcernō, parō; cōnor, nītor, contendō; audeō; vereor; cunctor, dubitō, festīnō, mātūrō, īnstituō, coepī, incipiō, pergō, persevērō, dēsinō, dēsistō, omittō, supersedeō, neglegō, nōn cūrō; soleō, adsuēscō, cōnsuēscō; discō, sciō, nesciō, recordor, meminī, oblīvīscor; videor.
2170. The infinitive is also used with many verbal expressions equivalent to the above verbs, such as habeō in animō, cōnsilium est, certum est, parātus sum, &c., &c., or with parātus alone, adsuēfactus, &c., &c. Furthermore, in poetry and late prose, the place of many of the above verbs is often taken by livelier or fresher synonymes, such as valeō for possum, from Lucretius on, ardeō, burn, for volō, cupiō, or absiste, fuge, parce, &c., for nōlī (1584), &c., &c.
2171. A predicate noun used in the construction of the complementary infinitive, is put in the nominative: as,
Aelius Stōicus esse voluit, Br. 206, Aelius wanted to be a Stoic. esse quam vidērī bonus mālēbat, S. C. 54, 6, he chose to be good rather than seem good.
THE ACCUSATIVE WITH THE INFINITIVE.
2172. A very common form of a dependent sentence is that known as the Accusative with the Infinitive.
Thus, of the two coordinate sentences sciō: iocāris tū nunc, Pl. Most. 1081, I know: you are jesting now, the second may be put in a dependent form, the two sentences blending into one: sciō iocārī tē nunc, I know you to be jesting now.
2173. The subject of an infinitive is put in the accusative.
Thus, in eum vident, they see him, eum is the object of vident (1134). If sedēre is added, eum vident sedēre, V. 5, 107, they see him sit, or they see that he is sitting, eum is at the same time the object of vident and the subject of sedēre. But the accusative by degrees becoming detached from the main verb, and closely interlocked with the infinitive, the combination is extended to cases where the main verb is intransitive or passive.
2174. A predicate noun referring to a subject accusative is itself put in the accusative: as,
tē esse arbitror puerum probum, Pl. Most. 949, I think you are a good boy. nēminem vīvum capī patiuntur, 8, 35, 5, they do not allow anybody to be made prisoner alive (2198).
Verbs of Perceiving, Knowing, Thinking, and Saying.
2175. The accusative with the infinitive is used with active verbs or verbal expressions of perceiving, knowing, thinking, and saying: as,
patēre tua cōnsilia nōn sentīs? C. 1, 1, you don’t feel that your plots are all out? huic fīlium scīs esse? T. Hau. 181, you are aware that this man has a son? Pompēiōs cōnsēdisse terrae mōtū audīvimus, Sen. NQ. 6, 1, 1, we have heard that Pompei has been swallowed up by an earthquake, 63 A.D., 17 years before its utter destruction. saepe audīvī inter ōs atque offam multa intervenīre posse, Cato in Gell. 13, 18 (17), 1, I have often heard ‘’twixt cup and lip there’s many a slip.’ dīcit montem ab hostibus tenērī, 1, 22, 2, he says the hill is held by the enemy. dīxtin dūdum illam dīxisse, sē expectāre fīlium? T. Hec. 451, didn’t you say a while ago the woman said that she was looking for her son?
Some of the commonest of these verbs are: (a.) audiō, animadvertō, sentiō, videō. (b.) accipiō, intellegō, sciō, nesciō. (c.) arbitror, cēnseō, cōgitō, crēdō, exīstimō, meminī, opīnor, putō, recordor, suspicor. (d.) adfirmō, āiō, dēmōnstrō, dīcō, disputō, doceō, fateor, nārrō, negō, nūntiō, ostendō, prōmittō, scrībō, sīgnificō, spērō, trādō. (e.) rūmor est, nōn mē fugit, certus sum, nōn nescius sum, &c., &c. Also occasionally verbs used in the sense of think or say, as mittō, send word, and substantives or pronouns expressing a thought or judgement.
2176. The accusative with the infinitive is sometimes introduced by a neuter pronoun, or by sīc or ita: as, illud negābis, tē dē rē iūdicātā iūdicāvisse? V. 2, 81, will you deny this, that you sate in judgement on a matter that was already decided? sīc accēpimus, nūllum bellum fuisse, V. 5, 5, we have been told this, that there was not any war. Sometimes by an ablative with dē: as, dē hōc Verrī dīcitur, habēre eum perbona toreumata, V. 4, 38, about this man report is made to Verres that he had some choice bits of embossed work.
2177. (1.) Passive verbs of this class are commonly used personally in the third person of the present system, with the subject, and the predicate noun, if used, in the nominative: as,
hī centum pāgōs habēre dīcuntur, 4, 1, 4, these people are said to have a hundred cantons. nūlla iam exīstimantur esse iūdicia, V. a. pr. 43, there are thought to be no courts of law any longer. pōns prope effectus nūntiābātur, Caes. C. 1, 62, 3, the bridge was reported to be well-nigh done.
2178. Such personal passives are much more common in the writers of Cicero’s day than in old Latin. Particularly so arguō, audiō, cōgnōscō, comperiō, concēdō, dēfendō, dēmōnstrō, dīcō, doceō, excūsō, exīstimō, inveniō, iūdicō, līberō, memorō, negō, nūntiō, ostendō, postulō, putō, reperiō, trādō.
2179. (2.) With the first or second person the personal construction is rare: as, quod nōs bene ēmisse iūdicātī sumus, Att. 1, 13, 6, that we are thought to have made a good bargain. cum inveniāre improbissimā ratiōne esse praedātus, V. 4, 3, when you prove to have been robbing most abominably. But with videor, seem, the personal construction is the rule in all three persons, and in the perfect system as well as the present.
2180. (3.) In the perfect system, and also usually in the gerundive construction (2246), verbs of this class are commonly impersonal: as,
trāditum est Homērum caecum fuisse, TD. 5, 114, the tradition is that Homer was blind. ubī̆ tyrannus est, ibī̆ dīcendum est nūllam esse rem pūblicam, RP. 3, 43, wherever there is an absolute ruler, there we must maintain there is no commonwealth.
2181. (4.) With some verbs of this class, the impersonal construction is preferred even in the present system. Thus, commonly intellegitur, it is understood, as impersonal; regularly in classical Latin crēditur; with a dative in Cicero and Caesar dīcitur, nūntiātur. The impersonals cernitur, fertur, memorātur, prōditur, vidētur, are rare.
2182. The personal construction is sometimes extended to other verbs or verbal expressions, especially in poetry: as, colligor, O. A. 2, 6, 61, I am inferred, for colligitur. nōnnūllīs magistrātūs veniēbant in suspīciōnem nōs dēmorātī esse, Lentulus in Fam. 12, 15, 5, the magistrates were suspected by some of having delayed us (1491).
2183. With verbs of thinking and saying the subject accusative is sometimes omitted.
(a.) Oftenest thus mē nōs, tē vōs, or sē: as, stultē fēcisse fateor, i.e. mē, Pl. B. 1013, I own I’ve acted like a fool. cōnfitēre vēnisse, i.e. tē, RA. 61, confess you came. quae imperārentur facere dīxērunt, i.e. sē, 2, 32, 3, they said they would do as ordered (2221). Often the future without esse: as, refrāctūrōs carcerem minābantur, i.e. sē, L. 6, 17, 6, they threatened to break the jail open, (b.) Less frequently an accusative of is: as, oblītum crēdidī, i.e. eum, Fam. 9, 2, 1, I imagined he had forgotten. Such omissions are common in old Latin, Cicero, Caesar, Livy, and in poetry.
2184. When the accusative is not expressed, a predicate noun is sometimes put in the nominative, chiefly in poetry, in imitation of a Greek idiom: as,
phasēlus ille quem vidētis, hospitēs, ait fuisse nāvium celerrimus, Cat. 4, 1, the clipper you see yonder, friends, says she was once the fleetest of the fleet. uxor invictī Iovis esse nescīs, H. 3, 27, 73, thou knowest not thou art the bride of the unconquerable Jove. Similarly with verbs of emotion (2187): as, gaudent esse rogātae, O. AA. 1, 345, they are glad to have been asked. gaudent perfūsī sanguine frātrum, V. G. 2, 510, they’re glad to have been imbued with brothers’ blood.
2185. The verbs of accusing, arguō and īnsimulō, take the accusative with the infinitive like verbs of saying: as,
cīvīs Rōmānōs necātōs esse arguō, V. 5, 149, my accusation is that Romans have been slain. occīdisse patrem Sex. Rōscius arguitur, RA. 37, Roscius is charged with the murder of his father. īnsimulāre coepērunt Epicratem litterās pūblicās corrūpisse, V. 2, 60, they began to accuse Epicrates of having falsified records of state.
Verbs of Hoping, Promising, and Threatening.
2186. The accusative with the future infinitive is used with verbs of hoping, promising, and threatening: as,
id sēsē effectūrōs spērābant, 7, 26, 2, they hoped to carry it out. pollicentur sēsē ē̆ī dēditūrōs, 5, 20, 2, they volunteer to surrender to him. But sometimes the present infinitive alone: see 2236.
2187. The accusative with the infinitive is sometimes used with verbs of joy, grief, surprise, or wonder: as,
venīre tū mē gaudēs, Pl. B. 184, thou art glad I’m come. doluī pācem repudiārī, Marc. 14, I felt sorry peace was rejected. These verbs often have the construction with quod, or in old Latin with quia (1851).
2188. Some of the commonest of these verbs are doleō, gaudeō, laetor, mīror, &c., &c.; and from Cicero on, angor, indignor, lūgeō, sollicitō.
2189. (1.) The accusative with the infinitive is commonly used with volō (mālō, nōlō), and cupiō, when the subject of the infinitive is not the same as that of the verb: as,
Catilīnam perīre voluī, Ph. 8, 15, I wished Catiline to die. māluit hominēs peccāre quam deōs, V. 2, 22, he wanted men to sin rather than gods. tē tuā fruī virtūte cupimus, Br. 331, we wish you to reap the benefit of your high character.
2190. (2.) Even when the subjects denote the same person, the accusative is sometimes used with the infinitive: as,
ēmorī mē mālim, Pl. As. 810, morī mē mālim, T. Eu. 66, I’d rather die. magnuficē volō mē virōs summōs accipere, Pl. Ps. 167, I’m going to entertain some highborn gentlemen in style. Oftenest when the infinitive is esse, vidērī, putārī, or dīcī: as, cupiō mē esse clēmentem, cupiō mē nōn dissolūtum vidērī, C. 1, 4, I wish to play the man of mercy, and yet I do not wish to seem over lax. Rarely thus with dēsīderō, nōlō, optō, and studeō, and in Sallust with properō.
2191. For the perfect active with these verbs, see 2228; for the perfect passive, 2229.
2192. volō, mālō, and cupiō are often coordinated with the subjunctive of desire (1707). volō and mālō often have the subjunctive with ut, particularly in old Latin (1950).
2193. Verbs of resolving sometimes take the accusative with the infinitive: as, certum offirmāre est viam mē, T. Hec. 454, I am resolved to hold the way. So, from Cicero on, sometimes cēnseō, dēcernō, and sentiō, in the exceptional sense of volō or iubeō, think it best: as, velle et cēnsēre eōs ab armīs discēdere, S. I. 21, 4, that they wished and thought it best for those people to give up fighting.
2194. The accusative with the infinitive is sometimes used with verbs of demanding: as, hau postulō equidem mēd in lectō accumbere, Pl. St. 488, I can’t expect, not I, to sprawl upon a couch. hīc postulat sē absolvī? V. 3, 138, does this man ask to be acquitted? Similarly with ōrō and praecipiō in late writers.
2195. The accusative with the infinitive is sometimes found with suādeō and persuādeō in Terence, Lucretius, and Vergil, and with precor in Ovid and late prose.
2196. Verbs of accomplishing rarely have the accusative with the infinitive: as, tālīs ōrātōrēs vidērī facit, quālīs ipsī sē vidērī volunt, Br. 142, of delivery, it makes orators appear just as they wish to appear themselves. Oftenest in poetry. In prose usually the subjunctive with ut (1951).
Verbs of Teaching and Training.
2197. The verbs of teaching and training, doceō and adsuēfaciō, may take an accusative of a substantive and an infinitive expressing the thing taught: as,
quīn etiam tondēre fīliās suās docuit, TD. 5, 58, why more than that, he actually taught his own daughters to shave, of Dionysius, tyrant of Syracuse. equōs eōdem remanēre vestīgiō adsuēfēcērunt, 4, 2, 3, they have their horses trained to stand stock-still (1608). Compare 1169.
Verbs of Bidding and Forbidding and of Allowing.
2198. The accusative with the infinitive is used with iubeō and vetō, sinō and patior: as,
mīlitēs ex oppidō exīre iussit, 2, 33, 1, he ordered the soldiers to go out of the town. pontem iubet rescindī, 1, 7, 2, he orders the bridge torn up. lēx peregrīnum vetat in mūrum ascendere, DO. 2, 100, it is against the law for a foreigner to get up on the wall. castra vāllō mūnīrī vetuit, Caes. C. 1, 41, 4, he gave orders that the camp should not be fortified with a palisade. vīnum ad sē inportārī nōn sinunt, 4, 2, 6, wine they will not allow to be brought into their country. Cicero is the first to use vetō thus. Other constructions also occur with these words: see 1708, 1950, 1953, &c.
2199. The person ordered or forbidden is often omitted, when stress is laid on the action merely, or when the person is obvious from the context: as, castra mūnīre iubet, i.e. mīlitēs, 2, 5, 6, he gives orders to construct a camp. iussērunt prōnūntiāre, i.e. tribūnōs et centuriōnēs, 5, 33, 3, they gave orders to proclaim. īdemque iussērunt simulācrum Iovis facere maius, i.e. cōnsulēs, C. 3, 20, and they furthermore gave directions to make a statue of Jupiter, a bigger one.
2200. iubeō is sometimes coordinated with the subjunctive, especially in old Latin (1708). Sometimes it has the subjunctive with ut, especially in resolves of the people.
2201. In the passive, iubeō, vetō, and sinō are used personally, the accusative of the person ordered or forbidden becoming nominative: as, iubentur scrībere exercitum, L. 3, 30, 3, they are ordered to raise an army. Nōlānī mūrōs adīre vetitī, L. 23, 16, 9, the men of Nola were not allowed to go to the walls. hīc accūsāre eum nōn est situs, Sest. 95, this man was not allowed to accuse him.
2202. imperō often has the accusative with a passive or deponent infinitive, or with fierī: as, praesentem pecūniam solvī imperāvī, Att. 2, 4, 1, I have given orders for ready money to be paid. Rarely with an active infinitive parallel with a passive: as, eō partem nāvium convenīre commeātumque comportārī imperat, Caes. C. 3, 42, 2, he orders part of the vessels to rendezvous there, and grain to be brought. In the passive, a personal imperor occurs, like iubeor (2201): as, in lautumiās dēdūcī imperantur, V. 5, 68, orders are given for them to be taken to the quarries. See also 1950. permittō has sometimes the accusative with the infinitive from Tacitus on, usually the subjunctive with ut (1950).
2203. The verbs of hindering, prohibeō and impediō, sometimes have the accusative with the infinitive: as, barbarī nostrōs nāvibus ēgredī prohibēbant, 4, 24, 1, the savages undertook to prevent our people from disembarking. The infinitive used with prohibeō is usually passive or deponent. quid est igitur quod mē impediat ea quae probābilia mihī̆ videantur sequī? Off. 2, 8, what is there then to hinder me from following what seems to me to be probable? See also 1960 and 1977.
The Infinitive as a Substantive Accusative.
2204. The accusative with the infinitive, or the infinitive alone, regarded as a neuter substantive, may be used as the object of a verb, or in apposition with the object: as,
(a.) leporem gustāre fās nōn putant, 5, 12, 6, tasting hare they count a sin. errāre malum dūcimus, Off. 1, 18, going astray we hold a bad thing. (b.) ad id quod īnstituistī, ōrātōrum genera distinguere aetātibus, istam dīligentiam esse accommodātam putō, Br. 74, I think your accurate scholarship is just the thing for your projected task—classifying public speakers chronologically.
2205. The infinitive as a substantive is rarely preceded by the preposition inter in late prose: as, multum interest inter dare et accipere, Sen. Ben. 5, 10, 2, there is a vast difference between ‘give’ and ‘take.’ Cicero has it thus once in a translation (Fin. 2, 43). In poetry praeter is thus used rarely.
2206. In poetry, the infinitive is used as a substantive object with such verbs as dō, reddō, adimō, perdō: as, hīc verērī perdidit, Pl. B. 158, this youth has lost his sense of shame.
2207. The accusative with the infinitive, or the infinitive alone, present or perfect, may be used as the subject of a verb, in apposition with the subject, or as a predicate nominative: as,
(a.) mendācem memorem esse oportēre, Quintil. 4, 2, 91, that a liar should have a good memory. (b.) sequitur illud, caedem senātum iūdicāsse contrā rem pūblicam esse factam, Mil. 12, next comes this point, that the senate adjudged the homicide an offence against the state. (c.) exitus fuit ōrātiōnis, sibī̆ nūllam cum hīs amīcitiam esse posse, 4, 8, 1, the end of the speech was that he could not have any friendship with these people.
2208. The infinitive is used as the subject (a.) with impersonal verbs, (b.) with est, putātur, habētur, &c., and an abstract substantive, a genitive, or a neuter adjective in the predicate.
2209. (a.) Some of the commonest impersonal verbs are appāret, decet, expedit, licet, lubet, oportet, praestat, pudet, rēfert. Also in classical Latin, attinet, condūcit, cōnstat, dēdecet, exsistit, fallit, interest, iuvat, liquet, obest, paenitet, patet, pertinet, placet, displicet, prōdest, which are used as live verbs by Lucretius and Sallust also. Similarly in Plautus and Terence fortasse.
2210. The infinitive is occasionally used as a subject with verbs other than the above (2209): as, nōn cadit invidēre in sapientem, TD. 3, 21, envy does not square with our ideas of a sage. carēre hoc sīgnificat, egēre eō quod habēre velīs, TD. 1, 88, careō means not having what you would like to have.
2211. (b.) Some of the commonest abstracts used thus with est are fāma, fās and nefās, fidēs, iūs, laus, opus, mōs, tempus. From Cicero on, opīniō and prōverbium. In Plautus, audācia, cōnfīdentia, miseria, negōtium, scelus, &c. For genitives, see 1237. Neuter adjectives are such as aequum, inīquum, cōnsentāneum, crēdibile, incrēdibile, manifestum, necesse, pār, rēctum, &c., &c.
2212. The accusative is not expressed when it is indefinite, you, a man, a person, anybody, frequently also when it is implied in some other case in the sentence: as,
nōn tam praeclārum est scīre Latīnē quam turpe nescīre, Br. 140, it is not so creditable to be a Latin scholar as it is disreputable not to be. mihī̆ inter virtūtēs grammaticī habēbitur aliqua nescīre, Quintil. 1, 8, 21, in my eyes it will be one merit in a classical scholar not to be omniscient. temporī cēdere semper sapientis est habitum, Fam. 4, 9, 2, bowing to the inevitable has always passed as a mark of wisdom. peccāre licet nēminī, Par. 20, no man is at liberty to sin. An indefinite hominem, aliquem, or tē, is rare: as, illa laus est, līberōs hominem ēducāre, Pl. MG. 703, it is a crown of glory for a man a family to rear.
2213. (1.) A predicate noun referring to the unexpressed indefinite subject of the infinitive is put in the accusative: as,
nōn esse cupidum pecūnia est, nōn esse emācem vectīgal est, contentum vērō suīs rēbus esse maximae sunt dīvitiae, Par. 51, for a man not to have desires, is money down, not to be eager to buy is an income; but to be satisfied with what you have is the greatest possible wealth. A plural predicate is rare: as, esset ēgregium domesticīs esse contentōs, O. 22, it would be a grand thing for people to be satisfied with home examples.
2214. (2.) When the subject of the infinitive is implied in a dative, a predicate noun may also be in the dative: as,
mihī̆ neglegentī esse nōn licet, Att. 1, 17, 6, it will not do for me to be careless. With a dative and licet, however, the predicate is sometimes in the accusative: as, quod sī cīvī Rōmānō licet esse Gādītānum, Balb. 29, now if a Roman is allowed to be a Gaditanian. Regularly so, when the subject is indefinite and not expressed (2212): as, haec praescrīpta servantem licet magnificē vīvere, Off. 1, 92, a man who holds to these rules may live a noble life.