Rules for the quantity of Final Syllables
Final Vowels
1. Final a is short: puella, bella
except: mensā (1st decl. ablative), amā (imperative)
2. Final e is short: triste, rege, domine
except: adverbs formed from 1st/2nd decl adjectives altē, justē
Imperatives of 2nd Conjugation verbs: monē, sedē
Ablative of 5th declension: diē
pronouns: mē, tē, sē
3. Final i is long: tristī, regī, dominī, amāvī
exceptions: mihi, tibi, sibi, ubi, ibi where final i can be short
4. Final o is long : dominō, magnō, amō
except: ego, modo
5. Final u is long
Final Consonants
6. A vowel before a final c is long: hīc , illīc
except: fac, nec
7. A vowel before d, l, n, r, t is short: ad, mel, agmen, amatur, amat
except: sōl, nōn, fūr
8. Final syllables ending in
s
a) all endings -ās, -ēs, -ōs are long: puellās, puerōs, cīvēs
Exceptions in es : final es is short in such imparasyllabic words such as miles, seges,
which have short penultimate syllable in genitive (militis, segetis). Also 2nd
singular of sum, esse, fui: es (you are) and its compounds: potes, abes, ades.
b) final is is short: genitive singular regis, 2nd singular present for 3 conjugation: ducis
Exceptions: dative and ablative plurals (dominīs, bonīs, nobīs); 4th conjugation 2nd
singular (audīs) ; and the 2nd singular subjunctive of sum, possum and volō:
sīs, possīs velīs ; also “i” stem 3rd decl nouns in the accusative plural (cīvīs)
c) final us is short:
Exceptions: 4th decl. gen singular and nom/acc plural. exercitūs
& 3rd decl. imparasyllabic nouns which have the penultimate long in the
genitive (virtūs, virtūtis ; rūs, rūris)