List of Latin phrases (U)

This page lists English translations of notable Latin phrases, such as veni vidi vici and et cetera. Some of the phrases are themselves translations of Greek phrases, as Greek rhetoric and literature reached its peak centuries before the rise of ancient Rome.

This list covers the letter U. See List of Latin phrases for the main list.

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References

U

Latin	Translation	Notes
uberrima fides	most abundant faith	Or "utmost good faith" (cf. bona fide), a legal maxim of insurance contracts requiring all parties to deal in good faith
ubertas et fidelitas	fertility and faithfulness	Motto of Tasmania
ubi amor, ibi dolor	where [there is] love, there [is] pain
ubi bene ibi patria	where [it is] well, there [is] the fatherland	Or "Home is where it is good"; see also ubi panis ibi patria
ubi caritas et amor Deus ibi est	where there is charity and love, God is there
ubi dubium ibi libertas	where [there is] doubt, there [is] freedom	Anonymous proverb
ubi jus ibi remedium	Where [there is] a right, there [is] a remedy
ubi mel ibi apes	where [there is] honey, there [are] bees	Similar to "you catch more bees with honey than with vinegar"—treat people nicely and they will treat you nicely in return
ubi libertas ibi patria	where [there is] liberty, there [is] the fatherland	Or "where there is liberty, there is my country". Patriotic motto
ubi nihil vales, ibi nihil velis	where you are worth nothing, there you will wish for nothing	From the writings of the Flemish philosopher Arnold Geulincx; also quoted by Samuel Beckett in his first published novel, Murphy.
ubi non accusator ibi non iudex	where [there is] no accuser, there [is] no judge	Thus, there can be no judgment or case if no one charges a defendant with a crime. The phrase is sometimes parodied as "where there are no police, there is no speed limit"
ubi panis ibi patria	where there is bread, there is my country
ubi pus, ibi evacua	where there is pus, there evacuate it
ubi re vera	when, in a true thing	Or "whereas, in reality...", also rendered ubi revera ("when, in fact" or "when, actually")
ubi societas ibi ius	if there's a society, law will be there.	By Aristotle
ubi solitudinem faciunt pacem appellant	They make a desert and call it peace	from a speech by Calgacus reported/constructed by Tacitus, Agricola, ch. 30.
ubi sunt	where are they?	Nostalgic theme of poems yearning for days gone by, from the line ubi sunt qui ante nos fuerunt ("Where are they, those who have gone before us?")
ubique, quo fas et gloria ducunt	everywhere, where right and glory leads	Motto of the Royal Artillery and most other artillery corps within the armies of the British Commonwealth (for example, the Royal Canadian Artillery, Royal Australian Artillery, and Royal New Zealand Artillery)
ultima ratio	last method the final argument the last resort (as force)	The last resort, short form for the metaphor "The Last Resort of Kings and Common Men" referring to the act of declaring war; used in the names the French sniper rifle PGM Ultima Ratio and the fictional Reason weapon system, Louis XIV of France had Ultima Ratio Regum ("last argument of kings") cast on the cannons of his armies; motto of the 1st Battalion 11th Marines; motto of the Artilleriregementet
ultimo mense (ult.)	in the last month	Used in formal correspondence to refer to the previous month. Used with inst. ("this month") and prox. ("next month").
ultra vires	beyond powers	Without authority, used to describe an action done without proper authority, or acting without the rules, the term most often used in connection with appeals and petitions
ultra posse nemo obligatur	No one is obligated beyond what he is able to do.
ululas Athenas	(to send) owls to Athens	From Gerhard Gerhards' (1466–1536) [better known as Erasmus] collection of annotated Adagia (1508), Latin translation of a classical Greek proverb, generally means putting large effort in a necessarily fruitless enterprise, compare "selling coal to Newcastle"
una hirundo non facit ver	one swallow does not make summer	A single example of something positive does not necessarily mean that all subsequent similar instances will have the same outcome.
una salus victis nullam sperare salutem	the only safety for the conquered is to hope for no safety	Less literally, "the only safe bet for the vanquished is to expect no safety", preceded by moriamur et in media arma ruamus ("let us die even as we rush into the midst of battle") in Virgil's Aeneid, book 2, lines 353–354, used in Tom Clancy's novel Without Remorse, where character John Clark translates it as "the one hope of the doomed is not to hope for safety". It was said several times in Andromeda as the motto of the SOF units.
unitas, iustitia, spes	unity, justice, hope	Motto of Vilnius
unitas per servitiam	unity through service	Motto of the St. Xavier's Institution Board of Librarians
uniti aedificamus	united we build
uno flatu	in one breath	Used in criticism of inconsistent pleadings, i.e. "one cannot argue uno flatu both that the company does not exist and that it is also responsible for the wrong"
unus multorum	one of many	An average person
Unus papa Romae, unus portus Anconae, una turris Cremonae, una ceres Raconae	One pope in Rome, one port in Ancona, one tower in Cremona, one beer in Rakovník	Motto of the Czech Brewery in Rakovník[1]
Urbi et Orbi	to the city and the circle [of the lands]	Meaning "To Rome and the World", a standard opening of Roman proclamations and a traditional blessing by the pope
urbs in horto	city in a garden	Motto of the City of Chicago
usque ad finem	to the very end	Often used in reference to battle, implying a willingness to keep fighting until death
usus est magister optimus	practice is the best teacher	practice makes perfect, or sometimes translated "use makes master"
ut biberent quoniam esse nollent	so that they might drink, since they refused to eat	Also rendered with quando ("when") in place of quoniam, from a book by Suetonius (Vit. Tib., 2.2) and Cicero (De Natura Deorum, 2.3), the phrase was said by Roman admiral Publius Claudius Pulcher right before the battle of Drepana, as he threw overboard the sacred chickens which had refused to eat the grain offered them—an unwelcome omen of bad luck, thus, the sense is, "if they do not perform as expected, they must suffer the consequences". He lost the battle disastrously.
ut desint vires, tamen est laudanda voluntas	though the power be lacking, the will is to be praised all the same	From Ovid, Epistulae ex Ponto (III, 4, 79)
ut dicitur	as has been said; as above
ut incepit fidelis sic permanet	as she began loyal, so she persists	Thus, the state remains as loyal as ever, motto of Ontario
ut infra	as below
ut in omnibus glorificetur Deus	that in all things, God may be glorified	Motto of the Order of St. Benedict
ut mare quod ut ventus	to sea and into wind	Motto of USNS Washington Chambers
ut prosim	that I may serve	Motto of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
ut proverbium loquitur vetus...	you know what they say...	Lit: As the old proverb says...
ut res magis valeat quam pereat	that the matter may have effect rather than fail[2]
ut retro	as backwards	Or "as on the back side"; thus, "as on the previous page" (cf. ut supra)
ut Roma cadit, sic omnis terra	as Rome falls, so [falls] the whole world
ut sit finis litium	so there might be an end of litigation	A traditional brocard, the full form is Interest reipublicae ut sit finis litium, "it is in the government's interest that there be an end to litigation", often quoted in the context of statutes of limitation
ut supra	as above
ut tensio sic vis	as the extension, so the force	Robert Hooke's expression of his discovery of his law of linear elasticity, also motto of École Polytechnique de Montréal and the British Watch and Clockmaker's Guild
utilis in ministerium	usefulness in service	Comes from 2 Timothy 4:11, motto of Camberwell Girls Grammar School
utraque unum	both into one	Also translated as "that the two may be one", motto found on 18th-century Spanish dollar coins, motto of Georgetown University
utrinque paratus	ready for anything	Motto of the British Parachute Regiment and the Belize National Coast Guard

References

1. "Czech Brewery Rakovník — The Brewery". Rakovnikbeer.cz. 1906-04-01. Retrieved 2013-06-19.
2. "Trans-Lex.org" (in German). Trans-Lex.org. 1991-05-27. Retrieved 2013-06-19.

Further reading

• Adeleye, Gabriel G. (1999). Thomas J. Sienkewicz; James T. McDonough, Jr., eds. World Dictionary of Foreign Expressions. Wauconda, IL: Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers, Inc. ISBN 0865164223.
• Hardon, John, Fr., Modern Catholic Dictionary
• Stone, Jon R. (1996). Latin for the Illiterati. London & New York: Routledge. ISBN 0415917751.