Editing Latin declension (section)

{{short description|Part of Latin grammar}}
{{Latin grammar}}

'''Latin declension''' is the set of patterns according to which [[Latin language|Latin]] words are [[Declension|declined]]—that is, have their endings altered to show [[grammatical case]], [[Grammatical number|number]] and [[Grammatical gender|gender]]. Nouns, pronouns, and adjectives are declined (verbs are [[Grammatical conjugation|conjugated]]), and a given pattern is called a declension. There are five declensions, which are numbered and grouped by ending and [[grammatical gender]]. Each noun follows one of the five declensions, but some irregular nouns have exceptions.

Adjectives are of two kinds: those like {{wikt-lang|la|bonus|bonus, bona, bonum}} 'good' use first-declension endings for the feminine, and second-declension for masculine and neuter. Other adjectives such as {{wikt-lang|la|celer|celer, celeris, celere}} belong to the third declension. There are no fourth- or fifth-declension adjectives.

Pronouns are also of two kinds, the personal pronouns such as {{wikt-lang|la|ego}} 'I' and {{wikt-lang|la|tū}} 'you ({{abbr|sg.|singular}})', which have their own irregular declension, and the third-person pronouns such as {{wikt-lang|la|hic}} 'this' and {{wikt-lang|la|ille}} 'that' which can generally be used either as pronouns or adjectivally. These latter decline in a similar way to the first and second noun declensions, but there are differences; for example the genitive singular ends in ''-īus'' or ''-ius'' instead of ''-ī'' or ''-ae'' and the dative singular ends in ''-ī''..

The cardinal numbers {{wikt-lang|la|ūnus}} 'one', {{wikt-lang|la|duo}} 'two', and {{wikt-lang|la|trēs}} 'three' also have their own declensions (''ūnus'' has genitive ''-īus'' and dative ''-ī'' like a pronoun). However, numeral adjectives such as {{wikt-lang|la|bīnī}} 'a pair, two each' decline like ordinary adjectives.