List of Latin phrases (N): Difference between revisions

This page is one of a series listing 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 ancient Greek rhetoric and literature started centuries before the beginning of Latin literature in ancient Rome.

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

N

Latin	Translation	Notes
nasciturus pro iam nato habetur, quotiens de commodis eius agitur	The unborn is deemed to have been born to the extent that his own inheritance is concerned	Refers to a situation where an unborn child is deemed to be entitled to certain inheritance rights.
natura abhorret a vacuo||nature abhors a vacuum|| Pseudo-explanation for why a liquid will climb up a tube to fill a vacuum, often given before the discovery of atmospheric pressure.
natura nihil frustra facit||nature does nothing in vain||Cf. Leucippus: "Everything that happens does so for a reason and of necessity."
natura non contristatur||nature is not saddened||That is, the natural world is not sentimental or compassionate.
natura non facit saltum ita nec lex||nature does not make a leap, thus neither does the law||Shortened form of "sicut natura nil facit per saltum ita nec lex" (just as nature does nothing by a leap, so neither does the law), referring to both nature and the legal system moving gradually.
natura non facit saltus	nature makes no leaps	A famous aphorism of Carl Linnaeus stating that all organisms bear relationships on all sides, their forms changing gradually from one species to the next. From Philosophia Botanica (1751).
naturalia non sunt turpia||What is natural is not dirty.||Based on Servius' commentary on Virgil's Georgics (3:96): "turpis non est quia per naturam venit."
naturam expellas furca, tamen usque recurret.||You may drive out Nature with a pitchfork, yet she still will hurry back.||You must take the basic nature of something into account. - Horace, Epistles, Book I, epistle iv, line 24.
navigare necesse est vivere non est necesse||to sail is necessary; to live is not necessary||Attributed by Plutarch to Gnaeus Pompeius, who, during a severe storm, commanded sailors to bring food from Africa to Rome.
ne plus ultra||nothing more beyond||Also nec plus ultra or non plus ultra. A descriptive phrase meaning the best or most extreme example of something. The Pillars of Hercules, for example, were literally the nec plus ultra of the ancient Mediterranean world. Holy Roman Emperor Charles V's heraldic emblem reversed this idea, using a depiction of this phrase inscribed on the Pillars—as plus ultra, without the negation. This represented Spain's expansion into the New World.
ne sutor ultra crepidam||Cobbler, no further than the sandal!||Thus, don't offer your opinion on things that are outside your competence. It is said that the Greek painter Apelles once asked the advice of a cobbler on how to render the sandals of a soldier he was painting. When the cobbler started offering advice on other parts of the painting, Apelles rebuked him with this phrase in Greek, and it subsequently became a popular Latin expression.
nec dextrorsum, nec sinistrorsum||Neither to the right nor to the left||Do not get distracted. Motto for Bishop Cotton Boys' School and the Bishop Cotton Girls' School, both located in Bangalore, India.
nec spe, nec metu||without hope, without fear||
nec tamen consumebatur||and yet it was not consumed||Refers to the Burning Bush of Exodus 3:2. Motto of many Presbyterian churches throughout the world, including Australia.
nec temere nec timide||neither reckless nor timid||The motto of the Dutch 11th air manoeuvre brigade 11 Luchtmobiele Brigade
neca eos omnes, deus suos agnoscet||kill them all, God will know his own.||alternate rendition of Caedite eos. Novit enim Dominus qui sunt eius. by Arnaud Amalric.
nemine contradicente (nem. con.)||with no one speaking against||Less literally, "without dissent". Used especially in committees, where a matter may be passed nem. con., or unanimously.
nemo dat quod non habet	no one gives what he does not have	Thus, "none can pass better title than they have".
nemo est supra legis||nobody is above the law||
nemo iudex in causa sua	no man shall be a judge in his own cause	Legal principle that no individual can preside over a hearing in which he holds a specific interest or bias.
nemo malus felix||peace visits not the guilty mind||Also translated to "no peace for the wicked." Refers to the inherent psychological issues that plague bad/guilty people.
nemo me impune lacessit	no one provokes me with impunity	Motto of the Order of the Thistle, and consequently of Scotland, found stamped on the milled edge of certain British pound sterling coins. It is also the motto of the Montressors in the Edgar Allan Poe short story "The Cask of Amontillado"
nemo mortalium omnibus horis sapit||No mortal is wise at all times||The wisest may make mistakes.
nemo nisi per amicitiam cognoscitur||No one learns except by friendship||Used to imply that one must like a subject in order to study it.
nemo saltat sobrius||Nobody dances sober||The short and more common form of "Nemo enim fere saltat sobrius, nisi forte insanit", "Nobody dances sober, unless he is completely insane."
nemo tenetur seipsum accusare||no one is bound to accuse himself||A maxim banning mandatory self-incrimination. Near-synonymous with accusare nemo se debet nisi coram Deo. Similar phrases include: nemo tenetur armare adversarium contra se (no one is bound to arm an opponent against himself), meaning that a defendant is not obligated to in any way assist the prosecutor to his own detriment; nemo tenetur edere instrumenta contra se (no one is bound to produce documents against himself, meaning that a defendant is not obligated to provide materials to be used against himself (this is true in Roman law and has survived in modern criminal law, but no longer applies in modern civil law); and nemo tenere prodere seipsum (no one is bound to betray himself), meaning that a defendant is not obligated to testify against himself.
Nemo igitur vir magnus sine aliquo adflatu divino umquam fuit	No great man ever existed who did not enjoy some portion of divine inspiration	From Cicero De Natura Deorum, book 2, 167
nervos belli, pecuniam infinitam||Endless money forms the sinews of war||In war, it is essential to be able to purchase supplies and to pay troops (as Napoleon put it, "An army marches on its stomach").
nihil ad rem||nothing to do with the point||That is, in law, irrelevant and / or inconsequential.
nihil dicit	he says nothing	In law, a declination by a defendant to answer charges or put in a plea.
nihil novi	nothing of the new	Or just "nothing new". The phrase exists in two versions: as nihil novi sub sole (nothing new under the sun), from the Vulgate, and as nihil novi nisi commune consensu (nothing new unless by the common consensus), a 1505 law of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and one of the cornerstones of its Golden Liberty.
nihil obstat	nothing prevents	A notation, usually on a title page, indicating that a Roman Catholic censor has reviewed the book and found nothing objectionable to faith or morals in its content. See also imprimatur.
Nihil sine Deo	Nothing without God	The motto of the Kingdom of Romania, while ruled by the Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen dynasty (1878–1947).
nil admirari||be surprised at nothing||Motto of the Fitzgibbon family. See John FitzGibbon, 1st Earl of Clare
nil desperandum||nothing must be despaired at||That is, "never despair".
nil mortalibus ardui est||nothing is impossible for humankind||From Horace's Odes. Motto of Rathkeale College, New Zealand.
nil nisi bonum||(about the dead say) nothing unless (it is) good||Short for nil nisi bonum de mortuis dicere. That is, "Don't speak ill of anyone who has died". Also "Nil magnum nisi bonum" (nothing is great unless good), motto of St Catherine's School, Toorak as well as Pennant Hills High School.
nil nisi malis terrori||no terror, except to the bad||The motto of The King's School, Macclesfield.
nil per os, rarely non per os (n.p.o.)	nothing through the mouth	Medical shorthand indicating that oral foods and fluids should be withheld from the patient.
nil satis nisi optimum||nothing [is] enough unless [it is] the best||Motto of Everton F.C., residents of Goodison Park, Liverpool.
nil sine labore||nothing without labour||Motto of Brisbane Grammar School, Brisbane Girls Grammar School and Victoria School
nil sine numine	nothing without the divine will	Or "nothing without providence". State motto of Colorado, adopted in 1861. Probably derived from Virgil's Aeneid Book II, line 777, "non haec sine numine devum eveniunt" (these things do not come to pass without the will of the gods). See also numen.
nil volentibus arduum||Nothing [is] arduous for the willing||Nothing is impossible for the willing
nisi Dominus frustra||if not the Lord, [it is] in vain||That is, "everything is in vain without God". Summarized from Psalm 127, "nisi Dominus aedificaverit domum in vanum laboraverunt qui aedificant eam nisi Dominus custodierit civitatem frustra vigilavit qui custodit" (unless the Lord builds the house, they work on a useless thing who build it; unless the Lord guards the community, he keeps watch in vain who guards it). The motto of Edinburgh.
nisi prius||unless previously||In England, a direction that a case be brought up to Westminster for trial before a single judge and jury. In the United States, a court where civil actions are tried by a single judge sitting with a jury, as distinguished from an appellate court.
nolens volens||unwilling, willing||That is, "whether unwillingly or willingly". Sometimes rendered volens nolens, aut nolens aut volens or nolentis volentis. Similar to willy-nilly, though that word is derived from Old English will-he nil-he ([whether] he will or [whether] he will not).
noli me tangere	do not touch me	Commonly translated "touch me not". According to the Gospel of John, this was said by Jesus to Mary Magdalene after his resurrection.
noli turbare circulos meos||Do not disturb my circles!||That is, "Don't upset my calculations!" Said by Archimedes to a Roman soldier who, despite having been given orders not to, killed Archimedes at the conquest of Syracuse, Sicily. The soldier was executed for his act.
"nolite te bastardes carborundorum" (Dog Latin)||"Don't let the bastards grind you down||From The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood — the protagonist (Offred) finds the phrase inscribed on the inside of her wardrobe. One of many variants of Illegitimi non carborundum.
nolle prosequi	to be unwilling to prosecute	A legal motion by a prosecutor or other plaintiff to drop legal charges, usually in exchange for a diversion program or out-of-court settlement.
nolo contendere	I do not wish to contend	That is, "no contest". A plea that can be entered on behalf of a defendant in a court that states that the accused doesn't admit guilt, but will accept punishment for a crime. Nolo contendere pleas cannot be used as evidence in another trial.
nomen dubium	doubtful name	A scientific name of unknown or doubtful application.
nomen est omen||the name is a sign||Thus, "true to its name".
nomen nescio (N.N.)||I do not know the name||Thus, the name or person in question is unknown.
nomen nudum	naked name	A purported scientific name that does not fulfill the proper formal criteria and therefore cannot be used unless it is subsequently proposed correctly.
non bis in idem||not twice in the same thing||A legal principle forbidding double jeopardy.
non causa pro causa||not the cause for the cause||Also known as the "questionable cause" or "false cause". Refers to any logical fallacy where a cause is incorrectly identified.
non compos mentis	not in control of the mind	See compos mentis. Also rendered non compos sui (not in control of himself). Samuel Johnson, author of the first English dictionary, theorized that the word nincompoop may derive from this phrase.
non ducor, duco	I am not led; I lead	Motto of São Paulo city, Brazil. See also pro Brasilia fiant eximia.
non constat||it is not certain||Used to explain scientific phenomena and religious advocations, for example in medieval history, for rulers to issue a 'Non Constat' decree, banning the worship of a holy figure. In legal context, occasionally a backing for nulling information that was presented by an attorney. Without any tangible proof, Non constat information is difficult to argue for.
non facias malum ut inde fiat bonum||you should not make evil in order that good may be made from it||More simply, "don't do wrong to do right". The direct opposite of the phrase "the ends justify the means".
non impediti ratione cogitationis||unencumbered by the thought process||motto of radio show Car Talk
non in legendo sed in intelligendo legis consistunt||the laws depend not on being read, but on being understood||
non liquet||it is not proven||Also "it is not clear" or "it is not evident". A sometimes controversial decision handed down by a judge when they feel that the law is not complete.
non loqui sed facere	not talk but action	Motto of the University of Western Australia's Engineering faculty student society.
non mihi solum||not for myself alone||Motto of Anderson Junior College, Singapore.
Non nobis Domine	'Not to us (oh) Lord'	The title of a Christian hymn and theme-song of the Charismatic Episcopal Church, C.E.C. - Protestant denomination, not related to the high Episcopal Church of the ordinary Anglican Communion of Christianity. The main theme of the hymn is: 'Non nobis Domine, tuo da glorium.' This is translated as: 'Not to us, (oh) Lord... unto thy name (be) glory.'
non nobis solum	not for ourselves alone	Appears in Cicero's De Officiis Book 1:22 in the form non nobis solum nati sumus (we are not born for ourselves alone). Motto of Lower Canada College, Montreal.
non obstante veredicto||not standing in the way of a verdict||A judgment notwithstanding verdict, a legal motion asking the court to reverse the jury's verdict on the grounds that the jury could not have reached such a verdict reasonably.
non olet||it doesn't smell||See pecunia non olet.
non omnis moriar||I shall not all die||"Not all of me will die", a phrase expressing the belief that a part of the speaker will survive beyond death.
non plus ultra||nothing further beyond||the ultimate
non possumus	not possible
non progredi est regredi||to not go forward is to go backward||
non prosequitur||he does not proceed||A judgment in favor of a defendant when the plaintiff failed to take the necessary steps in an action within the time allowed.
non scholae, sed vitae discimus	We learn not for school, but for life.	from Seneca. Also, motto of the Istanbul Bilgi University.
non quis sed quid||not who but what||Used in the sense "what matters is not who says it but what he says" – a warning against ad hominem arguments. Also, motto of Southwestern University.
non sequitur	it does not follow	In general, a comment which is absurd due to not making sense in its context (rather than due to being inherently nonsensical or internally inconsistent), often used in humor. As a logical fallacy, a conclusion that does not follow from a premise.
non serviam	I will not serve	Possibly derived from a Vulgate mistranslation of the Book of Jeremiah. Commonly used in literature as Satan's statement of disobedience to God, though in the original context the quote is attributed to Israel, not Satan.
non sibi||Not for self.||A slogan used by many schools and universities.
non sibi, sed suis||Not for one's self but for one's own.||A slogan used by many schools and universities. Including Tulane University.
non sibi, sed patriae||Not for self, but for Country.||Engraved on the doors of the United States Naval Academy chapel. Also the motto of the USS Halyburton (FFG-40)
non silba, sed anthar; Deo vindice||Not for self, but for others; God will vindicate.||A slogan used by the Ku Klux Klan.
non sum qualis eram||I am not such as I was||Or "I am not the kind of person I once was". Expresses a change in the speaker.
non teneas aurum totum quod splendet ut aurum||Do not hold as gold all that shines as gold.||Also, "All that glitters is not gold." Parabolae. Also used by Shakespeare in The Merchant of Venice.
non timebo mala||I will fear no evil||This is the phrase printed on the Colt, in Supernatural.
non vi, sed verbo||Not through violence, but through the word alone||Martin Luther on Catholic church reform. (see Protestant Reformation)
nosce te ipsum||know thyself||From Cicero, based on the Greek γνῶθι σεαυτόν (gnothi seauton), inscribed on the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. A non-traditional Latin rendering, temet nosce (thine own self know), is translated in The Matrix as "know thyself".
nosus decipio||we cheat||As translated in Amazing Grace (2006 film), "we cheat." From verb decipere: to ensnare, trap, beguile, deceive, cheat.
noster nostri||Literally "Our ours"||Approximately "Our hearts beat as one."
nota bene (n.b.)||mark well||That is, "please note" or "note it well".
novus ordo seclorum	new order of the ages	From Virgil. Motto on the Great Seal of the United States. Similar to Novus Ordo Mundi (New World Order).
nulla dies sine linea||Not a day without a line drawn.||Pliny the Elder attributes this maxim to Apelles, an ancient Greek artist.
nulla poena sine lege	no penalty without a law	Refers to the legal principle that one cannot be punished for doing something that is not prohibited by law, and is related to Nullum crimen, nulla poena sine praevia lege poenali.
nulla tenaci invia est via||For the tenacious, no road is impassable.||Motto of the Dutch car builder Spyker.
nullam rem natam||no thing born||That is, "nothing". It has been theorized that this expression is the origin of Italian nulla, French rien, and Spanish and Portuguese nada, all with the same meaning.
nulli secundus||second to none||Motto of the Coldstream Guardsand Nine Squadron Royal Australian Corps of Transport.
nullius in verba||On the word of no man||Motto of the Royal Society.
nullum crimen, nulla poena sine praevia lege poenali	no crime, no punishment without a previous penal law	Legal principle meaning that one cannot be penalised for doing something that is not prohibited by law. It also means that penal law cannot be enacted retroactively.
nullum magnum ingenium sine mixtura dementiae fuit||There has been no great wisdom without an element of madness||
numerus clausus	closed number	A method to limit the number of students who may study at a university.
numen lumen	God our light	The motto of the University of Wisonsin-Madison.
nunc dimittis	now you send	beginning of the Song of Simeon, from the Gospel of Luke.
nunc est bibendum||now is the time to drink||Carpe-Diem-type phrase from the Odes of Horace, Nunc est bibendum, nunc pede libero pulsanda tellus (Now is the time to drink, now the time to dance footloose upon the earth).
nunc pro tunc	now for then	Something that has retroactive effect, is effective from an earlier date.
nunc scio quid sit amor||now I know what love is||From Virgil, Eclogues VIII.
nunquam minus solus quam cum solus||never less alone than when alone.||
nunquam non paratus||never unprepared||Motto of the Scottish clan Johnston