TSR Wiki > Study Help > Subjects and Revision > Revision Notes > Classics > Latin Ablative Absolute
The Ablative Absolute is a way of showing when something happened with regards to something else.
It is made up of a noun and a participle, both in the Ablative case. At GCSE level, they normally apear at the beginning of a sentence and are always separated from the rest of the sentence with a comma.
It is vital to know how to translate the Ablative Absolute to gain top grades.
nave deligata, cives domum redierunt
is translated as:
After the ship had been tied up, the citizens returned home.
- If a present participle is used, the clause begins with the word while...
- If a perfect participle is used, the clause begins with the word after...
