Chapter 457 Allen and Greenough's Latin Grammar Dickinson College Christopher Francese

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Many verbs take either a Subjunctive Clause or a Complementary Infinitive, without difference of meaning.

Such are verbs signifying willingness , necessity , propriety , resolve , command , prohibition , effort , and the like (cf. § 563 ):— dēcernere optābat (Q. C. 3.11.1) , he was eager to decide. optāvit ut tollerētur (Off. 3.94) , he was eager to be taken up. oppūgnāre contendit (B. G. 5.21) , he strove to take by storm. contendit ut caperet ( id . 5.8), he strove to take. bellum gerere cōnstituit ( id . 4.6), he decided to carry on war. cōnstitueram ut manērem (Att. 16.10.1) , I had decided to remain. For the infinitive with subject accusative used with some of these verbs instead of a complementary infinitive, see § 563 . Some verbs of these classes never take the subjunctive, but are identical in meaning with others which do:— eōs quōs tūtārī dēbent dēserunt (Off. 1.28) , they forsake those whom they ought to protect. aveō pūgnāre (Att. 2.18.3) , I'm anxious to fight.

In poetry and later writers many verbs may have the infinitive, after the analogy of verbs of more literal meaning that take it in prose:— furit tē reperīre (Hor. Od. 1.15.27) , he rages to find thee. [A forcible way of saying cupit (§§ 457 , 563. b ).] saevit exstinguere nōmen (Ov. M. 1.200) , he rages to blot out the name. fuge quaerere (Hor. Od. 1.9.13) , forbear to ask (cf. § 450 . N. 1). parce piās scelerāre manūs (Aen. 3.42) , forbear to defile your pious hands.

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