# Motto translation to Latin help **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 4, 2008, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motto-translation-to-latin-help/466402 "2008-10-04T01:30:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ice\_Cream\_Conquest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e480ec/32.png) [@Ice\_Cream\_Conquest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Cream_Conquest)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motto-translation-to-latin-help/466402/1 "2008-10-04T01:30:21Z")
I’m making a t-shirt for strategy gamers and I want to translate the following to Latin: “Explore, Expand, Exploit, Exterminate.” There are two important criteria. More than accuracy, I want it to be recognizable, and all the words need to start with “ex.” So, looking up word origins, my first pass is “Explorare, Expandere, \, Exterminare” which looks great given my criteria, but I’d like to know if it’s a decent translation, and what should I use for Exploit? Thanks in advance. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motto-translation-to-latin-help/466402/2 "2008-10-04T01:32:44Z")
Just by logical construction wouldn’t it be “explotare”? ETA. I checked and there is no such word in Latin. sorry. ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Cream\_Conquest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e480ec/32.png) [@Ice\_Cream\_Conquest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Cream_Conquest)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motto-translation-to-latin-help/466402/3 "2008-10-04T01:35:05Z")
> [@sailor](#): > > Just by logical construction wouldn’t it be “explotare”? Is that actually Latin? From what I’ve been able to discover, the other words are. Even if it isn’t, it’s a decent word to use if nothing more accurate fits. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motto-translation-to-latin-help/466402/4 "2008-10-04T01:44:05Z")
> [@Ice\_Cream\_Conquest](#): > > I’m making a t-shirt for strategy gamers and I want to translate the following to Latin: “Explore, Expand, Exploit, Exterminate.” > > There are two important criteria. More than accuracy, I want it to be recognizable, and all the words need to start with “ex.” > > So, looking up word origins, my first pass is “Explorare, Expandere, \, Exterminare” which looks great given my criteria, but I’d like to know if it’s a decent translation, and what should I use for Exploit? > > Thanks in advance. Those are all in the infinitive (ie., “to explore”, “to expand”). You want the imperative: _Explorate, Expandate, X, Exterminate_. ETA: There’s no direct analogue for “exploit”. The closest thing I can think is _facio, facere_, which primarily means “use” or “make”. The imperative form is _Facete_. Double ETA: Pronunciation would be “exploratay, expandatay, fackatay, exterminatay”. Sounds cool, but it probably won’t look very clever on your shirt. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motto-translation-to-latin-help/466402/5 "2008-10-04T01:46:02Z")
“Explodere” means to expel (a person) with much noise. “Explicare” means to unfold or develop. “Expellere” means to expel “Experiri” means to try, to experiment. “Expandere” means to expand, “Exire” means to go out, leave. Eximere to take out Exhibere to show exhaurire to empty of water exstinguere to extinguish exprimere to express ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motto-translation-to-latin-help/466402/6 "2008-10-04T01:49:32Z")
> [@sailor](#): > > Just by logical construction wouldn’t it be “explotare”? > > ETA. I checked and there is no such word in Latin. sorry. “Exploit” comes from “explicitus/a/um”, a noun, which means “a fixed idea” or a “final thing”. ETA: One of the meanings of “exercere” is to employ or exploit, and it fits your “ex” vision. Imperative form is _Exercerete_, pronounced “exerserraytay”. ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Cream\_Conquest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e480ec/32.png) [@Ice\_Cream\_Conquest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Cream_Conquest)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motto-translation-to-latin-help/466402/7 "2008-10-04T02:42:51Z")
> [@sailor](#): > > Eximere to take out That’s got potential, using the idea of exploiting resources – taking them out of the ground. ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Cream\_Conquest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e480ec/32.png) [@Ice\_Cream\_Conquest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Cream_Conquest)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motto-translation-to-latin-help/466402/8 "2008-10-04T02:43:53Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > ETA: One of the meanings of “exercere” is to employ or exploit, and it fits your “ex” vision. Imperative form is _Exercerete_, pronounced “exerserraytay”. That’s good too.