Re: Negation?

Exactly what it sounds like -- the ablative of "mens," "mind."
____mente meant "with a ____ mind" in Vulgar Latin.

Compare English constructions like "single-mindedly"...  "with a
single mind."

Feminine adjective because _mens_ is feminine.

Ed Heil ------------------------------- edheil@postmark.net
"Facts are meaningless! You can use facts to prove anything
   that's even _remotely_ true!"           -- Homer Simpson

Patrick Dunn wrote:

> On Thu, 8 Jul 1999, John Cowan wrote:
>
> > FFlores wrote:
> >
> > > Most hispanohablantes will be probably laugh at me if I told
> > > them it was the separate word _mente_ in an idiomatic phrase.
> >
> > In that case, ask sweetly why the preceding adjective is always
> > in the feminine form....  The stress pattern is also a good
> > clue.
> >
>
> Hrmm?  Explain this to me, please?  My Spanish is rusty.  I know adverbs
> can be made by casting the adjective into the feminine form and adding
> "-mente," but what was "-mente" originally, then, and why feminine form?
>
> --Patrick
>