Indefinite Pronouns
Latin doesn't have one word for "someone." It has a small committee, and the right pick depends on the context the word sits in — affirmative or negative, after sī or not, one of two or one of many.
Aliquis is the everyday "someone"; after sī, nisi, num, nē it shrinks to bare quis ("after sī the ali- falls away"). In a negative sentence the word for "anyone" flips again to quisquam / ūllus.
Quīdam is "a certain one" — known to you but not named. Quisque doles things out one-by-one. Nēmō means flatly "nobody."
The forms are easy. The web of choices is the trap, and that's what this hub maps.
The same English word "any/some" maps onto different Latin pronouns depending on the surrounding logic — affirmative, conditional, or negative.
After sī the ali- falls away: aliquis shrinks to quis. In negatives "any" becomes quisquam / ūllus.
| Case | Singular M. | Singular F. | Singular N. | Plural M. | Plural F. | Plural N. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | aliquis | aliqua | aliquid | aliquī | aliquae | aliqua |
| Gen. | alicuius | alicuius | alicuius | aliquōrum | aliquārum | aliquōrum |
| Dat. | alicui | alicui | alicui | aliquibus | aliquibus | aliquibus |
| Acc. | aliquem | aliquam | aliquid | aliquōs | aliquās | aliqua |
| Abl. | aliquō | aliquā | aliquō | aliquibus | aliquibus | aliquibus |
| Case | Singular M. | Singular F. | Singular N. | Plural M. | Plural F. | Plural N. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | quīdam | quaedam | quoddam | quīdam | quaedam | quaedam |
| Gen. | cuiusdam | cuiusdam | cuiusdam | quōrundam | quārundam | quōrundam |
| Dat. | cuidam | cuidam | cuidam | quibusdam | quibusdam | quibusdam |
| Acc. | quendam | quandam | quoddam | quōsdam | quāsdam | quaedam |
| Abl. | quōdam | quādam | quōdam | quibusdam | quibusdam | quibusdam |
| Case | Singular |
|---|---|
| Nom. | nēmō |
| Gen. | nūllīus |
| Dat. | nēminī |
| Acc. | nēminem |
| Abl. | nūllō |
See It In Action
— Verg. Aen. xi. 365
After sī the indefinite of choice would normally be bare quis — but here Vergil reaches past it to nēmō, the strongest negative. The contrast is the point: not "if anyone dares," but "if NO one dares."
— Sall. Cat. 6
Alius … alium (the same word repeated in two cases) is Latin's compact "each other" — saving a whole reciprocal pronoun. Same trick works for alius alibī ("each in a different place").
— Hor. Ep. i. 17. 36
Horace picks cuivīs (any-you-please) over cuiquam (any-at-all). With cuiquam it would mean "not any man's luck" — flat negation. Cuivīs leaves the door open: "not just anyone's."
neutral context → aliquis / aliquid
aliquid dīxit = he said something
the ali- falls away → bare quis / quid
sī quid accidat = if anything should happen
use quisquam (substantive) or ūllus (adjective)
sine ūllō perīculō = without any danger
quīdam — coyly specific, the speaker could name them
quīdam ex amīcīs = a certain one of his friends
quisque, postpositive after a reflexive, superlative, or ordinal
prīmō quōque tempore = at the very first opportunity
alius … alius (or aliī … aliī)
aliī gladiīs, aliī frāgmentīs = some with swords, others with fragments
alter … alter
alterī dīmicant, alterī timent = one party fights, the other fears
alius repeated in two cases (or with aliō-adverb)
alius alium percontāmur = we keep asking each other
All three can translate "someone / anyone," but each lives in a different syntactic neighborhood. Picking the wrong one is the most common indefinite-pronoun mistake in AP Latin.
affirmative, neutral context
aliquis dīxit
someone said (some particular person)
negative or virtually negative context
nec quisquam respondit
and not a single person answered
Tip: Ask: is the sentence affirmative, conditional, or negative? Affirmative → aliquis. After sī, nisi, num, nē → bare quis. Negative or doubting (sine, nec, vix, numquam, nōn) → quisquam / ūllus.
Cicero writes: iūstitia numquam nocet . Which indefinite belongs in the blank?
Study Tips
- •Memorize the sī, nisi, num, nē trigger first — that's the single rule that catches more AP-Latin students than any other: see sī, expect quis (not aliquis).
- •When a sentence is negative or doubting, reach for quisquam / ūllus, not aliquis. "Without any fear" is sine ūllō metū — sine aliquō metū would mean "without some particular fear."
- •Treat quīdam as "a certain person — I could name them but won't." Aliquis is genuinely vague; quīdam is coyly specific.
- •Drill the postpositive habit of quisque: it leans on the word before it. suum cuique (to each his own), prīmō quōque tempore (at the very first opportunity), nōbilissimus quisque (all the noblest, in order).