What did the Romans do for us? Well, apart from straight roads and central heating, they also left us the legacy of Latin. Latin is an ancient language that risks dying out for good but you would be surprised at how often Latin words appear in everyday English usage. You have probably heard many phrases and perhaps wondered what some of them mean. Well, check out this list for the most common Latin phrases used in the English language.

Ad hoc - For this purpose, improvised, made up in an instant

She had to do the filing, photocopying and printing as well as lots of other ad hoc tasks.

Ad infinitum - Without a limit, endlessly

He talked ad infinitum about his holiday in Scotland.

Agenda - Things to be done

Right, let's look at the meeting's agenda.

Alias - Otherwise

John Brown's alias was John Smith.

Alibi - elsewhere

Her alibi was that on Saturday night she was at a friend's party.

Alter ego - Other, an alternative self

It was almost as if he had an alter ego when he played guitar.

Bona fide - Genuine, sincere

He said he was a bona fide plastic surgeon.

Carpe Diem - Seize the day

Their school motto was Carpe Diem.

Circa (c.) - About

He said it was circa fifty miles to London.

Ego - Consciousness of one's own identity

He has such a huge ego!

Et cetera (etc.) - And the rest

He likes chocolate - milk, dark, white, truffles, nougat, fondants, et cetera.

In flagrante delicto - In the act of committing some sort of offence

He was caught in flagrante delicto with the manager's wife.

In vitro - In a test tube (literally means "in glass")

They conceived their baby through in vitro fertilization.

Per annum - Per year

She gets paid only $20,000 per annum.

Persona non grata - A non-acceptable person

After his antics at the party, he really is persona non grata.

Pro bono - Without charge, for the public good

The plastic surgeon said he would do pro bono work for the charity.

Rigor mortis - The rigidity of death

The corpse was now in the state of rigor mortis.

Terra firma - Solid ground

After the boat trip she was glad to be on terra firm again.

Status quo - The current state of affairs

He was keen to keep the status quo at work.

Vice versa - The order being reversed

Cats hate dogs and vice versa.

So, as you can see, there are many Latin words still in use today when we write and speak English, showing that it has certainly greatly influenced the English language. Perhaps you might like to add a few Latin phrases here and there to your writing to help keep this fascinating language alive.

KJ Hutchings is the founder of KJ Language Services, offering editing, writing and proofreading services and advice on how you can make your English language documents the very best they can be. For more information, visit http://www.kjlanguageservices.com/.