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My son is headed to the Naval Academy and I am trying to engrave something in Latin. The phrase is "If you can breathe, you can fight"

Any help is appreciated...!

Sean
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  • Hi Sean. It looks like we already answered that question, but in an extended form. Have a look at the linked question, and if you still have questions, feel free to ping me (@cmw) or edit the question to explain why the above question doesn't give you a complete answer. – cmw Feb 01 '23 at 18:35

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Here are a couple of different wordings which may be more Latin. But do check with one of the exports here before inking!

Dum spiro, pugno While I breathe, I fight

Qui spirat, pugnet Whoever breathes, let him fight.

My doubt on the second (for more expert advice) is whether the subjunctive spiret would be better. In Spanish it would, but in Latin possibly less so.

Martin Kochanski
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    Probably should mention that the first one is a clear allusion to the classic dum spiro spero. Also, I think in this case, for the second suggestion, the indicative is indeed better. The subjunctive would more easily read "let the kind of person who breathes fight." – cmw Feb 01 '23 at 18:33
  • Dum spiro, pugno sounds good but I'm not sure if reflects the meaning of what I'm trying to say. I want it to feel more desperate...not just like everyone who is breathing is fighting.. more in the sense of, you've been fighting, you want to quit but you can always fight if you can breathe. – Sean Feb 01 '23 at 19:46
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    @Sean I think dum spiro pugno accomplishes that more than qui spirat pugnet. The latter could mean "everyone who is breathing should fight", but the former is more in line with what you want. The linked answer I gave you above has more options, too. – cmw Feb 02 '23 at 15:37