laudent

Laudent is a Latin verb form. It is the third-person plural present active subjunctive of the verb laudare, meaning “to praise.” The infinitive is laudare; the corresponding present indicative for the third person plural is laudant, not laudent.

In Latin syntax, the present active subjunctive expresses potentiality, wishes, or hypothetical statements within subordinate clauses, and it is common after verbs of hoping or commanding, or in indirect speech. Laudent appears in clauses introduced by ut or ne, or in jussive or optative constructions where the speaker expresses a wish or a purpose about others. For example, ut laudent virtutes means “that they may praise virtues,” and laudent can function in a jussive sense as “let them praise” in appropriate contexts.

Usage and occurrence: laudent is found primarily in Classical Latin and continues into Late Latin and ecclesiastical Latin, where the subjunctive mood is frequent in reported speech, exhortations, or clauses of purpose and result. It contrasts with the present indicative laudent (more common in direct statements) and with laudet (3rd person singular present subjunctive) and laudant (3rd person plural present indicative).

Form and related forms: laudent derives from the verb laudare, with the present active subjunctive endings for the 3rd person plural (-ent) attached to the stem laud-. Related forms include laudet (3rd sg present subjunctive) and laudant (3rd pl present indicative). Understanding laudent helps distinguish mood (subjunctive) from tense and voice in Latin verb systems.