Actum est de republica
“It is all over with the republic.”
Latin phrase
What does “Actum est de republica” mean?
Actum est de republica translates as “It is all over with the republic.”
A cry of despair when a state or institution seems lost. It is used for moments of political collapse.
“Actum est de republica” word by word
| Latin | English | Grammar |
|---|---|---|
| Actum | done, finished | neuter singular perfect passive participle of ago, “to do, to drive”; used impersonally with est, so “it has been done with”, i.e. “it is over” |
| est | is | third person singular present indicative of sum, “to be”; it completes the perfect passive actum est |
| de | concerning, with regard to | preposition that takes the ablative case |
| republica | the republic | ablative singular of res publica, “the public affair, the state”, here written as one word; both parts (re + publica) are ablative after de |
How to pronounce “Actum est de republica”
The two systems differ in the vowels: de is “day” in Classical and “deh” in Church Latin. Stress falls on the first syllable of actum and on POO in republica, because the syllable before the last is short.
The story behind it
Word for word the sentence says “it has been done concerning the republic”, which in idiomatic Latin means “it is all over with the republic”. The pattern actum est de followed by a noun is a regular idiom meaning that someone or something is finished or lost.
Classical authors use the idiom for individuals and for communities. Its heavy sense of finality made it a natural way to describe a political catastrophe. The exact sentence with republica is best treated as a Latin phrase modelled on that idiom, since no single ancient source is firmly tied to this wording.
Today the line is quoted in essays and commentary on political crises, usually in a deliberately dramatic tone.
How to use “Actum est de republica”
A dramatic epigraph for an essay on the fall of republics, or a heading for a speech or article about the collapse of a political order. It suits a serious, slightly theatrical tone.
- Latin
- Actum est de republica
- English
- It is all over with the republic.
- Source
- Latin phrase
- Era
- Classical
- Theme
- Politics
Common mistakes
- It does not mean “the republic has acted”. Actum comes from ago and here means “done with”, so the phrase describes an ending, not an action.
- The ablative case is required after de, so the phrase needs republica (ablative of res publica); the nominative res publica or the accusative rem publicam would be wrong.
- Treating it as a firmly attested line from a named Roman author is a mistake. Actum est de followed by a noun is attested as an idiom, but this exact wording has no known single source.
- Changing est to erat or erit changes the meaning to “it was over” or “it will be over”.
Questions about “Actum est de republica”
What does “Actum est de republica” mean literally?
Literally “it has been done concerning the republic”. In natural English it means “it is all over with the republic”.
Who said “Actum est de republica”?
No specific author is known. It is a Latin phrase built on the classical idiom actum est de, so it is best credited simply as a Latin phrase.
How do you pronounce “Actum est de republica”?
In Classical Latin: AHK-toom est day ray-POO-blih-kah. In Church Latin: AHK-toom est deh reh-POO-blee-kah.
Why is it “republica” and not “res publica”?
After de the ablative is required, and republica is the ablative singular of res publica written as one word. Both parts of the phrase change case together.
More to explore
Translation and grammar checked by Latin Quoter · last reviewed November 2026
Related Latin quotes
One Latin line. Every Monday.
A quote, its translation and the story behind it, free in your inbox.