Fiat voluntas tua
“Your will be done.”
Vulgate, Matthew 6:10
What does “Fiat voluntas tua” mean?
Fiat voluntas tua translates as “Your will be done.”
A line of trust and surrender to God’s will, from the Lord’s Prayer. It is spoken in moments of acceptance when outcomes are beyond our control.
“Fiat voluntas tua” word by word
| Latin | English | Grammar |
|---|---|---|
| Fiat | let it be done | third person singular present subjunctive (jussive) of fio, “I am made, I become”, used as the passive of facio; it expresses a wish or command |
| voluntas | will | nominative singular feminine of voluntas, “will, wish”; the subject of fiat |
| tua | your | nominative singular feminine of tuus, “your” (one person); agrees with voluntas |
How to pronounce “Fiat voluntas tua”
The main difference is the v: classical says w, church Latin says v. Voluntas is stressed on the second-to-last syllable in both, but the tradition of sung and spoken church Latin often reads it as vo-loon-TAHS. Fiat stresses its first syllable in both.
The story behind it
Word for word the phrase says “let your will be done”. Fiat is a jussive subjunctive, a form Latin uses for wishes and commands in the third person, so it reads as “may it be done” rather than a plain statement.
The words come from the Lord’s Prayer in the Gospel of Matthew (6:10), in the Latin Vulgate translation made by Jerome in the late fourth century. The full verse reads Fiat voluntas tua, sicut in caelo et in terra, “Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”.
The line is spoken daily in Christian worship, in the Pater Noster of the Latin Mass and the rosary. Outside church it is used as a short expression of acceptance when something cannot be changed.
How to use “Fiat voluntas tua”
It suits a prayer card, a memorial or hospital chapel inscription, or a personal tattoo or engraving that expresses trust and acceptance of what lies beyond your control. It is a religious line, so it works best where that meaning is intended.
- Latin
- Fiat voluntas tua
- English
- Your will be done.
- Source
- Vulgate, Matthew 6:10
- Era
- Church Latin
- Theme
- Faith
Common mistakes
- Fiat is not a noun here and has nothing to do with the car brand or with a decree; it is a verb form meaning “let it be done”.
- It is Your will (tua, one person addressed, God), not “his” or “their” will. Changing the possessive changes the sentence.
- Voluntas is feminine, so the matching word is tua; writing tuus voluntas is wrong. If you replace voluntas with a masculine noun, the ending of the possessive must change too.
- Dropping the ending to write “Fiat volunta tua” is a common misspelling; the noun is voluntas, with an s.
Questions about “Fiat voluntas tua”
What does “Fiat voluntas tua” mean literally?
“Let your will be done”, or “Your will be done”. Fiat is a wish or command form of fio, “to be made, to become”.
Where does “Fiat voluntas tua” come from?
It is a line of the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:10, in the Latin Vulgate. The prayer itself is also found in a longer form in Luke 11.
How do you pronounce “Fiat voluntas tua”?
In classical Latin: FEE-aht woh-LOON-tahs TOO-ah. In church Latin: FEE-aht voh-loon-TAHS TOO-ah, with v rather than w.
Is “Fiat voluntas tua” correct Latin for a tattoo?
Yes, it is correct and well attested. Check that it is the meaning you want: it is a prayer of surrender to God’s will, not a general statement about determination.
More to explore
Translation and grammar checked by Latin Quoter · last reviewed November 2026
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