Omnis amans amens
“Every lover is out of his mind.”
Latin proverb
What does “Omnis amans amens” mean?
Omnis amans amens translates as “Every lover is out of his mind.”
Love makes people act irrationally. It is a playful acknowledgment that the heart overrules the head.
“Omnis amans amens” word by word
| Latin | English | Grammar |
|---|---|---|
| Omnis | every, each | nominative singular masculine of omnis, omne, “every, all”; here it agrees with amans and means “every lover” |
| amans | lover, one who loves | nominative singular of amans, a noun made from the present participle of amo, “I love”; literally “loving”, used here as “a lover” |
| amens | out of one’s mind, mad | nominative singular of amens, “without reason”, from a- (“without”) and mens, “mind”; the predicate adjective, so the sentence needs no verb |
How to pronounce “Omnis amans amens”
The two pronunciations differ only slightly: classical has a short i in omnis (OM-nis), while church Latin has a long ee. The stress falls on the first syllable of each word, and the near-rhyme of amans and amens is the point of the pun.
The story behind it
Word for word the line says “every lover [is] out of mind”. Latin leaves out the verb “to be” here, which is typical of short proverbs. The joke lies in the two words amans and amens, which differ by a single letter.
It is catalogued as a Latin proverb with no single named author, so it should not be credited to a specific writer. The same wordplay between loving and madness is much older and appears in Roman comedy, where lovers are often shown as foolish and lovesick.
The saying is still quoted today in a humorous way, to show that love can make sensible people behave in silly or irrational ways.
How to use “Omnis amans amens”
Works well in a Valentine’s card, a wedding toast or a lighthearted caption about being lovestruck. It is playful rather than serious, so it suits a humorous tattoo or engraving better than a solemn one.
- Latin
- Omnis amans amens
- English
- Every lover is out of his mind.
- Source
- Latin proverb
- Era
- Classical
- Theme
- Love
Common mistakes
- Amens is not the English “amen” (which is Hebrew in origin). It is a Latin adjective meaning “mad, out of one’s mind”.
- Omnis is singular here, “every lover”, not “all lovers”. For the plural you would need omnes amantes sunt amentes.
- Changing the gender breaks the pun and the grammar: for a woman, amans stays the same, but amens does not change form for gender, so both can be kept as written.
- Do not credit it to Ovid, Plautus or Terence just because they wrote about lovesick characters; it is a proverb with no certain author.
Questions about “Omnis amans amens”
What does “Omnis amans amens” mean literally?
Literally “every lover [is] without mind”. In natural English: every lover is out of his mind.
Who said “Omnis amans amens”?
No one is known to have coined it. It is a Latin proverb, and the wordplay between loving and madness goes back to Roman comedy.
How do you pronounce “Omnis amans amens”?
In classical Latin: OM-nis AH-mahns AH-mayns. In church Latin: OM-nees AH-mahns AH-mehns. The stress is on the first syllable of every word.
Is “Omnis amans amens” correct Latin for a tattoo?
Yes. It is a valid, short proverb. No verb is needed, since Latin often leaves out “is”. It works for men and women alike, because amans and amens do not change by gender.
More to explore
Translation and grammar checked by Latin Quoter · last reviewed November 2026
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