Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat
“Those whom God wishes to destroy, he first makes mad.”
Latin saying
What does “Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat” mean?
Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat translates as “Those whom God wishes to destroy, he first makes mad.”
Ruin often begins with a loss of judgement: people heading for disaster make choices that look like madness from outside. The saying is quoted about leaders and nations as much as individuals.
“Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat” word by word
| Latin | English | Grammar |
|---|---|---|
| Quos | whom | accusative plural masculine of the relative pronoun qui, quae, quod; object of perdere |
| Deus | God | nominative singular of deus, “god”; subject of vult |
| vult | wishes | 3rd person singular present indicative of volo, velle, “to wish, want” |
| perdere | to destroy | present infinitive active of perdo, perdere, “to destroy, ruin” |
| prius | first | adverb, “earlier, beforehand”; comparative in form |
| dementat | makes mad | 3rd person singular present indicative active of demento, dementare, “to drive mad”; the object “them” is left unstated |
How to pronounce “Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat”
Classical has a hard k sound in quos and a w sound in vult; Church Latin says vult with a v. Stress falls on DE-us, PER-de-re, PRI-us and de-MEN-tat.
The story behind it
Word for word the saying runs “whom God wishes to destroy, first he drives mad”. In Latin the object of the main verb is left out, so “them” has to be supplied in English.
The idea is ancient and turns up in Greek tragedy: the gods blind a person to their own folly before bringing them down. This Latin wording, however, is later and spread widely in the early modern period.
It is often credited to Euripides, but that attribution is wrong: no Euripides line has this wording. Here it is best treated as an anonymous Latin saying.
Today it is quoted about rulers, nations and businesses whose decisions seem to speed their own collapse.
How to use “Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat”
Works as an epigraph for a political column or a history essay on self-destruction, or as a pointed comment on a leader’s string of disastrous choices. It is a poor fit for a tattoo or gift, since the tone is bleak.
- Latin
- Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat
- English
- Those whom God wishes to destroy, he first makes mad.
- Source
- Latin saying
- Era
- Early modern
- Theme
- Fate
Common mistakes
- Do not credit it to Euripides. The thought is ancient and Greek in feeling, but this Latin sentence is not his.
- The Latin says Deus, “God” in the singular. Some English versions turn this into “the gods”, which is a different, pagan wording.
- The saying does not mean that God simply wants people mad. The madness comes first, as the first step towards ruin.
- Some versions read Quem Jupiter vult perdere, dementat prius. Those are variants, so do not mix them with this wording.
Questions about “Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat”
What does “Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat” mean?
“Those whom God wishes to destroy, he first makes mad.” It says that ruin begins with a loss of judgement, so that people bring about their own downfall.
Who said “Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat”?
No one can be named. It is an anonymous Latin saying, in circulation from the early modern period. The attribution to Euripides is a common mistake.
How do you pronounce “Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat”?
In classical style: kwohs DEH-oos woolt PEHR-deh-reh PREE-oos deh-MEN-taht. Church Latin changes only vult, to voolt.
Is “Quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat” correct Latin?
Yes. The relative clause quos Deus vult perdere comes first, and the main verb dementat has the unstated object “them”. The word order is typical of Latin proverbs.
More to explore
Translation and grammar checked by Latin Quoter · last reviewed November 2026
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