Sapientia abscondita et thesaurus invisus, quae utilitas in utrisque?
“Hidden wisdom and an unseen treasure: what use is there in either?”
Vulgate, Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 20
What does “Sapientia abscondita et thesaurus invisus, quae utilitas in utrisque?” mean?
Sapientia abscondita et thesaurus invisus, quae utilitas in utrisque? translates as “Hidden wisdom and an unseen treasure: what use is there in either?”
Knowledge that is never shared and wealth that is never used are equally useless. The verse encourages putting one’s gifts to use.
“Sapientia abscondita et thesaurus invisus, quae …” word by word
| Latin | English | Grammar |
|---|---|---|
| Sapientia | wisdom | nominative singular feminine of sapientia, “wisdom”; subject of the first half |
| abscondita | hidden | nominative singular feminine perfect passive participle of abscondo, “I hide away”; agrees with sapientia |
| et | and | conjunction joining the two subjects |
| thesaurus | treasure | nominative singular masculine of thesaurus, “treasure, storehouse”; second subject |
| invisus | unseen | nominative singular masculine of invisus, “unseen” (from in- “not” and video, “I see”); agrees with thesaurus |
| quae | what | nominative singular feminine interrogative adjective: “what?”; agrees with utilitas |
| utilitas | use, benefit | nominative singular feminine of utilitas, “usefulness”; the subject of the question, with “est” understood |
| in | in | preposition taking the ablative here, “in, with regard to” |
| utrisque | both, either of them | ablative plural of uterque, “each of two, both”; object of in |
How to pronounce “Sapientia abscondita et thesaurus invisus, quae …”
The main differences are in sapientia (classical -ti- as in tee, church as tsee), invisus (w or v, and a soft s in church use) and quae (rhymes with “pie” in classical, “meh” in church use).
The story behind it
Word for word the verse reads “wisdom hidden and treasure unseen, what use in both?”. It is a rhetorical question: the expected answer is “none”.
It comes from the Book of Sirach, also called Ecclesiasticus, a Jewish wisdom book known in Latin through the Vulgate, the Latin Bible associated with Jerome. The same proverb appears in two places, in chapters 20 and 41.
The saying has lived on as an encouragement to share what you know and to put your talents and resources to work, which is why it suits teachers, writers and anyone who passes knowledge on.
How to use “Sapientia abscondita et thesaurus invisus, quae …”
Fits a teacher’s or mentor’s motto, a blog or learning platform that shares knowledge, a library or classroom inscription, or a speech about using your talents rather than keeping them to yourself.
- Latin
- Sapientia abscondita et thesaurus invisus, quae utilitas in utrisque?
- English
- Hidden wisdom and an unseen treasure: what use is there in either?
- Source
- Vulgate, Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 20
- Era
- Church Latin
- Theme
- Wisdom
Common mistakes
- It is a question, not a statement. The sense is “what is the use of either?”, so the answer is implied: none.
- Utrisque means “in both” (ablative plural of uterque); it is easily mistaken for a form of uter alone or for a single word meaning “either one”.
- The verse appears in both Sirach 20 and 41, so citing only one chapter is incomplete; check which wording you are quoting before attributing it.
- Do not mistake it for a classical Roman saying. It is biblical Latin from the Vulgate, which is later than the classical period.
Questions about “Sapientia abscondita et thesaurus invisus, quae …”
What does “Sapientia abscondita et thesaurus invisus” mean?
“Hidden wisdom and an unseen treasure”. It continues with “quae utilitas in utrisque?”, meaning “what use is there in either?”.
Where is “Sapientia abscondita” from?
It is from the Book of Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) in the Latin Vulgate. The proverb occurs in chapter 20 and again in chapter 41.
What is the message of this verse?
Wisdom that is never shared and wealth that is never used are equally useless. It encourages putting your gifts and knowledge to use.
How do you pronounce “Sapientia abscondita”?
In Church Latin: sah-pee-EN-tsee-ah ab-SKOHN-dee-tah. In Classical Latin the -ti- is a hard “tee” sound: sah-pee-EN-tee-ah ab-SKOHN-dih-tah.
More to explore
Translation and grammar checked by Latin Quoter · last reviewed November 2026
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