Super omnia vincit veritas
“Above all things, truth conquers.”
Vulgate, 3 Esdras
What does “Super omnia vincit veritas” mean?
Super omnia vincit veritas translates as “Above all things, truth conquers.”
Truth is stronger than wine, kings or anything else people trust in, and in the end it prevails. It is a statement of confidence in honesty over power.
“Super omnia vincit veritas” word by word
| Latin | English | Grammar |
|---|---|---|
| Super | above, over | preposition governing the accusative; here “above” in the sense of “more than” |
| omnia | all things | accusative plural neuter of omnis, “all, every”; the object of super |
| vincit | conquers, prevails | 3rd person singular present indicative active of vinco, “I conquer” |
| veritas | truth | nominative singular feminine of veritas, “truth”; the subject of vincit |
How to pronounce “Super omnia vincit veritas”
Classical Latin has a hard c in vincit (WING-kit) and a w-sound for v. Church Latin softens c to ch (VEEN-chit) and keeps v as in English. The stress is the same in both: SOO-per, OM-nee-ah, WING-kit or VEEN-chit, and the second syllable of veritas.
The story behind it
Word for word the line reads “above all things conquers truth”. The Latin puts the verb before its subject, so veritas lands last and carries the emphasis.
It comes from the story of three young bodyguards of King Darius, told in the apocryphal book known as 1 Esdras. In the Vulgate the book is numbered 3 Esdras. The guards compete to name the strongest thing: one says wine, one the king, and the third argues for women and, above all, truth.
The story ends with the crowd shouting that truth is great and prevails over all. The phrase passed into Christian and scholarly Latin and later became a favourite motto, often used for schools, courts and universities.
How to use “Super omnia vincit veritas”
A fitting motto for a journalist, judge, researcher or teacher, or an engraving for anyone who values honesty over convenience. It also works as a pointed line in an essay on integrity, propaganda or the power of facts.
- Latin
- Super omnia vincit veritas
- English
- Above all things, truth conquers.
- Source
- Vulgate, 3 Esdras
- Era
- Church Latin
- Theme
- Truth
Common mistakes
- The line is often shortened to “Veritas vincit”, which is correct Latin but loses the force of “above all things”.
- Do not read veritas as the object. It is the subject: truth does the conquering, and omnia is what truth stands above.
- It is not a classical Roman saying. It comes from a biblical text in the Latin Vulgate and is often wrongly credited to Cicero or Seneca.
- Some sources print “Magna est veritas et praevalebit”, a related line from the same story. It is a different phrase with a different meaning.
Questions about “Super omnia vincit veritas”
What does “Super omnia vincit veritas” mean literally?
“Above all things truth conquers”, that is, truth prevails over everything else. Super means “above” and omnia means “all things”.
Where does “Super omnia vincit veritas” come from?
From the story of King Darius’s three guards in the apocryphal book 1 Esdras, called 3 Esdras in the Vulgate. In that tale truth is judged the strongest thing of all.
How do you pronounce “Super omnia vincit veritas”?
Classical: SOO-per OM-nee-ah WING-kit weh-REE-tahs. Church Latin: SOO-per OM-nee-ah VEEN-chit veh-REE-tahs.
Is “Super omnia vincit veritas” correct Latin for a tattoo?
Yes, the grammar is sound: veritas is the subject and vincit its verb. Check which spelling and word order you want before inking, since “Veritas vincit” is a common shorter variant.
More to explore
Translation and grammar checked by Latin Quoter · last reviewed November 2026
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