List of Latin phrases (U)

|- |ultimo menseultimo mense (ult.)||in the last month||Used in formal correspondence to refer to the previous month. Used with inst. ("this month") and prox. ("next month"). |- |ultra vires||beyond powers||"Without authority". Used to describe an action done without proper authority, or acting without the rules. The term will most often be used in connection with appeals and petitions. Can be used as a preposition: "the court found that the law was ultra vires Parliament." |- |ultra posse nemo obligatur||No one is obligated beyond what he is able to do.||Equivalent to ad impossibilia nemo tenetur, impossibilium nulla obligatio est and nemo potest ad impossibile obligari. |- |ululas Athenas||(to send) owls to Athens||From Gerhard Gerhards' (1466–1536) [better known as Erasmus] collection of annotated Adagia (1508). Latin translation of a classical Greek proverb. Generally means putting large effort in a necessarily fruitless enterprise. Compare "selling coal to Newcastle". |- |una hirundo non facit ver||one swallow does not make summer||A single example of something positive does not necessarily mean that all subsequent similar instances will have the same outcome. |- |una salus victis nullam sperare salutem||the only safety for the conquered is to hope for no safety||Less literally, "the only safe bet for the vanquished is to expect no safety". Preceded by moriamur et in media arma ruamus ("let us die even as we rush into the midst of battle") in Virgil's Aeneid, book 2, lines 353–354. Used in Tom Clancy's novel Without Remorse, where character John Clark translates it as "the one hope of the doomed is not to hope for safety". It was said several times in "Andromeda" as the motto of the SOF units. |- |unitas, iustitia, spes||unity, justice, hope||Motto of Vilnius. |- |unitas per servitiam||unity through service||Motto for the St. Xavier's Institution Board of Librarians. |- |uniti aedificamus||united we build||Motto of the Mississippi makerspace community |- |uno flatu||in one breath||Used in criticism of inconsistent pleadings, i.e. "one cannot argue uno flatu both that the company does not exist and that it is also responsible for the wrong." |- |uno sumus animo||we are one of soul||Motto of Stedelijk Gymnasium Leiden |- |unus multorum||one of many||An average person. |- |unus papa Romae, unus portus Anconae, una turris Cremonae, una ceres Raconae||One pope in Rome, one port in Ancona, one tower in Cremona, one beer in Rakovník||Motto of the Czech Brewery in Rakovník. |- |Unus pro omnibus, omnes pro uno|| One for all, all for one|| unofficial motto of Switzerland, popularized by The Three Musketeers |- |Urbi et Orbi||to the city and the circle [of the lands]||Meaning "To Rome and the World". A standard opening of Roman proclamations. Also a traditional blessing by the pope. |- |urbs in hortourbs in horto||city in a garden||Motto of the City of Chicago. |- |usque ad finemusque ad finem||to the very end||Often used in reference to battle, implying a willingness to keep fighting until you die. |- |usus est magister optimususus est magister optimus||practice is the best teacher.||In other words, practice makes perfect. Also sometimes translated "use makes master." |- |ut aquila versus coelumut aquila versus coelum||As an eagle towards the sky ||Motto of Bowdoin College, Brunswick, Maine |- |ut biberent quoniam esse nollentut biberent quoniam esse nollent||so that they might drink, since they refused to eat||Also rendered with quando ("when") in place of quoniam. From a book by Suetonius (Vit. Tib., 2.2) and Cicero (De Natura Deorum, 2.3). The phrase was said by Roman admiral Publius Claudius Pulcher right before the battle of Drepana, as he threw overboard the sacred chickens which had refused to eat the grain offered them—an unwelcome omen of bad luck. Thus, the sense is, "if they do not perform as expected, they must suffer the consequences". He lost the battle disastrously. |- |ut cognoscant teut cognoscant te||so that they may know You.||Motto of Boston College High School. |- |ut desint vires, tamen est laudanda voluntasut desint vires, tamen est laudanda voluntas||though the power be lacking, the will is to be praised all the same||From Ovid, Epistulae ex Ponto (III, 4, 79). |- |ut diciturut dicitur||as has been said; as above|| |- |ut incepit fidelis sic permanetut incepit fidelis sic permanet||as she began loyal, so she persists||Poetically, "Loyal she began, loyal she remains." Motto of Ontario. |- |ut infraut infra||as below|| |- |ut in omnibus glorificetur Deusut in omnibus glorificetur Deus.||that in all things, God may be glorified||Motto of the Order of Saint Benedict |- |ut mare quod ut ventusut mare quod ut ventus||to sea and into wind||Motto of USNS Washington Chambers |- |ut omnes te cognoscantut omnes te cognoscant ||that all may know you||Motto of Niagara University |- |ut omnes unum sintut omnes unum sint ||That they all may be one||Motto of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Germany, and the United Church of Canada |- |ut pictura poesis||as is painting so is poetry||quote most famously uttered in Horace's Ars Poetica meaning poetry deserves the same careful interpretation as painting |- |ut prosim||that I may serve||Motto of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University |- |ut proverbium loquitur vetus...||you know what they say...||Lit: As the old proverb says... |- |ut quod omnes similiter tangit ab omnibus comprobetur|| ||anything that affects all similarly must be approved by all; from Justinian's Code 5.59.5.2 (529 AD), promulgated into canon law by Pope Boniface VIII in 1298 |- |ut res magis valeat quam pereat||that the matter may have effect rather than fail|| |- |ut retro||as backwards||Or "as on the back side"; thus, "as on the previous page" (cf. ut supra). |- |ut Roma cadit, sic omnis terra||as Rome falls, so [falls] the whole world|| |- |ut sit finis litium||so there might be an end of litigation||A traditional brocard. The full form is Interest reipublicae ut sit finis litium, "it is in the government's interest that there be an end to litigation." Often quoted in the context of statutes of limitation. |- |ut supra||as above|| |- |ut tensio sic vis||as the extension, so the force||Robert Hooke's expression of his discovery of his law of linear elasticity. Also: Motto of École Polytechnique de Montréal. Motto of the British Watch and Clockmaker's Guild. |- |utilis in ministerium||usefulness in service||Comes from 2 Timothy 4:11. Motto of Camberwell Girls Grammar School. |- |utraque unum||both into one||Also translated as "that the two may be one." Motto found in 18th century Spanish dollar coins. Motto of Georgetown University.From the Vulgate, Eph. 2:14, Ipse enim est pax nostra, qui fecit utraque unum, "For he is our peace, who hath made both one." |- |utrinque paratus||ready for anything||Motto of The British Parachute Regiment. Motto of the Belize National Coast Guard. |}