carpe diem

English

WOTD – 9 January 2013

Alternative forms

• carpe the diem (humorous)

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin carpe diem (“enjoy the day”, literally “pluck (or harvest) the day”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˌkɑː.piː ˈdaɪ.ɛm/, IPA^(key): /ˌkɑː.peɪ ˈdiː.əm/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˌkɑɹ.pi ˈdaɪ.ɛm/, IPA^(key): /ˌkɑɹ.peɪ ˈdi.əm/

• Audio (US):

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• Audio (General Australian):

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Proverb

carpe diem

1. Enjoy the present, make the most of today, (common mistranslation) seize the day.
   • 1905, G. K. Chesterton, Heretics‎^[1], New York: John Lane, →OL:

     It is the carpe diem religion; but the carpe diem religion is not the religion of happy people, but of very unhappy people.

   • 2007 July 30, Lee Harris, “Can Carpe Diem Societies Survive?”, in The Suicide of Reason: Radical Islam's Threat to the West, New York: Basic Books, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OL, page 241:

     Indeed, in an extreme carpe diem society, children are raised without being given any sense that they have a transgenerational duty to the as yet unborn— the duty to leave them a better world.

   • 2011 January 29, “Rollercoaster: The Musical!” (“Carpe Diem” (song)), in Phineas and Ferb, season 2, episode 38:

     Just grab those opportunities when you see 'em / Cause every day's a brand new day, you gotta carpe diem

Synonyms

• gather rosebuds
• take the cash and let the credit go

Related terms

• carpe diem cras

Translations

seize the day

• Bulgarian: живей за мига (živej za miga)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 及時行樂／及时行乐 (zh) (jíshíxínglè), 把握今朝 (bǎ wò jīnzhāo), (literary) 花開堪折直須折／花开堪折直须折 (huā kāi kān zhé zhí xū zhé)

• Danish: fang dagen
• Dutch: pluk de dag
• Finnish: tartu hetkeen
• French: cueille le jour, carpe diem (fr)
• German: nutze den Tag
• Hebrew: קרפה דיים
• Indonesian: raih hari ini
• Irish: tapaidh go dheis
• Italian: cogli l'attimo, vivere alla giornata
• Norwegian: grip dagen
• Persian: دم‌غنیمت‌شمری, خوش‌باشی
• Polish: chwytaj dzień
• Portuguese: carpe diem (pt)
• Russian: лови́ моме́нт (loví momént)
• Slovene: užij dan
• Spanish: disfruta el momento, carpe diem (es)
• Swedish: fånga dagen (sv)
• Turkish: günü yakala, anı yaşa, günü yaşa, gündegün

See also

• opportunity seldom knocks twice
• take the bull by the horns
• the world is one's oyster
• YOLO
• Category:Carpe diem on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons

Anagrams

• creampied, impearced

Latin

Etymology

From the end of the poem Odes I.11 by Horace, ancient Roman poet.

Sapiās, vīna liquēs, et spatio brevī

spem longam resecēs. Dum loquimur, fūgerit invidā

aetās. Carpe diem quam minimum crēdula posterō.

Be wise, make wine, and in a short time,

lose any great hope. As we speak, time is cruelly slipping away.

Enjoy the day, believing the least in the future.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈkar.pe ˈdi.em/, [ˈkärpɛ ˈd̪iɛ̃ˑ]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈkar.pe ˈdi.em/, [ˈkärpe ˈd̪iːem]

Phrase

carpe diem

1. carpe diem, enjoy the day; (common mistranslation) seize the day

Portuguese

Proverb

carpe diem

1. seize the day (enjoy the present)