Latin query

[truepenny]

For, lo, my Latin is woefully rusty, and I never really got the hang of either imperatives (especially in the negative) or the nuances of translating that handy little English verb "do":

How would you say "Don't do that!" in Latin? Ciceronian or medieval, I don't care which. "That" is the action of turning on the lights. Singular addressee, and I honestly don't know if it should be formal or familiar, since the speaker is a necromantic construct who has been stalking my protagonist and has designs on his body. ("Designs" as in "Oh what lovely and available real estate!" not as in carnality worthy of the Marquis de Sade.)

[Nota bene: Please, don't respond with links to English-to-Latin translators. I can do a Google search just as well as anybody else; the problem is that I don't trust the online translation engines to be correct. Likewise, please, don't respond with the results of putting "Don't do that!" into an online translator, unless you can then go on to testify from your own knowledge of Latin that the results are correct.]

Comments

[truepenny.livejournal.com]

Thank you, that put it very clearly.

I'm going with noli facere, because this creature is much more likely to order than to request.

[sovay]

I'm going with noli facere, because this creature is much more likely to order than to request.

Cool. And very curious to read this story now!

[shadefell.livejournal.com]

My (mere) five years of Latin was going to suggest that phrase. Oh, the internet! So useful!