For JCL · NJCL · Regional Certamen

Master Latin.
Win Certamen.

1,200+ questions spanning Mythology, History, Language, Literature, and Culture — three difficulty levels, instant feedback, and the occasional etymology revelation that makes you say "wait, THAT'S where that word comes from?!"

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⚡ Sample Question · Language · Novice

What Latin verb, meaning "to roll," lives on in the name of a famous Swedish car brand? (Hint: you drive one, or at least you know someone who does.)

VOLVŌ  ·  "I roll"
In Your Pocket

Built for the way you actually study.

On the bus. Between classes. Five minutes before practice. Ubicumque, quandōcumque.

CertamenApp question screen

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Tolle, lege. — Take it, read it.

Certamen 101

A 2,000-year-old language.
A very competitive quiz bowl.

Certamen (Latin for "contest") is a fast-paced, Jeopardy-style academic competition where teams race to answer questions about Latin language, Roman history, mythology, and classical culture.

Organized by the Junior Classical League, it's played at school, regional, state, and national levels — with three divisions: Novice, Intermediate, and Advanced.

The problem? Preparing is hard. Flashcards get boring. Textbooks don't simulate the pressure of a tossup question flying at you at 200 words per minute. CertamenApp does.

"When Admetus forgot to make offerings to Artemis on his wedding night, he found his bridal chamber filled with — wait, is that going to be on the test? Yes. Yes it is." — The kind of question CertamenApp will absolutely ask you
Features

Everything you need.
Nothing you don't.

Built by Certamen players, for Certamen players.

A promise: Always growing. Always free. No ads, no in-app purchases — ever.
📚

1,000+ Questions & Growing

Over 1,200 questions across six categories — Mythology, History, Language, Literature, Culture, and Living Latin. Drawn from real tournament questions and refined through frequency analysis, so you study what actually shows up. Every question is hand-crafted to match authentic Certamen style.

Mythologia · Historia · Lingua · more
🎯

Three Difficulty Levels

Novice, Intermediate, Advanced — each with carefully non-overlapping question pools. No easy question sneaking into your Advanced round. Promise.

Novice · Intermedius · Provectus
⚡

Real Competition Pressure

Questions reveal word by word, just like a real moderator reading. A countdown timer keeps you honest — no pausing, no backtracking, no comfort zone. The closest thing to tournament pressure without leaving your desk.

Vēnī, vīdī, vīcī
💬

AI-Powered Explanations

Every correct answer comes with a deep dive — context, background, and the etymology that makes words click. Stuck on something? Ask follow-up questions and get instant clarification. It's like having a Latin tutor on call, minus the hourly rate.

Magister in arcā
📊

Your Mistakes, Remembered

Every wrong answer goes into your personal review log. The app brings them back when you need them most, turning weak spots into strong ones — one question at a time.

Errāre humanum est
✉️

A Note From the Maker

Built and maintained by one Latin student, in spare time between classes. New questions added monthly. User feedback fixed weekly. Emails read daily. Got an idea? Write to hello@certamenprep.org — I read every one.

Ab studiōsō, prō studiōsīs
Try It

A taste of what's inside

No sign-up required. Just you and a question.

Language Novice 1 / 5

Answer

1,200+
Questions in bank
6
Categories
3
Difficulty levels
∞
Aha! moments

From the trenches of Certamen practice

I finally understand why 'pecuniary' is about money — it's from pecus, cattle. Latin is the reason half the English dictionary makes sense.

— JCL State qualifier, Virginia

Our whole team uses it before tournaments. The tossup format actually makes you read faster — and buzz at the right moment, not a second too early.

— Advanced team captain, Ohio

I went from blanking on mythology tossups to placing second at regionals. The bonus questions are what really got me — you can't just know the hero, you have to know their whole family tree.

— NJCL national competitor

Ready to discere?

Discere means "to learn" in Latin. It also gave us "discipline," "disciple," and the fact that you're already learning just by reading this sentence.

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