Pontifex maximus pointed out that the term existed before there were any bridges in Rome and derived the word from Old Latin "pontis" (sic) meaning a powerful or absolute master, while others derived it from "potis facere" in the sense of "able to sacrifice". The last derivation is mentioned also by Varro, who rejected it, but it was the view of Pontifex Maximus Quintus Scaevola. Others have held that the word was originally "pompifex" (leader of public processions). The word "pons" originally meant "way" and "pontifex" would thus mean "maker of roads and bridges". Another opinion is that the word is a
Latin syntax "pōnit castra". There are however certain constraints; for example, in prose a monosyllabic preposition such as "in" 'in' generally precedes its noun (e.g. "in Italiā" 'in Italy'). Moreover, even though adjectives can both precede and follow the noun, there is a tendency for different kinds of adjectives to take different positions; for example adjectives of size usually come before the noun ("magnā vōce" 'in a loud voice', rarely "vōce magnā"), while 'modifiers that are more important than their noun or that specify it' (e.g. "Via Appia" 'the Appian Way') usually follow it. To explain Latin word order there are two