LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
conjunction

-ve

-ve
Classical[wɛ]Ecclesiastical[ve]

Meaning

  1. or, leaving the choice free between two things or among several
    Quid tu es tristis? Quidve es alacris? Unde is?Why are you out of spirits or why are you in such a hurry? Whence come you?161 BCE, Publius Terentius Afer, Eunuchus 2.13
    Post hanc habitam contionem duabus tribusve horis optatissimi nuntii et litterae venerunt.After this assembly was over, within two or three hours, these most welcome messengers and letters arrived.44 BCE – 43 BCE, Cicero, Philippicae 14.6.16
  2. and, with the same meaning as -que, though it may be noted that English or can be used in the same way
    Num, quod maximum est, leges nostras moresve novit, num denique homines?Does he not—and this is most important—know anything of our laws and customs? Is he not acquainted with any of the citizens?44 BCE – 43 BCE, Cicero, Philippicae 5.5.13
  3. poeticrepeatedeither...or
    Nostra quoque ipsorum semper requieque sine ulla / corpora vertuntur, nec quod fuimusve sumusve / cras erimus;And our bodies themselves are always, restlessly, changing: we shall not be, tomorrow, either what we were, or what we are., though it may be noted that English or can be used in same way. 8 CE, Ovidius, Metamorphoses 15.214

Origins

From Proto-Indo-European *-we. Compare Sanskrit वा (vā, “or”) and Ancient Greek ἤ (ḗ, “or”).

Quick answers

What does -ve mean in Latin?
-ve, a conjunction, means “or, leaving the choice free between two things or among several; and, with the same meaning as -que, though it may be noted that English or can be used in the same way; either...or”.
How do you pronounce -ve?
In classical Latin, [wɛ]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ve].