LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
adverb · neuter

quid nī

quid nī? (not comparable)
Classical[ˈkʷɪd ˈniː]Ecclesiastical[ˈkʷid ˈniː]

Meaning

  1. not comparablewith subjunctivewhy wouldn't one?, what else if not?, how ... not?, i.e. naturally, of course, sure one would
    Quid egō nī ita cēnseam?Naturally I think so.
    Quid egō nī fleam!How couldn't I cry!
  2. not comparablewith subjunctivewhy wouldn't one?, what else if not?, how ... not?, i.e. naturally, of course, sure one would
    Quidnī, inquit, meminerim."No doubt", says he, "I remember."
    Quidnī possim?Sure I can.

Origins

quid (“what, why”) + nī (“unless, if not”), i.e. "what else if not?", "how else?". Compare Russian как же (не) (kak že (ne), “what else (if not)?, of course”) and а как же (a kak že).

Quick answers

What does quid nī mean in Latin?
quid nī, a adverb, means “why wouldn't one?, what else if not?, how ... not?, i.e. naturally, of course, sure one would; why wouldn't one?, what else if not?, how ... not?, i.e. naturally, of course, sure one would”.
How do you pronounce quid nī?
In classical Latin, [ˈkʷɪd ˈniː]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈkʷid ˈniː].