How to Read a Latin Sentence
Read Latin by its endings.
How It Works
- Find the verb. It is usually at the end.
- Find the subject. It is in the nominative and agrees with the verb.
- Find the object. It is in the accusative.
- Read the other words: a preposition with its noun, an adjective, a small word like et (and).
Try it on Puer in horto rosas videt. The verb is videt (sees). The subject is puer (the boy), and the object is rosas (roses, accusative plural). In horto tells where: in the garden. The sentence means The boy sees roses in the garden.
When a word is new, use its ending to guess its job before you look it up.
Examples (4)
- Marcus aquam portat.
Marcus carries water.
Portat is the verb, Marcus the subject and aquam the object.
- Puella in horto rosas videt.
The girl sees roses in the garden.
Videt is the verb, puella the subject and rosas the object. In horto tells where.
- Iulia amico librum dat.
Iulia gives the friend a book.
Dat is the verb and Iulia the subject. Librum is the object, and amico is the one who receives it.
- Pueri cum Marco in via ambulant.
The boys walk in the road with Marcus.
Ambulant is the verb and pueri the subject. Cum Marco tells who they are with, and in via tells where.
How It Connects
Learn This First
A sentence is read by its endings, so free word order and the verb overview come first.
Related Patterns
Practice How to Read a Latin Sentence in Bubblegum
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