Fortuna adversa consilium mutat.

The subject is fortuna.

It is in the nominative singular, which is the case typically used for the subject of a sentence. So fortuna is the thing doing the action of mutat.

In other words:

• fortuna = the subject
• mutat = the action
• consilium = the thing being acted on

Consilium is accusative singular, so it is the direct object of the verb mutat.

That means it is the thing being changed.

A beginner might wonder why consilium looks like it could also be nominative. That is because consilium is a neuter second-declension noun, and in neuter nouns, the nominative singular and accusative singular are often the same in form.

So you identify its role from the sentence as a whole:

• fortuna = nominative subject
• mutat = verb
• consilium = object being changed

Because adversa is an adjective, not an adverb.

It agrees with fortuna in:

• gender: feminine
• number: singular
• case: nominative

So adversa fortuna means adverse fortune or unfavorable fortune, not fortune changes a plan adversely.

If Latin wanted an adverb, it would normally use a different form.

You know because the endings match.

• fortuna is feminine nominative singular
• adversa is also feminine nominative singular

In Latin, adjectives usually agree with the nouns they describe in gender, number, and case. So adversa is describing fortuna.

It does not go with consilium, because consilium is neuter, and the adjective would need a neuter form to match it.

Mutat is:

• third person
• singular
• present tense
• active voice
• indicative mood

It comes from the verb mutare, meaning to change.

So mutat means he/she/it changes or is changing, depending on context. Here, because the subject is fortuna, it means fortune changes.

Latin often does not need an expressed subject pronoun.

The verb ending in mutat already tells you the subject is third person singular: he/she/it changes.

Since the noun fortuna is already present, there is no need to add a separate word for it. Latin usually avoids pronouns unless they are needed for emphasis or contrast.

Latin word order is much more flexible than English word order because Latin uses case endings to show grammatical function.

English relies heavily on word order:

• Fortune changes the plan ≠ The plan changes fortune

But Latin can move words around more freely because the endings help show who is doing what.

Putting the verb at the end is very common in Latin prose, so Fortuna adversa consilium mutat is a very normal Latin order.

Yes, often they could.

For example, Latin could also say:

• Adversa fortuna consilium mutat
• Consilium fortuna adversa mutat
• Fortuna consilium adversa mutat would be much less natural, because it separates the adjective awkwardly from its noun

The basic meaning can stay the same because the case endings still show the roles. However, changing the order can change the emphasis, style, or rhythm.

A very common and natural pairing would be adversa fortuna.

Latin has no articles like English the or a/an.

So:

• fortuna can mean fortune, the fortune, or sometimes a fortune, depending on context
• consilium can mean plan, the plan, a plan, counsel, and so on

You figure out whether English needs the or a from the context and the intended meaning.

Consilium can mean several related things, including:

• plan
• design
• purpose
• advice
• counsel
• decision

In this sentence, it is often translated as plan or purpose, because that fits naturally with mutat.

This is a good reminder that Latin words often cover a range of meanings, and the best English translation depends on context.

It can certainly suggest bad fortune, ill fortune, or misfortune, but grammatically the phrase is simply:

• fortuna = fortune
• adversa = adverse, unfavorable, hostile

So the phrase means adverse fortune or unfavorable fortune.

Depending on the context, a smoother English translation might be bad luck, but that is more interpretive than literal.

Because it agrees with fortuna, and fortuna is a feminine noun.

In Latin, adjectives change their endings to match the nouns they describe. So if the noun were masculine or neuter, the adjective would look different.

For example, compare:

• fortuna adversa = adverse fortune
• casus adversus = adverse event/chance occurrence
• consilium adversum = an adverse plan / a plan turned against something

The adjective ending changes to match the noun.

A common Classical pronunciation would be approximately:

for-TOO-na ad-WER-sa kon-SIL-ee-um MOO-tat

A few helpful points:

• c is always hard, like k
• v is pronounced like English w in reconstructed Classical pronunciation
• u is pronounced like oo
• ti in consilium is not pronounced like English sh
• the stress is usually:
  • for-TU-na
  • ad-VER-sa
  • con-SI-li-um
  • MU-tat

If you are using an Ecclesiastical pronunciation, some sounds will differ.

Grammatically, it could be either.

Latin fortuna can mean:

• fortune, luck, chance
• or Fortuna, the personified goddess Fortune

Without more context, the sentence could be understood either as a general statement about fortune or as a statement about the goddess/personified force of Fortune.

In many beginner contexts, it is simplest to read it as the common noun fortune unless the surrounding text clearly points to the goddess.