Breakdown of Tonsor capillum volsella tollit.
capillus
the hair
tollere
to remove
tonsor
the barber
volsella
the hair-removing tweezers
Questions & Answers about Tonsor capillum volsella tollit.
What is each word doing in the sentence?
The sentence breaks down like this:
- tonsor = the subject: the person doing the action
- capillum = the direct object: the thing being acted on
- volsella = the instrument: the tool used
- tollit = the verb: the action
So the structure is basically [subject] [object] [tool] [verb].
How do I know tonsor is the subject?
Because tonsor is in the nominative singular, the case normally used for the subject of a sentence.
Also, tollit is third-person singular, so it needs a singular subject, and tonsor fits that role naturally.
A learner may notice that volsella could also look like a nominative form, but in this sentence context it is understood as an ablative of means, not the subject.
What kind of noun is tonsor?
Tonsor is a third-declension noun. Its dictionary form is tonsor, tonsoris.
That means:
- nominative singular: tonsor
- genitive singular: tonsoris
The ending -or is very common in Latin for agent nouns, especially ones referring to a person who does something.
What case is capillum, and why?