Domus fenestris caret.

The house lacks windows.

Breakdown of Domus fenestris caret.

• domus: the house
• fenestra: the window
• carere: to lack (+ ablative)

Questions & Answers about Domus fenestris caret.

Why is fenestris not in the accusative?

Because careo does not take a direct object in the accusative. In Latin, careo, carere means to lack or to be without, and it regularly takes the ablative of the thing lacking.

So:

• fenestra = window
• fenestris = with/from/by windows in form, but after careo it means lacking windows

An English speaker expects lacks windows, with windows as a direct object. Latin uses a different construction.

How do we know fenestris is ablative and not dative?

By itself, fenestris could be either dative plural or ablative plural. The ending is the same for many first-declension plurals.

But the verb tells you what case it must be. Since careo takes the ablative, fenestris here is understood as ablative plural.

So the logic is:

• form alone: dative plural or ablative plural
• syntax with caret: must be ablative plural

What form is domus here?