Questions & Answers about In cena piscem et carnem parvam habemus.
Why is it in cena and not something like “ad cenam”? What case is cena in here?
In cena uses in + ablative, and cena is in the ablative singular.
Latin in has two main patterns:
- in + accusative = motion into / onto something
- in cenam = “into the dinner” (you almost never say this)
- in + ablative = location / time “in, on, at, during”
- in cena = “at dinner / during dinner”
So in cena literally means “at (the time of) dinner” or “during dinner”. English often translates that naturally as “for dinner”:
In cena piscem et carnem parvam habemus. = “For dinner we have fish and a little meat.”
Why do piscem and carnem both end in -em? What case are these words?
Both piscem and carnem are in the accusative singular.
They are the direct objects of the verb habemus (“we have”):
- piscem = fish (as a direct object)
- carnem = meat (as a direct object)
In the 3rd declension, many nouns form the accusative singular with -em:
- piscis → accusative piscem
- caro → accusative