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Cotidie prima hora mater ad forum ambulat et panem emit.

Cotidie prima hora mater ad forum ambulat et panem emit.
Every day at the first hour mother walks to the forum and buys bread.
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Questions & Answers about Cotidie prima hora mater ad forum ambulat et panem emit.

What does cotidie mean, and what kind of word is it?

Cotidie means every day / daily.
It is an adverb, so it does not change its form (no case, gender, or number; it stays cotidie in all contexts).

Why is prima hora in that form, and what does it literally mean?

Prima hora literally means in the first hour or at the first hour.

  • hora is in the ablative singular (from hora, horae, feminine), used as an ablative of time when.
  • prima is an adjective agreeing with hora (feminine, singular, ablative).
    Latin often expresses “at [time]” simply with the ablative case, without a preposition.
Why don’t we use a preposition like “at” before prima hora in Latin?

Latin commonly uses the ablative case alone to indicate time when:

  • prima hora = at the first hour
  • nocte = at night
    So where English needs at, Latin usually just changes the case of the noun instead of adding a preposition.
What does ad forum mean, and why is forum in that case?

ad forum means to the forum.
The preposition ad (to, towards) always takes the accusative case, so forum is accusative singular (from forum, fori, neuter).
The whole phrase shows motion towards a place.

What exactly is the forum in this sentence? Is it the same as an English “forum”?

In Roman context, forum is the main public square / marketplace, where people trade, meet, and conduct business and politics.
English forum (e.g. online forum) comes from this, but in Classical Latin forum refers to a physical place in the city, not a discussion board.

Why is panem in that form, and what is its dictionary entry?

panem is accusative singular, used as the direct object of emit (she buys bread).
The dictionary form is panis, panis, m. (a third-declension noun).
So:

  • nominative: panis (bread as subject)
  • accusative: panem (bread as object)
How do ambulat and emit work grammatically? What person, number, and tense are they?

Both ambulat and emit are 3rd person singular, present tense, active, indicative.

  • ambulat: he/she/it walks (from ambulo, ambulare)
  • emit: he/she/it buys (from emo, emere)
    The -t ending shows 3rd person singular; the present tense describes an action that happens regularly or habitually (here, every day).
Why is there no word for “she” in the Latin sentence?

Latin usually does not need subject pronouns like she, because the verb ending (-t) already shows the person and number.
The subject mater (mother) makes it clear who is doing the action, so adding ea (she) would be unnecessary unless you wanted special emphasis, like she (as opposed to someone else) walks.

How can one subject (mater) go with two verbs (ambulat and emit)?

In Latin (and English), one subject can perform multiple actions joined by et (and).
Here, mater is the subject of both verbs:

  • mater ambulat (mother walks)
  • mater panem emit (mother buys bread)
    Latin simply omits the second mater because it is understood from context.
Is the word order fixed, or could we rearrange the sentence?

Latin word order is fairly flexible. You could see variants like:

  • Mater cotidie prima hora ad forum ambulat et panem emit.
  • Cotidie mater prima hora ad forum ambulat et panem emit.
    The meaning stays the same; changing the order mainly affects emphasis and style, not basic meaning.
Can cotidie appear in other positions, or must it come first?

Cotidie can appear in several places in the sentence, for example:

  • Mater cotidie prima hora ad forum ambulat…
  • Mater prima hora cotidie ad forum ambulat…
    Latin adverbs like cotidie are quite flexible in position; putting it early in the sentence (as here) tends to emphasize the regularity of the action.
Why is it prima hora, not something like primo hora?

The noun hora is feminine, so the adjective must also be feminine: prima (not primus / primo).
Both prima and hora are ablative singular feminine to express time when:

  • nominative: prima hora (as a subject, “the first hour”)
  • ablative: prima hora (here, “at the first hour”)
How would I say “Every day in the first hours” or “every day at the first hour” but plural “hours”?

To make “in the first hours” (plural), you would use the ablative plural:

  • primis horis = in/at the first hours
    So: Cotidie primis horis mater ad forum ambulat et panem emit.
How would I change the sentence if both parents walk to the forum and buy bread?

You would make the subject plural and change the verbs to 3rd person plural:

  • parentes cotidie prima hora ad forum ambulant et panem emunt.
    Here:
  • parentes = parents (nominative plural)
  • ambulant = they walk
  • emunt = they buy