Breakdown of Dum coquus carnem in culina coquit, domina cum hospite de cena loquitur.
Questions & Answers about Dum coquus carnem in culina coquit, domina cum hospite de cena loquitur.
Here dum means while and introduces a time clause:
- Dum coquus carnem in culina coquit = While the cook is cooking meat in the kitchen
Common meanings of dum:
- while (with an indicative verb, describing something happening at the same time as the main action)
- as long as (often with verbs that imply duration)
- until (more often with the subjunctive in Classical Latin, especially in later authors or certain styles)
So here dum is best taken simply as while: two actions happening simultaneously.
Latin present tense is flexible. It can correspond to several English forms:
- coquit can be:
- he cooks (simple present)
- he is cooking (present progressive)
- loquitur can be:
- she speaks / she talks
- she is speaking / she is talking
Context tells us this is an ongoing background situation (a scene being set), so English tends to prefer the progressive:
- While the cook is cooking meat in the kitchen, the mistress is talking with the guest about the dinner.
But While the cook cooks... the mistress talks... is also grammatically fine English; it just sounds more like a general or habitual statement.