Postquam epistulam legit, puer eam tollit et sorori ostendit.

After the boy reads the letter, he picks it up and shows it to his sister.

Breakdown of Postquam epistulam legit, puer eam tollit et sorori ostendit.

• puer: the boy
• legere: to read
• et: and
• soror: the sister
• eam: it
• postquam: after
• epistula: the letter
• tollere: to pick up
• ostendere: to show

Questions & Answers about Postquam epistulam legit, puer eam tollit et sorori ostendit.

Why does postquam use legit (perfect) even though the main verbs tollit and ostendit are present?

With postquam (after), Latin very often uses a perfect (or pluperfect) in the postquam-clause to show the earlier action is completed before the next one happens.
So postquam epistulam legit = after he has read/read the letter.
The main clause can still be present (tollit, ostendit) because Latin frequently uses the historic present to make a narrative feel vivid: he reads… he picks up… he shows….

How do I know whether legit means he reads or he read?

Legit can be either:

• present: he reads (from legere)
• perfect: he read / has read (perfect of legere)

Here, postquam strongly pushes it toward the perfect sense: postquam … legit = after he read / after he has read. Context is the key.

What case is epistulam, and why?

Epistulam is accusative singular, because it is the direct object of legit: the thing that is read.
Base form: epistula (letter) → accusative singular epistulam.

Why is puer in the nominative, and where is the subject in the first clause?

Puer is nominative singular, so it’s the subject of tollit and ostendit.
In the postquam clause, the subject is not repeated, but it’s understood to be the same person: after (the boy) read the letter…

What does eam refer to, and why is it in that form?

Eam means her / it in the accusative feminine singular. It refers back to epistulam (which is feminine).
It’s accusative because it’s the direct object of tollit: he picks it up.

Why does Latin use eam instead of repeating epistulam?

Latin, like English, often switches to a pronoun after introducing a noun once, especially when it’s clearly the same thing.
So: epistulam (the letter) → eam (it).

What case is sorori, and what role does it play?

Sorori is dative singular (from soror, sister). It is the indirect object with ostendit: he shows it to his sister.
Many verbs of giving/showing can take a dative person + an accusative thing.

Do tollit and ostendit have implied objects, and how do their patterns work?

Yes:

• tollit takes a direct object in the accusative: eam tollit = he picks it up.
• ostendit commonly takes:
  • the thing shown in the accusative (eam), and
  • the person shown to in the dative (sorori): sorori ostendit = shows (it) to his sister.

Why is the word order puer eam tollit et sorori ostendit instead of something closer to English?

Latin word order is flexible because case endings show grammatical roles. This sentence is fairly typical:

• puer (subject) near the start,
• eam placed before tollit for emphasis/flow,
• sorori placed before ostendit to set up to whom before the action of showing.

Many other orders would still be grammatical, but could shift emphasis.

Why is there a comma after legit?

The comma separates the subordinate postquam clause (Postquam epistulam legit) from the main clause (puer eam tollit…). In Latin teaching texts, this punctuation is common to make the structure clear (even though ancient Latin manuscripts didn’t use modern punctuation in the same way).

What principal parts are behind legit, tollit, and ostendit?

• legit comes from legō, legere, lēgī, lēctum (read). Here it’s the perfect: he read / has read.
• tollit comes from tollō, tollere, sustulī, sublātum (lift/pick up). Here it’s present: he picks up.
• ostendit comes from ostendō, ostendere, ostendī, ostentum/ostēnsum (show). Here it’s present: he shows.