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Soror mecum ad thermas ire vult.

Soror mecum ad thermas ire vult.
My sister wants to go to the baths with me.
FromLesson 11inHardcore Latin

Breakdown of Soror mecum ad thermas ire vult.

soror
the sister
ad
to
velle
to want
ire
to go
mecum
with me
thermae
the baths
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Questions & Answers about Soror mecum ad thermas ire vult.

Why is soror used instead of something like mea soror or sororem?

Soror is nominative singular, so it’s the subject: (My) sister wants…
Latin often omits possessives like mea when the context makes ownership obvious. If you did add it, mea soror would mean my sister more explicitly.
Sororem would be accusative (object) and would not fit here unless the verb needed an object like I see my sister (sororem video).

What does mecum mean, and why isn’t it cum me?

Mecum means with me. Latin commonly attaches cum to personal pronouns:

  • mecum = cum me (with me)
  • tecum = cum te (with you)
  • secum = cum se (with himself/herself/themselves)
    So mecum is just the usual contracted form.
What case is thermas, and why is it plural?

Thermas is accusative plural. With motion toward a place, Latin often uses ad + accusative.
It’s plural because thermae (“baths/bathhouse”) is typically used as a plural noun in Latin, even when English might say “the bathhouse” or “the baths.”

Why is ad used here instead of another preposition like in?

Ad + accusative emphasizes going to a place, often “to/toward” it, possibly with the sense of arriving at the entrance or destination.
In + accusative can also mean into (movement into something). With thermae, ad thermas is a very natural way to say to the baths.

Why is ire in the infinitive form?

After vult (wants), Latin uses an infinitive to express what someone wants to do.
So ire = to go, and vult ire literally means wants to go.

How do we know who “wants” in vult?

Vult is 3rd person singular present: he/she/it wants.
Since the subject is soror (sister), it means she wants.

Is the word order important? Could it be Soror vult mecum ad thermas ire?

Yes, that would also be correct. Latin word order is flexible because endings show grammatical roles.
Different orders can shift emphasis slightly:

  • Soror mecum… can foreground with me earlier.
  • Soror vult… foregrounds the act of wanting sooner. But the basic meaning remains the same.
Could mecum go somewhere else in the sentence?

Yes. Mecum can move around for emphasis, e.g.:

  • Soror vult mecum ad thermas ire.
  • Soror ad thermas mecum ire vult.
    All are grammatically fine; placement changes what feels emphasized.
Why is there no explicit word for “to” before ire (like English “to go”)?

Latin infinitives already contain the idea of “to _” in English.
So ire by itself corresponds to to go.

What tense is this sentence in?

Vult is present tense, so the sentence is in the present:
My sister wants to go with me to the baths.
(If it were past: volebat = “was wanting/wanted”.)

Could this mean “My sister wants me to go to the baths” instead?

Not as written. Mecum means with me, not me (as the person being made to go).
To say “She wants me to go…,” you’d typically use an accusative + infinitive construction like:

  • Soror me ad thermas ire vult. = “My sister wants me to go to the baths.”
Is thermas a specific place (“the baths”), or could it be “baths” in general?

By default, ad thermas often implies the (local) baths/bathhouse—a known destination in context.
Latin doesn’t have “the” and “a” as articles, so whether it’s specific depends on context, but this phrase commonly feels like the baths.

Could we replace ire with another verb form like it?

If you wanted a simple statement “My sister goes…”, you’d use a finite verb:

  • Soror mecum ad thermas it. = “My sister goes with me to the baths.”
    But with vult, you need the infinitive: vult ire (“wants to go”).