Breakdown of Puer stilum dextra tenet et in charta clare scribit.
puer
the boy
et
and
scribere
to write
in
on
Questions & Answers about Puer stilum dextra tenet et in charta clare scribit.
Why is there no word for the or a in the Latin sentence?
Latin does not have articles like English the and a/an.
So:
- puer can mean the boy or a boy
- stilum can mean the pen/stylus or a pen/stylus
- charta can mean the paper or paper, depending on context
Latin leaves that idea to context, while English usually has to make it explicit.
Why does stilum end in -um?
Because stilum is the direct object of tenet.
The boy is doing the action of holding, and the thing being held is the stylus, so Latin puts stilus into the accusative singular:
- nominative: stilus = the stylus as subject
- accusative: stilum = the stylus as object
So puer stilum tenet means the boy holds the stylus.
Why is puer not changed, but stilum is?
Because puer is the subject, while stilum is the object.
In Latin, nouns change form depending on their job in the sentence.