Avus iocum novum narrat, et puer flens tandem ridet.

Because avus is in the nominative singular, which is the case typically used for the subject of a finite verb in Latin.

• avus = grandfather
• narrat = he tells / tells

So Avus ... narrat means The grandfather tells ...

Latin often does not need a separate word for he, because the verb ending already shows the person and number. Here, narrat means he/she/it tells, and avus tells us specifically who that he is.

Because iocum is the accusative singular form, and it is the direct object of narrat.

• iocus = joke as a subject
• iocum = joke as an object

Since the grandfather is telling a joke, the joke is the thing being told, so Latin puts it in the accusative:

• Avus iocum narrat = The grandfather tells a joke

This is a very common pattern in Latin: a transitive verb like narrat takes a direct object in the accusative.

Because novum is an adjective modifying iocum, and adjectives in Latin must agree with the nouns they describe in:

• gender
• number
• case

Here:

• iocum is masculine, singular, accusative
• so novus becomes novum to match it

So:

• iocum novum = a new joke

Even though novum may look a little unfamiliar at first, it is simply the adjective agreeing with the noun.

Narrat is the 3rd person singular present active indicative of narrare, meaning to tell, to relate, or to recount.

So narrat means:

• he tells
• or more naturally in context, he is telling

In beginner Latin, the present tense is often translated with either simple present or present progressive in English, depending on what sounds best:

• Avus iocum novum narrat = The grandfather tells a new joke
• or The grandfather is telling a new joke

Both are reasonable.

Flens is a present participle from flere, meaning to cry or to weep.

So flens means:

• crying
• weeping

In the sentence, it modifies puer:

• puer flens = the crying boy / the boy who is crying

It describes the boy’s state at the time of the action. So the idea is that the boy is crying, but then eventually laughs.

Because flens belongs to a different adjective/participle pattern.

It is a 3rd-declension participle, not a 1st/2nd-declension adjective like novus, nova, novum.

In the nominative singular masculine/feminine, the form is simply:

• flens

So in this sentence:

• puer flens = the crying boy

If you saw other cases, the form would change from the stem flent-:

• nominative: flens
• accusative: flentem
• genitive: flentis

So the form is agreeing with puer, just in its own declension pattern.

We know because flens is in the nominative singular, and puer is also nominative singular. It is placed right next to puer, which strongly signals that it modifies it.

So:

• puer flens = the crying boy

It would not naturally go with avus, because that noun belongs to the first clause and is separated by et. Also, the structure clearly sets up two linked clauses:

1. Avus iocum novum narrat
2. et puer flens tandem ridet

So flens belongs with puer in the second clause.

Tandem is an adverb meaning:

• finally
• at last
• in the end

It modifies ridet:

• tandem ridet = finally laughs

It suggests a change after some delay. Since the boy is described as flens (crying), tandem makes especially good sense: after crying for a while, he finally laughs.

Because its subject is puer, which is singular.

• puer = boy
• ridet = he laughs

Ridet is the 3rd person singular present active indicative of ridere (to laugh).

So:

• puer ridet = the boy laughs

If the subject were plural, the verb would also be plural, for example:

• pueri rident = the boys laugh

Because the sentence contains two coordinated clauses joined by et (and):

1. Avus iocum novum narrat
2. et puer flens tandem ridet

Each clause has its own subject and verb:

• avus ... narrat
• puer ... ridet

So this is not one clause with one subject doing two actions. It is two linked statements:

• The grandfather tells a new joke
• and the crying boy finally laughs

Latin word order is more flexible than English word order because Latin uses case endings to show grammatical function.

English relies heavily on position:

• The grandfather tells a joke

Latin can rely on endings:

• avus = subject
• iocum = object

So Avus iocum novum narrat is clear even without strict English-style order.

The word order here is actually quite natural Latin:

• Avus first introduces the subject
• iocum novum keeps the object and its adjective together
• narrat comes at the end of the clause, which is very common in Latin

Likewise:

• puer flens tandem ridet

puts the noun and participle together, then the adverb, then the verb.

Yes. Both are good ways to understand it.

The participle flens can be translated in more than one natural English way:

• the crying boy finally laughs
• the boy, crying, finally laughs
• the boy who is crying finally laughs

All of these reflect the same basic Latin structure: flens describes the boy as he performs the action of ridet.

The exact English wording depends on style, but the grammar is the same.

Yes. You may also see forms spelled with j in some books:

• iocum
• jocum

Likewise:

• iocus
• jocus

Classical Latin originally used i where later printed texts sometimes use j. Most modern educational texts prefer iocus/iocum, but both spellings may appear. They refer to the same word.

A common reconstructed Classical pronunciation would be roughly:

AH-woos YOH-koom NO-wum NAR-rat, et POO-er FLENS TAN-dem REE-det

A few helpful notes:

• v is pronounced like English w
• c is always hard, like k
• ae would sound like ai in aisle, though it does not appear here
• i before another vowel can sometimes sound like y, but in iocum many learners simply say something close to yoh-kum

So a smoother version is:

Avus iocum novum narrat, et puer flens tandem ridet.

Even if your pronunciation is not perfect, the important first step is recognizing the forms and their functions.