Word
Subito sonus aquae clarior fit, et omnes tacent ut eum audiant.
Meaning
Suddenly the sound of the water becomes clearer, and everyone is silent so that they may hear it.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Breakdown of Subito sonus aquae clarior fit, et omnes tacent ut eum audiant.
et
and
aqua
the water
tacere
to be silent
audire
to hear
Questions & Answers about Subito sonus aquae clarior fit, et omnes tacent ut eum audiant.
Why is aquae in the genitive in sonus aquae?
Because aquae means of water here.
So sonus aquae literally means the sound of water. This is a very common Latin pattern:
- sonus venti = the sound of the wind
- vox puellae = the voice of the girl
- porta urbis = the gate of the city
A native English speaker may want to read aquae as water by itself, but in this phrase it is not the main noun. The main noun is sonus (sound), and aquae tells us what kind of sound.
Why is it clarior and not clarus?
Clarior is the comparative form of clarus.
- clarus = clear, loud, distinct
- clarior = clearer, louder, more distinct
So sonus aquae clarior fit means the sound of the water becomes clearer/louder.
Even if English might sometimes say just gets louder, Latin often uses the comparative form naturally in this kind of situation.
Also, clarior agrees with sonus, which is masculine singular, so the form is correct for sonus.
Why does Latin use fit here? Does it mean is made or becomes?