Quia ventus crescit, nautae e portu celeriter discedunt.

the sailor

Breakdown of Quia ventus crescit, nautae e portu celeriter discedunt.

• quia: because
• e: from
• portus: the harbor

Questions & Answers about Quia ventus crescit, nautae e portu celeriter discedunt.

What does quia do in this sentence?

Quia means because and introduces a clause giving the reason for the main action.

So the sentence is structured like this:

• Quia ventus crescit = Because the wind is rising / growing stronger
• nautae e portu celeriter discedunt = the sailors quickly leave the harbor

It is a very common way to introduce a reason in Latin.

Why is ventus in the nominative?

Ventus is the subject of crescit, so it is in the nominative singular.

• ventus = wind
• crescit = grows / increases / rises

Since the wind is the thing doing the action, nominative is the correct case.

What exactly does crescit mean here?

Crescit literally means grows or increases. With ventus, a natural English translation is often:

• the wind is rising
• the wind is getting stronger
• the wind increases

Latin often uses a simple verb where English prefers a slightly more idiomatic expression.