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