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Learn Hardcore Latin: Servus paratus est. - The servant is ready.

Hardcore Latin
/Lesson 25
/Servus paratus est.

Servus paratus est.

Word

Servus paratus est.

Meaning

The servant is ready.

Part of speech

sentence

Pronunciation

Course

Lesson

Breakdown of Servus paratus est.

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Questions & Answers about Servus paratus est.

What does each word in Servus paratus est mean?

servus = slave, servant, or sometimes attendant, depending on context
paratus = ready, prepared
est = is

So the sentence is built very literally as The servant/slave ready is.

What case is servus, and how can I tell?

Servus is nominative singular.

You can tell because:

it ends in -us, a very common ending for a second-declension masculine nominative singular
it is the subject of the sentence: the person who is ready

Its dictionary form is also servus, so here the word appears in its basic nominative singular form.

Why is paratus in the masculine singular form?

Because paratus agrees with servus.

In Latin, adjectives must match the nouns they describe in:

gender
number
case

Since servus is:

masculine
singular
nominative

the adjective must also be:

masculine
singular
nominative

So Latin uses paratus, not parata or paratum.

Is paratus just an adjective, or is it related to a verb?

It is both historically related to a verb and functioning here as an adjective.

Paratus comes from the verb paro, parare, meaning prepare.
It is originally the perfect passive participle: prepared.

But in this sentence it works like an ordinary adjective meaning:

ready
prepared

So Servus paratus est can be understood as The servant is ready or more literally The servant is prepared.

What form is est?

Est is the third person singular present indicative active of sum, esse, meaning to be.

So:

sum = I am
es = you are
est = he/she/it is

Because servus is singular, Latin uses est, not sunt.

Why is there no word for the or a?

Latin normally has no articles.

So servus can mean:

a servant
the servant
sometimes simply servant

You figure out which one sounds best from the context.

That is very different from English, where we usually need an article.

Why is there no separate word for he?

Latin often leaves subject pronouns unstated because the verb ending already shows the person and number.

Here est already means he/she/it is.

So Latin does not need to say he explicitly.
If Latin wanted extra emphasis, it could add a pronoun such as is, but normally that is unnecessary.

Is the word order fixed? Does it have to be Servus paratus est?

No, Latin word order is fairly flexible.

Because the endings show the grammar, the same basic idea could appear in different orders, such as:

Servus paratus est
Paratus est servus
Servus est paratus

These can all mean the same thing, though the emphasis may shift slightly.

In simple textbook sentences, placing est at the end is very common.

Does servus definitely mean servant, or could it mean slave?

It very often means slave in classical Latin, though in some contexts servant is a smoother English translation.

A native English speaker should know that servus is not always a mild household helper. In many Roman contexts, it refers to an enslaved person.

So the best English meaning depends on context, tone, and the translation style being used.

Could Latin leave out est and just say Servus paratus?

Sometimes Latin can omit a form of to be, especially in poetry, informal style, headings, or very compressed expressions.

But in normal straightforward prose, Servus paratus est is the standard full sentence.

So for a learner, it is best to understand est as an important part of the sentence.

How would this sentence be pronounced?

A simple classroom pronunciation would be something like:

SER-woos pah-RAH-tus est

More carefully:

servus = SER-woos
paratus = pah-RAH-toos
est = est

A few helpful points:

v is pronounced like w in classical pronunciation
u is pronounced like oo
stress in paratus falls on the second syllable: pa-RA-tus

What are the dictionary forms I should learn from this sentence?

A learner would normally want these:

servus, servi m. = servant, slave
paratus, -a, -um = ready, prepared
or, if learning the related verb: paro, parare, paravi, paratus = prepare
sum, esse, fui = be

This is useful because Latin words in sentences often appear in forms different from the way they are listed in a dictionary.

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