Infra fenestram puella sonum rivi audit et librum claudere non vult.

Puella is in the nominative singular, which is the case normally used for the subject of a finite verb in Latin. It is the one doing both actions: audit and vult.

So in this sentence:

• puella = subject
• audit = she hears
• vult = she wants

Latin often makes the subject clear through case endings, not just word order.

They are accusative for different reasons:

• fenestram is accusative because it is the object of the preposition infra.
• sonum is accusative because it is the direct object of audit.
• librum is accusative because it is the direct object of claudere.

So even though they all have accusative endings, they do not all have the same job.

A quick breakdown:

• infra fenestram = beneath the window
• sonum audit = hears the sound
• librum claudere = to close the book

That is a very common question. Some Latin prepositions for place use different cases depending on motion or rest, but infra is not one of those. As a preposition, infra normally takes the accusative.

So:

• infra fenestram = beneath/below the window

Even though the idea is static location in English, Latin still uses the accusative after infra.

Rivi is the genitive singular of rivus, meaning stream or brook. The genitive often expresses possession, source, or a close of-relationship.

So:

• sonus rivi = the sound of the stream

Here rivi tells you what kind of sound it is: the sound belonging to or coming from the stream.

Latin very often uses a noun + genitive where English might use either:

• of
• a possessive
• or a noun used like an adjective

So sonum rivi is a very normal Latin way to say the sound of the stream.

This structure is extremely common in Latin, for example:

• porta urbis = the gate of the city
• vox puellae = the girl’s voice
• aqua fontis = the water of the spring

Because it depends on vult.

The verb volo, velle means to want, and it is commonly followed by an infinitive to express what someone wants to do.

So:

• vult claudere = wants to close
• non vult claudere = does not want to close

This is very similar to English want to close.

The subject of claudere is understood to be the same as the subject of vult, namely puella.

So the sense is:

• the girl does not want to close the book

Latin often leaves the subject of an infinitive unexpressed when it is the same as the subject of the main verb.

In this sentence, the natural meaning is does not want to close.

Latin non placed before the finite verb usually negates the whole verbal idea:

• non vult claudere = she does not want to close

In many contexts, English does not want to close and wants not to close are very close anyway, but the ordinary reading here is simply that she is unwilling to close the book.

Classical Latin has no articles like English the or a/an.

That means nouns such as puella, fenestram, librum, and rivus can be translated in different ways depending on context:

• puella = a girl / the girl
• librum = a book / the book

In a sentence like this, English usually supplies the because the context makes the nouns feel specific.

Latin word order is much freer than English word order because case endings show grammatical function.

English relies heavily on position:

• The girl hears the sound

Latin can show that through endings, so it can move words around more easily for emphasis, rhythm, or style.

In this sentence:

• Infra fenestram comes first, setting the scene.
• puella appears before the verbs as the subject.
• claudere comes near librum, which belongs with it in sense.

A more English-like order would still be understandable in Latin, but the original order is perfectly natural.

Yes. Et joins the two actions done by the same subject, puella:

• audit = hears
• non vult = does not want

So the structure is:

• puella audit ... et ... non vult

The subject does not need to be repeated.

Latin usually does not need an explicit subject pronoun unless it is being emphasized.

The verb endings already tell you the person and number:

• audit = he/she/it hears
• vult = he/she/it wants

And since puella is already stated, adding a pronoun would be unnecessary unless you wanted emphasis or contrast.

Because audit already has its direct object: sonum.

The structure is:

• sonum rivi audit = hears the sound of the stream
• librum claudere non vult = does not want to close the book

Also, claudere librum is a very natural combination, while audit librum would not make sense here.

Here are the most useful dictionary forms:

• infra = beneath, below
• fenestra, -ae f. = window
• puella, -ae f. = girl
• sonus, -i m. = sound
• rivus, -i m. = stream, brook
• audio, audire, audivi, auditum = hear
• et = and
• liber, libri m. = book
• claudo, claudere, clausi, clausum = close, shut
• nolo / volo, velle are related verbs, but here the form is from volo, velle = want
• vult = he/she wants
• non = not

It comes from volo, velle, which is an irregular verb meaning to want. Its present-tense forms do not follow the regular patterns learners first meet.

Some common forms are:

• volo = I want
• vis = you want
• vult = he/she wants
• volumus = we want
• vultis = you all want
• volunt = they want

So vult is just the normal 3rd person singular present form of this irregular verb.

Yes. Because Latin word order is flexible, you could move it and still keep the same basic meaning, for example:

• Puella infra fenestram sonum rivi audit et librum claudere non vult.

Putting infra fenestram first gives it a slight scene-setting emphasis, something like beneath the window...

Here it means hears.

Audio usually means hear, that is, to perceive sound. English listen to suggests a more active or deliberate action. Latin can express that idea too, but audit by itself is the normal verb for hears in this sentence.

So sonum rivi audit is simply she hears the sound of the stream.