Breakdown of Tonsor barbam avi diligenter curat.
avus
the grandfather
diligenter
carefully
tonsor
the barber
barba
the beard
Questions & Answers about Tonsor barbam avi diligenter curat.
Why is tonsor the subject?
Because tonsor is in the nominative singular, the case normally used for the subject of a sentence.
- tonsor = barber
- dictionary form: tonsor, tonsōris (masculine)
In this sentence, tonsor is the person doing the action of curat.
Why is barbam in the accusative?
Because barbam is the direct object: it is the thing the barber is caring for.
- barba = beard
- barbam = accusative singular of barba
Latin uses the accusative for the direct object, so barbam tells you what receives the action of curat.
What case is avi, and what does it mean here?
Here avi is best understood as genitive singular:
- avus = grandfather
- avi = of the grandfather
So barbam avi means the grandfather’s beard or the beard of the grandfather.
A learner may notice that avi can also be dative singular in some contexts, but here the sense is possessive, so is the natural reading.