Si debitum diu manet, amicitia saepe laborat.

Si means if and introduces the condition: Si debitum diu manet = If a debt remains for a long time.

This is a straightforward, real-condition sentence in the present tense. Latin often uses the present indicative after si when stating a general truth or something presented as a normal possibility.

Debitum is a neuter singular form meaning a debt, something owed, or an obligation depending on context.

In this sentence it is the subject of manet, so it means something like the debt or a debt. Because Latin has no word for the or a, the context supplies that.

It comes from the verb debeo = I owe. So debitum is literally that which is owed.

Because debitum is being used as a noun derived from a participial form, and in this expression the neuter singular is the normal dictionary form for a debt / something owed.

A learner may expect a word more obviously marked as a noun, but Latin often uses participles or adjectives substantively, meaning as nouns. So debitum can function as an ordinary noun.

Diu is an adverb, meaning for a long time or long.

It modifies manet:

• manet = remains
• diu manet = remains for a long time

It is not an adjective, so it does not agree with any noun in case, number, or gender.

Manet is present indicative, third person singular, from maneo = remain, stay, continue.

Latin often uses the present tense for:

• general truths
• habitual situations
• proverbs or maxims

So this sentence has a proverbial feel: If a debt remains too long, friendship often suffers.

The subject of laborat is amicitia.

So the second clause is:

• amicitia = friendship
• saepe = often
• laborat = suffers / struggles / is troubled

Together: friendship often suffers.

Amicitia is nominative singular.

You can tell because:

• it is the subject of laborat
• the verb laborat is third person singular, matching a singular subject
• first-declension nouns often have -a in the nominative singular

So amicitia is not object or possession here; it is the thing doing the suffering.

It comes from laboro, which can mean work, strive, be in difficulty, suffer, or struggle, depending on context.

Here friendship often works would not make sense, so the idea is:

• friendship suffers
• friendship is strained
• friendship is troubled

This is a good reminder that Latin verbs often have a wider range of meaning than a single English gloss suggests.

Saepe is an adverb meaning often, and Latin word order is much freer than English word order.

So amicitia saepe laborat literally has the order:

• friendship
• often
• suffers

But the normal English translation is friendship often suffers.

Latin places words partly for style and emphasis, not just for grammatical necessity. Here the order is perfectly natural.

Yes: it is a simple present condition.

Both verbs are in the present indicative:

• si debitum diu manet
• amicitia saepe laborat

This kind of sentence is commonly used for:

• general truths
• moral observations
• sayings

So it functions much like an English proverb.

Yes, to a degree. Because Latin marks grammar mostly through endings rather than word order, the same basic meaning could survive in several arrangements, such as:

• Si diu debitum manet, amicitia saepe laborat.
• Amicitia saepe laborat, si debitum diu manet.

However, the original order is neat and natural. Rearrangement may change emphasis, even if the core meaning stays the same.

Classical Latin does not have articles like English the and a/an.

So debitum can mean:

• a debt
• the debt
• something owed

And amicitia can mean:

• friendship
• the friendship

The context tells you which English article, if any, is most natural in translation.

It can be broader. While it often refers to a financial debt, it can also mean something owed, an obligation, or a duty depending on context.

In a sentence like this, a learner might first think only of money, but the wording can also support a more general idea: when obligations remain unsettled for too long, relationships suffer.