Breakdown of Propter imbrem puellae domi manent; interea avia eis de virtute et fide narrat.
puella
the girl
et
and
narrare
to tell
de
about
Questions & Answers about Propter imbrem puellae domi manent; interea avia eis de virtute et fide narrat.
Why is imbrem in the accusative after propter?
Because propter is a preposition that takes the accusative case.
- propter = because of, on account of
- imber = rain
- accusative singular of imber is imbrem
So propter imbrem literally means because of the rain.
This is something worth memorizing with prepositions: in Latin, different prepositions require different cases.
Why is puellae translated as plural here? Could it mean of the girl?
Yes, puellae can have more than one meaning by itself:
- nominative plural = girls
- genitive singular = of the girl
- dative singular = to/for the girl
But here the verb helps us.
The verb is manent, which is they remain/stay, a plural verb. So puellae must be the subject in the nominative plural: the girls.
Latin often relies on endings and verb agreement to show which meaning is intended.
Why is domi used instead of a form like in domo?
domi is a special form meaning . It is a form.