Propter imbrem puellae domi manent; interea avia eis de virtute et fide narrat.

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.

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.

domi is a special form meaning at home. It is a locative form.

Latin uses the locative with a few words, especially place words such as:

• domi = at home
• ruri = in the countryside
• names of towns and small islands can also use the locative

So:

• domi manent = they stay at home

You may also see:

• domum = homeward / to home
• domo = from home

These are worth learning as a set.

They express different ideas of place:

• domi = at home
• domum = to home / homeward
• domo = from home

Examples:

• domi manent = they stay at home
• domum veniunt = they come home
• domo exeunt = they go out from home

This is a very common Latin pattern with domus.

Because narrat here is being used with an indirect object: she tells to them.

• eis is the dative plural
• it means to them or for them

So:

• avia eis narrat = grandmother tells them

English often just says tells them, but in Latin the person told is commonly put in the dative.

eis is a form of the pronoun is, ea, id, which often means he, she, it, they, or him, her, it, them, depending on the case.

Here it is:

• dative plural
• meaning to them

It refers back to the puellae.

You may also see the spelling iis. Both eis and iis are acceptable forms.

Because they follow the preposition de, and de takes the ablative case.

• de virtute = about virtue
• de fide = about faith

So the phrase de virtute et fide means about virtue and faith.

Again, this is a case of learning which case goes with which preposition.

Because virtus and fides are being used here as general abstract ideas:

• virtute = virtue
• fide = faith

Latin often uses the singular for abstract nouns when speaking in a general sense, just as English does.

So de virtute et fide means about virtue and faith, not necessarily about virtues and faiths.

In this sentence, narrat has two complements:

• eis = the person being told, in the dative
• de virtute et fide = the topic, introduced by de
  • ablative

So the structure is:

• avia = subject
• eis = to them
• de virtute et fide = about virtue and faith
• narrat = tells

Latin often puts the verb at the end, but not always. Here it comes last in the second clause.

interea means meanwhile or in the meantime.

It introduces the second clause and shows that the grandmother’s storytelling is happening at the same time as the girls’ staying at home.

Its placement is natural for Latin: adverbs like interea often appear near the beginning of a clause.

So:

• interea avia eis de virtute et fide narrat
  = meanwhile grandmother tells them about virtue and faith

Latin word order is much more flexible than English because Latin uses case endings to show grammatical roles.

In English, word order is very important:

• The girl sees the boy is different from
• The boy sees the girl

In Latin, endings usually make the roles clear, so writers can move words around for emphasis, style, or rhythm.

In this sentence:

• Propter imbrem puellae domi manent
• interea avia eis de virtute et fide narrat

the order is perfectly normal Latin, even though a very literal English order might feel different.

Latin has no articles.

That means there is no direct equivalent of:

• the
• a/an

So a noun like avia can mean:

• a grandmother
• the grandmother

The context tells you which is meant.

The same is true for:

• imbrem = rain / the rain
• puellae = girls / the girls

Because the subject is plural: puellae = the girls.

• manet = he/she/it remains
• manent = they remain

The verb must agree with its subject in number.

So:

• puella manet = the girl stays
• puellae manent = the girls stay

The base form is maneo, manere, meaning to remain, to stay, or to continue staying.

Here:

• manent = they remain / they stay

So domi manent is a natural way to say they stay at home.

The base form is narro, narrare, meaning to tell, to relate, or to narrate.

Here:

• narrat = she tells

Because the subject is avia:

• avia narrat = grandmother tells

Not always. propter can also mean near or in front of, depending on context, especially in some authors.

But for learners, the most common meaning to remember is:

• propter
  • accusative = because of, on account of

In this sentence, the causal meaning is clearly the right one:

• propter imbrem = because of the rain

The semicolon simply connects two closely related clauses:

1. Because of the rain, the girls stay at home
2. Meanwhile, grandmother tells them about virtue and faith

Latin often links ideas without needing a conjunction if the relationship is already clear. In modern punctuation, a semicolon is a natural way to represent that.

It shows that the two actions are connected but still distinct.

Grammatically, eis just means to them, so by itself it does not name exactly who they are.

But in this sentence, the most natural referent is puellae, the girls mentioned just before. So the meaning is:

• grandmother tells the girls about virtue and faith

Latin often uses pronouns this way when the reference is already clear from context.

Yes. Latin commonly uses de + ablative to mean about/concerning.

So expressions like these are very normal:

• de bello narrat = he tells about the war
• de deis scribit = he writes about the gods
• de virtute disputat = he discusses virtue

In this sentence:

• de virtute et fide narrat = she tells about virtue and faith

This is a useful pattern to remember.

Yes, in domo would be understandable as in the house/home, but domi is the more idiomatic way to say at home.

So there is a slight difference in feel:

• domi = at home in the usual, idiomatic sense
• in domo = in the house, more literally emphasizing the building or interior location

For this sentence, domi is the more natural choice.

Here is a full breakdown:

• imbrem: accusative singular
  from imber, used after propter

• puellae: nominative plural
  subject of manent

• domi: locative singular
  meaning at home

• avia: nominative singular
  subject of narrat

• eis: dative plural pronoun
  to them

• virtute: ablative singular
  used after de

• fide: ablative singular
  used after de

This kind of breakdown is very useful when reading Latin, since the endings tell you how the sentence works.