Puer peius dormit, quia tonitrum audit.

The boy sleeps worse, because he hears thunder.

Breakdown of Puer peius dormit, quia tonitrum audit.

• puer: the boy
• dormire: to sleep
• quia: because
• audire: to hear

Questions & Answers about Puer peius dormit, quia tonitrum audit.

Why is puer in that form?

Puer is nominative singular, and it is the subject of the sentence: the boy is the one doing the sleeping and hearing.

A few useful details:

• puer = boy
• It is a 2nd-declension masculine noun
• Its nominative singular is simply puer

So in Puer peius dormit, puer means the boy or a boy, depending on context.

Why is there no word for the before puer?

Latin has no articles—there is no exact equivalent of the or a/an.

So puer can mean:

• the boy
• a boy

Which one is best depends on context. In a simple sentence like this, English often uses the boy, but Latin does not need a separate word for that.

Why is it peius and not peior?