Breakdown of Serva mappam de mensa tollit.
mensa
the table
tollere
to pick up
serva
the maid
mappa
the napkin
Questions & Answers about Serva mappam de mensa tollit.
Why is serva the subject of the sentence?
Because serva is in the nominative singular, the case normally used for the subject.
- serva = nominative singular, the female slave / maid / servant
- mappam = accusative singular, so it is the direct object
- tollit = he/she/it lifts/takes up/removes
So serva is the one doing the action.
A small extra note: by itself, serva! could also be the imperative of servare (save! / preserve!), but in this sentence the grammar clearly shows it is a noun.
Why is it mappam and not mappa?
Because mappam is the direct object of tollit.
In Latin, a direct object usually goes in the accusative case.
The noun mappa is a first-declension noun, so:
- nominative singular: mappa
- accusative singular: mappam
English usually does not change the form of a noun for this job, but Latin does. So mappam tells you what the servant is picking up.
Why is it de mensa?
Because de is a preposition that takes the ablative case, and mensa is the ablative singular form.
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