Servus onus grave gerit, itaque lente ambulat.

Because servus is in the nominative singular, the case normally used for the subject of a sentence.

• servus = slave
• nominative singular = the slave / a slave as the doer of the action

So in Servus onus grave gerit, servus is the one doing the carrying.

Latin has no articles like English the or a/an. So servus by itself can mean:

• the slave
• a slave

Which one sounds best depends on context.

Because onus is a third-declension neuter noun, not a second-declension noun.

Its dictionary form is:

• onus, oneris = burden, load

In neuter third-declension nouns, the nominative singular and accusative singular are often the same. So:

• nominative singular: onus
• accusative singular: onus

Here it is the direct object of gerit, so it is accusative singular, but its form is still onus.

There are two main clues:

1. servus is clearly nominative singular, a normal subject form.
2. gerit is singular and naturally goes with servus as the one performing the action.

Also, the sentence makes sense as:

• The slave carries a heavy load

rather than

• The load carries the slave

So grammar and meaning both point to onus as the object.

Because grave agrees with onus.

The adjective is:

• gravis, grave = heavy

Since onus is neuter singular accusative, the adjective must also be neuter singular accusative. For this adjective, that form is grave.

So:

• onus grave = a heavy load

Not:

• gravis, which would not match a neuter noun here
• gravem, which is masculine/feminine accusative singular

Because of agreement.

Latin adjectives agree with the nouns they describe in:

• gender
• number
• case

Here:

• servus = masculine nominative singular
• onus = neuter accusative singular
• grave = neuter accusative singular

So grave matches onus, not servus.

gerit is:

• third person singular
• present tense
• active voice
• indicative mood

from the verb:

• gero, gerere = carry, bear, wear, manage

So gerit means:

• he carries
• she carries
• it carries

In this sentence, it means he carries, referring to servus.

Because the verb ending already tells you the subject is third person singular.

• gerit = he/she/it carries
• ambulat = he/she/it walks

Since servus is already present as the subject, Latin does not need to add a pronoun like he.

itaque means and so, therefore, or so. It introduces the result or consequence of the first clause.

So the sentence works like this:

• Servus onus grave gerit = The slave carries a heavy load
• itaque lente ambulat = therefore he walks slowly

It shows a logical connection: because he is carrying a heavy load, he walks slowly.

It is often described as a conjunction or a connecting adverb. In practice, for a learner, the important point is that it links the two ideas and means something like:

• and so
• therefore
• so

lente is an adverb, meaning slowly.

It comes from the adjective:

• lentus, lenta, lentum = slow

The adverb tells us how he walks:

• ambulat = he walks
• lente ambulat = he walks slowly

Because it describes the verb ambulat, not a noun.

• An adjective describes a noun: a slow slave, a slow walk
• An adverb describes a verb: walks slowly

Here the idea is not that the slave is slow as a person, but that he walks slowly. So Latin uses the adverb lente.

ambulat is:

• third person singular
• present tense
• active voice
• indicative mood

from:

• ambulo, ambulare = walk

So ambulat means:

• he walks
• she walks
• it walks

Here it means he walks, again referring to servus.

Latin word order is more flexible than English word order because Latin uses endings to show each word’s role.

Placing the verb near the end is very common in Latin, though not required. So:

• Servus onus grave gerit
• itaque lente ambulat

both sound natural in Latin.

English depends much more on word order, but Latin can move words around more freely for style or emphasis.

Yes, often they could.

For example, Latin could say something like:

• Servus grave onus gerit
• Onus grave servus gerit

and the basic meaning would still be understood because the endings show the grammatical roles.

However, different word orders can give slightly different emphasis. The version you have is a normal and clear arrangement.

The comma separates the two related clauses:

• Servus onus grave gerit
• itaque lente ambulat

In English punctuation, that helps show the pause and the logical link. In printed Latin, punctuation practices have varied over time, but in learner texts commas are often used to make the structure easier to see.

It is present tense in Latin, but English can translate that in more than one natural way.

• The slave carries a heavy load, so he walks slowly.
• The slave is carrying a heavy load, so he is walking slowly.

Both can work, depending on context. Latin present tense often covers both simple present and present progressive English translations.

It has two clauses:

1. Servus onus grave gerit

   • subject: servus
   • object: onus grave
   • verb: gerit

2. itaque lente ambulat

   • connector: itaque
   • adverb: lente
   • verb: ambulat
   • implied subject: still servus

So the full structure is:

• The slave carries a heavy load, therefore he walks slowly.