Et mater et pater domi adsunt.

the father

Breakdown of Et mater et pater domi adsunt.

• mater: the mother
• domus: the home
• adesse: to be here

Questions & Answers about Et mater et pater domi adsunt.

Why is et used twice in Et mater et pater?

This is a very common Latin way to say both ... and ...

So:

• et mater et pater = both mother and father
• literally, both mother and father are present/at home

Latin can also simply say mater et pater, just as English says mother and father. But repeating et gives a slightly more balanced, emphatic structure: both the mother and the father.

What case are mater and pater?

They are both in the nominative singular.

That is because they are the subjects of the verb adsunt. In other words, they are the people who are present / are at home.

So:

• mater = mother as subject
• pater = father as subject

Even though there are two singular nouns, together they make a compound subject, which is why the verb is plural.

Why is the verb adsunt plural if mater and pater are each singular?

Because the sentence has two subjects joined together:

• mater
• pater

Together they mean , so Latin treats them as a .