Cum hospes ad ostium accedit, servus statim aperit.

Cum can be two different words:

• cum
  • ablative = with
• cum as a conjunction = when, since, or although

In Cum hospes ad ostium accedit, servus statim aperit, cum introduces a clause, so it means when.

A quick comparison:

• cum servo = with the slave
• cum hospes accedit = when the guest approaches

So the meaning depends on how cum is being used in the sentence.

Latin has no words for the or a/an.

So hospes can mean:

• the guest
• a guest

Which one you use in English depends on the context. Latin leaves that unstated unless something else in the sentence makes it clear.

Hospes is nominative singular, and it is the subject of accedit.

We know this because:

• accedit is third person singular: he/she/it approaches
• the noun in the nominative that matches it is hospes

So:

• hospes accedit = the guest approaches

Also, hospes is a third-declension noun.

It can be either, depending on the person meant. It is often treated as a noun of common gender.

So hospes can mean:

• a male guest
• a female guest
• sometimes even host in other contexts

In this sentence, English may translate it simply as the guest without specifying gender.

Because ad means to or toward, and it is used for motion in the direction of something.

So:

• ad ostium = to the door / toward the door

Without ad, ostium would not mean the same thing here.

Also, ad takes the accusative case, which is why we get ostium.

Ostium can mean door, doorway, or entrance, depending on context.

In a sentence like this, English often says door, but the Latin word is a little broader than that. It refers to the entrance area, not only the wooden object itself.

So ad ostium accedit could be understood as:

• approaches the door
• comes to the entrance

Accedit is:

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

It comes from the verb accedo, accedere, accessi, accessum, meaning approach, come to, or go to.

So accedit means:

• he approaches
• she approaches
• it approaches
• or in smoother English here, the guest approaches

Latin often uses the present tense for:

• a general truth
• a repeated action
• vivid narration
• a normal sequence of events

So this sentence probably means something like:

• Whenever the guest comes to the door, the slave opens it at once or
• When the guest approaches the door, the slave immediately opens

The present tense makes the action feel immediate or habitual.

Servus is nominative singular, and it is the subject of aperit.

It is a second-declension masculine noun meaning slave or servant, depending on how literally you are translating.

So:

• servus aperit = the slave opens

Statim is an adverb meaning:

• immediately
• at once
• right away

It modifies aperit:

• servus statim aperit = the slave opens immediately

Latin adverbs are often placed quite freely, so statim is here just before the verb for emphasis and natural flow.

Good question. In English, we would normally say opens the door. In Latin, the object can be omitted if it is obvious from context.

Here, the obvious thing being opened is the door or entrance, already suggested by ostium.

So Latin can simply say:

• servus statim aperit = the slave immediately opens up / opens the door at once

If Latin wanted to say it more explicitly, it could say something like:

• servus ostium statim aperit

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

English relies heavily on position:

• The guest approaches the door

Latin can move words around more freely because forms like hospes, servus, and ostium help show who is doing what.

So this sentence is arranged naturally as:

• Cum hospes ad ostium accedit, servus statim aperit.

That order emphasizes the sequence:

1. when the guest approaches the door
2. the slave immediately opens

A Latin writer could rearrange parts of it without changing the basic meaning.

The comma separates the cum-clause from the main clause:

• Cum hospes ad ostium accedit = subordinate clause
• servus statim aperit = main clause

This is similar to English punctuation after an introductory when clause.

In ancient Latin manuscripts, punctuation was much less standardized than in modern printed texts, so the comma is mainly a modern reading aid.

Cum can be followed by either the indicative or the subjunctive, depending on meaning.

Here it takes the indicative because the sentence gives a straightforward temporal idea:

• when the guest approaches the door

With the subjunctive, cum often has a more circumstantial, causal, or concessive sense, such as:

• since
• although
• when in a more descriptive background sense

So the indicative here fits a simple, direct action.

Yes. The Latin present tense allows that interpretation very naturally.

Depending on context, the sentence could describe:

• one scene happening now
• a repeated custom
• a general household rule

So all of these are possible kinds of translation:

• When the guest approaches the door, the slave immediately opens.
• Whenever a guest comes to the door, the slave opens at once.
• As soon as the guest reaches the door, the slave opens.

Context decides which English version sounds best.