Serva lenticulas et triticum in mensa ponit; mater autem unum modium hordei in horreo habere dicit.

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

Here, serva ... ponit means the slave-girl puts ...

A learner may notice that Latin often leaves out subject pronouns, so the subject is shown mainly by:

• the noun in the nominative
• and the verb ending

The verb ponit is 3rd person singular, which matches serva.

Because they are different nouns with different grammatical patterns.

Both are direct objects of ponit, so both are in the accusative case:

• lenticulas = accusative plural
• triticum = accusative singular

They differ because:

• lenticula, lenticulae is a 1st-declension noun, so its accusative plural is lenticulas
• triticum, tritici is a 2nd-declension neuter noun, so its accusative singular is triticum

So they have different endings not because they have different jobs, but because they belong to different declensions and numbers.

This is a vocabulary issue rather than a special grammar rule.

• lenticulas means lentils, which are naturally thought of as multiple small items, so Latin often uses the plural.
• triticum means wheat, which is treated more like a mass noun in English, so Latin commonly uses the singular.

English does something similar:

• lentils
• wheat

So the number reflects how the noun is normally used.

Because in can take either the ablative or the accusative, depending on the meaning.

• in + ablative = in/on a place, expressing location
• in + accusative = into/onto a place, expressing motion toward

Here, in mensa means on the table or on the tabletop, focusing on where the items are placed.

So:

• in mensa = on the table
• in mensam would suggest movement onto the table

In practice, with ponere, both kinds of expression can appear depending on how the writer frames the action, but here the sentence uses the ablative phrase for location.

Mensa is ablative singular.

It is ablative because it follows in in the sense of location: in/on the table.

The noun is:

• nominative: mensa
• ablative: mensa

Since 1st-declension nouns often have the same form in nominative singular and ablative singular, learners can get confused. But here the preposition in tells you it is ablative.

Autem usually means something like however, but, or on the other hand.

It is a very common Latin connecting word, and it often appears in the second position of its clause, not necessarily first.

So:

• mater autem = the mother, however, ...

This word order is normal Latin style. A native English speaker may expect autem mater, but Latin often places autem after the first word or phrase.

This phrase means one modius of barley.

Grammatically:

• unum modifies modium
• modium is the main noun
• hordei depends on modium and tells what the measure contains

Cases:

• unum modium = accusative singular, because it is the object of habere
• hordei = genitive singular, meaning of barley

So the structure is:

• one measure of barley

This is very similar to English expressions like:

• a cup of water
• a pound of flour

A modius is a Roman unit of dry measure, especially for things like grain.

For a beginner, the most important point is not the exact modern equivalent, but the grammar:

• modius is a noun meaning a measure/container amount
• therefore modium hordei means a measure of barley

If you want a rough sense, it is often translated as something like a peck, but in many learning contexts it is fine simply to understand it as one measure.

Because Latin often uses the genitive after words of quantity or measure.

In unum modium hordei:

• modium = the measure
• hordei = what is being measured

This use is often called the genitive of the whole or a partitive/material-type genitive in beginner explanations.

A natural English comparison is:

• a cup of tea
• a bag of grain
• a measure of barley

So hordei means of barley.

Because it depends on dicit in an indirect statement construction.

Latin often uses:

• a verb of saying, thinking, knowing, perceiving, etc.
• plus an infinitive to report what someone says or thinks.

So:

• mater ... habere dicit literally works like
• the mother says [to have ...]

In smoother English, we say:

• the mother says that she has ...

Latin does not use that here. Instead, it uses the infinitive habere.

That is a very good question.

In many Latin indirect statements, the subject of the infinitive appears in the accusative:

• puellam venire dicit = he says that the girl is coming

But when the subject of the infinitive is the same as the subject of the main verb, Latin often leaves it understood.

So in:

• mater ... habere dicit the understood subject of habere is mater

In other words:

• the mother says that she has ...

Latin does not need to repeat se here, though it could in some contexts for clarity.

Horreo is ablative singular.

It follows in with the meaning in the granary/storehouse, so it is another example of in + ablative for location.

The noun is:

• horreum, horrei = granary, storehouse

Its ablative singular is horreo.

So:

• in horreo = in the granary

Because Latin word order is much freer than English word order.

Latin uses endings to show grammatical function, so the writer can move words around for style, emphasis, or rhythm. Verbs often come near the end, especially in straightforward prose.

So this is perfectly normal:

• mater autem unum modium hordei in horreo habere dicit

English usually prefers:

• the mother, however, says that she has one modius of barley in the granary

Latin puts dicit last, but the grammar is still clear.

The semicolon separates two closely related but distinct clauses:

1. what the slave-girl is doing
2. what the mother says

It helps show a pause stronger than a comma but weaker than a full stop.

This is mainly a punctuation and style choice in the edited sentence you were given. Ancient Latin manuscripts did not use punctuation in the same modern way. In a textbook, punctuation is added to help readers.

Yes.

• serva is a feminine noun meaning female slave or slave-girl
• mater is also feminine and means mother

Latin nouns have grammatical gender, and in these two cases the natural gender matches the meaning.

A learner may notice that servus would be the masculine form meaning male slave, while serva is feminine.

Because unum agrees with modium in:

• gender
• number
• case

Modium is:

• masculine
• singular
• accusative

So the adjective/numeral must match:

• unum

This agreement is one of the most important features of Latin grammar. Even if the word order changes, agreement helps you see which words belong together.

Yes. It is a good example of how Latin packs meaning into endings and uses word order flexibly.

You can divide it like this:

• Serva — subject
• lenticulas et triticum — direct objects
• in mensa — prepositional phrase of place
• ponit — main verb

Then:

• mater autem — new subject plus connective
• unum modium hordei — object phrase
• in horreo — place
• habere — infinitive in indirect statement
• dicit — main reporting verb

So the sentence shows two very common Latin patterns:

• subject + object + place + verb
• verb of saying + infinitive for indirect statement