In re aspera sapiens spem non amittit.

Literally, it means in a rough/difficult situation or in difficult circumstances.

• in = in
• rē = thing, matter, situation in the ablative singular
• asperā = rough, harsh, difficult, agreeing with rē

So the phrase is not about a physical object being rough; it means something more like in adversity or when things are hard.

Because in here takes the ablative when it means in in the sense of in a situation / in circumstances.

The noun is rēs, reī = thing, matter, situation.

Its ablative singular is rē, so:

• nominative: rēs
• ablative: rē

That is why the sentence has in rē asperā, not in rēs aspera.

Aspera agrees with rē.

Since rē is:

• feminine
• singular
• ablative

the adjective must also be:

• feminine
• singular
• ablative

So aspera here is ablative feminine singular of asper, aspera, asperum.

This is a very common Latin pattern: adjectives match the nouns they describe in gender, number, and case.

Grammatically, sapiens is originally an adjective meaning wise, but here it is being used substantively, meaning it functions like a noun: a wise person or the wise man.

So in this sentence, sapiens is the subject:

• sapiens = the wise person
• amittit = loses
• spem = hope

A very literal structure would be: The wise person does not lose hope.

It is nominative singular, because it is the subject of amittit.

The verb amittit is he/she/it loses, so we expect a singular subject, and sapiens fills that role.

Because spem is the direct object of amittit.

The verb amittere means to lose, and the thing being lost goes into the accusative:

• spēs = hope (nominative)
• spem = hope (accusative singular)

So:

• sapiens = subject
• spem = object
• amittit = verb

That gives the sense the wise person does not lose hope.

Amittit is present tense, third person singular, active voice.

It comes from amitto, amittere, amisi, amissum = to lose.

So amittit means:

• he loses
• she loses
• it loses

In a general statement like this, the present tense often has a gnomic or general truth sense:

A wise person does not lose hope in adversity.

Because non normally negates the word or phrase that follows, and very often it comes directly before the verb.

So:

• spem non amittit = does not lose hope

Latin word order is flexible, but non before the verb is very common and natural.

Latin has no articles.

So a word like sapiens can mean:

• a wise person
• the wise person
• wise person in a general sense

Likewise, spem can be understood as hope, and English has to decide whether to use an article or not.

In proverbs or general statements, English often uses the or no article depending on style:

• The wise person does not lose hope
• A wise person does not lose hope
• The wise do not lose hope

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

This sentence is:

In re aspera sapiens spem non amittit.

But Latin could rearrange parts of it without changing the basic meaning, because the endings show the grammatical roles. For example:

• Sapiens in re aspera spem non amittit
• Spem sapiens in re aspera non amittit

These may differ a little in emphasis, but the core meaning stays the same.

In this version, putting in re aspera first gives the sentence a setting right away: in difficult circumstances...

Yes, it is a natural Latin expression.

The noun rēs is very broad and can mean thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation. So in rē asperā means in a difficult situation or under harsh circumstances.

English often translates it more smoothly as:

• in adversity
• in hard times
• in difficult circumstances

So the phrase is both grammatically straightforward and idiomatic.

Here is a full breakdown:

• In — preposition; here it takes the ablative
• rē — ablative singular of rēs, reī, feminine; thing, matter, situation
• asperā — ablative feminine singular of asper, aspera, asperum; rough, harsh, difficult; agrees with rē
• sapiēns — nominative singular; wise, here used as a noun: a wise person
• spem — accusative singular of spēs, speī, feminine; hope
• nōn — not
• amittit — third person singular present active of amitto, amittere; loses

So the structure is:

• in rē asperā = prepositional phrase
• sapiēns = subject
• spem = direct object
• nōn amittit = verb phrase

A natural translation would be:

A wise person does not lose hope in adversity.

Other good translations are:

• The wise person does not lose hope in difficult circumstances.
• In adversity, a wise person does not lose hope.
• A wise man does not lose hope in hard times.

The exact wording depends on style, but the core meaning stays the same.