Puer rauca voce respondet, quia guttur adhuc dolet.

Because rauca voce is an ablative phrase meaning with a hoarse voice.

This is a very common Latin way to express the manner in which something is done. In English, we often use with:

• with a loud voice
• with great care
• with a hoarse voice

In Latin, this idea is often expressed with the ablative case. So:

• vox = voice
• voce = with/by/in a voice

Here, rauca voce tells us how the boy answers.

Because rauca has to agree with voce.

The noun vox, vocis is feminine, and in this sentence voce is:

• feminine
• singular
• ablative

So the adjective must match it:

• raucus = masculine nominative singular
• rauca = feminine nominative singular, or feminine ablative singular in 1st/2nd declension adjective patterns
• here it is feminine ablative singular, agreeing with voce

So:

• rauca voce = with a hoarse voice

Even though the sentence is about puer (boy), rauca does not describe the boy directly. It describes voice.

Yes, it is usually understood as an ablative of manner.

Latin often uses:

• cum
  • ablative for manner, especially when there is no adjective
    
    • cum cura = with care

But when the noun has an adjective, Latin often leaves out cum:

• magna cura = with great care
• rauca voce = with a hoarse voice

So cum rauca voce would be possible in some contexts, but rauca voce is the more normal compact expression.

Because Latin often makes the body part the subject of dolet.

So:

• guttur dolet = the throat hurts / the throat is painful

This is a very natural Latin structure. English often expresses the same idea differently:

• his throat hurts
• he has a sore throat

But in Latin, it is normal to say that the throat itself is the thing that hurts.

So in this sentence:

• guttur = throat
• dolet = hurts, aches, is painful

Guttur is nominative singular, because it is the subject of dolet.

The verb dolet here means hurts/is painful, and the thing that hurts is the throat. Therefore the throat is in the nominative:

• guttur dolet = the throat hurts

If it were gutturem, that would be accusative, which would suggest it was a direct object. But dolet in this sentence does not take guttur as an object; guttur is the subject.

Because the sentence describes what is happening now or in a general present situation.

• respondet = he answers / is answering
• dolet = it hurts / is hurting

Latin present tense often covers both simple present and present progressive in English:

• respondet can mean he answers or he is answering
• dolet can mean it hurts or it is hurting

Which English wording is best depends on context, but the Latin form is just the ordinary present tense.

Because its subject is puer, which is singular.

• puer = boy
• respondet = he answers

Latin verbs change form to match their subject in person and number. Since puer is third person singular, the verb is also third person singular:

• respondeo = I answer
• respondes = you answer
• respondet = he/she/it answers

Quia introduces the reason: because.

So the structure is:

• main clause: Puer rauca voce respondet
• reason clause: quia guttur adhuc dolet

Latin has several words that can mean because, such as:

• quia
• quod
• quoniam

Here quia is a straightforward, common way to introduce a causal clause.

Adhuc means still or up to this point.

So:

• guttur adhuc dolet = the throat still hurts

It shows that the pain has continued and has not gone away yet.

Depending on context, adhuc can sometimes mean things like so far or until now, but here still is the most natural sense.

Because Latin word order is flexible, and adverbs like adhuc can often be placed in different positions.

Here:

• guttur adhuc dolet

places adhuc near the verb and gives a natural emphasis to still hurts.

Latin does not rely on word order as heavily as English does, because the endings already show the grammatical relationships. So a learner should focus first on:

• case endings
• verb forms
• agreement

and only then on word order nuances.

Because Classical Latin has no articles.

So:

• puer can mean the boy or a boy
• guttur can mean the throat or a throat
• vox can mean the voice or a voice

English must choose an article, but Latin usually leaves that to context. In this sentence, English naturally uses the boy and his throat/the throat, but Latin does not need separate words for that.

Yes, mostly.

For example, these would still mean essentially the same thing:

• Puer respondet rauca voce, quia guttur adhuc dolet.
• Quia guttur adhuc dolet, puer rauca voce respondet.
• Rauca voce puer respondet, quia guttur adhuc dolet.

Latin word order is flexible because endings show the grammar. However, changing the order can slightly change emphasis:

• putting rauca voce early may highlight the hoarseness
• putting quia guttur adhuc dolet first may highlight the reason

So the meaning stays basically the same, but the focus can shift.

Yes. It is both a literal and natural Latin expression.

Latin often uses a noun like vox with an adjective to describe the quality of speech:

• clara voce = in a clear voice
• magna voce = in a loud voice
• rauca voce = in a hoarse voice

So Puer rauca voce respondet is a very normal way to say that the boy answers hoarsely or in a hoarse voice.