Breakdown of Nec avia nec mater vinum bibunt.
mater
the mother
vinum
the wine
bibere
to drink
avia
the grandmother
nec
nor
nec
neither
Questions & Answers about Nec avia nec mater vinum bibunt.
What does nec ... nec mean here?
It is the standard Latin way to say neither ... nor. The first nec goes with avia, and the second goes with mater. Together they negate both nouns.
Is nec the same as neque?
Usually, yes. Nec and neque are very close in meaning and are often interchangeable, especially in a pair such as nec ... nec or neque ... neque. Both can mean and not, nor, or neither ... nor, depending on context.
Why is the verb bibunt plural if avia and mater are both singular?
Because together they make a compound subject: two people are involved. Latin normally uses a plural verb with coordinated subjects, even if each noun is singular by itself. So bibunt means they drink.
What case are avia and mater?
They are nominative singular, because they are the subjects of the verb. Avia is a first-declension nominative singular form. Mater is a third-declension nominative singular form.
Why is vinum in that form?
Vinum is the direct object of bibunt, so it is accusative singular. This can be confusing because vinum is a neuter noun, and neuter nouns have the same form for nominative and accusative singular. So the form itself could be either one in isolation, but here the sentence shows it is accusative.
What exactly is bibunt?
Bibunt is the present active indicative, third person plural, of bibo, bibere. It means they drink or they are drinking, depending on context. The ending -unt is the normal third-person plural ending for many third-conjugation verbs in the present tense.
Why is there no word for the or a?
Latin has no articles. A Latin noun can correspond to English the grandmother, a grandmother, or simply grandmother, depending on context. So avia and mater do not need extra words for that.
Why doesn't mater end in -a if it is feminine?
Because grammatical gender and noun ending are not the same thing. Many feminine Latin nouns do end in -a, but many do not. Mater is a feminine third-declension noun, while avia is a feminine first-declension noun.
Can the word order be changed?
Yes. Latin word order is much freer than English word order because the endings show how the words function in the sentence. Nec avia nec mater vinum bibunt is a natural order, but something like Vinum nec avia nec mater bibunt is also possible, with different emphasis.
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