Haec saepes densior est quam illa, et hortum melius tegit.

Because saepes is feminine singular, and haec is the feminine singular nominative form of hic, haec, hoc.

In this sentence, haec goes with saepes, so it must match it in:

• gender: feminine
• number: singular
• case: nominative

So haec saepes means this hedge.

Saepes is a third-declension feminine noun meaning hedge or fence.

Its basic forms are:

• nominative singular: saepes
• genitive singular: saepis

Even though the ending -es may look unusual to an English-speaking learner, it is the normal nominative singular form of this noun. In the sentence, saepes is the subject.

Densior is the comparative adjective of densus, meaning dense.

So:

• densus = dense
• densior = denser

Comparative adjectives in Latin are commonly formed with -ior for masculine and feminine nominative singular, and -ius for neuter nominative singular.

Here densior is feminine nominative singular because it agrees with saepes.

Because Latin usually uses a form of esse to link the subject to an adjective, just as English uses is.

So:

• saepes densior est = the hedge is denser

Latin sometimes omits forms of esse in certain contexts, especially in poetry, but in normal prose est is very standard here.

Quam introduces the second part of a comparison and means than.

So:

• densior est quam illa = is denser than that one

Here illa is feminine singular nominative and stands on its own, with the noun saepes understood. In fuller form, it would be something like quam illa saepes, but Latin often leaves out a repeated noun when it is obvious.

Also, haec ... illa is a very natural contrast in Latin:

• haec = this
• illa = that

So the sentence sets up a neat contrast between this hedge and that one.

Because it is being compared with the subject haec saepes, so it stands in the same case as the thing it is being compared to.

The basic structure is:

• haec saepes densior est quam illa saepes

Both hedges are nominative because both are the things being compared.

Because melius is an adverb, while melior is an adjective.

In this sentence, the word is modifying the verb tegit, so Latin needs an adverb:

• melius tegit = covers better

Compare:

• melior saepes = a better hedge
• melius tegit = it covers better

This is a very common distinction:

• bonus = good
• melior = better (adjective)
• bene = well
• melius = better (adverb)

Because hortum is the direct object of tegit.

The verb tegere takes a direct object in the accusative: the thing being covered, screened, protected, or hidden.

So:

• hortus = garden, as subject
• hortum = garden, as direct object

In this sentence, the hedge is doing the action, and the garden is receiving it, so hortum must be accusative.

Tegit is:

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

It comes from tego, tegere, meaning to cover, to protect, to conceal, or to screen.

So tegit means he/she/it covers or protects. Here the subject is haec saepes, so the sense is this hedge covers/protects.

The subject is still haec saepes, even though it is not repeated.

Latin often leaves out repeated words when they are easy to understand from the context. So the sentence works like this:

• Haec saepes densior est quam illa
• et [haec saepes] hortum melius tegit

English often does the same thing:

• This hedge is denser than that one, and covers the garden better

The word order is meaningful, but Latin word order is much more flexible than English word order because the endings show the grammatical relationships.

This sentence has a very natural prose order:

• Haec saepes — the topic
• densior est quam illa — the comparison
• et hortum melius tegit — the added statement about what it does

Latin could rearrange parts of this sentence for emphasis without changing the basic meaning, as long as the forms still agree correctly. For example, hortum could be moved earlier for emphasis, or melius could be placed differently. The endings, not the position alone, tell you what each word is doing.

It can mean several related things depending on context.

The basic idea of tegere is to cover, but in a sentence about a hedge and a garden, English might naturally express the idea as:

• covers
• screens
• shelters
• protects

So a learner should understand that Latin often uses one verb with a slightly broader range than the most literal single English gloss might suggest. The exact English wording depends on context, but the Latin grammar stays the same.