Serva pannum humidum capit et fuliginem de pariete tergit.

Because serva is in the nominative singular, the case normally used for the subject.

• serva = the female slave / maidservant
• If it were the direct object, you would expect servam

So in Serva pannum humidum capit, serva is the person doing the action.

Because humidum is an adjective describing pannum, and in Latin adjectives must agree with the nouns they describe in:

• gender
• number
• case

Here:

• pannum = accusative singular masculine
• humidum = accusative singular masculine

So pannum humidum means a damp cloth.

It is in the accusative because it is the direct object of capit.

The verb capit means takes, and the thing being taken is the cloth:

• serva = subject
• capit = takes
• pannum humidum = the thing taken

So Latin uses the accusative for what English would call the object of the verb.

Because fuliginem is the direct object of the second verb, tergit.

In other words, the servant wipes the soot:

• fuliginem = soot
• tergit = wipes

So the sentence has two different direct objects:

• pannum humidum with capit
• fuliginem with tergit

The preposition de means down from, off, from and it takes the ablative case.

So:

• de = from / off
• pariete = ablative singular of paries = wall

Together, de pariete means from the wall or off the wall.

This is a very natural way in Latin to express removing something from a surface.

Both are third person singular present active indicative verbs.

That means they describe what she is doing now:

• capit = she takes
• tergit = she wipes

They match the singular subject serva.

A learner may also notice:

• capit comes from capere
• tergit comes from tergere

Because Latin often leaves out a subject when it is already clear from the context and the verb ending.

In this sentence:

• capit already goes with serva
• tergit is also third person singular, so the subject is still understood to be serva

English often repeats the subject less strictly too:

• The servant takes a damp cloth and wipes the soot from the wall.

Latin does the same kind of thing here.

Not as important as in English. Latin word order is relatively flexible because the endings show the grammatical roles.

So this sentence could be rearranged in several ways without changing the basic meaning, for example:

• Serva pannum humidum capit et fuliginem de pariete tergit.
• Serva capit pannum humidum et fuliginem de pariete tergit.
• Fuliginem serva de pariete tergit et pannum humidum capit.

The original order is natural and clear, but the case endings do most of the grammatical work.

Because in Latin adjectives often come after the noun they describe, although they can also come before it.

So:

• pannum humidum = a damp cloth

This is a very normal Latin word order. If the adjective came first, humidum pannum, the meaning would still be the same, though the emphasis might feel slightly different.

Yes. Serva is the feminine form and means female slave, maidservant, or slave-girl, depending on context.

Compare:

• servus = male slave
• serva = female slave

So the sentence is specifically about a woman or girl doing the action.

Not explicitly in the grammar of the second clause, but it is strongly understood from the context.

The sentence literally says:

• The servant takes a damp cloth
• and wipes the soot from the wall

Latin does not add a separate phrase like with the cloth here, because the idea is obvious from the action sequence. English often does the same:

• She picks up a cloth and wipes the soot from the wall.

We naturally understand what she is using.