Mensor altitudinem, longitudinem et latitudinem metitur.

and

Breakdown of Mensor altitudinem, longitudinem et latitudinem metitur.

• mensor: the surveyor; measurer
• altitudo: the height; depth
• longitudo: the length

Questions & Answers about Mensor altitudinem, longitudinem et latitudinem metitur.

What is the basic grammatical structure of this sentence?

The sentence breaks down like this:

• Mensor = the subject
• altitudinem, longitudinem et latitudinem = the direct objects
• metitur = the verb

So the core pattern is:

[subject] [things being measured] [measures]

Latin often puts the verb near the end, so this word order is very normal.

What does mensor mean, and how do I know it is the subject?

Mensor means surveyor or measurer.

It is the subject because it is in the nominative singular, the case typically used for the subject of a sentence. Also, the verb metitur is third-person singular, so it matches a singular subject like mensor.

So:

• mensor = the surveyor / the measurer
• it is the one doing the action

Why does the verb say metitur instead of something like metit?

Because metitur comes from a deponent verb: metior, metiri, mensus sum.

A deponent verb uses forms that look passive, but its meaning is active. So:

• metitur looks passive
• but it actually means he/she/it measures

This is very common in Latin and can feel strange to English speakers at first.