Caementum foramen obstruit, sed aqua manat.

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Breakdown of Caementum foramen obstruit, sed aqua manat.

• aqua: the water
• caementum: a rubble stone
• foramen: the opening; hole

Questions & Answers about Caementum foramen obstruit, sed aqua manat.

How do I know which word is the subject in Caementum foramen obstruit?

This is a very good question, because in this clause the forms are a little tricky.

• caementum can be either nominative singular or accusative singular
• foramen can also be either nominative singular or accusative singular
• obstruit means he/she/it blocks or blocks

So, based on form alone, the clause is technically ambiguous. In practice, the meaning shown to the learner tells you that:

• caementum = the subject
• foramen = the direct object

So the sense is the cement blocks the hole.

This is possible in Latin because:

1. neuter nouns often have the same form in the nominative and accusative singular
2. Latin word order is more flexible than English
3. context often resolves ambiguity

Why is foramen before obstruit instead of after it?

Latin word order is much freer than English word order.

In English, you usually need:

• subject + verb + object
  → The cement blocks the hole

In Latin, you can often move words around without changing the basic meaning, because the grammatical roles are usually shown by endings rather than position.

So:

• Caementum foramen obstruit
• Caementum obstruit foramen
• Foramen caementum obstruit

can all potentially express the same basic idea, although the emphasis may shift.