Mater filiam monet ne post scholam agrum arare conetur, nam opus nimis grave est.

Because moneo often takes the person being warned or advised in the accusative.

So in Mater filiam monet:

• Mater = the mother, the subject
• filiam = the daughter, the person receiving the warning/advice
• monet = warns / advises

A very literal way to see it is:

• The mother warns the daughter...

That is why filiam is accusative rather than nominative.

After verbs like moneo when someone is warned, advised, or urged, Latin often uses a subjunctive clause to express what that person is being told to do or not do.

Here the clause is:

• ne post scholam agrum arare conetur

This means something like:

• not to try to plow the field after school
• or more literally, that she should not try to plow the field after school

So monet is followed by:

• the person affected: filiam
• then a clause showing the content of the warning/advice: ne ... conetur

Here ne means that ... not or not to.

It introduces a negative command-like subjunctive clause after monet. So:

• monet ne conetur = warns/advises her not to try

This is different from non:

• non usually simply negates a word or statement
• ne is often used in clauses of command, purpose, or prohibition

So in this sentence, ne is the correct word because the mother is advising/warning her daughter not to do something.

It is subjunctive because it is part of the clause dependent on monet.

Latin regularly uses the subjunctive after verbs of urging, warning, advising, and commanding to express the action being urged or discouraged. Since the mother is warning her daughter not to try, the verb in that clause appears in the subjunctive:

• conetur

So the structure is:

• mater filiam monet
• ne ... conetur

In other words, the subjunctive is not random here; it signals the kind of clause used after monet.

Because conetur comes from conor, conari, conatus sum, which is a deponent verb.

A deponent verb:

• has passive-looking forms
• but an active meaning

So:

• conetur looks passive
• but means she may try or she should try
• with ne, it becomes that she should not try / not to try

This is very common in Latin, and conor is one of the important deponent verbs to learn early.

Because it depends on conetur.

The daughter is not directly doing the plowing in the main clause; she is being warned not to try to plow. Latin expresses that with:

• conetur = try
• arare = to plow

So:

• agrum arare conetur = try to plow the field

This is the normal construction after conor: the verb being attempted is often in the infinitive.

Because agrum is the direct object of arare.

The verb aro, arare means to plow, and what is being plowed goes into the accusative:

• agrum arare = to plow the field

So even though agrum is inside the clause with conetur, its job is simple: it is the thing being plowed.

Because post is a preposition that takes the accusative.

So:

• post scholam = after school

That is why scholam is accusative singular.

English speakers sometimes expect a different structure because after school in English feels almost adverbial, but Latin still uses a normal preposition + accusative phrase here.

Here it means after school in the sense of after classes / after the school day.

Latin often uses nouns in a practical time sense like this. So schola can refer not only to a place but also to school activity. In context, no one is talking about going physically behind a school building. The phrase clearly refers to time:

• after school

Context makes that meaning natural.

Nam means for, because, or you see. It introduces an explanation or reason.

So the mother warns her daughter not to try plowing the field after school, because:

• opus nimis grave est
• the work is too hard

It is slightly explanatory in tone, often a bit like for in careful English prose.

Yes. Here opus means work or the task and it is the subject of est.

So:

• opus = the work
• nimis grave = too heavy / too hard
• est = is

Together:

• opus nimis grave est = the work is too hard

A learner may know another use of opus meaning need, as in opus est, but that is a different construction. Here opus is simply an ordinary noun meaning work.

Because grave agrees with opus.

• opus is neuter singular
• the adjective must match it in gender, number, and case
• so gravis becomes grave

That gives:

• opus grave = hard/heavy work

Then nimis adds the idea too:

• opus nimis grave = work that is too hard / too heavy

Nimis means too much, too, or excessively.

Here it modifies grave:

• nimis grave = too hard / too heavy

So it does not just mean the work is hard; it means the work is more hard than is acceptable or reasonable in the situation.

It is fairly natural Latin word order. Latin is more flexible than English because the endings show each word’s role.

The sentence is arranged like this:

• Mater filiam monet = main statement first
• ne post scholam agrum arare conetur = the content of the warning
• nam opus nimis grave est = the reason

English would usually need a stricter order, but Latin can place words more freely for clarity, rhythm, or emphasis. Nothing here is especially strange.

Yes, moneo can have a range of meanings, including remind, advise, warn, or instruct, depending on context.

In this sentence, because of ne ... conetur, the sense is clearly closer to:

• warns
• advises

rather than simply reminds

The negative action clause makes it sound like caution or advice: the mother is telling her daughter not to attempt something difficult.

Conetur is present subjunctive, third person singular.

In this kind of clause, the present subjunctive does not necessarily mean present time in a simple English sense. It expresses the action as something the daughter is being warned not to do.

So good English translations include:

• that she should not try
• not to try

Both are natural ways to represent the Latin.