Puer contra ventum ambulare non vult, donec mater cum eo veniat.

Because puer is in the nominative singular, which is the normal case for the subject of the sentence.

• puer = the boy
• It is the one doing the wanting: non vult = does not want

So the basic structure begins with The boy does not want...

Because after vult (wants), Latin commonly uses an infinitive to express what someone wants to do.

• vult ambulare = he wants to walk
• non vult ambulare = he does not want to walk

This works much like English wants to walk, where to walk is also an infinitive.

Because non normally negates the word or idea that follows it most directly. Here it negates vult:

• vult = he wants
• non vult = he does not want

So the sentence means that the boy is unwilling. The walking itself is not negated by itself; rather, his wanting is negated.

Because contra is a preposition that takes the accusative case.

So:

• ventus = wind (dictionary form)
• ventum = wind in the accusative singular

Therefore:

• contra ventum = against the wind

This is something you often just have to memorize with prepositions: some take the accusative, some the ablative, and a few can take either depending on meaning.

Literally, it means to walk against the wind.

• contra = against
• ventum = the wind
• ambulare = to walk

So the phrase describes walking with the wind opposing you.

Because mater is the subject of veniat in the donec clause.

In other words:

• mater ... veniat = the mother may/should come or, in smoother English here, until his mother comes

So even though mater appears later in the sentence, it is still the subject of its own verb, veniat.

Because cum is a preposition meaning with, and it takes the ablative case.

• is, ea, id = he, she, it
• eo = him / it in the ablative singular masculine/neuter

So:

• cum eo = with him

Here eo refers to the boy.

Because secum refers back to the subject of its own clause. In the clause donec mater cum eo veniat, the subject is mater.

So:

• mater secum veniat would mean the mother comes with herself, which is not what is meant
• mater cum eo veniat means the mother comes with him or more naturally here the mother comes with the boy / to accompany him

Since the pronoun refers to the boy, not to the mother, cum eo is correct.

Because after donec (until), Latin often uses the subjunctive when the action is anticipated, intended, or still in the future from the speaker’s point of view.

So here:

• donec ... veniat = until ... comes

The idea is not that the mother is already coming as a simple fact, but that the boy will not want to walk against the wind until the mother comes.

This is a common pattern in Latin: donec + subjunctive for an action that is still pending or expected.

Latin often uses the present subjunctive in subordinate clauses where English might simply use a present tense with future meaning.

So although veniat is grammatically present subjunctive, in context it refers to a future event:

• donec mater cum eo veniat = until his mother comes

Latin does not need a separate future form here.

Donec means until. It introduces a clause marking the point up to which the main statement is true.

So the structure is:

• Puer ... non vult = The boy does not want...
• donec mater cum eo veniat = until his mother comes with him

In other words, his unwillingness continues up to the moment when his mother comes.

Because Latin word order is more flexible than English word order. Latin relies heavily on endings, not just position, to show grammatical relationships.

So even though the sentence is arranged as:

• Puer contra ventum ambulare non vult, donec mater cum eo veniat

you can still identify the roles by the forms:

• puer = nominative subject
• ventum = accusative after contra
• mater = nominative subject of veniat
• eo = ablative after cum

A very literal order might be:

• The boy against the wind to walk does not want, until mother with him may come

But natural English rearranges it.

No. Latin has no definite or indefinite articles like English the or a/an.

So:

• puer can mean boy, a boy, or the boy
• mater can mean mother, a mother, or the mother

You decide from context which English article is best. In this sentence, English naturally uses the boy and the mother or possibly his mother, depending on the context already given.

Yes, sometimes. Latin often leaves possession understood when it is obvious from context.

So mater may simply mean:

• the mother
• or more naturally in context, his mother

If the writer needed to be especially explicit, Latin could say mater eius = his mother, but it is often unnecessary.