Mater miratur cur puer stilum suum semper amittat.

the boy

Breakdown of Mater miratur cur puer stilum suum semper amittat.

• mater: the mother
• semper: always
• suus: his

Questions & Answers about Mater miratur cur puer stilum suum semper amittat.

Why is miratur translated as wonders when it looks a bit like a passive form?

Because miror, mirari, miratus sum is a deponent verb. Deponent verbs use passive-looking forms but have active meanings.

So:

• miratur looks like he/she/it is wondered at
• but actually means he/she/it wonders or is amazed

Here, mater miratur = the mother wonders.

What case is mater, and how do we know it is the subject?

Mater is nominative singular. In Latin, the subject of a finite verb is normally in the nominative case.

Since miratur is 3rd person singular, mater fits as its subject:

• mater = mother
• miratur = she wonders

So mater is the subject of the main clause.

Why does the sentence use cur?

Cur means why. It introduces a question about reason.

In this sentence, the mother is wondering why the boy keeps losing his stylus, so cur is exactly the right word to introduce that idea.

Latin often uses: