Mater aegrotam filiam curat, dum pater medicum exspectat.

Latin word order is much more flexible than English word order because the endings on nouns usually show their grammatical role.

Here, mater is the subject of curat, so putting it first gives it emphasis or simply starts the sentence naturally. Latin does not need to keep a strict subject–verb–object order like English.

So:

• Mater aegrotam filiam curat
• Aegrotam filiam mater curat
• Curat mater aegrotam filiam

can all mean the same basic thing, though the emphasis changes.

You know from both meaning and form.

• mater is in the nominative singular, the case normally used for the subject.
• The verb curat is third person singular, so it matches a singular subject.
• In context, mater is the one doing the action.

So mater = the mother as subject.

Because both are in the accusative singular feminine.

That tells you two things:

1. filiam is the direct object of curat
2. aegrotam is an adjective describing filiam, so it must agree with it

In Latin, adjectives agree with the nouns they describe in:

• gender
• number
• case

So:

• filiam = accusative singular feminine
• aegrotam = accusative singular feminine

They match, which is exactly what you expect.

Because the daughter is the object, not the subject.

Compare:

• aegrota filia curat = the sick daughter cares...
  Here filia would be the subject.
• mater aegrotam filiam curat = the mother cares for the sick daughter
  Here filiam is the object.

Since filiam is the direct object, it must be in the accusative, and the adjective must also be accusative:

• filia → filiam
• aegrota → aegrotam

Medicum is accusative singular masculine.

It is the direct object of exspectat, because the father is waiting for the doctor.

So the pattern is:

• pater = subject, nominative
• medicum = direct object, accusative
• exspectat = verb

This is very common in Latin: the thing directly affected by the verb goes into the accusative.

Latin usually does not have articles like English the and a/an.

So:

• mater can mean mother, a mother, or the mother
• medicum can mean a doctor or the doctor

You figure out which one is best from the context.

That is why a single Latin sentence can sometimes be translated in slightly different ways in English.

Dum means while here. It introduces a subordinate clause:

• main clause: Mater aegrotam filiam curat
• dum clause: dum pater medicum exspectat

So the sentence describes two actions happening at the same time.

In this sentence, dum is followed by the present indicative (exspectat), which is a very common pattern when Latin means while.

Because Latin often uses dum + present indicative to mean while.

So:

• dum pater medicum exspectat = while the father is waiting for the doctor

Even if English might sometimes choose a more explicitly progressive form, Latin commonly just uses the ordinary present tense.

So curat and exspectat are both simple present forms, but in context they can describe ongoing action.

Because both verbs are third person singular present active indicative.

• curat = he/she/it cares for
• exspectat = he/she/it waits for / expects

The ending -t tells you the subject is:

• third person
• singular

That matches:

• mater for curat
• pater for exspectat

Yes, often it could.

Since the verb ending already tells you third person singular, Latin can omit the subject pronoun, and sometimes even the noun if the context is clear.

For example:

• Aegrotam filiam curat = She/The mother cares for the sick daughter
• Dum medicum exspectat = while he/the father waits for the doctor

But in your sentence, mater and pater are included for clarity and contrast.

Because being after dum does not change its case.

Dum is a conjunction, not a preposition. It introduces a clause, but it does not assign a case to a noun.

Inside that clause:

• pater is still the subject, so it is nominative
• medicum is still the object, so it is accusative

So the clause works just like a normal sentence:

• pater medicum exspectat

Yes. Latin allows a lot of flexibility, as long as the endings stay clear.

You could have:

• mater filiam aegrotam curat
• aegrotam mater filiam curat
• filiam aegrotam mater curat

All of these still show that filiam is the object and aegrotam describes it, because the endings match.

However, Latin writers often choose word order for emphasis, rhythm, or style, not just basic grammar.

Not necessarily. Curo, curare has a wider meaning than just to cure.

It can mean things like:

• care for
• look after
• attend to
• take care of

So in this sentence, curat probably means that the mother is attending to or caring for her sick daughter, not necessarily that she is medically curing her.

That is a useful vocabulary point, because English learners may be tempted to connect curat too narrowly with cure.