Lucia matrem imitari vult, quia illa industria et modestia excellit.

Because imitari takes a direct object, and direct objects in Latin are usually in the accusative case.

So:

• Lucia = the subject, in the nominative
• matrem = the person Lucia wants to imitate, in the accusative

This is just like English imitate someone.

Imitari is the present infinitive of imitor, imitari, a deponent verb.

A deponent verb:

• has passive-looking forms
• but an active meaning

So although imitari looks passive, it means to imitate, not to be imitated.

In this sentence:

• vult imitari = wants to imitate

That is a very common Latin construction: volo + infinitive.

Vult is:

• 3rd person singular
• present tense
• indicative
• from volo, velle = to want

So Lucia ... vult means Lucia wants ...

With the infinitive imitari, the whole idea is:

• Lucia matrem imitari vult = Lucia wants to imitate her mother

Because Latin normally uses the bare infinitive after verbs like volo.

So:

• vult imitari literally = wants imitate
• but in natural English we translate it as wants to imitate

Latin does not need a separate word corresponding to English to in this kind of infinitive construction.

It can function as either, depending on context.

Ille, illa, illud originally means that, but it is also often used as a pronoun, especially for emphasis, and can mean:

• she
• that woman
• sometimes that one

Here illa is feminine singular nominative, and it refers to a female person already in the sentence or already known from context. Most likely it refers to matrem.

So the clause means something like:

• because she excels in diligence and modesty
• or more emphatically, because that woman excels in diligence and modesty

Most naturally, illa refers to matrem.

So the sense is:

• Lucia wants to imitate her mother,
• because her mother excels in diligence and modesty.

A learner may wonder whether illa could refer to Lucia, since Lucia is also feminine. In theory, context decides. But in this sentence, the most natural reading is that Lucia wants to imitate her mother because the mother has these qualities.

Latin often leaves out possessive words when the relationship is obvious from context.

So Lucia matrem imitari vult naturally means:

• Lucia wants to imitate her mother

Even without suam, the meaning is clear.

If Latin wanted to make it extra explicit, it could say matrem suam, but it does not have to.

Because excellit can take the ablative to show the quality or respect in which someone excels.

So:

• industria = in diligence / by diligence
• modestia = in modesty / by modesty

Together:

• industria et modestia excellit = she excels in diligence and modesty

This is a common Latin pattern: a verb of excelling, surpassing, or being distinguished can be followed by an ablative of respect or specification.

That is a very common beginner question.

In the first declension, the nominative singular and ablative singular are often spelled the same in ordinary Latin writing:

• industria
• modestia

Historically, the ablative had a long final -ā, but Latin texts usually do not mark vowel length, so both cases appear simply as -a.

You tell the case from syntax, not just spelling. Here they are ablative because excellit governs them.

Excellit is:

• 3rd person singular
• present tense
• active
• indicative
• from excello, excellere = to excel, surpass, stand out

So illa ... excellit means:

• she excels
• she stands out

Quia means because and introduces a clause giving the reason.

So the sentence breaks into two parts:

1. Lucia matrem imitari vult
2. quia illa industria et modestia excellit

Together:

• Lucia wants to imitate her mother, because she excels in diligence and modesty.

Because quia introduces a full subordinate clause, and full clauses normally have a finite verb.

So after quia we expect something like:

• quia illa excellit
• quia illa bona est
• quia venit

By contrast, imitari is an infinitive because it depends on vult.

So the structure is:

• vult + infinitive = wants to imitate
• quia + finite verb = because she excels

Latin word order is much more flexible because the endings show each word’s grammatical role.

English depends heavily on word order:

• Lucia wants to imitate her mother

Latin can move words around more freely:

• Lucia matrem imitari vult
• Matrem Lucia imitari vult
• Lucia vult matrem imitari

These all express basically the same core meaning, though the emphasis may shift.

In your sentence, the order is quite natural:

• Lucia first: the topic
• matrem imitari together: the action Lucia wants to do
• vult at the end of the main clause: a very common Latin pattern

Yes. Imitor, imitari, imitatus sum is a deponent verb.

That means its principal parts look passive in form, but its meaning is active:

• imitor = I imitate
• imitari = to imitate
• imitatus sum = I imitated / have imitated

So in this sentence there is nothing passive about imitari. Lucia is the one doing the imitating.

Yes, Latin often omits subject pronouns when the verb ending already makes the person and number clear.

Since excellit already means he/she/it excels, Latin could say:

• Lucia matrem imitari vult, quia industria et modestia excellit.

Adding illa gives more emphasis or clarity, especially to make the female subject explicit.

They are simply two coordinated ablatives, both depending on excellit.

So Latin is saying she excels:

• in diligence
• and in modesty

Latin could rearrange them, but the basic grammar would stay the same. As written, the pairing is neat and straightforward.

They are abstract nouns:

• industria = diligence, industriousness, application
• modestia = modesty, self-restraint, moderation

A learner should notice that Latin often uses abstract nouns where English may use either nouns or adjectives. So Latin says she excels in diligence and modesty, where English might also say she is very diligent and modest.

Only if the context supports that kind of contrast. In this sentence alone, the most natural translation is simply she or that woman.

Using the latter in English would sound too formal unless the passage is explicitly contrasting two women. Since we only have this one sentence, she is usually best.

It has:

• a main clause: Lucia matrem imitari vult
• a subordinate causal clause introduced by quia: quia illa industria et modestia excellit

Inside the main clause:

• Lucia = subject
• vult = main verb
• imitari = complementary infinitive
• matrem = object of imitari

Inside the quia clause:

• illa = subject
• excellit = verb
• industria et modestia = ablatives showing the qualities in which she excels

So the sentence is a good example of several common Latin features at once:

• volo + infinitive
• a deponent infinitive
• a quia clause
• and ablatives with a verb of excelling