Tabellarius matri renuntiat patrem mox domum rediturum esse.

The sentence has two main parts:

• Tabellarius matri renuntiat = The messenger announces/reports to the mother
• patrem mox domum rediturum esse = that the father will soon return home

So the whole sentence is built around renuntiat, and everything after it gives the content of what is being reported.

Matri is dative because it is the person to whom the message is given.

• mater = mother
• matri = to the mother

The verb renuntiare often takes a dative for the person receiving the report.

So:

• Tabellarius matri renuntiat = The messenger reports to the mother

Because Latin uses the accusative + infinitive construction for indirect statement.

After a verb like renuntiat (announces, reports), the subject of the reported statement goes into the accusative, not the nominative.

So instead of saying something like:

• pater mox domum redibit = the father will soon return home

Latin changes it into indirect statement:

• patrem mox domum rediturum esse = that the father will soon return home

Here, patrem is still the logical subject of rediturum esse, but grammatically it is accusative because of the construction.

It is an indirect statement (also called accusative and infinitive, or AcI).

This construction is very common after verbs of:

• saying
• thinking
• knowing
• hearing
• reporting

The pattern is:

• accusative subject
  • infinitive verb

Here:

• patrem = accusative subject
• rediturum esse = infinitive verb phrase

So the reported statement is not expressed with that + a finite verb, as in English, but with an accusative and infinitive.

Because in an indirect statement, Latin normally uses an infinitive, not a regular finite verb.

If this were a direct statement, you could have:

• Pater mox domum redibit. = Father will soon return home.

But after renuntiat, Latin changes that into indirect statement:

• patrem mox domum rediturum esse

Since the action is future relative to renuntiat, Latin uses the future infinitive.

Rediturum esse is the future active infinitive of redeo (to return).

It is made from:

• the future active participle: rediturus, -a, -um
• plus esse

Here it appears as rediturum esse because it agrees with patrem:

• masculine
• singular
• accusative

So:

• rediturum esse = to be about to return / to be going to return / in smoother English, will return

Because rediturum must agree with patrem.

Patrem is:

• masculine
• singular
• accusative

So the future participle must also be:

• masculine
• singular
• accusative

That gives rediturum.

If the subject were feminine, you would get redituram esse.
If plural masculine, redituros esse, and so on.

Because domum is one of the special Latin words that can express motion toward home without a preposition.

So:

• domum = homeward / home
• domi = at home
• domo = from home

This is an idiomatic Latin usage. English also does something similar when we say go home, not usually go to home.

Mox means soon.

It tells you when the returning will happen:

• patrem mox domum rediturum esse = that the father will soon return home

It modifies the action of returning.

In standard textbook Latin, the future infinitive is given as future participle + esse, so rediturum esse is the full form.

In some authors, especially in certain contexts, esse may be omitted when it is easily understood. But learners should treat rediturum esse as the normal complete form.

So in this sentence, esse helps clearly show that this is a future infinitive in indirect statement.

The dictionary form is renuntio, renuntiare, renuntiavi, renuntiatum.

Its basic meaning is to report, announce, bring word, or deliver a message.

In this sentence, renuntiat is:

• 3rd person singular
• present active indicative

So it means:

• he/she reports
• here: the messenger reports

Latin word order is more flexible because the endings show the grammatical roles.

So even though English strongly prefers:

• The messenger reports to the mother that the father will soon return home

Latin can arrange the words more freely:

• Tabellarius matri renuntiat patrem mox domum rediturum esse

This order is actually quite natural:

• subject first: Tabellarius
• recipient next: matri
• main verb: renuntiat
• then the indirect statement

Latin often places the infinitive phrase after the main verb, which is exactly what happens here.

The reported content by itself would be:

• Pater mox domum redibit. = Father will soon return home.

After renuntiat, Latin converts that into indirect statement:

• patrem mox domum rediturum esse

So the main changes are:

• pater → patrem
• redibit → rediturum esse

That is a very useful transformation to learn, because Latin does it all the time.