Socer dicit se oratorem non expectare, sed tantum propinquos; tamen omnes tacent, cum ille benigne loqui incipit.

Latin often uses indirect statement instead of a that-clause after verbs of saying, thinking, knowing, and perceiving.

So:

• dicit = he says
• se ... expectare = that he is expecting ...

In this construction:

• the subject of the indirect statement goes into the accusative: se
• the verb goes into the infinitive: expectare

So Socer dicit se oratorem non expectare literally means:

• The father-in-law says himself not to be expecting an orator

More natural English:

• The father-in-law says that he is not expecting an orator

Se refers back to the subject of the main verb, socer.

So:

• Socer dicit se ... expectare = The father-in-law says that he himself ... expects

This is a reflexive pronoun, and in indirect statement it usually points back to the subject of the main clause.

Because expectare takes a direct object, and direct objects are usually in the accusative.

So here:

• se = the subject of the infinitive expectare
• oratorem = the thing/person being expected

That means:

• se oratorem non expectare = that he is not expecting an orator

It is helpful to separate the two accusatives by function:

• se = accusative subject of the infinitive
• oratorem = accusative direct object of expectare

Because propinquos is another direct object of the understood verb expectare.

Latin is omitting the repeated verb:

• se oratorem non expectare, sed tantum propinquos
• literally: that he is not expecting an orator, but only relatives

You can mentally expand it as:

• se oratorem non expectare, sed tantum propinquos expectare

So propinquos is accusative for the same reason as oratorem.

Sed means but, and tantum means only.

So:

• non ... sed tantum ... = not ... but only ...

In this sentence:

• non expectare, sed tantum propinquos
• not to expect an orator, but only relatives

This is a very common Latin contrast pattern.

Here propinquos means relatives or kinsmen.

The adjective propinquus basically means near or close, and as a noun in the plural it often means relatives, that is, people who are close in family connection.

So in this sentence, tantum propinquos is best understood as:

• only relatives

Tamen means nevertheless, still, or however.

It signals a contrast with what came before. Even though the father-in-law says he is not expecting a formal speaker, something surprising follows:

• tamen omnes tacent
• nevertheless, everyone is silent

So tamen helps show that the second part is unexpected or contrasts with the first.

Because Latin often uses the plural omnes = all (people) where English may use either:

• all
• everyone
• everybody

Since omnes is plural, the verb is plural too:

• omnes tacent = all are silent / everyone is silent

Both are fine in English translation.

Because the subject is omnes, which is plural.

So:

• omnes = all people / everyone
• tacent = they are silent

If the subject were singular, you would expect tacet.

Here cum means when.

That is because it is followed by an indicative verb:

• cum ille ... incipit

A good basic rule is:

• cum + indicative often gives a straightforward time meaning: when
• cum + subjunctive often gives background, causal, or concessive meaning: when / since / although, depending on context

Since incipit is present indicative, cum here is best taken as a simple temporal when.

Because this is a simple temporal clause:

• cum ille benigne loqui incipit
• when he begins to speak kindly

Latin commonly uses:

• cum + indicative for a plain time clause
• cum + subjunctive for more descriptive background or circumstances

So the indicative here tells you the sentence is just stating when the silence happens.

Because loqui is the present infinitive of the deponent verb loquor (to speak), and it depends on incipit.

So:

• incipit loqui = he begins to speak

This is the normal construction after incipio.

A quick comparison:

• loquitur = he speaks / is speaking
• loqui = to speak

Since incipit needs an infinitive here, loqui is exactly what we expect.

A deponent verb has passive-looking forms but an active meaning.

So although loquor looks passive in some forms, it means:

• I speak, not I am spoken

Its infinitive is:

• loqui = to speak

That is why loqui may look unusual at first, but it is completely normal.

Benigne is an adverb, meaning kindly, graciously, or in a friendly way.

It modifies loqui:

• benigne loqui = to speak kindly

So ille benigne loqui incipit means:

• he begins to speak kindly

Ille literally means that man or that one, but it can also function like an emphatic he.

Depending on context, you might translate it as:

• that man
• he
• the man in question

In this sentence, it probably points to a specific person already understood from context, so either he or that man can work.

Grammatically, socer is the subject of dicit.

Inside the indirect statement, the subject of expectare is se, which refers back to socer.

So the structure is:

• main clause: Socer dicit
• indirect statement: se oratorem non expectare

In sense, the same person is involved, but Latin marks this carefully:

• socer = main-clause subject
• se = subject of the infinitive

Because Latin often leaves out a repeated word when it is easy to understand.

This is called ellipsis.

So:

• se oratorem non expectare, sed tantum propinquos means
• se oratorem non expectare, sed tantum propinquos expectare

English does this too:

• I want coffee, not tea instead of
• I want coffee, not I want tea

Latin is doing the same sort of thing here.

Yes. Orator can mean:

• speaker
• public speaker
• orator
• sometimes even advocate in a rhetorical or legal setting

In this sentence, oratorem probably suggests a formal speaker or orator, not just any person who talks.

That fits the contrast with propinquos well: he says he is expecting family members, not some official or polished public speaker.