Pater dicit modum etiam in laetitia servandum esse.

to be

Breakdown of Pater dicit modum etiam in laetitia servandum esse.

• in: in
• pater: the father
• dicere: to say

Questions & Answers about Pater dicit modum etiam in laetitia servandum esse.

Why is the sentence built with dicit + infinitive instead of using a word like that?

Because Latin normally uses indirect statement after verbs of saying, thinking, knowing, and perceiving.

So instead of saying:

• Father says that ...

Latin says:

• Pater dicit ... esse

This pattern is called the accusative-and-infinitive construction.

In this sentence:

• Pater = the subject of the main verb, Father
• dicit = says
• modum ... servandum esse = the content of what he says

So Latin expresses that moderation must be preserved by using an infinitive phrase rather than a separate that-clause.

Why is modum in the accusative?

In an indirect statement, the subject of the infinitive is usually put in the accusative.

Here, modum is the thing being talked about in the reported statement:

• modum servandum esse = that moderation must be preserved

Even though in English we would think of moderation as the subject of must be preserved, Latin puts it in the accusative because it is the subject of the infinitive phrase inside indirect statement.

So:

• modum = accusative singular of modus
• it is the accusative subject of servandum esse