Quamvis praecepta dura videantur, mater dicit exempla bona filios melius docere quam verba sola.

Because quamvis meaning although regularly introduces a concessive clause with the subjunctive in Latin.

So:

• quamvis ... videantur = although ... they may seem / although ... they seem

Here videantur is present subjunctive, 3rd person plural, because it goes with praecepta.

A learner might expect something more like the English indicative, but Latin commonly uses the subjunctive after quamvis even when the idea is perfectly real.

Because its subject is praecepta, which is neuter plural.

• praeceptum = a rule, instruction, precept
• praecepta = rules, instructions

Since praecepta is plural, the verb must also be plural:

• videatur = it seems
• videantur = they seem

Dura agrees with praecepta.

Latin adjectives must match the nouns they describe in:

• gender
• number
• case

Here:

• praecepta is neuter plural nominative
• so the adjective is also neuter plural nominative: dura

So praecepta dura means harsh rules or hard instructions.

Formally, yes: videantur is the present subjunctive passive of video.

But with video, the passive form often has the idiomatic meaning seem:

• videtur = he/she/it seems
• videntur = they seem
• videantur = they may seem / seem, in the subjunctive

So in this sentence, praecepta dura videantur does not mean the rules are seen as harsh in a literal visual sense. It means the rules seem harsh.

Mater is the subject of dicit.

So the main clause is:

• mater dicit = the mother says

The sentence has two parts:

1. Quamvis praecepta dura videantur = concessive clause
2. mater dicit exempla bona filios melius docere quam verba sola = main clause

So mater does not belong to the quamvis clause. It belongs to the main statement.

This is a classic Latin construction: indirect statement after a verb of saying, thinking, knowing, and so on.

After dicit, Latin often uses:

• accusative subject
  • infinitive verb

So:

• mater dicit exempla bona filios melius docere
• literally: the mother says good examples to teach children better
• natural English: the mother says that good examples teach children better

In this construction:

• exempla bona is the subject of the infinitive docere
• but because it is inside indirect statement, it becomes accusative, not nominative

Since exempla is neuter plural, nominative and accusative look the same, but it is functioning as an accusative here.

Because filios is the direct object of docere.

• docere = to teach
• someone teaches someone something, or teaches someone

Here:

• exempla bona = subject of docere in indirect statement
• filios = the children/sons, the object being taught

So:

• exempla bona filios docere = good examples teach children

Because it depends on dicit in an accusative-and-infinitive construction.

Latin often says:

• dicit + accusative + infinitive

where English would often use:

• says that + clause

So instead of writing something like exempla bona filios docent, Latin puts the reported statement into infinitive form:

• mater dicit exempla bona filios docere

This is one of the most important Latin sentence patterns to learn.

Here quam means than and introduces the second half of a comparison.

• melius = better
• quam = than
• verba sola = words alone

So the sense is:

• good examples teach children better than words alone

The comparison is between:

• exempla bona and
• verba sola

Both are understood as things that teach.

Melius is the comparative adverb meaning better.

It comes from bene = well.

So:

• bene docere = to teach well
• melius docere = to teach better

It modifies the verb docere, not a noun.

That is why it is an adverb, not an adjective.

Both verba sola and sola verba are possible in Latin.

• verba = words
• sola = alone, only

The adjective agrees with the noun:

• neuter plural nominative/accusative

Word order in Latin is flexible, so the choice often affects emphasis more than basic meaning.

• verba sola can feel like words alone
• sola verba can feel like only words

In this sentence, verba sola neatly emphasizes the contrast with exempla bona.

Not exactly.

• praecepta means instructions, rules, precepts
• verba means words

They are related in idea, but not identical.

The sentence first concedes that the rules/instructions may seem harsh, then says that good examples teach children better than words alone.

So the sentence contrasts spoken instruction with practical example, while also acknowledging that rules may seem severe.

It breaks down like this:

1. Quamvis praecepta dura videantur
   = Although the rules seem harsh

2. mater dicit
   = the mother says

3. exempla bona filios melius docere quam verba sola
   = indirect statement: that good examples teach children better than words alone

So the full structure is:

• concessive clause introduced by quamvis
• main clause
• accusative-and-infinitive indirect statement

That combination is very typical of intermediate Latin prose.