Magistra dicit hoc verbum imperativum esse.

The main verb is dicit, from dicere, meaning to say.

It is:

• 3rd person singular
• present tense
• active voice
• indicative mood

So magistra dicit means the teacher says.

Magistra is the subject of dicit, so it is in the nominative case.

Latin usually puts the subject in the nominative, just as English uses the subject form in the teacher says.

After verbs like dicit, Latin very often uses an indirect statement construction.

In English, we say:

• The teacher says that this word is imperative.

In Latin, instead of using that plus a normal finite verb like est, Latin usually uses:

• an accusative subject
• plus an infinitive

So:

• hoc verbum ... esse = this word to be ...

That is why Latin has esse rather than est.

In this sentence, hoc verbum is in the accusative because it is the subject of the indirect statement.

That may feel strange to an English speaker, because in English the subject of is would stay in the normal subject position:

• this word is imperative

But Latin changes the subject of the reported statement into the accusative:

• hoc verbum imperativum esse

A useful rule is: after verbs like dico, Latin often uses accusative + infinitive.

Because verbum is a neuter noun, and in Latin the nominative and accusative singular are often identical for neuter nouns.

So:

• nominative singular: hoc verbum
• accusative singular: hoc verbum

The form is the same, but the function is different. Here it is accusative because of the indirect statement after dicit.

Hoc is the neuter singular form of the demonstrative hic, haec, hoc.

Since verbum is:

• neuter
• singular

the demonstrative must match it:

• hoc verbum = this word

For comparison:

• hic = masculine nominative singular
• hunc = masculine accusative singular
• hoc = neuter nominative or accusative singular

Because verbum is neuter, hoc is the correct form.

Imperativum agrees with verbum.

It is describing verbum, so it must match it in:

• gender: neuter
• number: singular
• case: accusative

So we get:

• verbum = neuter singular accusative
• imperativum = neuter singular accusative

This is standard Latin agreement.

Grammatically, it is best understood here as a predicate adjective with esse:

• hoc verbum imperativum esse = this word to be imperative

In practice, English may translate it more simply as an imperative, but in Latin it is still agreeing with verbum, which is why the adjective explanation is very helpful for learners.

There is no separate Latin word for that here.

English says:

• The teacher says that this word is imperative.

Latin usually expresses that idea by using the accusative-and-infinitive construction instead:

• hoc verbum imperativum esse

So the meaning of English that is built into the grammar, not shown by a separate word.

The word order is natural, but Latin is more flexible than English.

This sentence is arranged as:

• Magistra = subject
• dicit = main verb
• hoc verbum imperativum esse = indirect statement

That order is very clear and common. In particular, putting esse at the end is extremely normal in Latin. Latin could rearrange some of these words for emphasis, but the forms and syntax would still show the relationships.