Puer veritatem matri dicere conatur, sed timet.

Because puer is the subject of the sentence: the boy is the one doing the actions.

• puer = the boy
• Nominative is the case typically used for the subject of a finite verb in Latin.

Here, the boy both tries and fears, so puer is the subject of both verbs.

Because veritatem is the direct object of dicere.

The verb dicere means to say/tell, and the thing being said is put in the accusative:

• veritas = truth
• veritatem = truth, as the direct object

So veritatem dicere means to tell the truth or more literally to say the truth.

Because matri is the indirect object: it tells you to whom the truth is being told.

• mater = mother
• matri = to/for the mother

Latin often uses the dative for the person receiving something, including speech:

• veritatem matri dicere = to tell the truth to his mother

Because it depends on conatur.

The verb conor, conari, conatus sum means to try, and in Latin it is commonly followed by an infinitive to show what someone is trying to do.

So:

• conatur = he tries
• dicere = to say / to tell

Together:

• dicere conatur = he tries to tell

This is very similar to English tries to tell.

Conatur comes from conor, which is a deponent verb.

A deponent verb:

• looks passive in form
• but has an active meaning

So although conatur has a passive-looking ending, it means:

• he tries, not he is tried

This is a very common thing for Latin learners to notice and ask about.

Latin often leaves out the subject when it is clear from context.

Since conatur and timet are both third person singular, and puer has already been stated, Latin does not need to repeat puer.

So:

• Puer ... conatur, sed timet.
• literally: The boy ... tries, but fears.
• naturally: The boy tries ..., but he is afraid.

The subject he is understood.

It can be understood either way depending on the context.

Literally, timet means:

• he fears

But in smoother English it is often translated as:

• he is afraid

Since no direct object is expressed here, English often prefers he is afraid.

Latin often leaves out possessive words like his, her, or their when the meaning is obvious from context.

So matri by itself means to the mother, but in context English may naturally translate it as:

• to his mother

because we assume the boy is trying to tell the truth to his mother.

Latin does not always state that explicitly.

Latin has freer word order than English because grammatical endings show each word’s role.

English depends heavily on word order:

• The boy tells the truth to his mother

Latin can move words around more easily because the endings tell us who is doing what:

• puer = subject
• veritatem = direct object
• matri = indirect object

So Puer veritatem matri dicere conatur is perfectly normal Latin, even though the order is not exactly English-like.

Yes, often they could.

For example, these would still mean basically the same thing:

• Puer matri veritatem dicere conatur, sed timet.
• Veritatem puer matri dicere conatur, sed timet.

The emphasis may shift slightly depending on word placement, but the case endings keep the grammar clear.

Latin word order is flexible, though not random.

Classical Latin does not have articles like English the and a/an.

So puer can mean:

• the boy
• a boy

Context tells you which is best.

Likewise:

• veritatem = the truth
• matri = to the mother

In this sentence, English naturally uses the boy and the truth.

From their endings and dictionary forms:

• conatur = present tense, he tries
• timet = present tense, he fears / is afraid

So the sentence describes what is happening now or generally:

• The boy is trying to tell the truth to his mother, but he is afraid or
• The boy tries to tell the truth to his mother, but he is afraid

English may use either simple present or progressive present depending on style.

It is:

• veritatem = the thing said
• matri = the person told
• dicere = to tell/say

So the pattern is essentially:

• [thing] [person in dative] dicere

That gives:

• veritatem matri dicere = to tell the truth to the mother

This is a useful pattern to remember with dicere.

Because sed means but and introduces the contrast with the first part of the sentence.

The sentence has two parts:

1. Puer veritatem matri dicere conatur = the boy tries to tell the truth to his mother
2. sed timet = but he is afraid

So sed simply links the two ideas in contrast.

Either is possible literally, but to tell is more natural here in English.

• dicere often means to say
• but with a person in the dative, English often prefers tell

So:

• veritatem matri dicere
• literally: to say the truth to the mother
• naturally: to tell the truth to his mother

That is why many translations use tell here.