Learning Esperanto from English
Created: 2020-11-01
Streak Extended: 2023-11-02
Timezone: UTC+7
Last update: 2024-06-18 06:32:47 GMT+3
Please, click right here to update your stats. Remember that your profile must be public for duome to be able to visualize the data.
adamo · dormas · el · en · estas · kaj · kun · la · laboras · loĝas · mi · multe · ne · sofia · venas · vi · virino · viro
18 words
As you learn Esperanto with this course, you are welcome to check the Tips and Notes for each Skill. They can help to answer any questions you may have.
Each letter has a unique and separate sound. For example: longa is pronounced "lon-ga". Both k and n are pronounced in knabo.
The emphasis in every word is always on the next-to-last syllable. For example: all 2-syllable words have the emphasis on the first syllable, as in viro, and all 3-syllable words have the emphasis on the middle syllable, as in knabino.
All action words (verbs) always end in -as, when talking about what is happening now. Examples: mi laboras (I work/I am working); mi estas (I am); vi dormas (you sleep/you are sleeping).
All words for a thing (or a person, an animal, a place, etc), end in -o. For example: libro (a book), viro (a man), hundo (a dog), Aŭstralio (Australia).
"The" is la in Esperanto. For example: la viro = the man.
"A" and "an" are not used in Esperanto. For example: viro = a man.
-in means female: viro = man, virino = woman; knabo = boy, knabino = girl; aktoro = actor, aktorino = actress.
The Esperanto alphabet has 28 letters. They include all the letters of the English alphabet, except for Q, W, X and Y. A few letters have accent marks.
If you are spelling an Esperanto word out loud, the name of each consonant is the sound that letter makes, followed by -o: B = bo, S = so etc. The name of each vowel is the sound that letter makes.
| Esperanto | English equivalent |
|---|---|
| a | ah |
| e | eh |
| i | ee |
| o | oh |
| u | oo |
| Esperanto | English equivalent | Esperanto example |
|---|---|---|
| c | pets | laca |
| j | yet | jes |
| Esperanto | English equivalent | Esperanto example |
|---|---|---|
| ĉ | chair | ĉu |
| ĝ | large | ĝi |
| ĵ | leisure / French je | aĵo |
| ŝ | shoe | ŝi |
| ŭ | wet | aŭ |
To obtain an Esperanto keyboard that will allow you to easily type these special characters, please refer to our forum by following the link below:
Esperanto keyboards: all systems go!
Duolingo recognizes the x-system, an alternative method of entering the accented Esperanto characters. To use the x-system, simply type the letter that requires the accent followed by an x:
| X-System | Letter |
|---|---|
| cx | ĉ |
| gx | ĝ |
| hx | ĥ |
| jx | ĵ |
| sx | ŝ |
| ux | ŭ |
Example: type sxangxo to spell ŝanĝo
Note that Duolingo will not convert accented characters entered via the x-system in the answer immediately when typed, but will recognize them when they are submitted for checking.
bonan matenon · bonan nokton · bonan tagon · bonan vesperon · bone · bonvenon · dankon · diras · fartas · jes · kiel · kiu · komencanto · nedankinde · saluton · ĝis la revido
16 words
In Esperanto, greetings, thanks, congratulations and other similar expressions usually end in -n. The simple reason for this will be covered in a future skill (Accusative) that explains the -n word ending.
Kiu? means "which person or thing?". When used in relation to a person, it usually translates to "who?".
Kiel? means "in what manner?", "how?".
People who speak Esperanto generally use their own names, but sometimes choose a name that is easier to pronounce in Esperanto, or an Esperanto nickname. Names for men in Esperanto generally end in -o, and nicknames in -ĉjo. A man named David could decide to use David, Davido, or the nickname Daĉjo. For a woman, Esperanto names can end in -o or -a, and nicknames end in -njo. A woman named Susan could use Susan, Suzano, Suzana, or the nickname Sunjo.
aŭ · bona · hodiaŭ · malbona · tago · tre · varma · ĉu
8 words
Note that the word "it" is not translated in the following expressions:
Pluvas. = (It) is raining.
Neĝas. = (It) is snowing.
Estas varma tago. = (It) is a warm day.
Ĉu introduces a yes/no question. In contrast to English, it is not necessary to invert the subject and verb:
| Statement | Question |
|---|---|
| La vetero estas varma. | Ĉu la vetero estas varma? |
| The weather is hot. | Is the weather hot? |
Questions in Esperanto must always be introduced by a question word such as ĉu, kiu (which), kiel (how) and other words that you will learn later. You cannot make a question simply by inverting the word order, or by adding a question mark:
Ĉu? = Really?
Ĉu ne? = Isn't it?
Vi laboras, ĉu ne? = You are working, aren't you?
Adjectives are words like happy, good, or big, which modify a noun. Remember that a noun always ends in -o in Esperanto. Adjectives, on the other hand, end in -a:
varma = hot/warm, malvarma = cold
bona = good, malbona = bad
In Esperanto, the adjective may be placed either before or after the noun, with no change in meaning. "Bona tago" and "tago bona" both mean "a good day" and both are correct. In practice, most people prefer "bona tago", with the adjective before the noun.
mal- is a prefix that means "the opposite of". Please note that mal- by itself does not mean bad (as it does in some other languages):
varma = warm/hot; malvarma = cold
bela = beautiful; malbela = ugly
helpi = to help; malhelpi = to hinder
lumo = light; mallumo = darkness
bona = good; malbona = bad
ambaŭ · dancas · du · ili · jen · kvar · ni · tri · unu · virinon
10 words
In English, when there is more than one of something, we usually add -s to form the plural (more than one), for example dogs, houses, etc. But not always! There are some exceptions, like children, men, mice. In Esperanto, there are no exceptions. You always add -j to form the plural:
| Esperanto | English | Esperanto Plural | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| hundo | a dog | hundoj | dogs |
| viro | a man | viroj | men |
| tago | a day | tagoj | days |
| knabino | a girl | knabinoj | girls |
In Esperanto the -j ending is also added to descriptive words (adjectives), such as bela (beautiful), and granda (big, large):
La viroj estas belaj.
The men are handsome.
La grandaj hundoj.
The big dogs.
La viro kaj la virino estas belaj.
(because belaj refers to both la viro and la virino)
The man and the woman are beautiful.
Note that "la" stays the same in front of plural nouns, and no endings are ever added to "la".
-oj is pronounced like the English oy, and the pronunciation of -aj is like the English eye.
| English | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| one | unu |
| two | du |
| three | tri |
| four | kvar |
Unlike adjectives and nouns, the cardinal numbers (one, two, three, etc.) do not take any endings:
Ni estas du virinoj. We are two women.
-ej is a suffix used to indicate a place:
kafo = coffee; kafejo = café (a place where you drink coffee, and other drinks.)
laboras = works; laborejo = workplace
loĝas = lives/inhabits; loĝejo = apartment (a place you inhabit)
Jen means "here is" or "here are" like the following:
Jen la hundo. = Here is the dog.
Jen la hundoj. = Here are the dogs.
Although less common, jen may be followed by estas, for example:
Jen estas la hundo. = Here is the dog.
Jen estas la hundoj. = Here are the dogs.
al · iras · li · ludas · malrapide · rapide · ĉar · ĝin · ŝi
9 words
Estas means am, is, or are. It is the present tense of the verb esti, to be. It is used in sentences like La nokto estas varma. (The night is hot.) or Adamo estas viro. (Adam is a man.) to assign a property or identity to someone or something.
It can also be used to state the existence of someone or something: Estas viro en la parko. (There is a man in the park.), or Estas nokto. (It is night.) From these examples we can see that when it is the first word in a sentence, Estas means "There is" or "It is":
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| La nokto estas varma. | The night is hot. |
| Estas viro en la parko. | There is a man in the park. |
| Estas varma nokto. | It is a hot night. |
Note: Do NOT say "Ĝi estas varma nokto". Ĝi (it) is not needed in this sentence.
Adverbs (usually -ly words in English) modify verbs and adjectives. In Esperanto they usually end in -e. Examples:
rapide = quickly, malrapide = slowly, bone = well
amas · havas · ilin · kisas · legas · lin · manĝas · min · nin · trinkas · vidas · vin · viron · ŝatas · ŝin
15 words
Take a look at this English sentence: "The woman kisses the little boy." How do you know who is kissing, and who is being kissed? In English, you know by the word order. The woman comes before the verb, so she is doing the kissing (or to use the grammatical term, she is the subject of the sentence). The little boy comes after the verb, so he's the one being kissed (and he is the grammatical object of the sentence).
In Esperanto, you can tell who is the subject and who is the object of the sentence by the endings. The subject of the sentence, i.e. the one who is doing the kissing, ends in -o . The object of the sentence, the one who is being kissed, has -n added after the -o . This means that you can always tell who or what is the subject, and who or what is the object, even if the sentence is switched around:
La virino kisas la malgrandan knabon.
The woman kisses the little boy.
La malgrandan knabon kisas la virino.
The woman kisses the little boy.
(Look for the -n ! This still means "The woman kisses the little boy", even though the word order has been changed.)
Note that the adjective (in this case malgranda) also takes the -n ending, the same as the noun it refers to: malgrandan knabon .
These sentences mean the same thing, and are all equally correct, though the word order alters the emphasis slightly. They all mean: "The woman kisses the small boy.":
La virino kisas la malgrandan knabon.
La malgrandan knabon kisas la virino.
Kisas la virino la malgrandan knabon.
Kisas la malgrandan knabon la virino.
La virino la malgrandan knabon kisas.
La malgrandan knabon la virino kisas.
The -n ending in Esperanto is called the accusative. Be aware that the accusative ending -n is never used with the verb estas: Li estas knabo. (He is a boy.)
If a word already ends in -j, the -n is added after it.
Mi manĝas bonajn kukojn.
I am eating good cakes.
Mi vidas la belajn virinojn.
I see the beautiful women.
Pronouns also get the -n ending. Note how regularly Esperanto pronouns change as compared to their English counterparts:
| Esperanto Subject | Esperanto Object | English Subject | English Object |
|---|---|---|---|
| mi | min | I | me |
| vi | vin | you | you |
| li | lin | he | him |
| ŝi | ŝin | she | her |
| ni | nin | we | us |
| ili | ilin | they | them |
When you use an expression like “Thanks” in English, you are actually shortening a full statement. As you have just learned, -n indicates the object of the sentence as you can see in the examples below:
Dankon = Mi donas al vi dankon.
Thanks = I give you thanks. ("thanks" is the object of the sentence).
Saluton! = Mi donas al vi saluton.
Hi!/Hello!/Greetings! = I give you greetings. ("greetings" is the object)
Feliĉan novan jaron! = Mi deziras al vi feliĉan novan jaron! Happy new year! = I wish you a happy new year! ("happy new year" is the object)
The noun following a preposition normally takes a simple -o ending (-oj in the plural). Other endings will be explained later. For example:
La virino estas en la kafejo.
The woman is in the café.
Ni iras al la parko.
We go to the park.
de · kio · londono · londonon
4 words
Possessive personal pronouns (also known as possessive adjectives) are words like "my" and "your" in English. Unlike in English, these words are completely regular in Esperanto. Just add -a to the end of a pronoun to turn it into its possessive form.
| English pronoun | English possessive | Esperanto pronoun | Esperanto possessive |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | my | mi | mia |
| you | your | vi | via |
| he | his | li | lia |
| she | her | ŝi | ŝia |
| it | its | ĝi | ĝia |
| we | our | ni | nia |
| they | their | ili | ilia |
Like other words ending in -a the possessives also take the -j (plural) and -n (accusative) ending when required.
Jen miaj gepatroj. Here are my parents.
Viaj ursoj trinkas mian bieron.
Your bears are drinking my beer.
If you want to express that something belongs to someone, the key word is de. It corresponds to the English word "of", but it is also used when English would put 's on a word instead.
Jen mapo de la universitato.
Here is a map of the university.
Vi trinkas la bieron de mia patro.
You are drinking my father's beer. (the beer of my father)
Li estas la avo de Sofia.
He is Sofia's grandfather. (the grandfather of Sofia)
Kio = what? or what thing?.
Tio = that or that thing.
Kio and tio never take the ending -j (plural), but do take the ending -n (accusative) if they refer to a direct object.
Kio estas tio?
What is that?
Kion vi manĝas?
What are you eating?
Ni manĝas tion.
We are eating that.
The following two ways (with kio or kiu) of asking for someone's name or address are equally correct:
Kio estas via [nomo/adreso]?
What is your [name/address]?
Kiu estas via [nomo/adreso]?
Which is your [name/address]?
Traditionally, amiko was used only for a male friend, and amikino for a female friend, and this usage is still common, so we are teaching it here. Recently, however, many Esperanto speakers use the same form amiko for a male or female friend.
Also, note that amiko and amikino are not equivalent to the English "boyfriend" and "girlfriend". To describe a romantic relationship, we use the terms koramiko and koramikino ("heart-friend").
iomete · kantas · ke · lernas · nek · nur · oni · sed
8 words
To name a language in Esperanto, the full expression is "la angla lingvo", "la franca lingvo" (the English language, the French language). However, people usually drop the word "lingvo" and just say "la angla" (English), "la franca" (French):
La itala estas bela lingvo.
Italian is a beautiful language.
Mi parolas la hispanan.
I speak Spanish.
Don't try this with Esperanto though! In theory you could say "la Esperanta lingvo", but in practice this form is never used. The language has always been known as Esperanto right from the start:
Oni is equivalent to "one" in English. It is used frequently in Esperanto, more often than the pronoun "one" is used in English. It is used to make general statements, as follows:
Oni diras, ke la angla estas malfacila lingvo.
One says that English is a difficult language.
People say that English is a difficult language.
Oni parolas Esperanton en la domo.
One speaks Esperanto in the house.
Esperanto is spoken in the house.
Subordinate clauses are often introduced by ke ("that"): Li diras, ke vi parolas Esperanton. In English, It is possible to leave out "that", and say "He says you speak Esperanto", instead of "He says that you speak Esperanto." However, in Esperanto ke must always be included. Note also that there is always a comma before ke, though the English translation may not have one.
Nek means both "neither" and "nor":
Mi parolas nek la francan nek la anglan.
I speak neither French nor English.
Li parolas nek Esperanton, nek la anglan.
He speaks neither Esperanto nor English.
Nek ni nek ili loĝas en Aŭstralio.
Neither we nor they live in Australia.
ankaŭ
1 words
Ankaŭ (also / too) is placed immediately before the word it refers to. It is never placed at the end of the phrase, as is common in English.
The adjective form of Esperanto is Esperanta. This can either be capitalized or not based on the preference of the author. Any word can be turned into an adjective by changing the ending to -a.
Some colors have their own names: blua (blue), verda (green), bruna (brown). Others are based on the colors of specific fruit or flowers, and so have the suffix -kolora :
In everyday use, these longer color names are often shortened: oranĝa, roza, viola.
havi · kune · ol · pli · pro · sen
6 words
The ending -i indicates the infinitive, for example ami (to love), trinki (to drink), kuiri (to cook). This is the neutral form found in a dictionary. It is often used to complement the verbs povas (can), volas (want), devas (must), and ŝatas (like). For example:
Note that in English, the word "to" is not used after the words "can" and "must", but this is an oddity of English, not Esperanto!
Nek means both "neither" and "nor". For example:
Nek la fromaĝo nek la pomo estas flava.
Neither the cheese nor the apple is yellow.
matenmanĝo = breakfast, the morning meal
tagmanĝo = lunch, the midday meal
vespermanĝo = dinner/supper, the evening meal.
kun = with
kune = together
kune kun = together with
Pli ol means "more than". Pli and ol express a comparison:
Lia pomo estas pli granda ol mia pomo.
His apple is bigger than my apple.
Li kuiras pli bone ol mi.
He cooks better than I (do).
Ĉu Sofia estas pli bela ol ŝi?
Is Sofia prettier than she (is)?
Kiel means "as" in the following kinds of sentences. Remember to add the accusative -n when kiel comes between two words that both function as direct objects:
Ni manĝas fragojn kiel deserton.
We eat strawberries as (a) dessert.
Pro and ĉar are similar, but are NOT interchangeable. Ĉar means because, while pro means because of, "due to", or "on account of":
Mi manĝas la fragojn, ĉar ili estas bongustaj.
I am eating the strawberries because they are tasty.
Pro mia granda apetito, mi manĝas du picojn.
Because of my big appetite, I am eating two pizzas.
Ĉar la vetero estas malbona, ni ne povas iri al restoracio. Because the weather is bad, we can't go to a restaurant.
Pro la malbona vetero, ni ne povas iri al restoracio.
Because of the bad weather, we cannot go to the restaurant.
denove · kie · por · tra
4 words
Esperanto has a two-part system for naming countries and their inhabitants. This two-part system developed early in the history of Esperanto, and was based on the idea of a division of the world into "Old World" and "New World". The assumption was that the "Old World" countries took their names from the people who lived there. In contrast, "New World" countries consisted mainly of immigrants and their descendants, so their inhabitants were named after the countries they lived in.
So, for some "Old World" countries, mainly in Europe and Asia, the Esperanto root form gives the name of the inhabitant, and the name of the country is formed from it. For other "New World" countries,mainly in the Americas, Africa and Oceania, the Esperanto root form gives the name of the country, and the name of the inhabitant is formed from it.
The first group takes the name of the country as the root form (e.g. Brazil-o, Kanad-o) and an inhabitant of that country is formed by adding -an (member) in front of the ending -o. For example:
Brazilanoj loĝas en Brazilo.
Brazilians live in Brazil.
Kanadanoj loĝas en Kanado.
Canadians live in Canada.
The second group takes the name of the inhabitant as the root form (e.g. ital-o, german-o) and its country name is formed by adding -uj in front of the ending -o. For example:
Italoj loĝas en Italujo.
Italians live in Italy.
Germanoj loĝas en Germanujo.
Germans live in Germany.
Many people prefer to use the ending -io for Group 2 names rather than the traditional ending -ujo. This is how we teach country names here on Duolingo:
| Traditional | Alternative |
|---|---|
| Italujo | Italio |
| Germanujo | Germanio |
Usono refers to the USA, while Ameriko refers to the entire American continent; so usonano is a US citizen, while amerikano is someone from North, Central, or South America.
The following table shows the rest of the accented letters, which are also called ĉapelitaj literoj (literally, "letters with hats").
| Esperanto | English equivalent | Esperanto example |
|---|---|---|
| ĥ | loch | ĉeĥa (Czech) |
| ĵ | pleasure | ĵaŭdo (Thursday) |
| ŭ | wet | aŭ (or) |
Note: ĥ is pronounced as a strongly aspirated "h", like the "ch" in the Scottish word "loch" (not pronounced "lock"), while ŭ is normally only used after a and e, in the combinations aŭ and eŭ.
-id is a suffix that refers to the young of an animal, or more rarely, of a plant.
kato (cat) + -id = katido (kitten)
hundo (dog) + -id = hundido (puppy)
Duo is the name given by Duolingo to its mascot, the green owl. It is not the word for owl in Esperanto. The Esperanto word for owl is strigo.
When it comes to animals, the root form of the animal (i.e. bovo) is gender neutral. Therefore the word bovo does not specify whether the animal is a bull or a cow. A bovino is specifically a cow. To make this unambiguously male, you need to add vir- in front of it, thus virbovo is a bull.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| bovo | ox, bull, or cow |
| bovino | cow (female) |
| virbovo | bull (male) |
da · iom · kiom · sur · tiom · tro
6 words
Kiom means "how much" or "how many."
How much do you eat?
Kiom vi manĝas?
How much do you love me?
Kiom vi amas min?
How much is in the cup?
Kiom estas en la taso?
When you ask "how much" or "how many" of a specific thing or things, the word "of" cannot be omitted as it is in English:
How much (of) bread do you eat?
Kiom da pano vi manĝas?
How many (of) apples do you eat?
Kiom da pomoj vi manĝas?
How much (of) tea is in the cup?
Kiom da teo estas en la taso?
Kiom is used with age, since age is a quantity (of years).
How old are you?
Kiom vi aĝas?
(Literally: How much you are-age?)
Mi aĝas 30 jarojn. OR Mi estas 30-jaraĝa.
Kiom da jaroj vi havas?
(Literally "How many years do you have?")
Mi havas 30 jarojn.*
.
To talk about meat dishes, add -aĵ to the name of the animal that the dish is made from. For example, to talk about "pork" (meat from a pig), you use the word for pig (porko) and add the suffix -aĵ : porkaĵo. To say "I am eating pork", you would say Mi manĝas porkaĵon. The same sentence without -aĵ , Mi manĝas porkon would mean "I am eating a pig."
| English Animal | Esperanto Animal | English Food | Esperanto Food |
|---|---|---|---|
| a cow | bovo | beef | bovaĵo |
| a pig | porko | pork | porkaĵo |
| a fish | fiŝo | fish | fiŝaĵo |
| a lamb | ŝafido | lamb | ŝafidaĵo |
So far we have learned several prepositions, including sur, por, sen, de, da and kun. Note that there is no accusative -n for nouns after prepositions except in specific instances, which will be introduced later.
Mi aĉetas viandon por mia hundo.
Mi ŝatas kafon kun sukero.
Mi iras sen vi.
Ol (than), is a conjunction (a connecting word like "and") that functions as a comparison word. Either a subject or an object can follow it, just as in English:
Ni amas ŝin pli ol ilin.
We love her more than [we love] them.
(The object ilin follows ol.)
Li amas la hundon pli ol ili amas ĝin.
He loves the dog more than they love it.
(The subject ili follows ol.)
| English | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| with | kun |
| together | kune (adverbial form) |
| together with | kune kun |
You may have noticed that all the question words start with ki-, except for ĉu. The letter or letters after ki- in the question word, i.e. the ending, indicates what kind of question it is.
| English question | in other words | Esperanto question |
|---|---|---|
| what | what thing | kio |
| where | what place | kie |
| how | what way | kiel |
| who | what specific person | kiu |
| which | what specific thing | kiu |
| how much | what quantity | kiom |
In this module we introduce the group of words ending in -om which relate to quantity.
| English question | in other words | Esperanto question |
|---|---|---|
| how much [of it] | what quantity | kiom |
| that much [of it] | that quantity | tiom |
| some [of it] | some quantity | iom |
| all [of it] | the whole quantity | ĉiom |
| none [of it] | no quantity | neniom |
All of these words in both tables are part of a group in Esperanto called "correlatives".
Kiom, tiom, iom, and ĉiom are followed by da, when they refer to quantities that are indefinite:
Kiom da akvo vi trinkas?
How much water are you drinking?
Li manĝas iom da kuko.
He eats some cake.
When referring to a specific item or quantity that is preceded by la, we use de:
Mi manĝas iom de la granda kuko.
I am eating some of the big cake.
Kiom de la sandviĉo li manĝas?
How much of the sandwich is he eating?
Note: Mi havas neniom. = I have none.
ofte · somero
2 words
Note that the word pantalono, which means "pants" (US) or "trousers" (UK) is singular in Esperanto. Thus pantalonoj refers to multiple pairs of pants.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| ŝtrumpo | stocking (up to the knee or higher) |
| ŝtrumpeto | sock (up to the ankle or calf) |
The suffix -et means "small", so a sock is a small stocking (ŝtrumpeto)!
Mojosa (cool) is the most popular slang term in Esperanto. It originates from modern-jun-stila (modern-young-stylish). Reading out the first letter of each word gives Mo-Jo-So, which becomes mojoso (coolness). The adjective form is mojosa.
kial · kiam · kien · kies · kion · pri · tie · ĉi · ĉu
9 words
As covered in Basics 2, Ĉu is used to introduce a question. For example:
In the middle of a sentence, ĉu means "whether". For example:
Ŝi demandas min, ĉu mi volas danci.
She asks me whether I want to dance.
(or: She asks me if I want to dance.)
Ŝi volas scii, ĉu mi parolas Esperanton.
She wants to know whether I speak Esperanto.
(or: She wants to know if I speak Esperanto.)
Note that in English we often use the word "if" interchangeably with "whether", as in the examples above, but in Esperanto this is not correct. We can never use the word "se" (if) in place of the word ĉu.
.
The correlatives ending in -u (kiu, tiu, etc.) usually come before a noun. Notice how they take -j and -n endings just like adjectives. For example:
Kiun libron vi legas?
Which book are you reading?
Mi volas legi tiujn librojn.
I want to read those books.
They appear without a noun only if the context makes what is being talked about clear. For example:
Jen kelkaj bonaj libroj. Kiun [libron] vi volas legi?
Here are some good books. Which [book] would you like to read?
Without other information, assume that kiu and tiu (and any other correlative ending in -u) refer to a person. For example:
Kiu venas? = Who is coming?
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kio | what |
| tio | that |
| kiu | which/who |
| tiu | that one/that person |
Kio estas tio? Tio estas libro.
What is that? That is a book.
Kiu estas via libro? Mia libro estas tiu.
Which is your book? My book is that one.
Kion vi volas? Mi volas tion.
What do you want? I want that.
Kiun vi volas? Mi volas tiun.
Which do you want? I want that one.
Kiujn vi volas? Mi volas tiujn.
Which ones do you want? I want those.
Should it be Kio estas via nomo? OR Kiu estas via nomo? Both forms are correct, though with different shades of meaning. With Kiu the question actually means "Which is your name?" (that is, which one out of an imagined list of names is yours?) With Kio the question simply means "What is your name?". The same consideration applies to similar questions, such as Kio/Kiu estas via adreso? and Kio/Kiu estas la dato?
Ĉi expresses close proximity when used immediately before or after ti- words. For example:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| tie | there |
| ĉi tie | here |
| tio | that |
| ĉi tio | this |
| tiu | that thing/that person |
| ĉi tiu | this thing/this person |
Note: Since ĉi can go before or after ti- words, these are also valid: tie ĉi, tiu ĉi, tio ĉi.
Adding -n to kie or tie shows movement towards a place. For example:
Kie vi estas? Mi estas ĉi tie.
Where are you? I am here.
Kien vi iras? Mi iras tien.
To where are you going? I am going to there.
Note that the "to" is usually dropped in English, so this would be translated as "Where are you going? I am going there." Due to this lack of distinction in English, many English speakers have trouble remembering to add -n to tie and kie when talking about movement towards a place.
Kiam means "when".
labori · se · tiel · ĉiam
4 words
Transitive verbs may take a direct object. For example:
Mi trinkas sukon. = I drink juice.
Ŝi legas libron. = She reads a book.
Sometimes, although the verb is transitive, the direct object is not expressed, so we may say Mi trinkas or Ŝi legas, without naming the thing that the person is drinking or reading.
Intransitive verbs never take a direct object. For example:
Mi sidas. = I am sitting. La knabino kuras. = The girl is running.
Please note that the rules concerning verbs and objects are stricter in Esperanto than in English.
In English, we know a lot of verbs that can be used both with and without a direct object. In English we can say "He closes the door" and "The door closes", using the same verb, although the meaning is different. In the first example, someone performs the action of closing the door, while in the second, the door becomes closed. In Esperanto, there are two words for this:
Li fermas la pordon. = He closes the door.
La pordo fermiĝas = The door closes.
In the same way, Esperanto distinguishes between komenci (to start to do something) and komenciĝi (to start happening):
La instruisto komencas la lecionon =The teacher starts the lesson.
La leciono komenciĝas. = The lesson is starting.
To use grammatical terms, fermi and komenci are transitive (take a direct object), while fermiĝi and komenciĝi are intransitive (cannot take a direct object).
Atendi can mean "to wait," "to wait for" or "to expect." For example:
Mi atendas. = I wait.
Mi atendas buson. = I wait for a bus.
Mi atendas profiton. = I am expecting a profit.
Note: Kion vi atendas? can mean either "What are you expecting?" or "What are you waiting for?" depending on the context.
The combination tiel...kiel means as...as:
Ĉu vi kantas tiel bone kiel ŝi?
Do you sing as well as she (does)?
Ŝi estas tiel bela, kiel mia fratino.
She is as pretty as my sister.
Most words relating to the family are male by default. The suffix -in (female) and the prefix ge- (both genders) can be added to change the meaning. For example:
| Gender | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|
| male | patro | father |
| female | patrino | mother |
| both | gepatroj | parents |
| Gender | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|
| male | frato | brother |
| female | fratino | sister |
| both | gefratoj | siblings |
| Gender | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|
| male | avo | grandfather |
| female | avino | grandmother |
| both | geavoj | grandparents |
The prefix pra- means long ago, in the distant past :
| Gender | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|
| male | praavo | great-grandfather |
| female | praavino | great-grandmother |
| both | prageavoj | great-grandparents |
Note also:
prahistorio = prehistory
prahomo = ancient man
Note that amiko and amikino are not equivalent to the English "boyfriend" and "girlfriend". To describe a romantic relationship, we use the terms koramiko and koramikino ("heart-friend").
The possessive pronoun sia means his own, her own, its own or their own. It always refers back to the subject.
Li vidas sian hundon.
He sees his [own] dog.
Li vidas lian hundon.
He sees his [someone else's] dog.
Ili nun estas en sia hejmo. They are now in their [own] home.
Ili nun estas en ilia hejmo. They are now in their [their friends'] home.
Note that sia is not used when the subject of the concerned clause is mi, ni, or vi. In these cases use its standard possessive pronoun:
Vi havas vian hundon.
You have your [own] dog.
Kiel means "as" in the following kinds of sentences. Remember to add the accusative -n when kiel comes between two words that both function as direct objects:
Ŝi traktas lin kiel fraton.
She treats him like a brother.
Li amas sian nevinon kiel filinon.
He loves his niece like a daughter.
How old are you?
Kiom vi aĝas?
(Literally: How much you are-age?)
Kiom is used with age, since age is a quantity (of years).
Note: An alternative way to ask someone's age is Kiom da jaroj vi havas? (Literally "How many years do you have?") .
per
1 words
Per means “by means of”, although the English translation may use “by” or “with”. Use this when mentioning tools or methods of transportation. For example:
Note that per is a preposition and so the following noun does not take the –n ending.
More examples:
Mi tranĉas la panon per tranĉilo.
I am cutting the bread with a knife.
Mi vojaĝis al Berlino per trajno.
I traveled to Berlin by train.
The word peco (piece) can be used with either da or de, creating slightly different meanings. With da we are emphasizing a quantity. With de we are emphasizing a quality:
Tio estas granda peco da pano.
That is a big piece of bread.
(Answers the question : How much bread?)
Ĉu tio estas peco de pano aŭ peco de kuko?
Is that a piece of bread or a piece of cake?
(What kind of piece of food is that?)
antaŭ · apud · ekster · for · hejme · hejmen · inter · malantaŭ · metas · sub · super · trans · ĉe
13 words
The most literal sense of a preposition is generally the correct word to use in Esperanto. Thus, one rides "in the train," not "on the train." For example:
antaŭ can mean "in front of" or "before", depending on the context. In conjunction with time it can mean "ago".
kontraŭ means "against", but also "at the cost/price of"; and can be used in the context of taking a medicine in order to treat an illness ("against" an illness).
In general, nouns following a preposition do not take the -n ending.
Ĉe is a versatile word that means "at", in the sense of at someone's home, or very close to something:
Ŝi sidas ĉe la tablo.
She is sitting at the table.
Ili loĝas ĉe mi. They live at my house. They live with me.
In addition to its use for the direct object, the -n ending is also used to show direction:
Mi parolas Esperanton pro vi.
I speak Esperanto because of you.
La donaco estas por vi.
The gift is for you.
Krom can mean either "except (for)" or "in addition to" depending on the context. For example:
Mi ŝatas ĉion, krom araneoj.
I like everything except spiders.
Krom araneoj, ŝi ankaŭ amas abelojn.
In addition to spiders, she also loves bees.
A lack of...
Manko de...
A lack of something is not considered a quantity, so one says manko de and never manko da.
For example:
A lack of money
Manko de mono
Verŝi means to pour a liquid such as water or oil, while ŝuti means to pour a non-liquid such as sand or sugar.
Tero is the word for the planet Earth. We omit the article la when we speak of it in that context:
Tero moviĝas ĉirkaŭ la suno.
(The) Earth moves around the sun.
La Tero is the term for the Earth we live on:
Kie ni vivos, kiam la Tero estos tro varma?
Where will we live, when the Earth is too hot?
For earth or soil that plants grow in, we use tero without capitalization:
En la tero kreskas plantoj.
Plants grow in the earth.
hieraŭ · morgaŭ · neĝo
3 words
The following endings change the tense of a verb:
-is = past
-os = future
| Past | Present | Future |
|---|---|---|
| La kato dormis. | La kato dormas. | La kato dormos. |
| The cat slept. | The cat sleeps. | The cat will sleep. |
There are no exceptions to this rule!
Note: In English, sometimes part of a sentence is expressed in the present tense, even though the event actually takes place in the future. In Esperanto, both parts of the sentence are in the future tense, since they happen then. For example:
Kion vi faros, kiam vi estos gepatroj?
What will you do when you are parents?
Ni iros al la drinkejo ĉi-vespere.
We are going to the bar tonight.
.
The preposition post means "after" and is usually followed by a noun:
post la matenmanĝo
after breakfast
post la oka horo
after eight o'clock
However, if you want to use post with a verb phrase, you have to use post kiam:
Post kiam ni matenmanĝis...
After we [had] had breakfast...
Post kiam mi laboris, mi dormis.
After I [had] worked, I slept.
In the same way, antaŭ ("before" or "in front of") is usually followed by a noun, while antaŭ ol (before) needs to be used before verbs or verb phrases.
Ŝi staras antaŭ la pordo.
She is standing in front of the door.
Sofia alvenis antaŭ la manĝo.
Sofia arrived before the meal.
Ni manĝis antaŭ ol li alvenis.
We ate before he arrived.
dek · dudek · kvardek · kvin · kvindek · malpli · minus · naŭ · ok · plej · sep · ses · tridek
13 words
For the past tense, use -is:
La arbo falas.
The tree is falling.
La arbo falis.
The tree fell.
Cardinal numbers such as one, two and three never take any endings in Esperanto.
Ordinal numbers such as first, second and third end in -a and are adjectives, so they must agree with the nouns they describe: la unua tago (the first day); la unuaj tagoj (the first days).
| Cardinal | Esperanto | Ordinal | Esperanto |
|---|---|---|---|
| one | unu | first | unua |
| two | du | second | dua |
| three | tri | third | tria |
| four | kvar | fourth | kvara |
| Numbers | Esperanto | How many words? |
|---|---|---|
| 11, 12 ... 19 | dek unu, dek du ... dek naŭ | two words |
| 20, 30 ... 90 | dudek, tridek ... naŭdek | one word |
| 200, 300 ... 900 | ducent, tricent ... naŭcent | one word |
| 2000, 3000 ... 9000 | du mil, tri mil ... naŭ mil | two words |
Du mil okdek kvar
Two thousand eighty-four (2084)
Kvincent sesdek tri mil
Five hundred sixty-three thousand (563 000)
| English | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| million | miliono |
| billion | miliardo |
Esperanto distinguishes between nombro and numero although both are translated as “number” in English.
Nombro is a number that signifies an amount or is used to express a mathematical relationship. For example:
la nombro de personoj
the number of people
4 estas pli granda nombro ol 3.
4 is a larger number than 3.
Numero is a number used for labelling items in a series:
la numero de la domo
the house number
telefonnumero
phone number
la lasta numero de la gazeto
the last number [edition] of the newspaper.
dum · poste · ĝis
3 words
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| dimanĉo | Sunday |
| dimanĉon | on Sunday (next Sunday; last Sunday) |
| dimanĉe | on Sundays, every Sunday. |
The -n ending refers to a specific occasion, while the -e ending usually describes a recurring event. However, not all Esperanto speakers make this distinction. Some people use the -e ending both for specific and recurring events, so dimanĉe may mean "on (a specific) Sunday" as well "on Sundays".
Mi alvenos sabaton.
I will arrive (on) Saturday.
Ni venos la dek-kvinan de oktobro.
We will come (on) the 15th of October.
La renkontiĝo okazas sabate.
The meeting happens on Saturdays / every Saturday.
La renkontiĝo okazos sabate.
The meeting will take place on Saturdays.
The meeting will take place on Saturday (this Saturday).
The -n ending is also used to express duration:
Mi restis unu horon (dum unu horo).
I stayed for one hour.
Li vojaĝos la tutan tagon (dum la tuta tago).
He will travel all day (the whole day).
Upper Case or Lower Case?
Months can either start with a lower case or capital letter: januaro, februaro; Januaro, Februaro. In this course, we have chosen to present the lowercase form.
Days of the week are always in lower case: lundo, mardo.
In many countries, a 24-hour clock is often used. In that system, all times after 12 noon are formed by adding 12 to the clock time, so "am" and "pm" are not needed:
| 12-hour clock system | 24-hour clock system |
|---|---|
| 11:00 am | 11:00 |
| 1:30 pm | 13:30 |
| 11:00 pm | 23:00 |
| 12 midnight | 24:00 |
For multi-word ordinal numbers, use hyphens between all the words in the number: ducent-okdek-sepa. We do this because the adjective ending -a relates to the entire number (287), not just to the 7 at the end.
La du-mil-okdek-kvara tago
The two thousand eighty-fourth day
It is also possible to write this as a single word la dumilokdekkvara tago but the hyphens make it easier to read.
Komenci means to start or begin something, and takes a direct object with an -n ending:
Komenciĝi includes the -iĝ affix and means to begin or start on its own. It does not take a direct object:
A more detailed explanation can be found in the notes for the module Verbs Present. You will learn more about the -iĝ affix in a module dedicated to both the -iĝ and the -ig affix.
nun
1 words
As mentioned in the Family lesson notes, nouns not relating to family have no base gender:
aktoro : a male or female actor
dentisto : a male or female dentist
In these cases, you may choose to explicitly make a noun feminine by adding -in :
aktorino = a female actor
dentistino = a female dentist
Be aware that in some Esperanto settings, when you use a term like aktoro or dancisto, people may assume that you are talking about a man. In this course, we will not routinely present the feminine form of professions. However your responses using the feminine form when appropriate will be accepted as correct.
Studento - a student enrolled in a college or university.
Lernanto - a learner, or anyone who is learning; a school pupil.
Fariĝi means "to become."
Ŝia filo fariĝis kuracisto.
Her son became a doctor.
Note that ŝia filo is the subject of the sentence, so of course it does not take the accusative -n ending. But why does kuracisto also not take the -n ending? Remember that the accusative -n is used when the subject is in some way acting on the object of the sentence. But in this sentence, the son is not acting on a doctor, he is becoming a doctor himself.
We will learn more about the -iĝ affix in later lessons.
Ŝajnas, ke ... means "It seems, that ..."
ankoraŭ · bonvolu · nepre
3 words
The -u ending is used when ordering / inviting someone else to do something -- or when telling or suggesting to ourselves what to do!
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Manĝu! | Eat! |
| Iru! | Go! |
| Ni iru! | Let's go! |
| Ni vidu! | Let's see! |
| Mi pensu! | Let me think! |
An imperative may be followed by an infinitive:
Bonvolu manĝi!
Please eat!
(NOT: Bonvolu manĝu. Do not use two imperatives one after the other in that way).
In questions, the -u ending can be translated as "shall" or "should":
Ĉu ni iru?
Shall we go?
Should we go?
Ĉu mi legu tiun libron?
Shall I read that book?
Should I read that book?
We also use the -u ending in subordinate phrases (clauses) starting with ke, when the verb in the preceding, main part of the sentence expresses a want, desire, demand or preference:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Mi volas, ke vi iru. | I want you to go. |
| Li preferas, ke mi ne donu al vi monon. | He prefers that I do not give you money. |
| Ŝi postulas, ke la infanoj studu. | She insists that the children study. |
In English the word "information" is always singular, but in Esperanto you will often find it in the plural.
An adjective takes the -a ending and has to agree in number with the noun it modifies:
An adjective that modifies an object also takes the -n (direct object) ending:
Mi manĝas belajn kukojn. = I eat beautiful cakes.
In summary, an adjective's ending must match the ending of the noun it modifies.
Word order in Esperanto can be flexible. Adjectives usually go before the noun, but they may sometimes be placed after the noun for special emphasis. Both of the following sentences are correct:
Ŝi estas bona instruisto.
Ŝi estas instruisto bona.
She is a good teacher.
In Esperanto, many (but not all) adjectives can be transformed into verbs, and are often used that way in conversations and in written texts. Here are a few of the adjectives that are frequently used in their verb forms:
Mi estas preta. = Mi pretas. = I am ready.
Li estas malsana. = Li malsanas. = He is sick.
Ŝi estas feliĉa. = Ŝi feliĉas. = She is happy.
Ni estas fieraj. = Ni fieras. = We are proud.
Ili estas lacaj. = Ili lacas. = They are tired.
The prefix mal- simply means “opposite”. It does not mean “bad” as in some romance languages.
granda = big, large
malgranda = small, little
fermi = to close
malfermi = to open
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kaj....kaj.... | both....and..... |
| nek....nek.... | neither....nor..... |
| aŭ....aŭ.... | either....or..... |
Correlatives ending in -ia refer to a kind, sort, or type of something. They are adjectives and take the -j and -n endings where needed:
Kiajn librojn vi ŝatas legi?
What kinds of books do you like to read?
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kia(j)(n) | what kind(s) of |
| tia(j)(n) | that/those kind(s) of |
| ia(j)(n) | some kind(s) of |
| ĉia(j)(n) | every kind of/all kinds of |
| nenia(n) | no kind of |
buson · enirejo · flankon · haltejo · haltejon · kilometrojn · vendejojn
7 words
Besides being used to indicate a direct object, the accusative ending -n is used to indicate quantities, measurements, prices, distances, duration etc.:
Li pezas cent tri kilogramojn.
He weighs 103 kg.
Ĉu vi povas kuri kvindek kilometrojn?
Can you run 50 km?
Ili marŝis dudek kilometrojn.
They walked twenty kilometers.
La monto estas mil metrojn alta.
The mountain is 1000 m. high.
La ŝtofo estas du metrojn longa.
The fabric is two meters long.
La fadeno estas dudek centimetrojn.
The thread is 20 cm. long.
Ŝi restis ĉe ni ses semajnojn.
She stayed with us (for) six weeks.
La libro kostas naŭ dolarojn.
The book costs nine dollars.
La domo kostas tricent mil eŭrojn.
The house costs three hundred thousand euros.
La muzeo estas du kilometrojn for de mia hejmo. The museum is 2 km. away from my home.
Sometimes instead of the accusative you can use a preposition such as dum (while) or je (indefinite meaning). After these prepositions the accusative is not needed:
Ŝi restis ĉe ni dum ses semajnoj.
She stayed with us for (during) six weeks.
La monto estas alta je mil metroj.
The mountain is 1000 meters high.
La muzeo estas for de mia hejmo je du kilometroj.
The museum is 2 km. away from my home.
English speakers are used to using non-metric weights and measures such as pounds and miles, but for speakers of other languages these quantities may be highly mysterious. For this reason, when speaking in Esperanto to non-English speakers it is best to use the metric system. The words for pounds, ounces, miles etc. do exist in Esperanto, but we do not teach them in this course. For the record, they are as follows, with approximate metric equivalents:
| Esperanto | English | Metric equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| funto | pound | approx. ½ kg |
| unco | ounce | 28 gm |
| mejlo | mile | approx. 1½ km |
| futo | foot | approx. 30 cm |
| colo | inch | approx. 2½ c |
The words for “gallon”, “pint” and “yard” are barely used or known in Esperanto. A yard is almost the same as a meter, so use the word metro instead, and for liquid measurements use litro (liter).
maljunulo · nekredeble
2 words
One of the greatest advantages of Esperanto is its flexible system of word particles that can be attached either in front of a word (prefixes) or at the end of a word (suffixes). There are 10 prefixes and 31 suffixes, which can be used to modify any word, as long as the result makes sense. When you finish the Affixes 3 module, you will know all of them! In this lesson, you'll review one prefix (mal-) and learn many suffixes:
| Affix | Definition | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| mal- | opposite | malfacila | difficult |
| -eg | big | bonega | excellent |
| -et | little | dormeti | to nap |
| -uj | container | sapujo | soapbox |
| -ej | place | lernejo | school |
| -ul | person | riĉulo | rich person |
| -il | tool | fotilo | camera |
| -ebl | possible | komprenebla | understandable |
| -estr | leader | laborestro | boss |
| -an | member | klubano | club member |
| -ar | group | arbaro | forest |
See how these affixes affect the word varma:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| varma | hot |
| varmega | very hot |
| varmeta | warm |
| malvarma | cold |
| malvarmega | ice cold |
| malvarmeta | cool |
Note that even though affixes in Esperanto are usually attached to a root word, they can also be used as roots themselves, for example:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| la ejo | the place |
| tiuj iloj | those tools |
| la mala direkto | the opposite direction |
| la etulo | the little person |
| ĉu eblas? | is it possible? |
akran · kontraŭ · krom · kvankam
4 words
Vendejo is a more general term than butiko as it can mean any place where anything is sold, including a wholesale warehouse. Butiko refers to a retail store. However they are often used interchangeably when referring to retail locations.
akurate · ekde · je · kioma · neniam · samtempe · tiam · ĵus
8 words
The preposition post means "after" and is usually followed by a noun:
post la matenmanĝo
after breakfast
post la oka horo
after eight o'clock
However, if you want to use post with a verb phrase, you have to use post kiam:
Post kiam ni matenmanĝis...
After we [had] had breakfast...
Post kiam mi laboris, mi dormis.
After I [had] worked, I slept.
In the same way, antaŭ ol needs to be used before verbs.
Ni manĝis, antaŭ ol li alvenis.
We ate before he arrived.
Fractions are made by adding the suffix -on to the base number. Fractions can be nouns (-o) or adjectives (-a) just like any other word in Esperanto. For example:
| Fraction | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| a half | duono |
| a third | triono |
| two thirds | du trionoj |
duona tago / duontago
a half day
Komenci means to start or begin something, and takes a direct object with an -n ending:
Komenciĝi includes the -iĝ affix and means to begin or start on its own. It does not take a direct object:
A more detailed explanation can be found in the notes for the module Verbs Present. You will learn more about the -iĝ affix in a module dedicated to both the -iĝ and the -ig affix.
All the question words we have learned so far start with ki-, which has the general meaning of "what":
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kiam | at what time, when |
| kio | what |
| kie | at what place, where |
| kiel | in what way, how |
| kiu | what specific person or thing, who or which |
| kiom | what amount, how much |
Similar words starting with ti- (general meaning of "that") are related to the question words:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| tiam | at that time, then |
| tio | that thing |
| tie | that place, there |
| tiel | in that way |
| tiu | that person or specific thing |
| tiom | that quantity, that much |
And words starting with ĉi- (general meaning of "all") are also related:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| ĉiam | at all times, always |
| ĉio | everything |
| ĉie | in all places, every place, everywhere |
| ĉiom | all of it, the whole amount |
All of these words (and more that we will learn as the course progresses) are part of a group of words in Esperanto called Correlatives (Eo: korelativoj). In Esperanto they are also called tabelvortoj because they can easily be arranged in one big table / chart.
In this module we learn iam (at any time, sometimes, ever) and neniam (at no time, never) to round out the words ending with -am that relate to time.
| Esperanto | English | English paraphrase |
|---|---|---|
| kiam | when | at what time |
| tiam | then | at that time |
| iam | sometime | at some/any time |
| ĉiam | always | at all times |
| neniam | never | at no time |
Finally, here's an overview of all the correlatives that you have learned so far:
| _ | -U | -O | -E | -EL | -AM | -OM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KI- | kiu | kio | kie | kiel | kiam | kiom |
| TI- | tiu | tio | tie | tiel | tiam | tiom |
| I- | iam | iom | ||||
| ĈI- | ĉio | ĉie | ĉiam | ĉiom | ||
| NENI- | neniam | neniom |
jam · mem
2 words
Combining two words to make a new word is very common in Esperanto. The vowel ending of the first word may be dropped, or it may be retained if that makes the word easier to pronounce:
| Eo | lito + tuko = litotuko (or: littuko) |
|---|---|
| En | bed + cloth = sheet |
| Eo | vesto + ŝranko= vestoŝranko |
|---|---|
| En | garment + cabinet/cupboard = clothes closet |
| Eo | lito + kovrilo= litkovrilo (or: litokovrilo) |
|---|---|
| En | bed + cover = bedspread |
| Eo | bano + tuko = bantuko |
|---|---|
| En | bath + cloth = towel |
Also note that a hyphen may be added:
Esperanto + klubo = Esperantoklubo or Esperanto-klubo.
Pur-ig-i means to clean (to make something clean), and comes from the adjective pura (clean). We will learn more about the affix -ig in future modules.
This is an example of a word with two affixes, and illustrates how easy and straightforward it is to build words in Esperanto:
Manĝ + -il + -aro =manĝilaro
Eat + tool + group = silverware
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| loĝi | to live, to reside, to dwell (in a specific place) |
| vivi | to live, to be alive (the state of being) |
English speakers usually use the verb “to live” for both meanings. However you should aim to make the distinction and use loĝi and vivi correctly in Esperanto, so that you will be reliably understood.
Mem means [my,your,his,her]-self, or [our, them]-selves.
It is used for emphasis:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| mi mem | I myself |
| vi mem | you yourself, you yourselves |
| li mem | he himself |
| ŝi mem | she herself |
| ni mem | we ourselves |
| ili mem | they themselves |
devus · estus · havus · povus · ŝatus
5 words
Use the verb ending -us to talk about non-real, imagined situations, or to make polite requests.
Non-real situations are the topic of "if...then" sentences, like this one:
Notice that Esperanto, unlike English, uses the -us form in both parts of the sentence - since both parts are non-real.
We also talk about non-real situations when we express our wish for something to be different from what/how it actually is:
The -us ending does not carry any temporal information. Thus, it is possible to use the -us ending for events in the past as well. When doing so, context usually indicates that we are talking about the past:
The -us form can also be used to express polite requests.
Remember to use the -n ending when talking about a movement towards a certain place. For example
Retpoŝto means email in general; the service that allows you to send and receive electronic messages. A message sent by retpoŝto (email) is called retmesaĝo (an email).
almenaŭ · apenaŭ · do · eĉ · kvazaŭ · malplej · plu · preskaŭ · reciproke · tamen
10 words
Adverbs typically end in -e. An adverb describes or modifies a verb. We have already seen several examples of adverbs:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| bone | well |
| nokte | nightly, at night |
| multe | a lot |
| rapide | rapidly, quickly, fast |
| malrapide | slowly |
| kune | along with |
| ofte | often |
Tio estas vere bela : That is truly beautiful.
After estas, when there is no subject of the sentence, use an adverb, not an adjective.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Hodiaŭ estas varme, kaj la suno brilas. | Today it is warm, and the sun is shining. |
| Estas bone, ke vi jam finis la lecionon. | It is good that you have already finished the lesson. |
arto · detaloj · detalojn · filmo · originala · poemon · poezion · sceno · scenon · voĉo · voĉojn
11 words
Some colors have their own names: blua (blue), verda (green), bruna (brown). Others are based on the colors of specific fruit or flowers, and require the suffix -kolora :
In everyday use, these longer color names are often shortened: oranĝa, roza, viola.
Poetry has been a very important part of the Esperanto literary tradition from the beginning. The following terms are the most commonly used:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| poezio | poetry |
| poemo | poem |
| poeto | poet |
Some Esperanto speakers use poemo to refer mainly to longer poems; those speakers use poeziaĵo or versaĵo to describe shorter poems.
stato
1 words
Tiel...kiel is a way of expressing a comparison:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Li estas tiel laca kiel mi. | He is as tired as I (am). |
| Ŝi estas tiel kontenta kiel ili. | She is as content as they (are). |
Please note that senti [to feel] in Esperanto is reflexive. For example:
ajn · ien · nenie · nenien · tien · ĉien
6 words
The -n ending is used to show direction, when describing movement toward something or some place. However, it is not used after the prepositions ĝis, al or el, as they already show direction:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Ni vojaĝu norden al Kanado! | Let's travel north to Canada! |
| Mi iras ien, sed kien? | I am going somewhere, but where? |
| La birdo flugis en la arbon. | The bird flew into the tree. |
| Ni iru al Londono! | Let's go to London! |
| Mi kuris de la lago al la montoj. | I ran from the lake to the mountains. |
| Mia filino marŝis ĝis la fino de la strato. | My daughter walked to the end of the street. |
Eniri and eliri are good examples of a common way to build new verbs in Esperanto: combine a preposition with an existing verb:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| en + iri = eniri | into + to go = to enter |
| el + iri = eliri | out of/from + to go = to exit |
Ajn means any or ever, and may be combined with various ki- and i- correlatives, usually for emphasis:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Mi volas iri ien. | I want to go somewhere. |
| Mi volas iri ien ajn. | I want to go anywhere at all. |
| Kien vi iros, mi iros. | Where you go, I will go. |
| Kien ajn vi iros, mi iros. | Wherever you go, I will go. |
Troviĝi means to be found or located. It comes from the verb trovi, to find. Because it contains the -iĝ affix, it is intransitive and does not take an object:
Ilia domo troviĝas en bela kvartalo.
Their house is located in a beautiful neighborhood.
Here is a chart which lists all the correlatives ending in -ie and -ien:
| Eo | English | Eo | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| kie | where, what place | kien | (to) where |
| tie | there, that place | tien | (to) there |
| ie | somewhere, some place | ien | (to) somewhere |
| ĉie | everywhere, all places | ĉien | (to) everywhere |
| nenie | nowhere, no place | nenien | (to) nowhere |
ies · nenies · ties · ĉies
4 words
-u words relate to a particular person or thing.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kiu | who; which |
| tiu | that (particular) person or thing |
| iu | someone, somebody; some particular thing |
| ĉiu | every person or every particular thing |
| neniu | no one, nobody; no particular thing |
-es words relate to possessing something.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kies | whose |
| ties | that person's |
| ies | someone's |
| ĉies | everyone's |
| nenies | no one's |
Ties does not have a one word translation in English and means "that person's" or " that one's". It can be used to clarify a sentence that might be ambiguous in English. "He went to a restaurant with his cousin and his wife." Whose wife was it, the cousin's or his own?
In English, many question words begin with wh-: what, where, why, who, which, when. In Esperanto, question words of this type always begin with ki-.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kia | what kind of |
| kial | why |
| kiam | at what time, when |
| kio | what |
| kie | at what place, where |
| kiel | in what way, how |
| kiu | what specific person or thing, who or which |
| kiom | what amount, how much |
| kies | whose |
Similar words starting with ti- (general meaning of "that") are related to the question words:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| tia | that kind of |
| tial | that's why |
| tiam | at that time, then |
| tio | that thing |
| tie | that place, there |
| tiel | in that way |
| tiu | that person or specific thing |
| tiom | that quantity, that much |
| ties | that one's |
Similar words starting with
i- (general meaning of some) are related too:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| ia | some kind of |
| ial | for some reason |
| iam | sometimes |
| io | something |
| ie | somewhere |
| iel | in some way |
| iu | someone, somebody |
| iom | some of it |
| ies | someone's, somebody's |
And similar words starting with ĉi- (general meaning of "all") are also related:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| ĉia | every kind of |
| ĉial | for every reason |
| ĉiam | at all times, always |
| ĉio | everything |
| ĉie | in all places, every place, everywhere |
| ĉiel | in every way |
| ĉiu | everyone, everybody |
| ĉiom | all of it, the whole amount |
| ĉies | everyone's, everybody's |
And words starting with neni- (general meaning of "none") are also related:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| nenia | no kind of |
| nenial | not for any reason |
| neniam | never |
| nenio | nothing |
| nenie | nowhere |
| neniel | in no way |
| neniu | noone, nobody |
| neniom | none of it |
| nenies | noone's, nobody's |
All of these words are part of a group of words in Esperanto called Correlatives (Eo: korelativoj). In Esperanto they are also called tabelvortoj because they can easily be arranged in one big table / chart.
The word haro means a single hair. Both haroj (hairs) and hararo (a group of hairs) can be used to describe the hair on one's head.
The -ig and -iĝ suffixes express a change of state. -ig means to cause a change, while -iĝ means to experience a change, or change from one state to another:
| Esperanto | English | |
|---|---|---|
| ruĝa | red | |
| ruĝigi | to make something red | |
| ruĝiĝi | to become red, to blush | |
| bela | beautiful | |
| beligi | to make something beautiful | |
| beliĝi | to become beautiful |
The above example show how the -ig and -iĝ suffixes can be used with adjectives. They can also be used with verbs:
| Esperanto | English | |
|---|---|---|
| manĝi | to eat | |
| manĝigi | to make someone eat, to feed | |
| morti | to die | |
| mortigi | to make someone die, to kill | |
| levi | to lift, to raise | |
| leviĝi | to rise | |
| veki | to wake someone up | |
| vekiĝi | to wake up |
As you can see in the examples above, verbs ending in -ig always require an object, while those ending in -iĝ never do. In grammatical terns, the -ig verbs are transitive, while the -iĝ verbs are intransitive.
Many verbs in English can be both transitive and intransitive, but this is not possible in Esperanto, in which verbs are normally either transitive or intransitive, but not both. In English, we can say "The girl closed the window" and "The window closed" using the same verb, even thought the meaning is slightly different: in the first sentence the girl is acting on the window, while in the second the window became closed by itself. Examples of English words that can be both transitive and intransitive include "to open", "to close", "to start", "to finish", "to change" and "to move". These verbs in Esperanto-- malfermi, fermi, komenci, fini, ŝangi, movi--are all transitive, and to make them intransitive you must add the suffix -iĝ:
| English | Transitive | Intransitive |
|---|---|---|
| to close | fermi | fermiĝi |
| to open | malfermi | malfermiĝi |
| to start,begin | komenci | komenciĝi |
| to finish,end | fini | finiĝi |
| to change | ŝanĝi | ŝanĝiĝi |
| to move | movi | moviĝi |
Here are some example sentences using words from the two charts above:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Ŝi ruĝiĝis. | She blushed. |
| Ŝi beligis mian vivon. | She made my life beautiful. |
| Ĉu vi manĝigis la infanojn? | Did you feed the children? |
| La suno leviĝas. | The sun is rising. |
| Mia hundo provas veki min, sed mi ne volas vekiĝi | My dog is trying to wake me up, but I don't want to wake up. |
| La knabo fermis la fenestron. | The boy closed the window. |
| La fenestro fermiĝis. | The window closed (by itself). |
| La studentoj komencis la lecionon. | The students started (doing) the lesson. |
| La leciono komenciĝas je la naŭa. | The lesson starts at 9 (o'clock). |
It is also possible to add the -iĝ ending to intransitive verbs like sidi (to sit, be sitting) and kuŝi (to lie, be lying down). In this setting the addition of -iĝ indicates a change of position to achieve a new state:
.
In Esperanto, just changing the word ending can turn it into a different part of speech, for instance from a verb into a noun or adjective, or from an adjective to a verb. For example:
alveni (to arrive) --> la alveno (the arrival)
ekzisti (to exist) -- > la ekzisto (the existence)
pensi (to think) --> la penso (the thought)
pluvi (to rain) --> pluva (rainy)
bela (beautiful) --> belas (is/are beautiful)
laca (tired) --> lacas (is/are tired)
hundo (a dog) -- > hunda (canine)
Esperanto is a very flexible language. Many speakers like to take advantage of this flexibility to make use of more adventurous constructions. For instance, instead of La urso estas granda (The bear is big), they might say: La urso grandas, changing estas granda into the verb grandas.
It is almost always possible to convert adjectives into verbs, for whatever word you are using. Try it, it's fun!
Pezi means to be of a certain weight:
Ŝi pezas 60 kilogramojn.
She weighs 60 kilograms.
Pesi means to weigh something else:
Ŝi pesis la fiŝon.
She weighed the fish.
To weigh (pesi) something, of course you need a pesilo (scale)!
aspektas · banas · banis · banos · brosas · brosi · brosis · buŝon · dentoj · doloro · doloron · dorso · duŝos · duŝu · fingron · genuoj · gorĝo · hararon · harojn · ial · kaŭzis · kombis · kruro · langon · lipojn · nazon · oreloj · orelon · piedo · razas · razis · spiras · spiru · tial · tusas · vizaĝo
36 words
We have already encountered the intransitive -iĝ affix when learning fariĝi and komenciĝi. Similarly, rompi means to break something, while rompiĝi means to become or get broken. And okupi means to occupy something, while okupiĝi means to become occupied.
| Esperanto | English | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| fari | to do or make | fariĝi | to become |
| komenci | to start something | komenciĝi | to begin |
| rompi | to break something | rompiĝi | to get broken |
| okupi | to occupy something | okupiĝi | to become occupied |
Kiel eble plej..... followed by an adverb is an expression similar to the English expression "as .... as possible."
For example:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kiel eble plej multe | as much as possible |
| kiel eble plej baldaŭ | as soon as possible |
| kiel eble plej ofte | as often as possible |
| kiel eble plej rapide | as rapidly/fast as possible |
In Esperanto, we use dolori al to say that a particular part of the body hurts a person. Because the person who is hurting is specified (dolori al mi, dolori al ŝi), a possessive marker is optional for the body part:
Doloras al mi la kapo. OR "La kapo doloras al mi. OR Doloras min la kapo. OR La kapo doloras min.
My head hurts. (Head is the subject)
La brako doloras al ŝi. OR La brako doloras ŝin.
Her arm hurts. (Arm is the subject).
It is also possible to say Mia kapo doloras. (My head hurts.) or Ŝia brako doloras. (Her arm hurts) as we do in English. In these cases the al mi or min is left out but understood.
| With preposition | With -n |
|---|---|
| La kapo doloras al mi | La kapo doloras min. |
| Ni iras al Londono | Ni iras Londonon. |
When talking about relatives, parts of one's body, a piece of one's clothing, an intimate possession, etc, la can take the place of a possessive pronoun; this usage is understood in the appropriate context—for example:
Here we learn another use for the word kontraŭ, previously taught in its primary meaning of "against" or "opposite". In a medical setting, kontraŭ can mean "for" as in "for the purpose of treating or curing":
Mi prenis medikamenton kontraŭ febro.
I took a medication for fever.
-ial words refer to causation.
| English | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| kial | why, for what reason |
| tial | that's why, for that reason |
| ial | for some reason |
| ĉial | for every reason |
| nenial | not for any reason |
Kialo means "reason", and comes from the correlative kial, why.
In English, we use special pronouns, the so-called reflexive pronouns, if the object of a phrase refers to the same person(s) as the subject.
Esperanto doesn't have reflexive pronouns for I/me, you or we/us.
| Non-reflexive | Reflexive |
|---|---|
| Ŝi amas min - She loves me | Mi amas min - I love myself |
| Ŝi amas nin - She loves us | Ni amas nin - We love ourselves |
| Ŝi amas vin - She loves you | Vi amas vin - You love yourself |
Esperanto only has one reflexive pronoun, si, used for he/him, she/her, and they/them.
Ŝi vidas sin ("She sees herself"; the person who is being seen is the same as the person who is seeing.) -Ŝi vidas ŝin ("She sees her"; the person being seen is not the same as the person who is seeing.)
Si is gender-neutral and works for both singular and plural.
| Non-reflexive | Reflexive |
|---|---|
| Ŝi amas ŝin - She loves her (another female person) | Ŝi amas sin - She loves herself |
| Li amas lin - He loves him (another male person) | Li amas sin - He loves himself |
| La suno levas ĝin- The sun lifts it (another object) | La suno sin levas - The sun rises ("lifts itself") |
| Ili amas ilin - They love them (another group of people) | Ili amas sin - They love themselves |
aventuro · berlino · bicikle · bicikloj · biciklos · des · dormosako · dormosakojn · dormosakon · eksterlande · esploru · flugis · foriri · gasti · gvidistoj · hungario · iel · ju · kubon · motorcikle · nederlando · neniel · novjorkon · pasporta servo · pasportojn · pekino · romo · togolando · toronto · turismo · turistoj · valizo · valizon · veturos · vidindaĵoj · vidindaĵon · ĉiutage
37 words
This is an expression equivalent to "the more... the more" or "the less...the less" in English. Ju always comes before des :
-iel words refer to "how" or "in what way".
| English | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| kiel | how, in what way |
| tiel | so, in that way |
| iel | in any way |
| ĉiel | in every way |
| neniel | in no way |
When paired, tiel and kiel can mean as...as:
Vi estas tiel inteligenta kiel ŝi.
You are as intelligent as she (is).
Tiel alone can also be used for emphasis, as "so":
Kial vi estas tiel kolera?
Why are you so angry?
You have now learned all of the correlatives! Here is a complete chart:
| KI- | TI- | I- | ĈI- | NENI- | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -A | KIA(J)(N) | TIA(J)(N) | IA(J)(N) | ĈIA(J)(N) | NENIA(J)(N) |
| -AL | KIAL | TIAL | IAL | ĈIAL | NENIAL |
| -AM | KIAM | TIAM | IAM | ĈIAM | NENIAM |
| -E | KIE | TIE | IE | ĈIE | NENIE |
| -EL | KIEL | TIEL | IEL | ĈIEL | NENIEL |
| -ES | KIES | TIES | IES | ĈIES | NENIES |
| -O | KIO(N) | TIO(N) | IO(N) | ĈIO(N) | NENIO(N) |
| -OM | KIOM | TIOM | IOM | ĈIOM | NENIOM |
| -U | KIU(J)(N) | TIU(J)(N) | IU(J)(N) | ĈIU(J)(N) | NENIU(N) |
Vojaĝi means to travel, and is a general term. Veturi is more specific, and means to travel by any means of transportation other than your own feet:
Note: Veturilo means vehicle. Any mobile machine that transports people or cargo is a veturilo, for example: aviadilo (aircraft), motorciklo (motorcycle), aŭto (car).
Trans means "across, on the far side." When movement is involved, don't forget to add -n to the noun. Compare these two examples:
Transiri means "to go across":
Kial la koko transiris la vojon?
Why did the chicken cross the road?
The traditional name for India in Esperanto is Hindujo/Hindio. However, current usage favors the name Barato, which is the Esperanto translation of "Bharat", one of the official names of the country. You will find all three forms of the country's name in Esperanto texts.
Vendejo is a more general term than butiko as it can mean any place where anything is sold, including a wholesale warehouse. Butiko refers to a retail store. However they are often used interchangeably when referring to retail locations.
Pasporta Servo is a hospitality network founded in 1966 and published by the Tutmonda Esperantista Junulara Organizo (TEJO). Free lodging is offered by over a thousand hosts in over 90 countries. Some Esperanto speakers use this network to travel cheaply while others use it to meet interesting people from around the world by hosting them in their own home. In 2009, this service made its transition online and can be found at www.pasportaservo.org.
aminda · amindaj · aĉa · aĉajn · aĉan · aĵo · aĵon · bedaŭrinda · bedaŭrindas · bedaŭrinde · domaĉo · ek · ekdormas · ekdormi · ekiri · eklaboros · eklaboru · emas · fidinda · fidindaj · geknaboj · hundaĉo · hundaĉon · indas · kalkulis · kalkulo · kalkulon · kantadis · kantadon · kantados · konstruaĵo · konstruaĵon · kreema · kreemaj · kreeme · kuiradis · laborema · laboremas · lerninda · lernindaj · ludema · ludemas · misa · misaŭdis · mise · miskalkulis · miskalkulo · miskomprenis · miskomprenu · pakaĵo · pakaĵon · paroladas · parolemaj · parolemas · ree · reen · relerni · relernis · revidi · revidis
60 words
Now let's add more affixes to the mix to multiply your vocabulary even further! You can add an affix to any Esperanto word as long as the result makes sense.
| Affix | Definition | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| ek- | start | ekdormi | to fall asleep |
| mis- | wrongly | miskompreni | to misunderstand |
| re- | again | relerni | to relearn |
| -aĉ | awful | domaĉo | a shack |
| -ad | continual | paroladi | to talk for a long time, continuously talk, keep talking |
| -aĵ | thing | manĝaĵo | a food |
| -em | inclination | ludema | playful |
| -ind | worthy | fidinda | trustworthy |
absolute · adiaŭ · adiaŭis · aliflanke · alivorte · amuziĝi · amuziĝis · amuziĝu · ceteraj · cetere · efektive · ekzemple · entute · evidente · fakte · ha · ho · inkluzive · ja · konsentite · kontraŭe · krome · maniero · manierojn · nome · nu · ordo · parenteze · pere · plejparte · prave · sekve · silento · silenton · surprizo · ve · verŝajne · ĉefe · ĝuste
39 words
Note that the word for bye in Esperanto is ĝis. This is short for ĝis la revido (goodbye), which literally means until the re-seeing. So, ĝis actually means until, but by itself means bye.
edukado · fremdaj · fremdan · imiti · inteligenta · inteligentaj · kajero · kajeron · klarigis · kopias · krajono · krajonojn · literojn · matematikajn · matematikon · medicinon · nivelo · notojn · prelego · prelegon · profesoroj · rimarkas · rimarkis · rimedojn · stulta · tekston · teston
27 words
Participles are used to create complex verb forms, to express ideas such as "I will have read" or "The wine has been drunk". Participles are formed from verbs. There are two categories of participles: active and passive. Each category has present, future and past tenses.
| Tense | Active participle ending | Passive participle ending |
|---|---|---|
| past | -int | -it |
| present | -ant | -at |
| future | -ont | -ot |
Notice that the vowels "i", "a" and "o" are the same ones used for past, present and future verb endings.
The present active participle is used for the English -ing ending: doing, seeing, believing, etc. Unlike English, though, the active participle in Esperanto also has past and future variants:
| Tense | Participle | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| present | dormanta | sleeping |
| past | dorminta | having slept |
| future | dormonta | about to sleep |
For example:
| Tense | Esperanto | "literal explanation" | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| present | La kato estas dormanta | The cat is sleeping. | |
| past | La kato estas dorminta | "The cat is having slept" | The cat has slept. |
| future | La kato estas dormonta | "The cat (at this present moment)is about to sleep" | The cat is about to sleep. |
Let's look at these two English sentences:
The owl ate the mouse.
The mouse was eaten by the owl.
They both say the same thing, but in the second sentence the mouse becomes the focus of interest, and also the subject of the verb, instead of the owl. To use the correct grammatical terms, the first sentence has an active verb, "ate", and the second verb has a passive verb "was eaten".
Here are examples of the use of passive participles:
| Tense | Esperanto | "literal translation" | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| present | La libro estas legata. | The book is being read. | |
| past | La libro estas legita | "The book is having been read" | The book has been read. |
| future | La libro estas legota | "The book is about to be read" | The book is about to be read. |
Participles end in -a like adjectives. In fact, they are used in the same way as adjectives, which means that they agree in number and case with the noun that they belong to:
Participles can be combined with past, present and future tenses of esti :
Examples with an active participle:
Li estas leganta la libron
He is (in the process of) reading the book.
Li estos leginta la libron.
(literally: He will be having read the book)
He will have read the book.
Li estas leginta la libron.
(literally: He is having read the book.)
He has read (has finished reading) the book.
Li estis leginta la libron.
(literally: He was having read the book)
He had read the book.
Examples with a passive participle:
La libro estos legita.
(literally: The book will be having been read.)
The book will have been read.
La libro estas legita.
(literally: The book is having been read.)
The book has been read.
La libro estis legita.
(literally: The book was having been read.)
The book had been read.
[Note: the "literal" translations above are presented as an aid to understanding and using participles; they are not colloquial English and are not acceptable translations of Esperanto sentences in this course].
An o-ending on a participle generally signifies a person:
la leganto - the reader
la skribanto - the writer
la gvidonto - the future guide
la elektito - the one who got elected
la konato - the one who is known, the acquaintance
When talking about relatives, parts of one's body, a piece of one's clothing, an intimate possession, etc, la can take the place of a possessive pronoun; this usage is understood in the appropriate context—for example:
aero · aeron · amaso · blovado · detruis · detruo · detruos · fajro · freŝa · freŝe · frostaj · froste · frosto · fulmo · fulmon · fulmotondro · fulmotondron · fumo · fumon · greno · grenon · kampo · kampon · konstanta · konstante · lago · lagon · lumo · lumojn · lumon · mallumo · maro · maron · naturon · nebulo · ombro · ombroj · oran · oron · pejzaĝo · pejzaĝon · peza · rikoltis · rikolto · rikoltos · sablo · supren · truo · truon · vento · volvis · vulkano · ŝtono · ŝtonojn · ŝtormo
55 words
aktiva · anoncis · atakis · atleto · batalu · forto · fortojn · frapu · futbalo · fuŝis · glita · golo · gratulis · haltu · intencas · konkurso · korbopilkojn · kriis · kvalito · maratono · naĝado · naĝis · ordonu · pasis · paŝis · paŝoj · paŝon · periodoj · piedbatos · piedpilkon · pilko · pilkon · poenton · premion · premis · puŝis · rajdi · rakedon · rando · rango · streĉu · tenison · tondis · trejniston · ĵetu
45 words
Iri means "to go"; it can be used whether the person is walking or using a vehicle. If you want to specifically emphasize that someone is walking, you can say piediri (literally, to go by foot). However, piediri is somewhat less common than "to walk" in English, as people tend to use the more general iri or something more specific, such as marŝi (to march), paŝi (to step), or promeni (to go for a walk).
| verb | primary meaning |
|---|---|
| iri | to go, to walk |
| marŝi | to march |
| paŝi | to step |
| piediri | to go by foot, to walk |
| promeni | to take a walk |
| KI- | TI- | I- | ĈI- | NENI- | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -A | KIA(J)(N) | TIA(J)(N) | IA(J)(N) | ĈIA(J)(N) | NENIA(J)(N) |
| -AL | KIAL | TIAL | IAL | ĈIAL | NENIAL |
| -AM | KIAM | TIAM | IAM | ĈIAM | NENIAM |
| -E | KIE | TIE | IE | ĈIE | NENIE |
| -EL | KIEL | TIEL | IEL | ĈIEL | NENIEL |
| -ES | KIES | TIES | IES | ĈIES | NENIES |
| -O | KIO(N) | TIO(N) | IO(N) | ĈIO(N) | NENIO(N) |
| -OM | KIOM | TIOM | IOM | ĈIOM | NENIOM |
| -U | KIU(J)(N) | TIU(J)(N) | IU(J)(N) | ĈIU(J)(N) | NENIU(J)(N) |
brakumas · brakumoj · brakumu · butikumado · butikumi · butikumu · disaj · disdonis · disdonos · dise · dissendas · dissendis · disvastigas · disvastigi · duobla · duobligis · duobligu · duope · duopo · eksa · eksaj · eksedzino · eksedzo · eksprezidanto · eksprezidantoj · eksprezidantojn · eroj · farenda · farendas · fi · fia · fipolitikisto · fipolitikistoj · fipolitikistojn · fiulo · fiuloj · glavingo · glavingon · glavo · glavon · ingo · ingon · kandelingo · kandelingoj · kandelingojn · kandelingon · kandelo · lernenda · lernende · neĝeroj · neĝerojn · oble · obligi · oblo · panerojn · prahomoj · sableroj · trioble · triobliĝis · umas · umo · umu · unuope
63 words
Congratulations! After completing this lesson, you'll know all of Esperanto's 10 prefixes and 31 suffixes! With a little practice, you'll be able to combine these affixes into words with ease, giving you the ability to express yourself with amazing versatility and flexibility.
| Affixes | Definition | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| dis- | dispersal | dissendi | broadcast, send out |
| eks- | former | eksedzo | ex-husband |
| fi- | wicked | fipolitikisto | corrupt politician |
| pra- | ancient | prahomo | caveman |
| -er | tiny piece of | panero | breadcrumb |
| -um | (no definite meaning) | brakumi | to hug |
| -end | must be done | lernenda | must be learned |
| -ing | holder for a single item | kandelingo | candlestick |
| -obl | multiplication | duobla | double |
| -op | group | triopo | trio |
ago · alternative · alternativon · amikeco · cirkonstanco · defendis · desegnis · diferencas · elektojn · energion · enkonduko · enkondukon · etoso · imagi · influas · kategoriojn · kazo · kontribuo · kulturon · leĝojn · obei · ordinara · principojn · sencon · speco · specon · sukceso · sukceson · ŝanco
29 words
English uses various suffixes to create abstract nouns which in Esperanto end in -eco:
The definite article la is often used before abstract nouns:
To depend on... is translated in Esperanto as dependi de (io) aŭ (iu).
The traditional name for India in Esperanto is Hindujo/Hindio. However, current usage favors the name Barato, which is the Esperanto translation of "Bharat", one of the official names of the country. You will find all three forms of the country's name in Esperanto texts.
Pasporta Servo is a hospitality network founded in 1966 and published by the Tutmonda Esperantista Junulara Organizo (TEJO). Free lodging is offered by over a thousand hosts in over 90 countries. Some Esperanto speakers use this network to travel cheaply while others use it to meet interesting people from around the world by hosting them in their own home. In 2009, this service made its transition online and can be found at www.pasportaservo.org.
skribante
1 words
Participles are used to create complex verb forms, to express ideas such as "I will have read" or "The wine has been drunk". Participles are formed from verbs. There are two categories of participles: active and passive. Each category has present, future and past tenses.
| Tense | Active participle ending | Passive participle ending |
|---|---|---|
| past | -int | -it |
| present | -ant | -at |
| future | -ont | -ot |
Notice that the vowels "i", "a" and "o" are the same ones used for past, present and future verb endings.
In this skill we focus on the active participles.
The present active participle is used for the English -ing ending: doing, seeing, believing, etc. Unlike English, though, the active participle in Esperanto also has past and future variants:
| Tense | Participle | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| present | dormanta | sleeping |
| past | dorminta | having slept |
| future | dormonta | about to sleep |
For example:
| Tense | Esperanto | "literal explanation" | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| present | La kato estas dormanta | The cat is sleeping. | |
| past | La kato estas dorminta | "The cat is having slept" | The cat has slept. |
| future | La kato estas dormonta | "The cat (at this present moment)is about to sleep" | The cat is about to sleep. |
Participles end in -a like adjectives. In fact, they are used in the same way as adjectives, which means that they agree in number and case with the noun that they belong to:
Participles can be combined with past, present and future tenses of esti :
Examples with an active participle:
Li estas leganta la libron
He is (in the process of) reading the book.
Li estos leginta la libron.
(literally: He will be having read the book)
He will have read the book.
Li estas leginta la libron.
(literally: He is having read the book.)
He has read (has finished reading) the book.
Li estis leginta la libron.
(literally: He was having read the book)
He had read the book.
[Note: the "literal" translations above are presented as an aid to understanding and using participles; they are not colloquial English and are not acceptable translations of Esperanto sentences in this course].
An o-ending on a participle generally signifies a person:
la leganto - the reader
la skribanto - the writer
la gvidonto - the future guide
In sentences that already contain information about the future or past, the -anto ending is ordinarily used:
Kiom da partoprenantoj ĉeestos la kongreson?
How many (future) participants will attend the congress?
Kiom da partoprenantoj estis en la ludo?
How many (previous) participants were in the game?
devintus = should have povintus = could have
aliro · aliron · aparatojn · artikolojn · artikolon · disko · diskutos · drato · gazetaro · informo · komento · komentos · kovertojn · novaĵo · poŝtmarko · poŝtmarkoj · presi · presis · punkton · raportos · reklamo · rekomendis · reton · televido · titolo · titolon
26 words
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| ĵurnalo | daily newspaper |
| gazeto | newspaper, magazine, review |
| revuo | magazine, periodical |
| gazetaro | the press |
| ĵurnalisto | journalist |
| presi | to print |
atentis · atenton · danĝeroj · ekzemplo · elirejo · fiksis · honoro · honoroj · interesojn · intereson · karaktero · karakterojn · konduto · kulpo · kulpon · limo · limon · listo · mezo · notu · praktikon · provon · reputacion · sekreton · spertojn · sperton · talento · talentojn
28 words
Lasi la hundon en la aŭto estas kruele. (NOT kruela)
To leave the dog in the car is cruel.
Lerni lingvon povas esti facile. (NOT facila) Learning a language can be easy.
Mi ŝatas manĝi fruktojn, inkluzive de oranĝoj.
I like to eat fruits, including oranges.
Kion vi opinias rilate al mi?
What is your opinion about me?
We have already encountered the intransitive -iĝ affix when learning fariĝi, komenciĝi, and a variety of other verbs. Similarly, rompi means to break something, while rompiĝi means to become or get broken. And okupi means to occupy something, while okupiĝi means to become occupied.
| Esperanto | English | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| fari | to do or make | fariĝi | to become |
| komenci | to start something | komenciĝi | to begin |
| rompi | to break something | rompiĝi | to get broken |
| okupi | to occupy something | okupiĝi | to become occupied |
Trinki means to drink any kind of liquid, including water, milk, coffee, wine or beer:
Mi preferas trinki akvon.
I prefer to drink water.
Ŝi ŝatas trinki glason da vino vespere. She likes to drink a glass of wine in the evening.
Drinki means to drink an alcohol-containing beverage to excess:
Li drinkis tro da biero, kaj malsaniĝis.
He drank too much beer, and got sick.*
uzata
1 words
Participles are used to create complex verb forms, to express ideas such as "I will have read" or "The wine has been drunk". Participles are formed from verbs. There are two categories of participles: active and passive. Each category has present, future and past tenses.
| Tense | Active participle ending | Passive participle ending |
|---|---|---|
| past | -int | -it |
| present | -ant | -at |
| future | -ont | -ot |
Notice that the vowels "i", "a" and "o" are the same ones used for past, present and future verb endings.
In this skill we focus on the passive participles.
Let's look at these two English sentences:
The owl ate the mouse.
The mouse was eaten by the owl.
They both say the same thing, but in the second sentence the mouse becomes the focus of interest, and also the subject of the verb, instead of the owl. To use the correct grammatical terms, the first sentence has an active verb, "ate", and the second verb has a passive verb "was eaten".
Here are examples of the use of passive participles:
| Tense | Esperanto | "literal translation" | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| present | La libro estas legata. | The book is being read. | |
| past | La libro estas legita | "The book is having been read" | The book has been read. |
| future | La libro estas legota | "The book is about to be read" | The book is about to be read. |
Participles end in -a like adjectives. In fact, they are used in the same way as adjectives, which means that they agree in number and case with the noun that they belong to:
La libro estas legita. = The book (literally: is having been read) has been read.
La libroj estas legitaj. = The books (literally: are having been read) have been read.
Mi trovis du rompitajn poŝtelefonojn. = I found two mobile phones (literally: having been broken) that had been broken / I found two broken mobile phones.
Participles can be combined with past, present and future tenses of esti:
Examples with a passive participle:
La libro estos legita.
(literally: The book will be having been read.)
The book will have been read.
La libro estas legita.
(literally: The book is having been read.)
The book has been read.
La libro estis legita.
(literally: The book was having been read.)
The book had been read.
[Note: the "literal" translations above are presented as an aid to understanding and using participles; they are not colloquial English and are not acceptable translations of Esperanto sentences in this course].
An o-ending on a participle generally signifies a person:
la elektito - the one who got elected
la konato - the one who is known, the acquaintance
ekskursoj · fotas · fotilon · fotu · okazo · promenos · ĉiujare
7 words
Duo is the name given by Duolingo to its mascot, the green owl. It is not the word for owl in Esperanto. The Esperanto word for owl is strigo.
The combination tiel...kiel means as...as:
Ĉu vi kantas tiel bone kiel ŝi?
Do you sing as well as she (does)?
Ŝi estas tiel bela, kiel mia fratino.
She is as pretty as my sister.
This is an expression equivalent to "the more... the more" or "the less...the less" in English. Ju always comes before des :
Kiel eble plej..... followed by an adverb is an expression similar to the English expression "as .... as possible."
For example:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kiel eble plej multe | as much as possible |
| kiel eble plej baldaŭ | as soon as possible |
| kiel eble plej ofte | as often as possible |
| kiel eble plej rapide | as rapidly/fast as possible |
The Esperanto suffix -ism- can be used to denote a world view, religion, ideology or system, similarly to the suffix "-ism" in English. It can be attached
either to a word that describes the worldview or system, as in naciismo (nationalism) and komunismo" (communism), derived from nacio (nation) and komuna (common, as in common ownership),
or to the name of the founder of that worldview or religion, as in budhismo (Buddhism) and marksismo (Marxism),
or to a word that denotes an adherent of that worldview or religion, as in kristanismo (Christianity), hinduismo (Hinduism), judismo (Judaism) and veganismo (veganism), which are derived from kristano (a Christian), hinduo (a Hindu), judo (a Jew) and vegano (a vegan).
If you are interested in exploring this topic in more detail, read on.
In 1. above, the adherent of that worldview is usually named by replacing the suffix -ism- by -ist-. So naciisto and komunisto mean a nationalist and a communist. However, as -ist- also denotes a profession, this can in some cases cause confusion, as in the word kapitalisto (a capitalist), which is usually used for a person in control of capital rather than for an adherent of capitalism. To clearly name an adherent in such a case, one can add the suffix -an- after -ism. So kapitalismano is a clear word for an adherent of capitalism, which should not be confused with a capitalist in the sense of a person in control of capital.
In 2. above, the adherent of that world view can be named by replacing -ism- by either -ist- or -an- (-ist- is generally prefered for adherents of a non-religious worldview named after a person, and -an- for adherents of a religion named after a person): So marksisto means "a Marxist", while a Buddhist can be called either budhano or budhisto (the first one is a little bit more common).
The word islamo (Islam) is the name of the religion, and the word of its adherents is formed using the suffix -an-: islamano (a Muslim). If you add the suffix -ism- to islamo, the resulting word islamismo is usually understood as a political ideology based on Islam, like the word "Islamism" in English.
Note that the word kristanismo just like budhismo derives from the title of the founder, but in the case of kristanismo, the name of the religion is based on the word kristano for an adherent of the religion (which in turn derives from the title Kristo (Christ) of the founder), whereas in the case of budhismo it is directly derived from the title Budho (Buddha) of the founder.
The Esperanto suffix -ism- can be used to denote a world view, religion, ideology or political system, similarly to the suffix "-ism" in English.
The suffix -an- is used to indicate the follower of a religion. However, this does not apply to judo (a Jew) and hinduo (a Hindu), since judismo and hiduismo are derived from the term for their followers, rather than the other way around.
| Religion | Follower |
|---|---|
| budhismo | budhano |
| kristanismo | kristano |
| islamo | islamano |
| judismo | judo |
| hinduismo | hinduo |
Note that the word islamo (Islam) is the name of the religion, and the word for its followers is formed using the suffix -an-: islamano (a Muslim). If you add the suffix -ism- to islamo, the resulting word islamismo is usually understood as a political ideology based on Islam, like the word "Islamism" in English. Its followers are called islamistoj (islamists)
There is no exact equivalent of the word po in English, which means approximately "at the rate of". It is used to indicate that a certain amount has been given to each of several recipients, or given at regular intervals over a certain period of time. Po introduces the amount that is given each time or to each recipient, not the total amount to be distributed. The word po will always be followed by some expression of quantity. In English translations of sentences with po, you will often find the word "each":
Mi donis al la infanoj po du pomoj.
I gave two apples to each child.
I gave each child two apples.
La amikoj trinkis po du glasoj da vino.
The friends each drank two glasses of wine.
The friends drank two glasses of wine each.
Po can also be used for prices.
La pomoj kostas po du dolaroj.
The apples cost two dollars each.
Note that po always refers to the quantity being distributed, and NOT to the number of people or the period of time among whom or which they are distributed.
La tri virinoj kantis po kvar kantoj.
The three women sang four songs each.
(i.e. each woman sang four songs, and a total of 3 x 4=12 songs were sung.)
La kvar pomoj kostas po du dolaroj.
The four apples cost two dollars each.
(i.e. each apple costs two dollars, for a total cost of 4 x 2= 8 dollars.)
Po is a preposition, and so is not followed by an accusative, the same as al, de or da. However, these days many people treat po as an adverb and add the accusative ending where appropriate. Both ways are considered acceptable:
Mi donis al la infanoj po du pomojn.
Mi donis al la infanoj po du pomoj.
I gave the children two apples each.
I gave each child two apples.
Ili trinkas po unu glason.
They drink one glass each.
Esperanto is a flexible language
The great thing about Esperanto is that it’s so flexible. Nouns can become verbs, verbs can become adjectives, and so on. In this way you can create new words to elegantly express a concept which might require an entire phrase in English. As you have already seen, the adverb ending -e is particularly productive in Esperanto. Here are some examples:
| Basic word | Meaning | Variations |
|---|---|---|
| hejmo | home | hejme: at home |
| dimanĉo | Sunday | dimanĉe: on Sundays, on Sunday |
| biciklo | bicycle | bicikle: by bike |
| ĉevalo | horse | ĉevale: by horse, on horseback |
| danki | to thank | danke: thankfully, gratefully |
| voli | to want, wish | nevole: unwillingly; kontraŭvole: against his/her will |
Here are some examples with different parts of speech: adjectives can be turned into verbs, verbs into adjectives, nouns into verbs and adjectives, to name just a few of the possibilities.
| Basic word | Meaning | Variations |
|---|---|---|
| rapida | quick, fast | rapidi: to hurry |
| malfrua | late | malfrui: to be late |
| mateno | morning | matena: morning (as an adjective), |
| danki | to thank | danka: thankful; danke: thankfully |
| krei | to create | kreo: creation; krea: creative |
The two or more parts of a compound word may be connected with a hyphen, if desired; they are usually written as a single word.
Word formation in Esperanto by combination:
Noun + Verb
voĉo + doni → “voĉdoni” (“to vote”, not “to give voice”)
piedo + iri → “piediri” (“to walk”, “to go by foot”)
kapo + jesi → “kapjesi” (“to consent by nodding the head”)
scii + volo → “scivolo” (“curiosity about something”) → “scivola” (“curious”)
Adjective + Noun
bona + koro → “bonkoro” (not used) → “bonkora” (“good-hearted”, “kind”)
bona + deziro → “bondeziro” (“a wish for someone’s happiness”)
rapida + vagonaro → “rapidvagonaro” (“high-speed train”)
nova + jaro → “novjaro” (“New Year”)
Noun + Noun
domo + pordo → “dompordo” (“door of house”, “entry”)
vino + botelo → “vinbotelo” (“wine bottle”)
floro + poto → “florpoto” (“flowerpot”)
poŝto + marko → “poŝtmarko” (“stamp”)
Note that combining an adjective with a noun or a verb with a noun yields a word with a new meaning. Combining a noun with a noun yields a word that describes the relationship between the two nouns.
You've reached the final skill of Duolingo's Esperanto course! For ideas on how to continue using the language after finishing this course, please see:
Finished the Esperanto tree, now what?
In Esperanto, many (but not all) adjectives can be transformed into verbs, and are often used that way in conversations and in written texts. Here are a few of the adjectives that are frequently used in their verb forms:
Mi estas preta. = Mi pretas. = I am ready.
Li estas malsana. = Li malsanas. = He is sick.
Ŝi estas feliĉa. = Ŝi feliĉas. = She is happy.
Ni estas fieraj. = Ni fieras. = We are proud.
Ili estas lacaj. = Ili lacas. = They are tired.
Mi estas certa = Mi certas = I am sure.
In this skill we introduce additional words that fit this pattern and that are frequently used in conversation.
As you learn Esperanto with this course, you are welcome to check the Tips and Notes for each Skill. They can help to answer any questions you may have.
Each letter has a unique and separate sound. For example: longa is pronounced "lon-ga". Both k and n are pronounced in knabo.
The emphasis in every word is always on the next-to-last syllable. For example: all 2-syllable words have the emphasis on the first syllable, as in viro, and all 3-syllable words have the emphasis on the middle syllable, as in knabino.
All action words (verbs) always end in -as, when talking about what is happening now. Examples: mi laboras (I work/I am working); mi estas (I am); vi dormas (you sleep/you are sleeping).
All words for a thing (or a person, an animal, a place, etc), end in -o. For example: libro (a book), viro (a man), hundo (a dog), Aŭstralio (Australia).
"The" is la in Esperanto. For example: la viro = the man.
"A" and "an" are not used in Esperanto. For example: viro = a man.
-in means female: viro = man, virino = woman; knabo = boy, knabino = girl; aktoro = actor, aktorino = actress.
The Esperanto alphabet has 28 letters. They include all the letters of the English alphabet, except for Q, W, X and Y. A few letters have accent marks.
If you are spelling an Esperanto word out loud, the name of each consonant is the sound that letter makes, followed by -o: B = bo, S = so etc. The name of each vowel is the sound that letter makes.
| Esperanto | English equivalent |
|---|---|
| a | ah |
| e | eh |
| i | ee |
| o | oh |
| u | oo |
| Esperanto | English equivalent | Esperanto example |
|---|---|---|
| c | pets | laca |
| j | yet | jes |
| Esperanto | English equivalent | Esperanto example |
|---|---|---|
| ĉ | chair | ĉu |
| ĝ | large | ĝi |
| ĵ | leisure / French je | aĵo |
| ŝ | shoe | ŝi |
| ŭ | wet | aŭ |
To obtain an Esperanto keyboard that will allow you to easily type these special characters, please refer to our forum by following the link below:
Esperanto keyboards: all systems go!
Duolingo recognizes the x-system, an alternative method of entering the accented Esperanto characters. To use the x-system, simply type the letter that requires the accent followed by an x:
| X-System | Letter |
|---|---|
| cx | ĉ |
| gx | ĝ |
| hx | ĥ |
| jx | ĵ |
| sx | ŝ |
| ux | ŭ |
Example: type sxangxo to spell ŝanĝo
Note that Duolingo will not convert accented characters entered via the x-system in the answer immediately when typed, but will recognize them when they are submitted for checking.
In Esperanto, greetings, thanks, congratulations and other similar expressions usually end in -n. The simple reason for this will be covered in a future skill (Accusative) that explains the -n word ending.
Kiu? means "which person or thing?". When used in relation to a person, it usually translates to "who?".
Kiel? means "in what manner?", "how?".
People who speak Esperanto generally use their own names, but sometimes choose a name that is easier to pronounce in Esperanto, or an Esperanto nickname. Names for men in Esperanto generally end in -o, and nicknames in -ĉjo. A man named David could decide to use David, Davido, or the nickname Daĉjo. For a woman, Esperanto names can end in -o or -a, and nicknames end in -njo. A woman named Susan could use Susan, Suzano, Suzana, or the nickname Sunjo.
Note that the word "it" is not translated in the following expressions:
Pluvas. = (It) is raining.
Neĝas. = (It) is snowing.
Estas varma tago. = (It) is a warm day.
Ĉu introduces a yes/no question. In contrast to English, it is not necessary to invert the subject and verb:
| Statement | Question |
|---|---|
| La vetero estas varma. | Ĉu la vetero estas varma? |
| The weather is hot. | Is the weather hot? |
Questions in Esperanto must always be introduced by a question word such as ĉu, kiu (which), kiel (how) and other words that you will learn later. You cannot make a question simply by inverting the word order, or by adding a question mark:
Ĉu? = Really?
Ĉu ne? = Isn't it?
Vi laboras, ĉu ne? = You are working, aren't you?
Adjectives are words like happy, good, or big, which modify a noun. Remember that a noun always ends in -o in Esperanto. Adjectives, on the other hand, end in -a:
varma = hot/warm, malvarma = cold
bona = good, malbona = bad
In Esperanto, the adjective may be placed either before or after the noun, with no change in meaning. "Bona tago" and "tago bona" both mean "a good day" and both are correct. In practice, most people prefer "bona tago", with the adjective before the noun.
mal- is a prefix that means "the opposite of". Please note that mal- by itself does not mean bad (as it does in some other languages):
varma = warm/hot; malvarma = cold
bela = beautiful; malbela = ugly
helpi = to help; malhelpi = to hinder
lumo = light; mallumo = darkness
bona = good; malbona = bad
In English, when there is more than one of something, we usually add -s to form the plural (more than one), for example dogs, houses, etc. But not always! There are some exceptions, like children, men, mice. In Esperanto, there are no exceptions. You always add -j to form the plural:
| Esperanto | English | Esperanto Plural | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| hundo | a dog | hundoj | dogs |
| viro | a man | viroj | men |
| tago | a day | tagoj | days |
| knabino | a girl | knabinoj | girls |
In Esperanto the -j ending is also added to descriptive words (adjectives), such as bela (beautiful), and granda (big, large):
La viroj estas belaj.
The men are handsome.
La grandaj hundoj.
The big dogs.
La viro kaj la virino estas belaj.
(because belaj refers to both la viro and la virino)
The man and the woman are beautiful.
Note that "la" stays the same in front of plural nouns, and no endings are ever added to "la".
-oj is pronounced like the English oy, and the pronunciation of -aj is like the English eye.
| English | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| one | unu |
| two | du |
| three | tri |
| four | kvar |
Unlike adjectives and nouns, the cardinal numbers (one, two, three, etc.) do not take any endings:
Ni estas du virinoj. We are two women.
-ej is a suffix used to indicate a place:
kafo = coffee; kafejo = café (a place where you drink coffee, and other drinks.)
laboras = works; laborejo = workplace
loĝas = lives/inhabits; loĝejo = apartment (a place you inhabit)
Jen means "here is" or "here are" like the following:
Jen la hundo. = Here is the dog.
Jen la hundoj. = Here are the dogs.
Although less common, jen may be followed by estas, for example:
Jen estas la hundo. = Here is the dog.
Jen estas la hundoj. = Here are the dogs.
Estas means am, is, or are. It is the present tense of the verb esti, to be. It is used in sentences like La nokto estas varma. (The night is hot.) or Adamo estas viro. (Adam is a man.) to assign a property or identity to someone or something.
It can also be used to state the existence of someone or something: Estas viro en la parko. (There is a man in the park.), or Estas nokto. (It is night.) From these examples we can see that when it is the first word in a sentence, Estas means "There is" or "It is":
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| La nokto estas varma. | The night is hot. |
| Estas viro en la parko. | There is a man in the park. |
| Estas varma nokto. | It is a hot night. |
Note: Do NOT say "Ĝi estas varma nokto". Ĝi (it) is not needed in this sentence.
Adverbs (usually -ly words in English) modify verbs and adjectives. In Esperanto they usually end in -e. Examples:
rapide = quickly, malrapide = slowly, bone = well
Take a look at this English sentence: "The woman kisses the little boy." How do you know who is kissing, and who is being kissed? In English, you know by the word order. The woman comes before the verb, so she is doing the kissing (or to use the grammatical term, she is the subject of the sentence). The little boy comes after the verb, so he's the one being kissed (and he is the grammatical object of the sentence).
In Esperanto, you can tell who is the subject and who is the object of the sentence by the endings. The subject of the sentence, i.e. the one who is doing the kissing, ends in -o . The object of the sentence, the one who is being kissed, has -n added after the -o . This means that you can always tell who or what is the subject, and who or what is the object, even if the sentence is switched around:
La virino kisas la malgrandan knabon.
The woman kisses the little boy.
La malgrandan knabon kisas la virino.
The woman kisses the little boy.
(Look for the -n ! This still means "The woman kisses the little boy", even though the word order has been changed.)
Note that the adjective (in this case malgranda) also takes the -n ending, the same as the noun it refers to: malgrandan knabon .
These sentences mean the same thing, and are all equally correct, though the word order alters the emphasis slightly. They all mean: "The woman kisses the small boy.":
La virino kisas la malgrandan knabon.
La malgrandan knabon kisas la virino.
Kisas la virino la malgrandan knabon.
Kisas la malgrandan knabon la virino.
La virino la malgrandan knabon kisas.
La malgrandan knabon la virino kisas.
The -n ending in Esperanto is called the accusative. Be aware that the accusative ending -n is never used with the verb estas: Li estas knabo. (He is a boy.)
If a word already ends in -j, the -n is added after it.
Mi manĝas bonajn kukojn.
I am eating good cakes.
Mi vidas la belajn virinojn.
I see the beautiful women.
Pronouns also get the -n ending. Note how regularly Esperanto pronouns change as compared to their English counterparts:
| Esperanto Subject | Esperanto Object | English Subject | English Object |
|---|---|---|---|
| mi | min | I | me |
| vi | vin | you | you |
| li | lin | he | him |
| ŝi | ŝin | she | her |
| ni | nin | we | us |
| ili | ilin | they | them |
When you use an expression like “Thanks” in English, you are actually shortening a full statement. As you have just learned, -n indicates the object of the sentence as you can see in the examples below:
Dankon = Mi donas al vi dankon.
Thanks = I give you thanks. ("thanks" is the object of the sentence).
Saluton! = Mi donas al vi saluton.
Hi!/Hello!/Greetings! = I give you greetings. ("greetings" is the object)
Feliĉan novan jaron! = Mi deziras al vi feliĉan novan jaron! Happy new year! = I wish you a happy new year! ("happy new year" is the object)
The noun following a preposition normally takes a simple -o ending (-oj in the plural). Other endings will be explained later. For example:
La virino estas en la kafejo.
The woman is in the café.
Ni iras al la parko.
We go to the park.
Possessive personal pronouns (also known as possessive adjectives) are words like "my" and "your" in English. Unlike in English, these words are completely regular in Esperanto. Just add -a to the end of a pronoun to turn it into its possessive form.
| English pronoun | English possessive | Esperanto pronoun | Esperanto possessive |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | my | mi | mia |
| you | your | vi | via |
| he | his | li | lia |
| she | her | ŝi | ŝia |
| it | its | ĝi | ĝia |
| we | our | ni | nia |
| they | their | ili | ilia |
Like other words ending in -a the possessives also take the -j (plural) and -n (accusative) ending when required.
Jen miaj gepatroj. Here are my parents.
Viaj ursoj trinkas mian bieron.
Your bears are drinking my beer.
If you want to express that something belongs to someone, the key word is de. It corresponds to the English word "of", but it is also used when English would put 's on a word instead.
Jen mapo de la universitato.
Here is a map of the university.
Vi trinkas la bieron de mia patro.
You are drinking my father's beer. (the beer of my father)
Li estas la avo de Sofia.
He is Sofia's grandfather. (the grandfather of Sofia)
Kio = what? or what thing?.
Tio = that or that thing.
Kio and tio never take the ending -j (plural), but do take the ending -n (accusative) if they refer to a direct object.
Kio estas tio?
What is that?
Kion vi manĝas?
What are you eating?
Ni manĝas tion.
We are eating that.
The following two ways (with kio or kiu) of asking for someone's name or address are equally correct:
Kio estas via [nomo/adreso]?
What is your [name/address]?
Kiu estas via [nomo/adreso]?
Which is your [name/address]?
Traditionally, amiko was used only for a male friend, and amikino for a female friend, and this usage is still common, so we are teaching it here. Recently, however, many Esperanto speakers use the same form amiko for a male or female friend.
Also, note that amiko and amikino are not equivalent to the English "boyfriend" and "girlfriend". To describe a romantic relationship, we use the terms koramiko and koramikino ("heart-friend").
To name a language in Esperanto, the full expression is "la angla lingvo", "la franca lingvo" (the English language, the French language). However, people usually drop the word "lingvo" and just say "la angla" (English), "la franca" (French):
La itala estas bela lingvo.
Italian is a beautiful language.
Mi parolas la hispanan.
I speak Spanish.
Don't try this with Esperanto though! In theory you could say "la Esperanta lingvo", but in practice this form is never used. The language has always been known as Esperanto right from the start:
Oni is equivalent to "one" in English. It is used frequently in Esperanto, more often than the pronoun "one" is used in English. It is used to make general statements, as follows:
Oni diras, ke la angla estas malfacila lingvo.
One says that English is a difficult language.
People say that English is a difficult language.
Oni parolas Esperanton en la domo.
One speaks Esperanto in the house.
Esperanto is spoken in the house.
Subordinate clauses are often introduced by ke ("that"): Li diras, ke vi parolas Esperanton. In English, It is possible to leave out "that", and say "He says you speak Esperanto", instead of "He says that you speak Esperanto." However, in Esperanto ke must always be included. Note also that there is always a comma before ke, though the English translation may not have one.
Nek means both "neither" and "nor":
Mi parolas nek la francan nek la anglan.
I speak neither French nor English.
Li parolas nek Esperanton, nek la anglan.
He speaks neither Esperanto nor English.
Nek ni nek ili loĝas en Aŭstralio.
Neither we nor they live in Australia.
Ankaŭ (also / too) is placed immediately before the word it refers to. It is never placed at the end of the phrase, as is common in English.
The adjective form of Esperanto is Esperanta. This can either be capitalized or not based on the preference of the author. Any word can be turned into an adjective by changing the ending to -a.
The ending -i indicates the infinitive, for example ami (to love), trinki (to drink), kuiri (to cook). This is the neutral form found in a dictionary. It is often used to complement the verbs povas (can), volas (want), devas (must), and ŝatas (like). For example:
Note that in English, the word "to" is not used after the words "can" and "must", but this is an oddity of English, not Esperanto!
Nek means both "neither" and "nor". For example:
Nek la fromaĝo nek la pomo estas flava.
Neither the cheese nor the apple is yellow.
matenmanĝo = breakfast, the morning meal
tagmanĝo = lunch, the midday meal
vespermanĝo = dinner/supper, the evening meal.
kun = with
kune = together
kune kun = together with
Pli ol means "more than". Pli and ol express a comparison:
Lia pomo estas pli granda ol mia pomo.
His apple is bigger than my apple.
Li kuiras pli bone ol mi.
He cooks better than I (do).
Ĉu Sofia estas pli bela ol ŝi?
Is Sofia prettier than she (is)?
Kiel means "as" in the following kinds of sentences. Remember to add the accusative -n when kiel comes between two words that both function as direct objects:
Ni manĝas fragojn kiel deserton.
We eat strawberries as (a) dessert.
Pro and ĉar are similar, but are NOT interchangeable. Ĉar means because, while pro means because of, "due to", or "on account of":
Mi manĝas la fragojn, ĉar ili estas bongustaj.
I am eating the strawberries because they are tasty.
Pro mia granda apetito, mi manĝas du picojn.
Because of my big appetite, I am eating two pizzas.
Ĉar la vetero estas malbona, ni ne povas iri al restoracio. Because the weather is bad, we can't go to a restaurant.
Pro la malbona vetero, ni ne povas iri al restoracio.
Because of the bad weather, we cannot go to the restaurant.
Esperanto has a two-part system for naming countries and their inhabitants. This two-part system developed early in the history of Esperanto, and was based on the idea of a division of the world into "Old World" and "New World". The assumption was that the "Old World" countries took their names from the people who lived there. In contrast, "New World" countries consisted mainly of immigrants and their descendants, so their inhabitants were named after the countries they lived in.
So, for some "Old World" countries, mainly in Europe and Asia, the Esperanto root form gives the name of the inhabitant, and the name of the country is formed from it. For other "New World" countries,mainly in the Americas, Africa and Oceania, the Esperanto root form gives the name of the country, and the name of the inhabitant is formed from it.
The first group takes the name of the country as the root form (e.g. Brazil-o, Kanad-o) and an inhabitant of that country is formed by adding -an (member) in front of the ending -o. For example:
Brazilanoj loĝas en Brazilo.
Brazilians live in Brazil.
Kanadanoj loĝas en Kanado.
Canadians live in Canada.
The second group takes the name of the inhabitant as the root form (e.g. ital-o, german-o) and its country name is formed by adding -uj in front of the ending -o. For example:
Italoj loĝas en Italujo.
Italians live in Italy.
Germanoj loĝas en Germanujo.
Germans live in Germany.
Many people prefer to use the ending -io for Group 2 names rather than the traditional ending -ujo. This is how we teach country names here on Duolingo:
| Traditional | Alternative |
|---|---|
| Italujo | Italio |
| Germanujo | Germanio |
Usono refers to the USA, while Ameriko refers to the entire American continent; so usonano is a US citizen, while amerikano is someone from North, Central, or South America.
The following table shows the rest of the accented letters, which are also called ĉapelitaj literoj (literally, "letters with hats").
| Esperanto | English equivalent | Esperanto example |
|---|---|---|
| ĥ | loch | ĉeĥa (Czech) |
| ĵ | pleasure | ĵaŭdo (Thursday) |
| ŭ | wet | aŭ (or) |
Note: ĥ is pronounced as a strongly aspirated "h", like the "ch" in the Scottish word "loch" (not pronounced "lock"), while ŭ is normally only used after a and e, in the combinations aŭ and eŭ.
-id is a suffix that refers to the young of an animal, or more rarely, of a plant.
kato (cat) + -id = katido (kitten)
hundo (dog) + -id = hundido (puppy)
Duo is the name given by Duolingo to its mascot, the green owl. It is not the word for owl in Esperanto. The Esperanto word for owl is strigo.
When it comes to animals, the root form of the animal (i.e. bovo) is gender neutral. Therefore the word bovo does not specify whether the animal is a bull or a cow. A bovino is specifically a cow. To make this unambiguously male, you need to add vir- in front of it, thus virbovo is a bull.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| bovo | ox, bull, or cow |
| bovino | cow (female) |
| virbovo | bull (male) |
Kiom means "how much" or "how many."
How much do you eat?
Kiom vi manĝas?
How much do you love me?
Kiom vi amas min?
How much is in the cup?
Kiom estas en la taso?
When you ask "how much" or "how many" of a specific thing or things, the word "of" cannot be omitted as it is in English:
How much (of) bread do you eat?
Kiom da pano vi manĝas?
How many (of) apples do you eat?
Kiom da pomoj vi manĝas?
How much (of) tea is in the cup?
Kiom da teo estas en la taso?
Kiom is used with age, since age is a quantity (of years).
How old are you?
Kiom vi aĝas?
(Literally: How much you are-age?)
Mi aĝas 30 jarojn. OR Mi estas 30-jaraĝa.
Kiom da jaroj vi havas?
(Literally "How many years do you have?")
Mi havas 30 jarojn.*
.
To talk about meat dishes, add -aĵ to the name of the animal that the dish is made from. For example, to talk about "pork" (meat from a pig), you use the word for pig (porko) and add the suffix -aĵ : porkaĵo. To say "I am eating pork", you would say Mi manĝas porkaĵon. The same sentence without -aĵ , Mi manĝas porkon would mean "I am eating a pig."
| English Animal | Esperanto Animal | English Food | Esperanto Food |
|---|---|---|---|
| a cow | bovo | beef | bovaĵo |
| a pig | porko | pork | porkaĵo |
| a fish | fiŝo | fish | fiŝaĵo |
| a lamb | ŝafido | lamb | ŝafidaĵo |
So far we have learned several prepositions, including sur, por, sen, de, da and kun. Note that there is no accusative -n for nouns after prepositions except in specific instances, which will be introduced later.
Mi aĉetas viandon por mia hundo.
Mi ŝatas kafon kun sukero.
Mi iras sen vi.
Ol (than), is a conjunction (a connecting word like "and") that functions as a comparison word. Either a subject or an object can follow it, just as in English:
Ni amas ŝin pli ol ilin.
We love her more than [we love] them.
(The object ilin follows ol.)
Li amas la hundon pli ol ili amas ĝin.
He loves the dog more than they love it.
(The subject ili follows ol.)
| English | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| with | kun |
| together | kune (adverbial form) |
| together with | kune kun |
You may have noticed that all the question words start with ki-, except for ĉu. The letter or letters after ki- in the question word, i.e. the ending, indicates what kind of question it is.
| English question | in other words | Esperanto question |
|---|---|---|
| what | what thing | kio |
| where | what place | kie |
| how | what way | kiel |
| who | what specific person | kiu |
| which | what specific thing | kiu |
| how much | what quantity | kiom |
In this module we introduce the group of words ending in -om which relate to quantity.
| English question | in other words | Esperanto question |
|---|---|---|
| how much [of it] | what quantity | kiom |
| that much [of it] | that quantity | tiom |
| some [of it] | some quantity | iom |
| all [of it] | the whole quantity | ĉiom |
| none [of it] | no quantity | neniom |
All of these words in both tables are part of a group in Esperanto called "correlatives".
Kiom, tiom, iom, and ĉiom are followed by da, when they refer to quantities that are indefinite:
Kiom da akvo vi trinkas?
How much water are you drinking?
Li manĝas iom da kuko.
He eats some cake.
When referring to a specific item or quantity that is preceded by la, we use de:
Mi manĝas iom de la granda kuko.
I am eating some of the big cake.
Kiom de la sandviĉo li manĝas?
How much of the sandwich is he eating?
Note: Mi havas neniom. = I have none.
Note that the word pantalono, which means "pants" (US) or "trousers" (UK) is singular in Esperanto. Thus pantalonoj refers to multiple pairs of pants.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| ŝtrumpo | stocking (up to the knee or higher) |
| ŝtrumpeto | sock (up to the ankle or calf) |
The suffix -et means "small", so a sock is a small stocking (ŝtrumpeto)!
Mojosa (cool) is the most popular slang term in Esperanto. It originates from modern-jun-stila (modern-young-stylish). Reading out the first letter of each word gives Mo-Jo-So, which becomes mojoso (coolness). The adjective form is mojosa.
As covered in Weather, Ĉu is used to introduce a question. For example:
In the middle of a sentence, ĉu means "whether". For example:
Ŝi demandas min, ĉu mi volas danci.
She asks me whether I want to dance.
(or: She asks me if I want to dance.)
Ŝi volas scii, ĉu mi parolas Esperanton.
She wants to know whether I speak Esperanto.
(or: She wants to know if I speak Esperanto.)
Note that in English we often use the word "if" interchangeably with "whether", as in the examples above, but in Esperanto this is not correct. We can never use the word "se" (if) in place of the word ĉu.
.
The correlatives ending in -u (kiu, tiu, etc.) usually come before a noun. Notice how they take -j and -n endings just like adjectives. For example:
Kiun libron vi legas?
Which book are you reading?
Mi volas legi tiujn librojn.
I want to read those books.
They appear without a noun only if the context makes what is being talked about clear. For example:
Jen kelkaj bonaj libroj. Kiun [libron] vi volas legi?
Here are some good books. Which [book] would you like to read?
Without other information, assume that kiu and tiu (and any other correlative ending in -u) refer to a person. For example:
Kiu venas? = Who is coming?
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kio | what |
| tio | that |
| kiu | which/who |
| tiu | that one/that person |
Kio estas tio? Tio estas libro.
What is that? That is a book.
Kiu estas via libro? Mia libro estas tiu.
Which is your book? My book is that one.
Kion vi volas? Mi volas tion.
What do you want? I want that.
Kiun vi volas? Mi volas tiun.
Which do you want? I want that one.
Kiujn vi volas? Mi volas tiujn.
Which ones do you want? I want those.
Should it be Kio estas via nomo? OR Kiu estas via nomo? Both forms are correct, though with different shades of meaning. With Kiu the question actually means "Which is your name?" (that is, which one out of an imagined list of names is yours?) With Kio the question simply means "What is your name?". The same consideration applies to similar questions, such as Kio/Kiu estas via adreso? and Kio/Kiu estas la dato?
Ĉi expresses close proximity when used immediately before or after ti- words. For example:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| tie | there |
| ĉi tie | here |
| tio | that |
| ĉi tio | this |
| tiu | that thing/that person |
| ĉi tiu | this thing/this person |
Note: Since ĉi can go before or after ti- words, these are also valid: tie ĉi, tiu ĉi, tio ĉi.
Adding -n to kie or tie shows movement towards a place. For example:
Kie vi estas? Mi estas ĉi tie.
Where are you? I am here.
Kien vi iras? Mi iras tien.
To where are you going? I am going to there.
Note that the "to" is usually dropped in English, so this would be translated as "Where are you going? I am going there." Due to this lack of distinction in English, many English speakers have trouble remembering to add -n to tie and kie when talking about movement towards a place.
Kiam means "when".
Transitive verbs may take a direct object. For example:
Mi trinkas sukon. = I drink juice.
Ŝi legas libron. = She reads a book.
Sometimes, although the verb is transitive, the direct object is not expressed, so we may say Mi trinkas or Ŝi legas, without naming the thing that the person is drinking or reading.
Intransitive verbs never take a direct object. For example:
Mi sidas. = I am sitting. La knabino kuras. = The girl is running.
Please note that the rules concerning verbs and objects are stricter in Esperanto than in English.
In English, we know a lot of verbs that can be used both with and without a direct object. In English we can say "He closes the door" and "The door closes", using the same verb, although the meaning is different. In the first example, someone performs the action of closing the door, while in the second, the door becomes closed. In Esperanto, there are two words for this:
Li fermas la pordon. = He closes the door.
La pordo fermiĝas = The door closes.
In the same way, Esperanto distinguishes between komenci (to start to do something) and komenciĝi (to start happening):
La instruisto komencas la lecionon =The teacher starts the lesson.
La leciono komenciĝas. = The lesson is starting.
To use grammatical terms, fermi and komenci are transitive (take a direct object), while fermiĝi and komenciĝi are intransitive (cannot take a direct object).
Atendi can mean "to wait," "to wait for" or "to expect." For example:
Mi atendas. = I wait.
Mi atendas buson. = I wait for a bus.
Mi atendas profiton. = I am expecting a profit.
Note: Kion vi atendas? can mean either "What are you expecting?" or "What are you waiting for?" depending on the context.
The combination tiel...kiel means as...as:
Ĉu vi kantas tiel bone kiel ŝi?
Do you sing as well as she (does)?
Ŝi estas tiel bela, kiel mia fratino.
She is as pretty as my sister.
Most words relating to the family are male by default. The suffix -in (female) and the prefix ge- (both genders) can be added to change the meaning. For example:
| Gender | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|
| male | patro | father |
| female | patrino | mother |
| both | gepatroj | parents |
| Gender | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|
| male | frato | brother |
| female | fratino | sister |
| both | gefratoj | siblings |
| Gender | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|
| male | avo | grandfather |
| female | avino | grandmother |
| both | geavoj | grandparents |
The prefix pra- means long ago, in the distant past :
| Gender | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|
| male | praavo | great-grandfather |
| female | praavino | great-grandmother |
| both | prageavoj | great-grandparents |
Note also:
prahistorio = prehistory
prahomo = ancient man
Note that amiko and amikino are not equivalent to the English "boyfriend" and "girlfriend". To describe a romantic relationship, we use the terms koramiko and koramikino ("heart-friend").
The possessive pronoun sia means his own, her own, its own or their own. It always refers back to the subject.
Li vidas sian hundon.
He sees his [own] dog.
Li vidas lian hundon.
He sees his [someone else's] dog.
Ili nun estas en sia hejmo. They are now in their [own] home.
Ili nun estas en ilia hejmo. They are now in their [their friends'] home.
Note that sia is not used when the subject of the concerned clause is mi, ni, or vi. In these cases use its standard possessive pronoun:
Vi havas vian hundon.
You have your [own] dog.
Kiel means "as" in the following kinds of sentences. Remember to add the accusative -n when kiel comes between two words that both function as direct objects:
Ŝi traktas lin kiel fraton.
She treats him like a brother.
Li amas sian nevinon kiel filinon.
He loves his niece like a daughter.
How old are you?
Kiom vi aĝas?
(Literally: How much you are-age?)
Kiom is used with age, since age is a quantity (of years).
Note: An alternative way to ask someone's age is Kiom da jaroj vi havas? (Literally "How many years do you have?") .
Per means “by means of”, although the English translation may use “by” or “with”. Use this when mentioning tools or methods of transportation. For example:
Note that per is a preposition and so the following noun does not take the –n ending.
More examples:
Mi tranĉas la panon per tranĉilo.
I am cutting the bread with a knife.
Mi vojaĝis al Berlino per trajno.
I traveled to Berlin by train.
The word peco (piece) can be used with either da or de, creating slightly different meanings. With da we are emphasizing a quantity. With de we are emphasizing a quality:
Tio estas granda peco da pano.
That is a big piece of bread.
(Answers the question : How much bread?)
Ĉu tio estas peco de pano aŭ peco de kuko?
Is that a piece of bread or a piece of cake?
(What kind of piece of food is that?)
The most literal sense of a preposition is generally the correct word to use in Esperanto. Thus, one rides "in the train," not "on the train." For example:
antaŭ can mean "in front of" or "before", depending on the context. In conjunction with time it can mean "ago".
kontraŭ means "against", but also "at the cost/price of"; and can be used in the context of taking a medicine in order to treat an illness ("against" an illness).
In general, nouns following a preposition do not take the -n ending.
Ĉe is a versatile word that means "at", in the sense of at someone's home, or very close to something:
Ŝi sidas ĉe la tablo.
She is sitting at the table.
Ili loĝas ĉe mi. They live at my house. They live with me.
In addition to its use for the direct object, the -n ending is also used to show direction:
Mi parolas Esperanton pro vi.
I speak Esperanto because of you.
La donaco estas por vi.
The gift is for you.
Krom can mean either "except (for)" or "in addition to" depending on the context. For example:
Mi ŝatas ĉion, krom araneoj.
I like everything except spiders.
Krom araneoj, ŝi ankaŭ amas abelojn.
In addition to spiders, she also loves bees.
A lack of...
Manko de...
A lack of something is not considered a quantity, so one says manko de and never manko da.
For example:
A lack of money
Manko de mono
Verŝi means to pour a liquid such as water or oil, while ŝuti means to pour a non-liquid such as sand or sugar.
Tero is the word for the planet Earth. We omit the article la when we speak of it in that context:
Tero moviĝas ĉirkaŭ la suno.
(The) Earth moves around the sun.
La Tero is the term for the Earth we live on:
Kie ni vivos, kiam la Tero estos tro varma?
Where will we live, when the Earth is too hot?
For earth or soil that plants grow in, we use tero without capitalization:
En la tero kreskas plantoj.
Plants grow in the earth.
The following endings change the tense of a verb:
-is = past
-os = future
| Past | Present | Future |
|---|---|---|
| La kato dormis. | La kato dormas. | La kato dormos. |
| The cat slept. | The cat sleeps. | The cat will sleep. |
There are no exceptions to this rule!
Note: In English, sometimes part of a sentence is expressed in the present tense, even though the event actually takes place in the future. In Esperanto, both parts of the sentence are in the future tense, since they happen then. For example:
Kion vi faros, kiam vi estos gepatroj?
What will you do when you are parents?
Ni iros al la drinkejo ĉi-vespere.
We are going to the bar tonight.
.
The preposition post means "after" and is usually followed by a noun:
post la matenmanĝo
after breakfast
post la oka horo
after eight o'clock
However, if you want to use post with a verb phrase, you have to use post kiam:
Post kiam ni matenmanĝis...
After we [had] had breakfast...
Post kiam mi laboris, mi dormis.
After I [had] worked, I slept.
In the same way, antaŭ ("before" or "in front of") is usually followed by a noun, while antaŭ ol (before) needs to be used before verbs or verb phrases.
Ŝi staras antaŭ la pordo.
She is standing in front of the door.
Sofia alvenis antaŭ la manĝo.
Sofia arrived before the meal.
Ni manĝis antaŭ ol li alvenis.
We ate before he arrived.
For the past tense, use -is:
La arbo falas.
The tree is falling.
La arbo falis.
The tree fell.
Cardinal numbers such as one, two and three never take any endings in Esperanto.
Ordinal numbers such as first, second and third end in -a and are adjectives, so they must agree with the nouns they describe: la unua tago (the first day); la unuaj tagoj (the first days).
| Cardinal | Esperanto | Ordinal | Esperanto |
|---|---|---|---|
| one | unu | first | unua |
| two | du | second | dua |
| three | tri | third | tria |
| four | kvar | fourth | kvara |
| Numbers | Esperanto | How many words? |
|---|---|---|
| 11, 12 ... 19 | dek unu, dek du ... dek naŭ | two words |
| 20, 30 ... 90 | dudek, tridek ... naŭdek | one word |
| 200, 300 ... 900 | ducent, tricent ... naŭcent | one word |
| 2000, 3000 ... 9000 | du mil, tri mil ... naŭ mil | two words |
Du mil okdek kvar
Two thousand eighty-four (2084)
Kvincent sesdek tri mil
Five hundred sixty-three thousand (563 000)
| English | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| million | miliono |
| billion | miliardo |
Esperanto distinguishes between nombro and numero although both are translated as “number” in English.
Nombro is a number that signifies an amount or is used to express a mathematical relationship. For example:
la nombro de personoj
the number of people
4 estas pli granda nombro ol 3.
4 is a larger number than 3.
Numero is a number used for labelling items in a series:
la numero de la domo
the house number
telefonnumero
phone number
la lasta numero de la gazeto
the last number [edition] of the newspaper.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| dimanĉo | Sunday |
| dimanĉon | on Sunday (next Sunday; last Sunday) |
| dimanĉe | on Sundays, every Sunday. |
The -n ending refers to a specific occasion, while the -e ending usually describes a recurring event. However, not all Esperanto speakers make this distinction. Some people use the -e ending both for specific and recurring events, so dimanĉe may mean "on (a specific) Sunday" as well "on Sundays".
Mi alvenos sabaton.
I will arrive (on) Saturday.
Ni venos la dek-kvinan de oktobro.
We will come (on) the 15th of October.
La renkontiĝo okazas sabate.
The meeting happens on Saturdays / every Saturday.
La renkontiĝo okazos sabate.
The meeting will take place on Saturdays.
The meeting will take place on Saturday (this Saturday).
The -n ending is also used to express duration:
Mi restis unu horon (dum unu horo).
I stayed for one hour.
Li vojaĝos la tutan tagon (dum la tuta tago).
He will travel all day (the whole day).
Upper Case or Lower Case?
Months can either start with a lower case or capital letter: januaro, februaro; Januaro, Februaro. In this course, we have chosen to present the lowercase form.
Days of the week are always in lower case: lundo, mardo.
In many countries, a 24-hour clock is often used. In that system, all times after 12 noon are formed by adding 12 to the clock time, so "am" and "pm" are not needed:
| 12-hour clock system | 24-hour clock system |
|---|---|
| 11:00 am | 11:00 |
| 1:30 pm | 13:30 |
| 11:00 pm | 23:00 |
| 12 midnight | 24:00 |
For multi-word ordinal numbers, use hyphens between all the words in the number: ducent-okdek-sepa. We do this because the adjective ending -a relates to the entire number (287), not just to the 7 at the end.
La du-mil-okdek-kvara tago
The two thousand eighty-fourth day
It is also possible to write this as a single word la dumilokdekkvara tago but the hyphens make it easier to read.
Komenci means to start or begin something, and takes a direct object with an -n ending:
Komenciĝi includes the -iĝ affix and means to begin or start on its own. It does not take a direct object:
A more detailed explanation can be found in the notes for the module Verbs Present. You will learn more about the -iĝ affix in a module dedicated to both the -iĝ and the -ig affix.
As mentioned in the Family lesson notes, nouns not relating to family have no base gender:
aktoro : a male or female actor
dentisto : a male or female dentist
In these cases, you may choose to explicitly make a noun feminine by adding -in :
aktorino = a female actor
dentistino = a female dentist
Be aware that in some Esperanto settings, when you use a term like aktoro or dancisto, people may assume that you are talking about a man. In this course, we will not routinely present the feminine form of professions. However your responses using the feminine form when appropriate will be accepted as correct.
Studento - a student enrolled in a college or university.
Lernanto - a learner, or anyone who is learning; a school pupil.
Fariĝi means "to become."
Ŝia filo fariĝis kuracisto.
Her son became a doctor.
Note that ŝia filo is the subject of the sentence, so of course it does not take the accusative -n ending. But why does kuracisto also not take the -n ending? Remember that the accusative -n is used when the subject is in some way acting on the object of the sentence. But in this sentence, the son is not acting on a doctor, he is becoming a doctor himself.
We will learn more about the -iĝ affix in later lessons.
Ŝajnas, ke ... means "It seems, that ..."
The -u ending is used when ordering / inviting someone else to do something -- or when telling or suggesting to ourselves what to do!
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Manĝu! | Eat! |
| Iru! | Go! |
| Ni iru! | Let's go! |
| Ni vidu! | Let's see! |
| Mi pensu! | Let me think! |
An imperative may be followed by an infinitive:
Bonvolu manĝi!
Please eat!
(NOT: Bonvolu manĝu. Do not use two imperatives one after the other in that way).
In questions, the -u ending can be translated as "shall" or "should":
Ĉu ni iru?
Shall we go?
Should we go?
Ĉu mi legu tiun libron?
Shall I read that book?
Should I read that book?
We also use the -u ending in subordinate phrases (clauses) starting with ke, when the verb in the preceding, main part of the sentence expresses a want, desire, demand or preference:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Mi volas, ke vi iru. | I want you to go. |
| Li preferas, ke mi ne donu al vi monon. | He prefers that I do not give you money. |
| Ŝi postulas, ke la infanoj studu. | She insists that the children study. |
In English the word "information" is always singular, but in Esperanto you will often find it in the plural.
An adjective takes the -a ending and has to agree in number with the noun it modifies:
An adjective that modifies an object also takes the -n (direct object) ending:
Mi manĝas belajn kukojn. = I eat beautiful cakes.
In summary, an adjective's ending must match the ending of the noun it modifies.
Word order in Esperanto can be flexible. Adjectives usually go before the noun, but they may sometimes be placed after the noun for special emphasis. Both of the following sentences are correct:
Ŝi estas bona instruisto.
Ŝi estas instruisto bona.
She is a good teacher.
In Esperanto, many (but not all) adjectives can be transformed into verbs, and are often used that way in conversations and in written texts. Here are a few of the adjectives that are frequently used in their verb forms:
Mi estas preta. = Mi pretas. = I am ready.
Li estas malsana. = Li malsanas. = He is sick.
Ŝi estas feliĉa. = Ŝi feliĉas. = She is happy.
Ni estas fieraj. = Ni fieras. = We are proud.
Ili estas lacaj. = Ili lacas. = They are tired.
The prefix mal- simply means “opposite”. It does not mean “bad” as in some romance languages.
granda = big, large
malgranda = small, little
fermi = to close
malfermi = to open
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kaj....kaj.... | both....and..... |
| nek....nek.... | neither....nor..... |
| aŭ....aŭ.... | either....or..... |
Correlatives ending in -ia refer to a kind, sort, or type of something. They are adjectives and take the -j and -n endings where needed:
Kiajn librojn vi ŝatas legi?
What kinds of books do you like to read?
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kia(j)(n) | what kind(s) of |
| tia(j)(n) | that/those kind(s) of |
| ia(j)(n) | some kind(s) of |
| ĉia(j)(n) | every kind of/all kinds of |
| nenia(n) | no kind of |
Besides being used to indicate a direct object, the accusative ending -n is used to indicate quantities, measurements, prices, distances, duration etc.:
Li pezas cent tri kilogramojn.
He weighs 103 kg.
Ĉu vi povas kuri kvindek kilometrojn?
Can you run 50 km?
Ili marŝis dudek kilometrojn.
They walked twenty kilometers.
La monto estas mil metrojn alta.
The mountain is 1000 m. high.
La ŝtofo estas du metrojn longa.
The fabric is two meters long.
La fadeno estas dudek centimetrojn.
The thread is 20 cm. long.
Ŝi restis ĉe ni ses semajnojn.
She stayed with us (for) six weeks.
La libro kostas naŭ dolarojn.
The book costs nine dollars.
La domo kostas tricent mil eŭrojn.
The house costs three hundred thousand euros.
La muzeo estas du kilometrojn for de mia hejmo. The museum is 2 km. away from my home.
Sometimes instead of the accusative you can use a preposition such as dum (while) or je (indefinite meaning). After these prepositions the accusative is not needed:
Ŝi restis ĉe ni dum ses semajnoj.
She stayed with us for (during) six weeks.
La monto estas alta je mil metroj.
The mountain is 1000 meters high.
La muzeo estas for de mia hejmo je du kilometroj.
The museum is 2 km. away from my home.
English speakers are used to using non-metric weights and measures such as pounds and miles, but for speakers of other languages these quantities may be highly mysterious. For this reason, when speaking in Esperanto to non-English speakers it is best to use the metric system. The words for pounds, ounces, miles etc. do exist in Esperanto, but we do not teach them in this course. For the record, they are as follows, with approximate metric equivalents:
| Esperanto | English | Metric equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| funto | pound | approx. ½ kg |
| unco | ounce | 28 gm |
| mejlo | mile | approx. 1½ km |
| futo | foot | approx. 30 cm |
| colo | inch | approx. 2½ c |
The words for “gallon”, “pint” and “yard” are barely used or known in Esperanto. A yard is almost the same as a meter, so use the word metro instead, and for liquid measurements use litro (liter).
One of the greatest advantages of Esperanto is its flexible system of word particles that can be attached either in front of a word (prefixes) or at the end of a word (suffixes). There are 10 prefixes and 31 suffixes, which can be used to modify any word, as long as the result makes sense. When you finish the Affixes 3 module, you will know all of them! In this lesson, you'll review one prefix (mal-) and learn many suffixes:
| Affix | Definition | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| mal- | opposite | malfacila | difficult |
| -eg | big | bonega | excellent |
| -et | little | dormeti | to nap |
| -uj | container | sapujo | soapbox |
| -ej | place | lernejo | school |
| -ul | person | riĉulo | rich person |
| -il | tool | fotilo | camera |
| -ebl | possible | komprenebla | understandable |
| -estr | leader | laborestro | boss |
| -an | member | klubano | club member |
| -ar | group | arbaro | forest |
See how these affixes affect the word varma:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| varma | hot |
| varmega | very hot |
| varmeta | warm |
| malvarma | cold |
| malvarmega | ice cold |
| malvarmeta | cool |
Note that even though affixes in Esperanto are usually attached to a root word, they can also be used as roots themselves, for example:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| la ejo | the place |
| tiuj iloj | those tools |
| la mala direkto | the opposite direction |
| la etulo | the little person |
| ĉu eblas? | is it possible? |
Vendejo is a more general term than butiko as it can mean any place where anything is sold, including a wholesale warehouse. Butiko refers to a retail store. However they are often used interchangeably when referring to retail locations.
The preposition post means "after" and is usually followed by a noun:
post la matenmanĝo
after breakfast
post la oka horo
after eight o'clock
However, if you want to use post with a verb phrase, you have to use post kiam:
Post kiam ni matenmanĝis...
After we [had] had breakfast...
Post kiam mi laboris, mi dormis.
After I [had] worked, I slept.
In the same way, antaŭ ol needs to be used before verbs.
Ni manĝis, antaŭ ol li alvenis.
We ate before he arrived.
Fractions are made by adding the suffix -on to the base number. Fractions can be nouns (-o) or adjectives (-a) just like any other word in Esperanto. For example:
| Fraction | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| a half | duono |
| a third | triono |
| two thirds | du trionoj |
duona tago / duontago
a half day
Komenci means to start or begin something, and takes a direct object with an -n ending:
Komenciĝi includes the -iĝ affix and means to begin or start on its own. It does not take a direct object:
A more detailed explanation can be found in the notes for the module Verbs Present. You will learn more about the -iĝ affix in a module dedicated to both the -iĝ and the -ig affix.
All the question words we have learned so far start with ki-, which has the general meaning of "what":
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kiam | at what time, when |
| kio | what |
| kie | at what place, where |
| kiel | in what way, how |
| kiu | what specific person or thing, who or which |
| kiom | what amount, how much |
Similar words starting with ti- (general meaning of "that") are related to the question words:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| tiam | at that time, then |
| tio | that thing |
| tie | that place, there |
| tiel | in that way |
| tiu | that person or specific thing |
| tiom | that quantity, that much |
And words starting with ĉi- (general meaning of "all") are also related:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| ĉiam | at all times, always |
| ĉio | everything |
| ĉie | in all places, every place, everywhere |
| ĉiom | all of it, the whole amount |
All of these words (and more that we will learn as the course progresses) are part of a group of words in Esperanto called Correlatives (Eo: korelativoj). In Esperanto they are also called tabelvortoj because they can easily be arranged in one big table / chart.
In this module we learn iam (at any time, sometimes, ever) and neniam (at no time, never) to round out the words ending with -am that relate to time.
| Esperanto | English | English paraphrase |
|---|---|---|
| kiam | when | at what time |
| tiam | then | at that time |
| iam | sometime | at some/any time |
| ĉiam | always | at all times |
| neniam | never | at no time |
Finally, here's an overview of all the correlatives that you have learned so far:
| _ | -U | -O | -E | -EL | -AM | -OM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KI- | kiu | kio | kie | kiel | kiam | kiom |
| TI- | tiu | tio | tie | tiel | tiam | tiom |
| I- | iam | iom | ||||
| ĈI- | ĉio | ĉie | ĉiam | ĉiom | ||
| NENI- | neniam | neniom |
Combining two words to make a new word is very common in Esperanto. The vowel ending of the first word may be dropped, or it may be retained if that makes the word easier to pronounce:
| Eo | lito + tuko = litotuko (or: littuko) |
|---|---|
| En | bed + cloth = sheet |
| Eo | vesto + ŝranko= vestoŝranko |
|---|---|
| En | garment + cabinet/cupboard = clothes closet |
| Eo | lito + kovrilo= litkovrilo (or: litokovrilo) |
|---|---|
| En | bed + cover = bedspread |
| Eo | bano + tuko = bantuko |
|---|---|
| En | bath + cloth = towel |
Also note that a hyphen may be added:
Esperanto + klubo = Esperantoklubo or Esperanto-klubo.
Pur-ig-i means to clean (to make something clean), and comes from the adjective pura (clean). We will learn more about the affix -ig in future modules.
This is an example of a word with two affixes, and illustrates how easy and straightforward it is to build words in Esperanto:
Manĝ + -il + -aro =manĝilaro
Eat + tool + group = silverware
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| loĝi | to live, to reside, to dwell (in a specific place) |
| vivi | to live, to be alive (the state of being) |
English speakers usually use the verb “to live” for both meanings. However you should aim to make the distinction and use loĝi and vivi correctly in Esperanto, so that you will be reliably understood.
Mem means [my,your,his,her]-self, or [our, them]-selves.
It is used for emphasis:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| mi mem | I myself |
| vi mem | you yourself, you yourselves |
| li mem | he himself |
| ŝi mem | she herself |
| ni mem | we ourselves |
| ili mem | they themselves |
Use the verb ending -us to talk about non-real, imagined situations, or to make polite requests.
Non-real situations are the topic of "if...then" sentences, like this one:
Notice that Esperanto, unlike English, uses the -us form in both parts of the sentence - since both parts are non-real.
We also talk about non-real situations when we express our wish for something to be different from what/how it actually is:
The -us ending does not carry any temporal information. Thus, it is possible to use the -us ending for events in the past as well. When doing so, context usually indicates that we are talking about the past:
The -us form can also be used to express polite requests.
Remember to use the -n ending when talking about a movement towards a certain place. For example
Retpoŝto means email in general; the service that allows you to send and receive electronic messages. A message sent by retpoŝto (email) is called retmesaĝo (an email).
Adverbs typically end in -e. An adverb describes or modifies a verb. We have already seen several examples of adverbs:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| bone | well |
| nokte | nightly, at night |
| multe | a lot |
| rapide | rapidly, quickly, fast |
| malrapide | slowly |
| kune | along with |
| ofte | often |
Tio estas vere bela : That is truly beautiful.
After estas, when there is no subject of the sentence, use an adverb, not an adjective.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Hodiaŭ estas varme, kaj la suno brilas. | Today it is warm, and the sun is shining. |
| Estas bone, ke vi jam finis la lecionon. | It is good that you have already finished the lesson. |
Some colors have their own names: blua (blue), verda (green), bruna (brown). Others are based on the colors of specific fruit or flowers, and require the suffix -kolora :
In everyday use, these longer color names are often shortened: oranĝa, roza, viola.
Poetry has been a very important part of the Esperanto literary tradition from the beginning. The following terms are the most commonly used:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| poezio | poetry |
| poemo | poem |
| poeto | poet |
Some Esperanto speakers use poemo to refer mainly to longer poems; those speakers use poeziaĵo or versaĵo to describe shorter poems.
Tiel...kiel is a way of expressing a comparison:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Li estas tiel laca kiel mi. | He is as tired as I (am). |
| Ŝi estas tiel kontenta kiel ili. | She is as content as they (are). |
Please note that senti [to feel] in Esperanto is reflexive. For example:
The -n ending is used to show direction, when describing movement toward something or some place. However, it is not used after the prepositions ĝis, al or el, as they already show direction:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Ni vojaĝu norden al Kanado! | Let's travel north to Canada! |
| Mi iras ien, sed kien? | I am going somewhere, but where? |
| La birdo flugis en la arbon. | The bird flew into the tree. |
| Ni iru al Londono! | Let's go to London! |
| Mi kuris de la lago al la montoj. | I ran from the lake to the mountains. |
| Mia filino marŝis ĝis la fino de la strato. | My daughter walked to the end of the street. |
Eniri and eliri are good examples of a common way to build new verbs in Esperanto: combine a preposition with an existing verb:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| en + iri = eniri | into + to go = to enter |
| el + iri = eliri | out of/from + to go = to exit |
Ajn means any or ever, and may be combined with various ki- and i- correlatives, usually for emphasis:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Mi volas iri ien. | I want to go somewhere. |
| Mi volas iri ien ajn. | I want to go anywhere at all. |
| Kien vi iros, mi iros. | Where you go, I will go. |
| Kien ajn vi iros, mi iros. | Wherever you go, I will go. |
Troviĝi means to be found or located. It comes from the verb trovi, to find. Because it contains the -iĝ affix, it is intransitive and does not take an object:
Ilia domo troviĝas en bela kvartalo.
Their house is located in a beautiful neighborhood.
Here is a chart which lists all the correlatives ending in -ie and -ien:
| Eo | English | Eo | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| kie | where, what place | kien | (to) where |
| tie | there, that place | tien | (to) there |
| ie | somewhere, some place | ien | (to) somewhere |
| ĉie | everywhere, all places | ĉien | (to) everywhere |
| nenie | nowhere, no place | nenien | (to) nowhere |
-u words relate to a particular person or thing.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kiu | who; which |
| tiu | that (particular) person or thing |
| iu | someone, somebody; some particular thing |
| ĉiu | every person or every particular thing |
| neniu | no one, nobody; no particular thing |
-es words relate to possessing something.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kies | whose |
| ties | that person's |
| ies | someone's |
| ĉies | everyone's |
| nenies | no one's |
Ties does not have a one word translation in English and means "that person's" or " that one's". It can be used to clarify a sentence that might be ambiguous in English. "He went to a restaurant with his cousin and his wife." Whose wife was it, the cousin's or his own?
In English, many question words begin with wh-: what, where, why, who, which, when. In Esperanto, question words of this type always begin with ki-.
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kia | what kind of |
| kial | why |
| kiam | at what time, when |
| kio | what |
| kie | at what place, where |
| kiel | in what way, how |
| kiu | what specific person or thing, who or which |
| kiom | what amount, how much |
| kies | whose |
Similar words starting with ti- (general meaning of "that") are related to the question words:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| tia | that kind of |
| tial | that's why |
| tiam | at that time, then |
| tio | that thing |
| tie | that place, there |
| tiel | in that way |
| tiu | that person or specific thing |
| tiom | that quantity, that much |
| ties | that one's |
Similar words starting with
i- (general meaning of some) are related too:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| ia | some kind of |
| ial | for some reason |
| iam | sometimes |
| io | something |
| ie | somewhere |
| iel | in some way |
| iu | someone, somebody |
| iom | some of it |
| ies | someone's, somebody's |
And similar words starting with ĉi- (general meaning of "all") are also related:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| ĉia | every kind of |
| ĉial | for every reason |
| ĉiam | at all times, always |
| ĉio | everything |
| ĉie | in all places, every place, everywhere |
| ĉiel | in every way |
| ĉiu | everyone, everybody |
| ĉiom | all of it, the whole amount |
| ĉies | everyone's, everybody's |
And words starting with neni- (general meaning of "none") are also related:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| nenia | no kind of |
| nenial | not for any reason |
| neniam | never |
| nenio | nothing |
| nenie | nowhere |
| neniel | in no way |
| neniu | noone, nobody |
| neniom | none of it |
| nenies | noone's, nobody's |
All of these words are part of a group of words in Esperanto called Correlatives (Eo: korelativoj). In Esperanto they are also called tabelvortoj because they can easily be arranged in one big table / chart.
The word haro means a single hair. Both haroj (hairs) and hararo (a group of hairs) can be used to describe the hair on one's head.
The -ig and -iĝ suffixes express a change of state. -ig means to cause a change, while -iĝ means to experience a change, or change from one state to another:
| Esperanto | English | |
|---|---|---|
| ruĝa | red | |
| ruĝigi | to make something red | |
| ruĝiĝi | to become red, to blush | |
| bela | beautiful | |
| beligi | to make something beautiful | |
| beliĝi | to become beautiful |
The above example show how the -ig and -iĝ suffixes can be used with adjectives. They can also be used with verbs:
| Esperanto | English | |
|---|---|---|
| manĝi | to eat | |
| manĝigi | to make someone eat, to feed | |
| morti | to die | |
| mortigi | to make someone die, to kill | |
| levi | to lift, to raise | |
| leviĝi | to rise | |
| veki | to wake someone up | |
| vekiĝi | to wake up |
As you can see in the examples above, verbs ending in -ig always require an object, while those ending in -iĝ never do. In grammatical terns, the -ig verbs are transitive, while the -iĝ verbs are intransitive.
Many verbs in English can be both transitive and intransitive, but this is not possible in Esperanto, in which verbs are normally either transitive or intransitive, but not both. In English, we can say "The girl closed the window" and "The window closed" using the same verb, even thought the meaning is slightly different: in the first sentence the girl is acting on the window, while in the second the window became closed by itself. Examples of English words that can be both transitive and intransitive include "to open", "to close", "to start", "to finish", "to change" and "to move". These verbs in Esperanto-- malfermi, fermi, komenci, fini, ŝangi, movi--are all transitive, and to make them intransitive you must add the suffix -iĝ:
| English | Transitive | Intransitive |
|---|---|---|
| to close | fermi | fermiĝi |
| to open | malfermi | malfermiĝi |
| to start,begin | komenci | komenciĝi |
| to finish,end | fini | finiĝi |
| to change | ŝanĝi | ŝanĝiĝi |
| to move | movi | moviĝi |
Here are some example sentences using words from the two charts above:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| Ŝi ruĝiĝis. | She blushed. |
| Ŝi beligis mian vivon. | She made my life beautiful. |
| Ĉu vi manĝigis la infanojn? | Did you feed the children? |
| La suno leviĝas. | The sun is rising. |
| Mia hundo provas veki min, sed mi ne volas vekiĝi | My dog is trying to wake me up, but I don't want to wake up. |
| La knabo fermis la fenestron. | The boy closed the window. |
| La fenestro fermiĝis. | The window closed (by itself). |
| La studentoj komencis la lecionon. | The students started (doing) the lesson. |
| La leciono komenciĝas je la naŭa. | The lesson starts at 9 (o'clock). |
It is also possible to add the -iĝ ending to intransitive verbs like sidi (to sit, be sitting) and kuŝi (to lie, be lying down). In this setting the addition of -iĝ indicates a change of position to achieve a new state:
.
In Esperanto, just changing the word ending can turn it into a different part of speech, for instance from a verb into a noun or adjective, or from an adjective to a verb. For example:
alveni (to arrive) --> la alveno (the arrival)
ekzisti (to exist) -- > la ekzisto (the existence)
pensi (to think) --> la penso (the thought)
pluvi (to rain) --> pluva (rainy)
bela (beautiful) --> belas (is/are beautiful)
laca (tired) --> lacas (is/are tired)
hundo (a dog) -- > hunda (canine)
Pezi means to be of a certain weight:
Ŝi pezas 60 kilogramojn.
She weighs 60 kilograms.
Pesi means to weigh something else:
Ŝi pesis la fiŝon.
She weighed the fish.
To weigh (pesi) something, of course you need a pesilo (scale)!
Kiel eble plej..... followed by an adverb is an expression similar to the English expression "as .... as possible."
For example:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kiel eble plej multe | as much as possible |
| kiel eble plej baldaŭ | as soon as possible |
| kiel eble plej ofte | as often as possible |
| kiel eble plej rapide | as rapidly/fast as possible |
In Esperanto, we use dolori al to say that a particular part of the body hurts a person. Because the person who is hurting is specified (dolori al mi, dolori al ŝi), a possessive marker is optional for the body part:
Doloras al mi la kapo. OR "La kapo doloras al mi. OR Doloras min la kapo. OR La kapo doloras min.
My head hurts. (Head is the subject)
La brako doloras al ŝi. OR La brako doloras ŝin.
Her arm hurts. (Arm is the subject).
It is also possible to say Mia kapo doloras. (My head hurts.) or Ŝia brako doloras. (Her arm hurts) as we do in English. In these cases the al mi or min is left out but understood.
| With preposition | With -n |
|---|---|
| La kapo doloras al mi | La kapo doloras min. |
| Ni iras al Londono | Ni iras Londonon. |
When talking about relatives, parts of one's body, a piece of one's clothing, an intimate possession, etc, la can take the place of a possessive pronoun; this usage is understood in the appropriate context—for example:
Here we learn another use for the word kontraŭ, previously taught in its primary meaning of "against" or "opposite". In a medical setting, kontraŭ can mean "for" as in "for the purpose of treating or curing":
Mi prenis medikamenton kontraŭ febro.
I took a medication for fever.
-ial words refer to causation.
| English | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| kial | why, for what reason |
| tial | that's why, for that reason |
| ial | for some reason |
| ĉial | for every reason |
| nenial | not for any reason |
Kialo means "reason", and comes from the correlative kial, why.
In English, we use special pronouns, the so-called reflexive pronouns, if the object of a phrase refers to the same person(s) as the subject.
Esperanto doesn't have reflexive pronouns for I/me, you or we/us.
| Non-reflexive | Reflexive |
|---|---|
| Ŝi amas min - She loves me | Mi amas min - I love myself |
| Ŝi amas nin - She loves us | Ni amas nin - We love ourselves |
| Ŝi amas vin - She loves you | Vi amas vin - You love yourself |
Esperanto only has one reflexive pronoun, si, used for he/him, she/her, and they/them.
Ŝi vidas sin ("She sees herself"; the person who is being seen is the same as the person who is seeing.) -Ŝi vidas ŝin ("She sees her"; the person being seen is not the same as the person who is seeing.)
Si is gender-neutral and works for both singular and plural.
| Non-reflexive | Reflexive |
|---|---|
| Ŝi amas ŝin - She loves her (another female person) | Ŝi amas sin - She loves herself |
| Li amas lin - He loves him (another male person) | Li amas sin - He loves himself |
| La suno levas ĝin- The sun lifts it (another object) | La suno sin levas - The sun rises ("lifts itself") |
| Ili amas ilin - They love them (another group of people) | Ili amas sin - They love themselves |
This is an expression equivalent to "the more... the more" or "the less...the less" in English. Ju always comes before des :
-iel words refer to "how" or "in what way".
| English | Esperanto |
|---|---|
| kiel | how, in what way |
| tiel | so, in that way |
| iel | in any way |
| ĉiel | in every way |
| neniel | in no way |
When paired, tiel and kiel can mean as...as:
Vi estas tiel inteligenta kiel ŝi.
You are as intelligent as she (is).
Tiel alone can also be used for emphasis, as "so":
Kial vi estas tiel kolera?
Why are you so angry?
You have now learned all of the correlatives! Here is a complete chart:
| KI- | TI- | I- | ĈI- | NENI- | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -A | KIA(J)(N) | TIA(J)(N) | IA(J)(N) | ĈIA(J)(N) | NENIA(J)(N) |
| -AL | KIAL | TIAL | IAL | ĈIAL | NENIAL |
| -AM | KIAM | TIAM | IAM | ĈIAM | NENIAM |
| -E | KIE | TIE | IE | ĈIE | NENIE |
| -EL | KIEL | TIEL | IEL | ĈIEL | NENIEL |
| -ES | KIES | TIES | IES | ĈIES | NENIES |
| -O | KIO(N) | TIO(N) | IO(N) | ĈIO(N) | NENIO(N) |
| -OM | KIOM | TIOM | IOM | ĈIOM | NENIOM |
| -U | KIU(J)(N) | TIU(J)(N) | IU(J)(N) | ĈIU(J)(N) | NENIU(N) |
Vojaĝi means to travel, and is a general term. Veturi is more specific, and means to travel by any means of transportation other than your own feet:
Note: Veturilo means vehicle. Any mobile machine that transports people or cargo is a veturilo, for example: aviadilo (aircraft), motorciklo (motorcycle), aŭto (car).
Trans means "across, on the far side." When movement is involved, don't forget to add -n to the noun. Compare these two examples:
Transiri means "to go across":
Kial la koko transiris la vojon?
Why did the chicken cross the road?
The traditional name for India in Esperanto is Hindujo/Hindio. However, current usage favors the name Barato, which is the Esperanto translation of "Bharat", one of the official names of the country. You will find all three forms of the country's name in Esperanto texts.
Vendejo is a more general term than butiko as it can mean any place where anything is sold, including a wholesale warehouse. Butiko refers to a retail store. However they are often used interchangeably when referring to retail locations.
Pasporta Servo is a hospitality network founded in 1966 and published by the Tutmonda Esperantista Junulara Organizo (TEJO). Free lodging is offered by over a thousand hosts in over 90 countries. Some Esperanto speakers use this network to travel cheaply while others use it to meet interesting people from around the world by hosting them in their own home. In 2009, this service made its transition online and can be found at www.pasportaservo.org.
Now let's add more affixes to the mix to multiply your vocabulary even further! You can add an affix to any Esperanto word as long as the result makes sense.
| Affix | Definition | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| ek- | start | ekdormi | to fall asleep |
| mis- | wrongly | miskompreni | to misunderstand |
| re- | again | relerni | to relearn |
| -aĉ | awful | domaĉo | a shack |
| -ad | continual | paroladi | to talk for a long time, continuously talk, keep talking |
| -aĵ | thing | manĝaĵo | a food |
| -em | inclination | ludema | playful |
| -ind | worthy | fidinda | trustworthy |
Iri means "to go"; it can be used whether the person is walking or using a vehicle. If you want to specifically emphasize that someone is walking, you can say piediri (literally, to go by foot). However, piediri is somewhat less common than "to walk" in English, as people tend to use the more general iri or something more specific, such as marŝi (to march), paŝi (to step), or promeni (to go for a walk).
| verb | primary meaning |
|---|---|
| iri | to go, to walk |
| marŝi | to march |
| paŝi | to step |
| piediri | to go by foot, to walk |
| promeni | to take a walk |
| KI- | TI- | I- | ĈI- | NENI- | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -A | KIA(J)(N) | TIA(J)(N) | IA(J)(N) | ĈIA(J)(N) | NENIA(J)(N) |
| -AL | KIAL | TIAL | IAL | ĈIAL | NENIAL |
| -AM | KIAM | TIAM | IAM | ĈIAM | NENIAM |
| -E | KIE | TIE | IE | ĈIE | NENIE |
| -EL | KIEL | TIEL | IEL | ĈIEL | NENIEL |
| -ES | KIES | TIES | IES | ĈIES | NENIES |
| -O | KIO(N) | TIO(N) | IO(N) | ĈIO(N) | NENIO(N) |
| -OM | KIOM | TIOM | IOM | ĈIOM | NENIOM |
| -U | KIU(J)(N) | TIU(J)(N) | IU(J)(N) | ĈIU(J)(N) | NENIU(J)(N) |
Note that the word for bye in Esperanto is ĝis. This is short for ĝis la revido (goodbye), which literally means until the re-seeing. So, ĝis actually means until, but by itself means bye.
Iri means "to go"; it can be used whether the person is walking or using a vehicle. If you want to specifically emphasize that someone is walking, you can say piediri (literally, to go by foot). However, piediri is somewhat less common than "to walk" in English, as people tend to use the more general iri or something more specific, such as marŝi (to march), paŝi (to step), or promeni (to go for a walk).
| verb | primary meaning |
|---|---|
| iri | to go, to walk |
| marŝi | to march |
| paŝi | to step |
| piediri | to go by foot, to walk |
| promeni | to take a walk |
| KI- | TI- | I- | ĈI- | NENI- | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -A | KIA(J)(N) | TIA(J)(N) | IA(J)(N) | ĈIA(J)(N) | NENIA(J)(N) |
| -AL | KIAL | TIAL | IAL | ĈIAL | NENIAL |
| -AM | KIAM | TIAM | IAM | ĈIAM | NENIAM |
| -E | KIE | TIE | IE | ĈIE | NENIE |
| -EL | KIEL | TIEL | IEL | ĈIEL | NENIEL |
| -ES | KIES | TIES | IES | ĈIES | NENIES |
| -O | KIO(N) | TIO(N) | IO(N) | ĈIO(N) | NENIO(N) |
| -OM | KIOM | TIOM | IOM | ĈIOM | NENIOM |
| -U | KIU(J)(N) | TIU(J)(N) | IU(J)(N) | ĈIU(J)(N) | NENIU(J)(N) |
Congratulations! After completing this lesson, you'll know all of Esperanto's 10 prefixes and 31 suffixes! With a little practice, you'll be able to combine these affixes into words with ease, giving you the ability to express yourself with amazing versatility and flexibility.
| Affixes | Definition | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| dis- | dispersal | dissendi | broadcast, send out |
| eks- | former | eksedzo | ex-husband |
| fi- | wicked | fipolitikisto | corrupt politician |
| pra- | ancient | prahomo | caveman |
| -er | tiny piece of | panero | breadcrumb |
| -um | (no definite meaning) | brakumi | to hug |
| -end | must be done | lernenda | must be learned |
| -ing | holder for a single item | kandelingo | candlestick |
| -obl | multiplication | duobla | double |
| -op | group | triopo | trio |
English uses various suffixes to create abstract nouns which in Esperanto end in -eco:
The definite article la is often used before abstract nouns:
To depend on... is translated in Esperanto as dependi de (io) aŭ (iu).
The traditional name for India in Esperanto is Hindujo/Hindio. However, current usage favors the name Barato, which is the Esperanto translation of "Bharat", one of the official names of the country. You will find all three forms of the country's name in Esperanto texts.
Pasporta Servo is a hospitality network founded in 1966 and published by the Tutmonda Esperantista Junulara Organizo (TEJO). Free lodging is offered by over a thousand hosts in over 90 countries. Some Esperanto speakers use this network to travel cheaply while others use it to meet interesting people from around the world by hosting them in their own home. In 2009, this service made its transition online and can be found at www.pasportaservo.org.
Participles are used to create complex verb forms, to express ideas such as "I will have read" or "The wine has been drunk". Participles are formed from verbs. There are two categories of participles: active and passive. Each category has present, future and past tenses.
| Tense | Active participle ending | Passive participle ending |
|---|---|---|
| past | -int | -it |
| present | -ant | -at |
| future | -ont | -ot |
Notice that the vowels "i", "a" and "o" are the same ones used for past, present and future verb endings.
In this skill we focus on the active participles.
The present active participle is used for the English -ing ending: doing, seeing, believing, etc. Unlike English, though, the active participle in Esperanto also has past and future variants:
| Tense | Participle | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| present | dormanta | sleeping |
| past | dorminta | having slept |
| future | dormonta | about to sleep |
For example:
| Tense | Esperanto | "literal explanation" | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| present | La kato estas dormanta | The cat is sleeping. | |
| past | La kato estas dorminta | "The cat is having slept" | The cat has slept. |
| future | La kato estas dormonta | "The cat (at this present moment)is about to sleep" | The cat is about to sleep. |
Participles end in -a like adjectives. In fact, they are used in the same way as adjectives, which means that they agree in number and case with the noun that they belong to:
Participles can be combined with past, present and future tenses of esti :
Examples with an active participle:
Li estas leganta la libron
He is (in the process of) reading the book.
Li estos leginta la libron.
(literally: He will be having read the book)
He will have read the book.
Li estas leginta la libron.
(literally: He is having read the book.)
He has read (has finished reading) the book.
Li estis leginta la libron.
(literally: He was having read the book)
He had read the book.
[Note: the "literal" translations above are presented as an aid to understanding and using participles; they are not colloquial English and are not acceptable translations of Esperanto sentences in this course].
An o-ending on a participle generally signifies a person:
la leganto - the reader
la skribanto - the writer
la gvidonto - the future guide
devintus = estus devinta = should have povintus = estus povinta = could have
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| ĵurnalo | daily newspaper |
| gazeto | newspaper, magazine, review |
| revuo | magazine, periodical |
| gazetaro | the press |
| ĵurnalisto | journalist |
| presi | to print |
Lasi la hundon en la aŭto estas kruele. (NOT kruela)
To leave the dog in the car is cruel.
Lerni lingvon povas esti facile. (NOT facila) Learning a language can be easy.
Mi ŝatas manĝi fruktojn, inkluzive de oranĝoj.
I like to eat fruits, including oranges.
Kion vi opinias rilate al mi?
What is your opinion about me?
We have already encountered the intransitive -iĝ affix when learning fariĝi, komenciĝi, and a variety of other verbs. Similarly, rompi means to break something, while rompiĝi means to become or get broken. And okupi means to occupy something, while okupiĝi means to become occupied.
| Esperanto | English | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| fari | to do or make | fariĝi | to become |
| komenci | to start something | komenciĝi | to begin |
| rompi | to break something | rompiĝi | to get broken |
| okupi | to occupy something | okupiĝi | to become occupied |
Trinki means to drink any kind of liquid, including water, milk, coffee, wine or beer:
Mi preferas trinki akvon.
I prefer to drink water.
Ŝi ŝatas trinki glason da vino vespere. She likes to drink a glass of wine in the evening.
Drinki means to drink an alcohol-containing beverage to excess:
Li drinkis tro da biero, kaj malsaniĝis.
He drank too much beer, and got sick.*
Participles are used to create complex verb forms, to express ideas such as "I will have read" or "The wine has been drunk". Participles are formed from verbs. There are two categories of participles: active and passive. Each category has present, future and past tenses.
| Tense | Active participle ending | Passive participle ending |
|---|---|---|
| past | -int | -it |
| present | -ant | -at |
| future | -ont | -ot |
Notice that the vowels "i", "a" and "o" are the same ones used for past, present and future verb endings.
In this skill we focus on the passive participles.
Let's look at these two English sentences:
The owl ate the mouse.
The mouse was eaten by the owl.
They both say the same thing, but in the second sentence the mouse becomes the focus of interest, and also the subject of the verb, instead of the owl. To use the correct grammatical terms, the first sentence has an active verb, "ate", and the second verb has a passive verb "was eaten".
Here are examples of the use of passive participles:
| Tense | Esperanto | "literal translation" | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| present | La libro estas legata. | The book is being read. | |
| past | La libro estas legita | "The book is having been read" | The book has been read. |
| future | La libro estas legota | "The book is about to be read" | The book is about to be read. |
Participles end in -a like adjectives. In fact, they are used in the same way as adjectives, which means that they agree in number and case with the noun that they belong to:
La libro estas legita. = The book (literally: is having been read) has been read.
La libroj estas legitaj. = The books (literally: are having been read) have been read.
Mi trovis du rompitajn poŝtelefonojn. = I found two mobile phones (literally: having been broken) that had been broken / I found two broken mobile phones.
Participles can be combined with past, present and future tenses of esti:
Examples with a passive participle:
La libro estos legita.
(literally: The book will be having been read.)
The book will have been read.
La libro estas legita.
(literally: The book is having been read.)
The book has been read.
La libro estis legita.
(literally: The book was having been read.)
The book had been read.
[Note: the "literal" translations above are presented as an aid to understanding and using participles; they are not colloquial English and are not acceptable translations of Esperanto sentences in this course].
An o-ending on a participle generally signifies a person:
la elektito - the one who got elected
la konato - the one who is known, the acquaintance
Duo is the name given by Duolingo to its mascot, the green owl. It is not the word for owl in Esperanto. The Esperanto word for owl is strigo.
The combination tiel...kiel means as...as:
Ĉu vi kantas tiel bone kiel ŝi?
Do you sing as well as she (does)?
Ŝi estas tiel bela, kiel mia fratino.
She is as pretty as my sister.
This is an expression equivalent to "the more... the more" or "the less...the less" in English. Ju always comes before des :
Kiel eble plej..... followed by an adverb is an expression similar to the English expression "as .... as possible."
For example:
| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| kiel eble plej multe | as much as possible |
| kiel eble plej baldaŭ | as soon as possible |
| kiel eble plej ofte | as often as possible |
| kiel eble plej rapide | as rapidly/fast as possible |
The Esperanto suffix -ism- can be used to denote a world view, religion, ideology or system, similarly to the suffix "-ism" in English. It can be attached
either to a word that describes the worldview or system, as in naciismo (nationalism) and komunismo" (communism), derived from nacio (nation) and komuna (common, as in common ownership),
or to the name of the founder of that worldview or religion, as in budhismo (Buddhism) and marksismo (Marxism),
or to a word that denotes an adherent of that worldview or religion, as in kristanismo (Christianity), hinduismo (Hinduism), judismo (Judaism) and veganismo (veganism), which are derived from kristano (a Christian), hinduo (a Hindu), judo (a Jew) and vegano (a vegan).
If you are interested in exploring this topic in more detail, read on.
In 1. above, the adherent of that worldview is usually named by replacing the suffix -ism- by -ist-. So naciisto and komunisto mean a nationalist and a communist. However, as -ist- also denotes a profession, this can in some cases cause confusion, as in the word kapitalisto (a capitalist), which is usually used for a person in control of capital rather than for an adherent of capitalism. To clearly name an adherent in such a case, one can add the suffix -an- after -ism. So kapitalismano is a clear word for an adherent of capitalism, which should not be confused with a capitalist in the sense of a person in control of capital.
In 2. above, the adherent of that world view can be named by replacing -ism- by either -ist- or -an- (-ist- is generally prefered for adherents of a non-religious worldview named after a person, and -an- for adherents of a religion named after a person): So marksisto means "a Marxist", while a Buddhist can be called either budhano or budhisto (the first one is a little bit more common).
The word islamo (Islam) is the name of the religion, and the word of its adherents is formed using the suffix -an-: islamano (a Muslim). If you add the suffix -ism- to islamo, the resulting word islamismo is usually understood as a political ideology based on Islam, like the word "Islamism" in English.
Note that the word kristanismo just like budhismo derives from the title of the founder, but in the case of kristanismo, the name of the religion is based on the word kristano for an adherent of the religion (which in turn derives from the title Kristo (Christ) of the founder), whereas in the case of budhismo it is directly derived from the title Budho (Buddha) of the founder.
The Esperanto suffix -ism- can be used to denote a world view, religion, ideology or political system, similarly to the suffix "-ism" in English.
The suffix -an- is used to indicate the follower of a religion. However, this does not apply to judo (a Jew) and hinduo (a Hindu), since judismo and hiduismo are derived from the term for their followers, rather than the other way around.
| Religion | Follower |
|---|---|
| budhismo | budhano |
| kristanismo | kristano |
| islamo | islamano |
| judismo | judo |
| hinduismo | hinduo |
Note that the word islamo (Islam) is the name of the religion, and the word for its followers is formed using the suffix -an-: islamano (a Muslim). If you add the suffix -ism- to islamo, the resulting word islamismo is usually understood as a political ideology based on Islam, like the word "Islamism" in English. Its followers are called islamistoj (islamists)
There is no exact equivalent of the word po in English, which means approximately "at the rate of". It is used to indicate that a certain amount has been given to each of several recipients, or given at regular intervals over a certain period of time. Po introduces the amount that is given each time or to each recipient, not the total amount to be distributed. The word po will always be followed by some expression of quantity. In English translations of sentences with po, you will often find the word "each":
Mi donis al la infanoj po du pomoj.
I gave two apples to each child.
I gave each child two apples.
La amikoj trinkis po du glasoj da vino.
The friends each drank two glasses of wine.
The friends drank two glasses of wine each.
Po can also be used for prices.
La pomoj kostas po du dolaroj.
The apples cost two dollars each.
Note that po always refers to the quantity being distributed, and NOT to the number of people or the period of time among whom or which they are distributed.
La tri virinoj kantis po kvar kantoj.
The three women sang four songs each.
(i.e. each woman sang four songs, and a total of 3 x 4=12 songs were sung.)
La kvar pomoj kostas po du dolaroj.
The four apples cost two dollars each.
(i.e. each apple costs two dollars, for a total cost of 4 x 2= 8 dollars.)
Po is a preposition, and so is not followed by an accusative, the same as al, de or da. However, these days many people treat po as an adverb and add the accusative ending where appropriate. Both ways are considered acceptable:
Mi donis al la infanoj po du pomojn.
Mi donis al la infanoj po du pomoj.
I gave the children two apples each.
I gave each child two apples.
Ili trinkas po unu glason.
They drink one glass each.
Esperanto is a flexible language
The great thing about Esperanto is that it’s so flexible. Nouns can become verbs, verbs can become adjectives, and so on. In this way you can create new words to elegantly express a concept which might require an entire phrase in English. As you have already seen, the adverb ending -e is particularly productive in Esperanto. Here are some examples:
| Basic word | Meaning | Variations |
|---|---|---|
| hejmo | home | hejme: at home |
| dimanĉo | Sunday | dimanĉe: on Sundays, on Sunday |
| biciklo | bicycle | bicikle: by bike |
| ĉevalo | horse | ĉevale: by horse, on horseback |
| danki | to thank | danke: thankfully, gratefully |
| voli | to want, wish | nevole: unwillingly; kontraŭvole: against his/her will |
Here are some examples with different parts of speech: adjectives can be turned into verbs, verbs into adjectives, nouns into verbs and adjectives, to name just a few of the possibilities.
| Basic word | Meaning | Variations |
|---|---|---|
| rapida | quick, fast | rapidi: to hurry |
| malfrua | late | malfrui: to be late |
| mateno | morning | matena: morning (as an adjective), |
| danki | to thank | danka: thankful; danke: thankfully |
| krei | to create | kreo: creation; krea: creative |
The two or more parts of a compound word may be connected with a hyphen, if desired; they are usually written as a single word.
Word formation in Esperanto by combination:
Noun + Verb
voĉo + doni → “voĉdoni” (“to vote”, not “to give voice”)
piedo + iri → “piediri” (“to walk”, “to go by foot”)
kapo + jesi → “kapjesi” (“to consent by nodding the head”)
scii + volo → “scivolo” (“curiosity about something”) → “scivola” (“curious”)
Adjective + Noun
bona + koro → “bonkoro” (not used) → “bonkora” (“good-hearted”, “kind”)
bona + deziro → “bondeziro” (“a wish for someone’s happiness”)
rapida + vagonaro → “rapidvagonaro” (“high-speed train”)
nova + jaro → “novjaro” (“New Year”)
Noun + Noun
domo + pordo → “dompordo” (“door of house”, “entry”)
vino + botelo → “vinbotelo” (“wine bottle”)
floro + poto → “florpoto” (“flowerpot”)
poŝto + marko → “poŝtmarko” (“stamp”)
Note that combining an adjective with a noun or a verb with a noun yields a word with a new meaning. Combining a noun with a noun yields a word that describes the relationship between the two nouns.
You've reached the final skill of Duolingo's Esperanto course! For ideas on how to continue using the language after finishing this course, please see:
Finished the Esperanto tree, now what?
In Esperanto, many (but not all) adjectives can be transformed into verbs, and are often used that way in conversations and in written texts. Here are a few of the adjectives that are frequently used in their verb forms:
Mi estas preta. = Mi pretas. = I am ready.
Li estas malsana. = Li malsanas. = He is sick.
Ŝi estas feliĉa. = Ŝi feliĉas. = She is happy.
Ni estas fieraj. = Ni fieras. = We are proud.
Ili estas lacaj. = Ili lacas. = They are tired.
Mi estas certa = Mi certas = I am sure.
In this skill we introduce additional words that fit this pattern and that are frequently used in conversation.