The International Auxiliary Language Esperanto: Grammar & Commentary

71. Punctuation is only necessary to make clear the sense we wish to convey in writing. Happily it is not so important in Esperanto as in English, where a simple comma may make a great difference in the meaning of a sentence. Hence the verbosity of law documents in which stops are not used.

Every writer is free to use in Esperanto his own national or individual method of punctuation. Nevertheless, Zamenhof and the best writers follow a definite international usage, and the student is strongly advised to study and imitate their writings in this respect.

It is the custom, for instance, to separate every clause in a sentence by a punctuation mark. Accordingly, words like ke, por ke, ĉu, kiu, when they introduce a secondary sentence within the main sentence, are usually preceded by a comma. This aids the reader, and helps in the formation of a uniform international style.

When two verbs joined by kaj have the same subject, no comma is needed; but a comma is used if the subjects are different. Li staras kaj parolas (one subject). Li staras, kaj mi parolas al li (two subjects).

Use a comma after ho when it is part of an exclamation, but not in naming the person spoken to. Ho Dio! Ho, tute ne!

With abbreviations like S-ro, S-ino, D-ro, it is usual to insert a hyphen, but no following stop, thus: F-ino Jones.

72. The following is what Dr. Zamenhof has written on the subject in the "Esperantisto." We give it in Esperanto, so that the student can see the punctuation for himself:—

La reguloj pri la uzado de la interpunkcioj estas en nia lingvo pli-malpli tiaj samaj, kiel en ĉiuj aliaj lingvoj; sekve ĉiu povas uzadi en Esperanto la interpunkciojn tiel, kiel li uzas ilin en sia nacia lingvo. Estas vere, ke en diversaj detaloj la uzado de la interpunkcioj estas malegala en diversaj lingvoj; sed ĉar la objekto ne estas tre grava, tial ni pensas, ke ne venis ankoraŭ la tempo por difini en nia lingvo severajn regulojn por tiuj ĉi detaloj. En tiuj ĉi dubaj detaloj ĉiu povas uzi en Esperanto la interpunkciojn tiel, kiel li uzas ilin en sia nacia lingvo, kaj nur la uzo iom post iom ellaboros por tiuj ĉi negravaj detaloj difinitajn regulojn.

Translation.—The rules regarding the use of stops are in our language more or less the same as in all other languages, therefore everyone can continue using in Esperanto stops in such a manner as he uses them in his national language. It is true that in several details the use of stops is different in various languages, but since the matter is not very important, we think the time has not yet come to lay down in our language strict rules for these details. In these doubtful details everyone can use in Esperanto the stops he uses in his national language, and only custom, little by little, will work out for these unimportant details definite rules.

73. Since Esperanto has eliminated the defects of other languages, and embraced only the good points of each, its flexibility as regards the order of words in a sentence is great. This is principally owing to the fact that the accusative N clearly distinguishes the object from the subject, to the agreement in case and number of the adjective with the noun it qualifies, and to the fact that prepositions and conjunctions do not interfere with the proper functions of other words. In English the accusative case is distinguished only in the pronouns he (him), she (her), etc. It is true that English has a possessive case, which in Esperanto is applied only to the correlative group of words ending in -ES, viz., ies, kies, etc. (see pars. 106 (b), 154); but even this doubtful advantage is lessened by the fact that the apostrophe S in English is useless in speech in the plural when the word ends in S. For instance, when one says, "That is my brothers’ house," does one mean it belongs to one brother or more? Certainly, as written, with the apostrophe after the S, the meaning is two or more, but, as spoken, one would naturally suppose it belonged to one brother only. So, to be clear, we should have to fall back on the Esperanto mode of expression, and say, That is the house of my brothers = Tio estas la domo de miaj fratoj; even then Esperanto is clearer than English, for the pronoun (miaj) is a plural form, whereas in English my is the same for both numbers.

74. Owing to the above advantages, words may be arranged in almost any order in Esperanto, and yet be intelligible; but of course it is advisable that they should follow one another in the natural sequence of our thoughts. The first point is, that the meaning of a sentence should be absolutely clear, and the second, that the sounds should be as harmonious as they can be, combined with clearness of expression. The student is advised to read the "Fundamenta Krestomatio," by Dr. Zamenhof, which will familiarize him with the construction of the language, and he will then rapidly acquire a knowledge as to the best order for words.

75. Place of the subject and object.—The subject is usually placed before and the object after the verb.

Examples.—Mia fratino aĉetis libron = My sister bought a book. Rikardo manĝas kukon = Richard is eating a cake. Kukon manĝas Rikardo means exactly the same, and would he quite intelligible, but the mind would not grasp the meaning so rapidly, and it would be absurd, without a reason, to place words in such an unnatural order.

76. Position for emphasis.—Words are often placed out of the usual order, as they are in English, to give emphasis, or for the sake of contrast.

Examples.—Lin mi renkontis, ne ŝin = Him I met, not her. Belon mi trovis ĉie, bonon nenie = Beauty I found everywhere, good nowhere.

77. Place of the predicate.—The predicate, or what is said about the subject, is usually placed after the verb.

Examples.—Li estos kontenta (or Li kontentiĝos) se vi donos al li ŝilingon = He will be satisfied if you (will) give him a shilling. Ŝi fariĝus pli sana, se la vetero estus pli varma, or Ŝi pli saniĝus, se la vetero pli varmiĝus = She would get better if the weather became warmer. But after the word kiel it is preferable to put the predicate before the verb, as:—Kiel malsana li ŝajnas! = How ill he seems! Kiel li ŝajnas malsana would be quite possible and correct, but Esperanto inclines to follow the English order of words here, as also in many other cases where in other languages the construction is quite different.

78. Place of the direct complement.—We have stated that the object is placed usually after the verb, but it may equally correctly precede it.

Examples.—Mi lin malamas, or, Mi malamas lin = I detest him. If, however, the object be followed by an explanatory phrase, it is better to place it after the verb, as:—Mi vidis lin kuŝantan sur la lito = I saw him lying on the bed. Mi renkontis ŝin, ĝuste kiam ŝi estis eliranta = I met her just as she was going out (see par. 29).

79. Place of the indirect complement.—The complement is said to be indirect when it is governed by a preposition (see Syntax, par. 31). It is usually placed after the verb.

Examples.—Zorgu pri tio = Take care of (about) that. Alkonduku lin al mi = Bring him to me. La domo estas konstruata de mia patro = The house is being built by my father. Mi ĝin donis (or, donis ĝin) al li por lia nepino = I gave it to him for his granddaughter. Of course, we can place it before the verb if we wish, just as we can in English, and as we probably should in the following phrase:—El la dirita regulo sekvas, ke.... = From the said rule, it follows that....

80. Place of circumstantial complements (see Syntax, par. 32).—These complements, which mark the time, place, manner, cause, etc., of an action, are usually placed first or last in a sentence.

Examples.—En printempo floroj aperas = In spring flowers appear. Nur kelke da knaboj ludadis sur la kampo = Only a few boys were playing in the field; or, Sur la kampo ludadis nur kelke da knaboj. In a sentence like the following the complement might be placed last, as:—Mi kriegis pro la dolorego = I howled with the intense pain. But in one like the following, where there are two or more circumstantial complements, they naturally should come first in the sentence, as:—Kun la haroj malordigitaj, kaj la okuloj eksaltantaj el la kapo de (or, pro) teruro, ŝi kuregis laŭ la strato = With dishevelled hair, and eyes starting out of her (the) head with terror, she rushed down the street.

81. The complements of nouns, adjectives, or participial adjectives, usually follow them.

Examples.—La amo al (or, por) Dio = Love to (for) God. Mirigita de liaj vortoj, mi eliris el la domo = Astonished at his words, I left (went out of) the house.

82. Place of the infinitive.—The infinitive being really a noun, takes its place, according as it is the subject, predicate, or complement. When it is the subject, it generally precedes the verb, unless one wishes to place it otherwise for the sake of emphasis.

Examples.—Scii estas utile = Knowledge (to know) is useful. Honte estas mensogi = It is shameful to lie. If the predicate, it usually follows the verb, as:—Tion fari estas agi malsaĝe = To do that is to act foolishly. If the complement, it follows the word of which it is the complement, as:—Mi tre deziras paroli kun vi = I want very much to speak with you. Ni trinkas por sensoifiĝi, kaj ni manĝas por satigi nin (or, por satiĝi) = We drink to allay thirst (to become without thirst), and we eat to allay hunger (to be satiated). Mi devas iri hejmen = I must go home. La elekto tion fari restas ĉe vi = The option of doing that rests with you. Li estos tre feliĉa vin vidi morgaŭ = He will be very glad to see you to-morrow. La deziro kontraŭdiri = The desire of contradicting (to contradict).

83. Place of the noun.—The noun is placed according as it is the subject, predicate, complement (direct, indirect, or circumstantial), (see pars. 76–80).

84. Place of the adjective.—The position of the adjective varies in national languages. In English it is nearly always placed before the word it qualifies, and we may say that this is generally its place in Esperanto. The following remarks and examples of the four classes of adjectives, "qualifying," "predicative," "possessive," and "demonstrative," will give an idea of its position, in accordance with the sense or emphasis wished to be conveyed.

(a). A qualifying adjective may either precede or follow the word it qualifies.

(In either position the meaning is precisely the same grammatically. It is considered by some that it throws a shade of emphasis on the adjective to place it after the noun it qualifies, especially when the adjective is the last word in the sentence.)

Examples.—La malfeliĉa knabo (or, knabo malfeliĉa) perdis sian monujon = The unfortunate boy lost his purse. Li renkontis maljunan virinon (or, maljunulinon), tre grasan, kiu portis grandan korbon, plenan de maturaj pomoj = He met an old woman, very fat, who was carrying a large basket, full of ripe apples.

(b). A predicative adjective is usually placed after the verb, and noun or pronoun, to which it relates.

Examples.—La papero estas blanka = The paper is white. Ili trovis la manĝaĵojn bonaj = They found the eatables good. Mi pensis, ke mi vidas ilin mortigantaj la homon = I thought (that) I saw (see) them killing (that they are killing) the man.

N.B.—A predicative adjective does not agree in case, when its noun or pronoun is in the accusative (pars. 69 (a), and 108 (b)).

(c). A possessive adjective usually precedes the word to which it relates. If we wish to speak in an affectionate strain, we can place it after the noun.

Examples.—Mia patrino kaj miaj gefratoj donis al mi donacon en mia naskotago = My mother and my brothers and sisters gave me a present on my birthday. Ne ploru, patrino mia! = Do not weep, mother dear! (or, mother mine!). Johano mia, ne faru tion! = John dear, do not do that.

(d). A demonstrative adjective usually precedes the word to which it relates.

Examples.—Tiu sinjorino estas mia fratino = That lady is my sister. Du ŝilingoj ne sufiĉos por aĉeti tiun libron = Two shillings will not buy that book.

(e). To show emphasis, adjectives can, as in English, be placed first in phrases.

Examples.—Bona, malavara kaj ĝentila, li estas estimata de ĉiuj = Kind, generous and courteous, he was esteemed by all. Feliĉa estas la homo, kiu ne havas malamikojn = Happy is the man who has no enemies.

85. Place of the pronoun.—As in English, a personal pronoun may follow or precede the verb.

Examples.—"Jes," diris li (or, li diris), "vi estas prava" = "Yes," said he, "you are right." "Kial," ekkriis la homo, "vi faris tion?" = "Why," cried the man, "did you do that?"

86. Place of the verb.—The verb is, as a rule, placed after the subject, but this does not mean that it must follow it immediately, for it can be separated by predicates, complements, and adverbs.

Examples.—La lingvo Esperanto, kreita de doktoro Zamenhof, estas jam uzata en la tuta mondo civilizita = The language Esperanto, created by Dr. Zamenhof, is already used in the whole civilized world. In sentences like the following it is, as in English, often placed before the subject. "Kien ni iros," diris mi al li, "kiam via amiko alvenos?" = "Where shall we go," said I to him, "when your friend arrives (shall arrive)?" Nun alvenas la horo de la sukceso por la lingvo internacia = Now comes the hour of (the) success for the international language. Aperis sur la monteto la figuro de rajdanto = There appeared on the hill the figure of a horseman. (For the place of the Infinitive, see par. 82.)

87. Place of the participle varies as follows:—

(a). When forming the compound tenses of verbs, the participle usually follows the auxiliary verb esti, though not necessarily immediately after it (see (d)).

Examples.—Mi estos fininta mian leteron, antaŭ ol li alvenos = I shall have finished my letter before he arrives (will arrive). Ŝi estas tre amata de ĉiuj = She is very much loved by all.

(b). In a qualifying or predicative sense participles generally follow their noun or pronoun.

Examples.—Mi vidis lin riproĉeganta kaj batanta la knabon = I saw him (that he is) rebuking and beating the boy. Ĉu tio estas mia hundo ĉasanta ŝafon? = Is that my dog chasing a sheep? La fraŭlino leganta la ĵurnalon estas tre bela = The young lady reading the newspaper is very beautiful. La konstruata domo (or, domo konstruata) = The house under construction (being constructed). Mi imagis, ke mi vidas la homon kisanta la virinon = I fancied (that) I saw the man kissing (that he is kissing) the woman.

(c). An adverbial participle generally precedes its noun or pronoun.

Examples.—Vidante sian amikon, li haltis = (On) seeing his friend, he stopped. Leginte la libron, ŝi ekdormis = After reading (or, having read) the book, she fell asleep (par. 212 (d)).

(d). For emphasis the participle may be put first in a sentence.

Examples.—Tedita de vojaĝado, mi decidis reveni hejmen = Tired of travelling, I decided to return home. Amataj kaj estimataj de ĉiuj, la fratoj havis multajn amikojn = Loved and esteemed by all, the brothers had many friends.

Note.—If qualifying and predicative participles are not placed in their natural position, viz., after their nouns or pronouns, the sense may be entirely changed. For instance, in the following two sentences the words are the same, but the sense varies with their positions:—Ŝi, kuranta en la ĉambron, vidis mian hundon = She, (who is) running into the room, saw my dog (here kuranta is the qualifying participle of ŝi). Ŝi vidis mian hundon kuranta en la ĉambron = She saw my dog (that he is) running into the room (here kuranta is the predicative participle of hundon, and, being predicative, does not take the accusative (see pars. 69 (a) and 108 (b)). The above two sentences might be altered as follows, showing different meanings, by using in the first an adverbial participle, and in the second a qualifying participle, as:—Kurante en la ĉambron, ŝi vidis mian hundon = (While) running into the room, she saw my dog. Ŝi vidis mian hundon kurantan = She saw my running dog. A phrase is often clearer if the conjunction ke be used instead of a predicative participle. For instance, instead of Ŝi vidis mian hundon kuranta en la ĉambron, we can say Ŝi vidis, ke mia hundo kuras en la ĉambron = She saw that my dog was (is) running into the room; or, Ŝi vidis mian hundon kuri en la ĉambron = She saw my dog run into the room.

88. Place of the adverb.—The adverb, as a rule, immediately precedes or follows the word to which it refers, or which it qualifies.

Examples.—Li rapide kuras, or, Li kuras rapide = He runs rapidly. La virino zorge legis (or, legis zorge) la leteron = The woman read the letter carefully. Li ĝentile demetis la ĉapelon = He politely took off his hat.

N.B.—In this last example it is more elegant to place the adverb, as in English, before the verb.

(a). To avoid ambiguity, care, however, must be taken not to place the adverb in a position where it might be taken to refer either to the word which precedes or the word which follows it. For instance, if an adverb be placed between two verbs, it sometimes happens that we cannot tell to which it refers, and the sense is thus materially altered.

Example.—Li ekstreme deziris saĝiĝi = He desired extremely to become wise. Li deziris saĝiĝi ekstreme = He desired to become extremely wise. In this example, if we place the adverb between the two verbs, and say Li deziris ekstreme saĝiĝi, the sentence might be translated in either of the above two ways. See also remarks on the use of ne (par. 59 (a)). The word nur, also, similarly modifies the word it precedes.

(b). Adverbs of comparison, such as: iom, multe, kiel, plej, pli, sufiĉe, tiel, tiom, tre, tro, are usually placed before the words to which they refer.

Examples.—Li iom laciĝis kaj multe senkuraĝiĝis = He became somewhat fatigued and much discouraged. Kiel malavare li agis, donante al sia frato tiom da mono, kiom li bezonis! = How generously he acted in giving his brother as much money as he needed! Li venos pli aŭ malpli frue = He will come sooner or later (lit., more or less early). Vi agis plej saĝe, farante tion = You acted most wisely in doing that. Kio ajn okazos, li estis sufiĉe saĝa por tion fari = At all events he was wise enough to do that. Ŝi tre amis sian fraton = She loved her brother very much. Li tro manĝadas = He eats too much.

(c). To give emphasis, adverbs and adverbial participles may commence a sentence.

Examples.—Ĉarme, bele kaj kortuŝe estis vidi la birdon zorgi pri sia ido = Charming, beautiful and touching it was to see the bird take care of its offspring. Starante kun la brakoj etenditaj, li paroladis al la popolamaso = Standing with arms outstretched, he harangued the populace (see par. 245 (a)).

89. Place of the preposition.—The preposition always immediately precedes its complement.

Examples.—Skribu al mi = Write to me. Li venis al mia domo kune kun la du hundoj je la tria (horo) = He came to my house (to me) along with the two dogs at 3 o’clock.

90. Place of the conjunction.—The conjunction always precedes the verb to which it refers, but separated from it by the words which logically intervene.

Example.—Se iu hodiaŭ matene deziros min vidi, diru al ĝi, ke mi estas tre okupita = If anyone (someone), this morning, should desire to see me, tell him (or her) I am very busy.

N.B.—Note that iu does not give the sex, therefore ĝi is rightly used; but, as in English, the sense would be clear without the words al ĝi.

91. Place of the interrogative.—In direct questions the subject usually precedes the verb.

Examples.—Ĉu vi havas mian libron? = Have you my book? In English, in many cases, we place the subject first; for instance, in the present tense we often commence a question with "Do"; in the past, with "Have" or "Did"; in the future, with "Shall" or "Will." If we substitute Ĉu for any of these words, we have the Esperanto construction, as:—Ĉu vi bezonas tiun plumon? = Do you want that pen? Ĉu vi faris tion? = Did you do that? Ĉu li venos tien ĉi? = Will he come here?

92. Place of the negative.—The negative ne = not, when it relates directly to a verb, is placed immediately before such verb, but otherwise in its natural position in the clause; i.e., it negatives the word or words it precedes. The negative correlatives nenia, nenial, etc., may be placed in almost any position, according to the emphasis we wish to give to the word.

Examples.—Mi lin ne vidis, or, Mi ne vidis lin = I did not see him. Ĉu vi ne vidis lin? or, Ĉu vi lin ne vidis? = Did you not see him? Mi neniam renkontis ŝin, or, Neniam mi renkontis ŝin, or, Mi ŝin renkontis neniam = I never met her. Mi volas renkonti ne nur Johanon, sed ankaŭ Georgon = I want to meet not only John, but also George.

93. Order very similar to English.—The foregoing remarks show that the order of words in Esperanto is very similar to the English construction of sentences, and we can hardly do wrong if we follow it nearly word for word. A slightly different order in Esperanto sometimes makes an expression more elegant but this is generally owing to harmony of sound rather than grammatical construction.

[In writing original work in Esperanto it is well to cultivate a style as international as possible, and use the normal, simple, and logical order of words. In translation work, when it is desired to reproduce as far as possible the national or individual atmosphere of the original, it is legitimate intentionally to reproduce in the translation—so long as intelligibility is ensured, and as far as the structure of the language permits—the characteristic order of words in the original text. The wonderful flexibility of Esperanto is one of the reasons why Esperanto is such an admirable language for translation purposes.]

94. The following is the Complete Grammar of Esperanto, as given by Dr. Zamenhof at page 254 of his "Fundamenta Krestomatio de la Lingvo Esperanto," which he says is "a book that should be in the hands of every earnest student who desires to acquire a correct Esperanto style." This book contains a series of Exercises, Fables, Legends, Stories, Extracts from Scientific Articles, Articles on Esperanto, Poetry, Translations from Hamlet and The Iliad, showing how well Esperanto is adapted for every kind of subject.

It will be seen that the whole Grammar consists of sixteen short Rules, which can be learnt in less than an hour. The Esperanto is given alongside the translation. Remarks on the Rules, with examples, will be found by referring to the paragraphs given after each Rule.

95. There are nine parts of speech in Esperanto, as found in most other languages, viz., the Article (Artikolo), Noun (Substantivo), Pronoun (Pronomo), Adjective (Adjektivo), Verb (Verbo), Adverb (Adverbo), Preposition (Prepozicio), Conjunction (Konjunkcio), Interjection (Interjekcio).

Nouns, derived adjectives and adverbs, and verbs have distinctive terminations. If a word ends in -O, it is a noun; if in -A, an adjective; if in -E, an adverb; if in -I, -U, -AS, -IS, -OS, or -US, a verb. If it ends in -N, it is in the accusative case, and if in -J, it is plural.

Examples.—Domo = a house. Facila = easy. Feliĉe = happily. Doni = to give (Infinitive). Batu lin = beat him (Imperative and Accusative). Mi vidas la homojn = I see the men (Present tense and Accusative plural). Vi diris = you said (Past tense). Ni iros = we shall go (Future tense). Se ili estus bonaj = If they were good (Conditional mood and plural adjective).

96. There is no word in Esperanto for the Indefinite Article. It is, as in Latin, implied in the noun, if the sense in English requires it.

Examples.—Tio estas floro = That is a flower. Patrino kaj filo = Mother and son. Ĉu vi vidas birdon sur tiu arbo? = Do you see a bird on that tree?

97. The definite article is la = the. It is, as in English, the same for all genders, numbers, and cases.

Examples.—La patro = The father. La patrino = The mother. Donu al mi la libron = Give me the book. Ili estas la lernantoj diligentaj = They are the diligent scholars.

98. As regards its use, la is used very nearly as the definite article "the" in English, namely, to show that one is speaking of something known or definite, as opposed to what is indefinite.

Examples.—En la mezo de la korto mi vidis du infanojn el la apuda vilaĝo = In the middle of the yard I saw two children of the neighbouring village. In this sentence the yard and village are each defined by the article la, as they are also in English by "the." But if we omit the article the sentence runs:—En la mezo de korto mi vidis du infanojn el apuda vilaĝo = In the middle of a yard I saw two children of a neighbouring village. In this case the children might have been in any yard, and have belonged to any village in the neighbourhood of the speaker.

99. There are, however, cases in which the article is often used in Esperanto, though omitted in English, and also vice versa.

(a). It is usually used before nouns denoting the totality of persons or things.

Examples.—La homo estas mortema = Man is mortal. La homoj estas mortemaj = Men are mortal. La medicino estas scienco kaj la pentrado arto = Medicine is a science and painting an art. Kelkaj kuracistoj pretendas, ke la vino estas malutila al la sano = Some doctors maintain that wine is hurtful to health. Sen la akvo nia terglobo rapide fariĝus dezerto = Without water our earth would rapidly become a desert. La nokto estis tiel nigra, kiel la peĉo = The night was as dark as pitch. La azenoj amas la kardojn = Donkeys love thistles. La vento kaŭzas ofte teruran detruon en kelkaj landoj = Wind often causes terrible ruin in some countries. (In this case la vento means wind in general, spoken of as a whole, but "To-day we shall have wind" (meaning some wind) would be: Hodiaŭ ni havos venton.) Hajlo falas = Hail is falling (viz., some hail), but La hajlo estas tre malutila al la vinbero = Hail is very injurious to grapes (to the grape), means hail in general.

(b). It is not used before proper names, for the simple reason that they cannot be more definite than they are in themselves. In English it is sometimes used and sometimes not.[13]

Examples.—Danubo = The Danube. Tibro = The Tiber. Mediteraneo = The Mediterranean. Alpoj = The Alps. Unuiĝintaj Ŝtatoj Amerikaj (or, Usono) = The United States of America.

(c). If, however, a proper name is preceded by a qualifying word, the article is used.

Examples. La glora poeto, Dante = The famous poet, Dante. La imperiestro de Japanujo = The Emperor of Japan. La bona reĝino Viktorio = The good Queen Victoria.