A direct object is a participant or content that a verb selects without a preposition. In Esperanto, an object capable of showing case normally takes -n: Mi malfermis la fenestron. This visible marking lets speakers move an object for focus while keeping its grammatical role clear.
All patterns on this page are neutral standard Esperanto and occur in both conversation and formal prose unless a register label says otherwise.
A direct object belongs to the verb's pattern
The most concrete objects are affected by an action: a door is opened, vegetables are cut, or a machine is repaired. Yet “affected thing” is only a useful starting image. Objects can also be perceived, possessed, created, remembered, or discussed as mental content.
Bonvolu ŝlosi la pordon kiam vi foriros.
Please lock the door when you leave.
Mi aŭdis strangan bruon en la kuirejo.
I heard a strange noise in the kitchen.
Ŝi verkas romanon pri sia infanaĝo.
She is writing a novel about her childhood.
Ni havas la necesan akvon por la vojaĝo.
We have the water needed for the trip.
In all four examples, the verb directly selects the accusative phrase. The semantic relationship differs, but the syntax is the same. That is why the safest learning unit is not merely the verb's English translation but the Esperanto verb together with its complement pattern: ŝlosi ion, aŭdi ion, verki ion, havi ion.
English prepositions do not predict Esperanto objects
English and Esperanto often package the same event differently. English says wait for the bus and listen to music, but Esperanto uses direct objects: atendi la buson, aŭskulti muzikon. Adding por or al by translation would change or spoil the relationship.
Mi atendos vin antaŭ la kinejo je la sepa.
I'll wait for you in front of the cinema at seven.
La infanoj silente aŭskultis la rakonton.
The children listened quietly to the story.
The reverse also occurs. Esperanto paroli pri io and pensi pri io use pri, so the complement normally has no -n. A preposition already marks its relation.
Ni longe parolis pri la propono, sed ne atingis interkonsenton.
We talked about the proposal for a long time but did not reach an agreement.
There is no universal logical shortcut that predicts every verb's valency. The broad meanings help, but conventional verb patterns must sometimes be learned. The verb–preposition frames page develops these lexical contrasts.
Form: mark every eligible word in the object phrase
An object noun takes -n, and directly agreeing adjectives take it too. If the phrase is plural, -j precedes -n. Articles and cardinal numbers do not change.
Mi prenis la du plej pezajn valizojn.
I took the two heaviest suitcases.
Ĉu vi jam legis tiun longan mesaĝon?
Have you read that long message yet?
Personal pronouns add -n directly: min, vin, lin, ŝin, ĝin, nin, ilin, sin. Eligible correlatives do the same: kiun, kion, iun, ion, tiun, tion, ĉiun, ĉion, neniun, nenion, plus the corresponding -a forms when they modify or stand in for an object noun phrase.
Mi vokis ŝin, sed ŝi ne aŭdis min.
I called her, but she didn't hear me.
Kion vi serĉas? — Mi serĉas mian telefonon.
What are you looking for? — I'm looking for my phone.
The case ending marks the role of the whole phrase. For the details of agreement, including forms after the noun and predicative descriptions, see adjective agreement in the accusative.
Word order changes focus, not objecthood
Neutral Esperanto normally uses subject–verb–object order. Because case marks roles, other orders are possible when context motivates them. Fronting the object often makes it the topic or contrasts it with another possibility.
Marta preparis la deserton.
Marta prepared the dessert.
La deserton preparis Marta; mi faris nur la salaton.
Marta prepared the dessert; I only made the salad.
The two clauses describe the same participant roles. La deserton remains the object even at the front, and Marta remains the subject even after the verb. Omitting -n would not be a stylistic choice; it would remove the grammatical signal and could reverse or obscure the interpretation.
Two participants: theme versus recipient
With verbs of giving, showing, sending, and telling, English may place two noun phrases after the verb: “give me the key.” Neutral Esperanto usually marks the transferred thing as the direct object and introduces the recipient with al.
La najbaro donis al mi rezervan ŝlosilon.
The neighbour gave me a spare key.
Mi sendis la fotojn al ĉiuj partoprenantoj.
I sent the photos to all the participants.
Here ŝlosilon and la fotojn are direct objects. Al mi and al ĉiuj partoprenantoj are prepositional phrases, so their pronoun or noun has no accusative ending. Different verbs have different patterns, and advanced usage admits other arrangements, but al + recipient, -n + theme is the clearest productive model.
Objects that do not visibly show -n
Some complements fill an object-like content slot but cannot take an Esperanto case ending. An infinitive remains in -i, and an entire ke clause keeps its own internal grammar.
Mi volas rezervi tablon por kvar personoj.
I want to reserve a table for four people.
Ni esperas, ke la vetero pliboniĝos morgaŭ.
We hope that the weather will improve tomorrow.
In the first sentence, rezervi tablon is what is wanted; only the noun tablon, the object inside the infinitive clause, visibly takes -n. In the second, the ke clause supplies the content of hoping, but the clause as a whole receives no final -n.
An object can also be understood and left unspoken when context supplies it. This is ordinary in conversation, especially in answers and with activities where the object is irrelevant.
Ĉu vi jam manĝis? — Jes, antaŭ unu horo.
Have you eaten yet? — Yes, an hour ago.
The missing food is recoverable but not grammatically expressed, so there is no word on which to place -n. Object ellipsis does not make an expressed object unmarked.
The same ending can mark a non-object
Not every phrase in -n is a direct object. In the first example below, la buson is selected by atendis, while duonhoron measures the duration. In the second, en la ĝardenon marks movement into a destination.
Ni atendis la buson duonhoron.
We waited for the bus for half an hour.
Ŝi kuris en la ĝardenon por preni la lavotaĵon.
She ran into the garden to get the laundry.
Object, measure, and directional -n share a form but not a syntactic function. Meaning—and, for an object, the verb's valency—identifies the analysis. The dedicated direction and measure pages develop the two non-object uses.
Do not confuse objects with complements and postverbal subjects
After esti, fariĝi, resti in a linking use, and similar verbs, a noun or adjective can identify or describe the subject. It is a predicate complement, not a direct object, and has no -n.
Post multaj jaroj ŝi fariĝis la estro de la teamo.
After many years she became the head of the team.
Likewise, a subject can follow the verb. The phrase after mankas, okazis, aperis, or an existential expression is not automatically an object.
En la raporto mankas du gravaj paĝoj.
Two important pages are missing from the report.
One useful diagnostic is the passive. A true active object can normally become the passive subject: La mekanikisto riparis la aŭton → La aŭto estis riparita de la mekanikisto. A predicate complement or the postverbal subject of mankas cannot undergo that change in the same way. The diagnostic supports analysis, though learners need not turn every sentence into a passive while speaking.
La mekanikisto riparis la aŭton antaŭ tagmezo.
The mechanic repaired the car before noon.
La aŭto estis riparita de la mekanikisto antaŭ tagmezo.
The car was repaired by the mechanic before noon.
Common Mistakes
Copying an English preposition
❌ Mi atendas por mia amiko.
Incorrect for ‘wait for my friend’ — atendi takes a direct object.
✅ Mi atendas mian amikon.
I'm waiting for my friend.
Removing case when the object comes first
❌ Tiu filmo mi jam vidis.
Incorrect — fronting does not cancel object marking.
✅ Tiun filmon mi jam vidis.
That film I've already seen.
Leaving part of the object phrase unmarked
❌ Ni luis bela malgrandan apartamenton.
Incorrect — both attributive adjectives agree with the object noun.
✅ Ni luis belan malgrandan apartamenton.
We rented a beautiful small apartment.
Marking the recipient after al
❌ Bonvolu montri la bileton al min.
Incorrect — al already marks the recipient relation.
✅ Bonvolu montri la bileton al mi.
Please show me the ticket.
Treating a postverbal subject as an object
❌ Sur la breto restas unu libron.
Incorrect — unu libro is the subject of restas.
✅ Sur la breto restas unu libro.
One book remains on the shelf.
Key Takeaways
- A direct object is selected by the Esperanto verb without a preposition and normally takes -n.
- Learn verb frames from Esperanto; English prepositions do not reliably predict them.
- Object marking stays in place when word order changes.
- With transfer verbs, the productive pattern is usually -n for the theme and al for the recipient.
- Predicate complements, postverbal subjects, infinitives, and whole clauses do not receive object -n in the same way.
Now practice Esperanto
Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.
Start learning Esperanto →Related Topics
- The Accusative -N: OverviewA1 — Understand how Esperanto uses final -n to mark direct objects, direction, time, and measurement without relying on word order.
- Adjective Agreement in the AccusativeA1 — Learn when Esperanto adjectives copy the accusative -n, how -ajn is built, and why predicative adjectives normally remain without -n.
- Two Objects and ValencyA2 — How Esperanto distributes recipients, things transferred, and other participants between the accusative and prepositional phrases.
- Objects before the VerbB1 — How fronted and preverbal objects use accusative marking to preserve roles while managing topic, contrast, and information flow.
- Transitive and Intransitive VerbsA2 — Learn which verbs license a direct object, which require another construction, and how Esperanto systematically changes valency.
- Objects and ComplementsB1 — Distinguish accusative direct objects from prepositional, adverbial, clausal, and predicative complements selected by Esperanto verbs.