An attributive adjective belongs inside a noun phrase: la trankvila infano (“the calm child”). A predicative adjective makes an assertion about a subject or object: la infano estas trankvila (“the child is calm”). Esperanto uses the same productive -a adjective form in both functions, but case marking and information structure differ.
One adjective class, two jobs
Unlike languages that use a special short form or an invariant form after “be,” Esperanto keeps ordinary adjective morphology in both positions. Number agreement remains visible; accusative agreement depends on whether the adjective is actually inside an accusative noun phrase.
| Function | Typical structure | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| attributive | la trankvila infano | describes or identifies a noun within its phrase |
| subject predicative | la infano estas trankvila | asserts a property of the subject |
| object predicative | la novaĵo lasis la infanon maltrankvila | attributes a state to the object |
La trankvila infano legis apud la fenestro.
The calm child read beside the window.
La infano estis trankvila ĝis la gastoj alvenis.
The child was calm until the guests arrived.
The first sentence packages calmness as part of the noun phrase used to introduce or identify the child. The second explicitly asserts calmness and can place it in time with ĝis la gastoj alvenis.
Attributive adjectives live inside the noun phrase
An attributive adjective can stand before or after the noun, although the neutral position is usually before it. In either position, it agrees with the noun in number and case because it is structurally part of the same phrase.
Ni rezervis komfortan ĉambron proksime al la stacidomo.
We booked a comfortable room near the station.
Ŝi elektis solvon simplan sed efikan.
She chose a solution that was simple but effective.
In komfortan ĉambron, both words take object -n. In solvon simplan sed efikan, the postposed adjectives still identify the kind of solution chosen, so they also take -n. Position alone does not make an adjective predicative.
Attributive adjectives may be restrictive, selecting one subgroup, or descriptive, adding a property without making a contrast. Context, not a different ending, supplies that distinction.
Prenu la ruĝajn pomojn; la verdaj ankoraŭ ne estas maturaj.
Take the red apples; the green ones aren't ripe yet.
Here ruĝajn restricts the choice to a subgroup. By contrast, in la laca vojaĝanto fine ekdormis (“the tired traveler finally fell asleep”), the adjective can simply add background description.
Subject predicatives make an assertion
Subject predicatives commonly follow esti (“be”), fariĝi (“become”), resti (“remain”), and ŝajni (“seem”). They agree in number with the subject but do not take accusative -n.
La nova programo estas senpaga, sed la profesiaj versioj estas multekostaj.
The new program is free, but the professional versions are expensive.
Post la klarigo ĉiuj fariĝis pli trankvilaj.
After the explanation, everyone became calmer.
Ĉu la fenestroj restis malfermitaj dum la nokto?
Did the windows remain open during the night?
English adjectives are invariant in both uses, so English speakers may overlook plural -j. Esperanto treats the predicative adjective as a description of its referent and marks plural meaning overtly: la fenestro estas malfermita but la fenestroj estas malfermitaj.
The adjective may also predicate a property of a pronoun.
Mi ne estas certa, sed ili ŝajnas konvinkitaj.
I'm not sure, but they seem convinced.
Singular mi selects certa; plural ili selects konvinkitaj. The adjective need not be adjacent to the word controlling agreement.
Object predicatives describe a state or result
Some verbs allow an adjective to say what state the direct object is in, or what state an action produces. The object itself takes -n, but a clearly predicative adjective normally does not. It still agrees in number.
Mi trovis la oficejon malplena.
I found the office empty.
La longa atendado igis la infanojn malpaciencaj.
The long wait made the children impatient.
Bonvolu lasi la pordon malfermita; baldaŭ venos la aliaj.
Please leave the door open; the others will arrive soon.
The endings expose the two layers: la infanojn is a plural direct object; malpaciencaj predicates a plural state of those children. Writing malpaciencajn would pull the adjective into the object phrase and favor the reading “made the impatient children,” even if context might rescue the intended interpretation.
The sharpest minimal contrast is:
Ŝi farbis la bluan seĝon.
She painted the blue chair.
Ŝi farbis la seĝon blua.
She painted the chair blue.
The first sentence says which chair received paint; it does not state the new color. The second states the resulting color. This contrast is one reason Esperanto's apparently repetitive agreement endings are useful: they map meaning onto phrase structure.
Some object-predicative contexts show accepted variation in careful usage, particularly where an accusative adjective can also be understood as an elliptical modifier. The clearest pedagogical practice is to leave -n off a deliberate state or result predicate. See Adjective Agreement in the Accusative for that variation.
Adjectives after the noun are not automatically predicates
Compare Mi aĉetis rozojn ruĝajn with Mi farbis la rozojn ruĝaj. In the first, ruĝajn is a postposed attribute: red roses are what was bought. In the second, ruĝaj is the result of painting.
Ni serĉas volontulojn spertajn pri tradukado.
We are looking for volunteers experienced in translation.
La intensa kurso faris la volontulojn pli memfidaj pri sia Esperanto.
The intensive course made the volunteers more confident in their Esperanto.
Thus, “after the noun” is a position; “predicative” is a syntactic function. Case agreement is one of the best diagnostics.
When the noun is omitted
An attributive adjective can stand independently when its noun is recoverable. It keeps the endings that the full phrase requires.
La unua trajno estas rekta, sed la dua estas pli rapida.
The first train is direct, but the second one is faster.
Ĉu vi volas dolĉajn aŭ acidajn? — Donu al mi du dolĉajn.
Do you want sweet ones or sour ones? — Give me two sweet ones.
Here la dua means la dua trajno, while dolĉajn means an understood plural direct-object noun, such as pomojn. This independent use does not convert the word into an -o noun; it remains an adjective whose referent is supplied by context. Permanent labels for people may instead be substantivized with -o, but that is a different word-building choice.
English noun modifiers need Esperanto structure
English readily puts a noun before another noun: “city bus,” “language course,” “winter coat.” Esperanto normally uses a derived adjective, a compound, or a de phrase. When the adjective strategy is chosen, it participates fully in attributive agreement.
La urbaj busoj estas malpli oftaj dimanĉe.
The city buses are less frequent on Sundays.
Urba is not an irregular translation of “city”; it is the regular adjective built from urb-o. Its -j agrees with busoj. This productive system lets new relationships be expressed without importing English noun-noun syntax.
Common Mistakes
Leaving a predicate adjective uninflected
❌ La infanoj estas ĝentila.
Incorrect — ĝentila does not agree with the plural subject.
✅ La infanoj estas ĝentilaj.
The children are polite.
Leaving an object predicate singular
❌ La nova laboro tenis nin okupita la tutan tagon.
Incorrect — okupita fails to agree in number with nin.
✅ La nova laboro tenis nin okupitaj la tutan tagon.
The new job kept us busy all day.
Assuming every postposed adjective is predicative
❌ Ŝi aĉetis botojn varmaj por la vintro.
Incorrect — varmaj is an attributive part of the object phrase.
✅ Ŝi aĉetis botojn varmajn por la vintro.
She bought warm boots for the winter.
Copying an English noun modifier
❌ Ni aliĝis al lingvo kurso.
Incorrect — lingvo cannot simply premodify kurso as English ‘language’ does.
✅ Ni aliĝis al lingva kurso.
We enrolled in a language course.
Key Takeaways
- Attributive adjectives form part of a noun phrase and agree in both number and case.
- Subject predicatives agree in number but have no accusative -n.
- Clear object predicatives also normally lack -n, while retaining plural -j.
- A postposed adjective can still be attributive; function, meaning, and case marking decide.
- Independent adjectives keep the endings of the understood noun phrase.
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Start learning Esperanto →Related Topics
- Adjectives and the -A EndingA1 — How the productive -a ending creates describing words and how adjectives agree, modify nouns, and function after esti.
- Adjective Agreement in NumberA1 — Learn why Esperanto adjectives take -j when they describe plural people or things, in both noun phrases and predicates.
- 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.
- Adjective PositionA2 — Learn the neutral and marked positions of Esperanto adjectives, and use word order to control emphasis, clarity, and scope.
- Predicative Complements and the AccusativeB1 — Distinguish Esperanto predicative complements from accusative objects and attributive modifiers, especially in clauses that describe an object.
- Adjective or Adverb?A2 — Choose -a to describe a noun-like participant and -e to describe an action, quality, clause, infinitive, or whole situation.