Doni is the regular transitive verb “to give.” Its most useful pattern is doni ion al iu: the thing transferred is a direct object with -n, while the recipient is introduced by al. That stable division of roles lets Esperanto keep its meaning clear even when the word order changes.
Complete regular paradigm
| Form | Function | Typical translation |
|---|---|---|
| doni | infinitive | to give |
| donas | present indicative | give(s), is giving |
| donis | past indicative | gave |
| donos | future indicative | will give |
| donus | conditional | would give |
| donu | volitive | give!, let ... give |
The stem don- never changes, and the ending does not vary by person or number: mi donas, ŝi donas, ili donas. This is the foundational regular verb system, not a miniature irregular paradigm to memorize separately.
Mi donos al vi la adreson, kiam la posedanto respondos.
I'll give you the address when the owner replies.
Ĉu vi donus al mi kvin minutojn por kontroli la ciferojn?
Would you give me five minutes to check the figures?
Donu al mi ankoraŭ minuton; mi preskaŭ finis la kalkulon.
Give me one more minute; I've almost finished the calculation.
Donus makes the giving conditional or politely hypothetical. Donu expresses a request, instruction, or wish; it is not a present tense with an omitted subject.
The central frame: thing plus recipient
In doni ion al iu, the theme—money, an object, information, time, permission, or another transferable thing—is the direct object. The recipient is an al-complement.
Marta donis la rezervan ŝlosilon al sia najbarino.
Marta gave the spare key to her neighbor.
La kuracisto donis al mi klarajn instrukciojn por la sekva semajno.
The doctor gave me clear instructions for the following week.
Both orders are neutral: doni ion al iu and doni al iu ion. The second often keeps a short recipient pronoun close to the verb; the first can foreground the thing transferred. Accusative and al, rather than position, identify the roles.
English permits a prepositionless double-object pattern: “give me the key.” Esperanto does not turn both participants into direct objects. Translate the meaning, not the English sequence: donu al mi la ŝlosilon or donu la ŝlosilon al mi.
— Ĉu vi povas doni al mi la salon? — Jes, jen ĝi.
— Can you pass me the salt? — Yes, here it is.
In this everyday exchange, “give/pass me” still uses al mi. For physical handing, transdoni may be more exact, but simple doni is completely natural.
What can be given
The object need not be a possession. Esperanto freely uses doni for providing an opportunity, answer, name, attention, permission, advice, or effect.
Tiu kurso donis al ŝi la kuraĝon kandidatiĝi por la posteno.
That course gave her the courage to apply for the position.
La komitato ne donis permeson publikigi la raporton.
The committee did not give permission to publish the report.
Bonvolu doni konkretan ekzemplon, ne nur ĝeneralan klarigon.
Please give a concrete example, not just a general explanation.
Frequent neutral collocations include doni konsilon, doni respondon, doni atenton al io, doni ŝancon al iu, doni nomon al io, and doni la vorton al iu. Often a simple verb is lighter: respondi instead of doni respondon, konsili instead of doni konsilon. The noun phrase remains useful when the kind of answer or advice is described.
La prezidanto donis la vorton al la sekva parolanto.
The chair gave the floor to the next speaker.
Here doni la vorton is a conventional (formal) meeting expression; it does not mean physically giving a word.
Giving, lending, donating, and handing over
Doni normally implies that the giver provides something without building in an obligation to return it. English “give” is similarly broad, but related Esperanto verbs make important distinctions:
| Verb | Core meaning | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| doni | give, provide | doni informon |
| donaci | give as a gift or donation | donaci librojn al biblioteko |
| pruntedoni | lend for later return | pruntedoni biciklon al amiko |
| transdoni | hand over, pass on, transmit | transdoni mesaĝon |
| redoni | give back, return | redoni la ŝlosilon |
Mi povas pruntedoni al vi la borilon, sed mi bezonos ĝin denove sabate.
I can lend you the drill, but I'll need it again on Saturday.
Post la kunveno ŝi transdonis al mi la subskribitajn dokumentojn.
After the meeting she handed the signed documents over to me.
Donaci has its own foundational root; it is not simply a stylistic ornament added to doni. Use it when the gift or donation status matters.
Participles and passive forms
Because doni is transitive, it forms both active and passive participles regularly.
| Time relation | Active | Passive |
|---|---|---|
| ongoing | donanta — giving | donata — being given |
| earlier/completed | doninta — having given | donita — given |
| later/intended | dononta — about to give | donota — to be given |
La donita kodo funkcias nur unufoje, do ne sendu ĝin al iu alia.
The code provided works only once, so don't send it to anyone else.
La premio estos donata ĉiujare al projekto kun mezurebla socia efiko.
The prize will be awarded each year to a project with a measurable social impact.
Donita presents the giving as completed; donata presents it as ongoing, repeated, or viewed in progress. In ordinary active narration, simple donis is normally more natural than a compound such as estis doninta unless relative time truly matters.
Productive compounds and register
The root combines transparently with productive prefixes: redoni “give back,” fordoni “give away/surrender,” transdoni “hand over/transmit,” and eldoni “publish, issue.” Their meanings are conventional but still reveal the parts.
La redaktoro petis, ke mi reskribu la enkondukon antaŭ ol la revuo eldonos la artikolon.
The editor asked me to rewrite the introduction before the journal publishes the article.
Ŝi fordonis la malnovajn meblojn anstataŭ forĵeti ilin.
She gave away the old furniture instead of throwing it away.
Doni itself is extremely frequent and neutral in informal conversation, journalism, administration, and academic prose. Doni la vorton and doni permeson lean (formal) in official contexts; eldoni is the ordinary unmarked verb for publishing. Corpus-attested compounds do not license every imaginable prefix automatically: choose one whose conventional meaning fits.
The status distinctions are straightforward. Foundational norm: don-, the regular verb endings, accusative objects, and al are all established elements of the core language. Accepted variation: either the theme or the al-recipient may come first after the verb. Pedagogical recommendation: retain al even when English has a prepositionless recipient. Attested usage: both orders and the compounds above occur widely in edited and conversational Esperanto.
See Two Objects and Valency for the broader distinction between a direct object and a recipient complement.
Common Mistakes
Copying the English double-object frame
❌ Ŝi donis min bonan konsilon.
Incorrect — min cannot be the recipient in this frame.
✅ Ŝi donis al mi bonan konsilon.
She gave me good advice.
Omitting the accusative on the thing given
❌ Bonvolu doni al mi via retadreso.
Incorrect — the thing given is a direct object, and the possessive adjective must agree with it.
✅ Bonvolu doni al mi vian retadreson.
Please give me your email address.
Using por for the recipient
❌ Mi donis la bileton por Ana.
Incorrect for 'gave the ticket to Ana' — por marks intended benefit or purpose, not the transfer recipient.
✅ Mi donis la bileton al Ana.
I gave the ticket to Ana.
Using doni when return is expected
❌ Ĉu vi povas doni al mi vian aŭton ĝis morgaŭ?
Incorrect for the intended meaning 'lend' — doni suggests giving, not a temporary loan.
✅ Ĉu vi povas pruntedoni al mi vian aŭton ĝis morgaŭ?
Can you lend me your car until tomorrow?
Key Takeaways
- Doni is fully regular: doni, donas, donis, donos, donus, donu.
- The stable core frame is doni ion al iu: object theme plus al-recipient.
- Abstract collocations behave like physical transfer, but a simpler lexical verb may be more concise.
- Use conventional derivatives such as redoni, transdoni, fordoni, and eldoni according to their established meanings.
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Start learning Esperanto →Related Topics
- AlA2 — Use al for movement toward a goal, recipients, orientation, and abstract targets without adding an unnecessary accusative ending.
- Two Objects and ValencyA2 — How Esperanto distributes recipients, things transferred, and other participants between the accusative and prepositional phrases.
- Collocations with Doni and PreniA2 — Use doni and preni in transfer, choice, meeting, transport, and abstract collocations while keeping their participant roles clear.
- Transitive and Intransitive VerbsA2 — Learn which verbs license a direct object, which require another construction, and how Esperanto systematically changes valency.
- Preni: To TakeB1 — Use preni for taking possession, selecting, removing, and conventional activities, with clear object and source marking.
- re-: ReturnA2 — Use re- with actions to express return to an earlier place or state, restoration, response, and repetition.