The ending -is presents an action or state as actual and located before the relevant present. It is Esperanto's single ordinary past form. English often chooses among “worked,” “was working,” “used to work,” “has worked,” and “had worked”; Esperanto usually begins with the simple form laboris and lets context show the internal time relationship.
Building the past
Replace infinitive -i with -is. The ending never changes for person or number.
| Infinitive | Past | Examples with subjects |
|---|---|---|
| paroli | parolis | mi parolis, ili parolis |
| iri | iris | ŝi iris, ni iris |
| esti | estis | vi estis, ili estis |
| havi | havis | li havis, ni havis |
Hieraŭ mi renkontis malnovan amikon en la biblioteko.
Yesterday I met an old friend in the library.
Ni estis lacaj, sed la infanoj ankoraŭ havis multe da energio.
We were tired, but the children still had a lot of energy.
There are no irregular past forms. Even esti follows the same root-plus-ending pattern: est-i → est-is.
Completed past events
Use -is for an event completed before now. A time expression often supplies the boundary.
Mi finis la raporton antaŭ la tagmanĝo.
I finished the report before lunch.
— Ĉu vi jam telefonis al la kuracisto? — Jes, mi telefonis ĉi-matene.
— Have you called the doctor yet? — Yes, I called this morning.
English uses present perfect in the question but simple past in the answer. Esperanto uses telefonis in both because the call is treated as a real prior event. Words such as jam, ankoraŭ ne, ĵus, and explicit dates convey the relevance that English may encode through an auxiliary.
La trajno ĵus foriris; la sekva venos post duonhoro.
The train has just left; the next one will come in half an hour.
Ongoing background in the past
The same -is form describes a past action viewed as ongoing. Esperanto does not require an equivalent of English “was + -ing.” The surrounding clause or adverbial makes the background reading clear.
Kiam vi telefonis, mi kuiris vespermanĝon.
When you called, I was cooking dinner.
Pluvis, dum ni atendis la buson.
It was raining while we were waiting for the bus.
In the first example, telefonis is a bounded event that interrupts the ongoing kuiris. Both nevertheless use -is. Lexical meaning and the conjunction kiam create the contrast.
A participial form such as estis kuiranta is possible when explicitly marking the action's ongoing phase matters, but it is heavier and not the default translation of the English progressive.
Past habits and states
Repeated actions and continuing states within a past period also use -is.
Kiam ni estis studentoj, ni ofte manĝis en tiu malmultekosta restoracio.
When we were students, we often ate at that inexpensive restaurant.
Mia avo loĝis apud la maro kaj ĉiutage promenis sur la strando.
My grandfather lived by the sea and walked on the beach every day.
English may use “used to,” but Esperanto normally needs only -is plus a habitual expression such as ofte, kutime, or ĉiutage. The past ending itself is neutral between one event and a habit.
Compare an ended and a continuing residence:
Mi loĝis en Tuluzo tri jarojn.
I lived in Toulouse for three years and no longer do.
Mi loĝas en Tuluzo jam tri jarojn.
I have lived in Toulouse for three years and still do.
The first sentence presents the residence as past and normally closed. The second uses present -as because the state continues now.
One simple form for English perfect distinctions
Esperanto -is can report an event earlier than another past event without automatically using a pluperfect construction. Adverbs and clause order often make the sequence sufficient.
Kiam mi alvenis, Lea jam foriris.
When I arrived, Lea had already left.
Li diris al mi, ke li antaŭe laboris en hospitalo.
He told me that he had previously worked in a hospital.
In both examples, jam or antaŭe establishes which past action came first. The compound estis foririnta is grammatical and can explicitly foreground prior completion, but ordinary Esperanto prefers the simple form when no ambiguity results.
Indirect speech does not backshift mechanically
English commonly changes present to past after “said”: “She said that she was tired.” In Esperanto, genuine indirect speech preserves the tense form of the original message.
Sara diris: ‘Mi estas laca.’
Sara said: ‘I am tired.’
Sara diris, ke ŝi estas laca.
Sara said that she was tired at the time of speaking.
Here estas represents the present of Sara's original utterance. It does not necessarily claim that she is still tired now. If her original claim was about an earlier state—Mi estis laca—the report likewise keeps -is: Sara diris, ke ŝi estis laca.
This relative use is a foundational Esperanto norm, not optional imitation of English. The complete system appears under relative time without sequence-of-tense backshift.
Past time in subordinate clauses
When a clause simply describes an event rather than reporting someone's words or thoughts, its tense normally relates to the speaker's present.
Mi vidis, ke la pordo estis malfermita.
I saw that the door was open.
The state is presented as part of the past scene. By contrast, Li diris, ke la pordo estas malfermita can preserve his original message “The door is open.” Meaning—not the mere presence of ke—determines the time perspective.
Do not copy the English use of a past form for a future event after “when.” Esperanto uses the actual future in a clause that refers to the future.
Ni komencos manĝi, kiam ĉiuj alvenos.
We will start eating when everyone arrives.
English uses present “arrive,” but both Esperanto events are future and therefore use -os. Using -is in that clause would incorrectly locate the arrival before now.
Narrative sequence
In ordinary narration, a chain of -is verbs advances events. Background information also uses -is, while connectives and lexical meaning organize the scene.
Mi malfermis la pordon, eniris kaj tuj rimarkis la strangan odoron.
I opened the door, went in, and immediately noticed the strange smell.
La muziko ludis mallaŭte, kaj kelkaj gastoj ankoraŭ dancis.
The music was playing softly, and a few guests were still dancing.
A writer may deliberately switch to -as for a vivid historical present, but that is a marked stylistic choice. Neutral past narration keeps -is.
Common Mistakes
Building the progressive with esti
❌ Mi estis kuiris, kiam ŝi venis.
Incorrect — simple kuiris covers 'was cooking.'
✅ Mi kuiris, kiam ŝi venis.
I was cooking when she came.
Copying English present perfect word for word
❌ Mi havas jam manĝis.
Incorrect — havi is not the ordinary perfect auxiliary.
✅ Mi jam manĝis.
I have already eaten.
Backshifting indirect speech
❌ Ŝi diris, ke ŝi bezonis helpon.
Incorrect if her original words were 'Mi bezonas helpon' — the report should preserve -as.
✅ Ŝi diris, ke ŝi bezonas helpon.
She said that she needed help.
The -is version is correct only if she originally spoke about an earlier need.
Using -is for a future subordinate event
❌ Mi pagos, kiam mi ricevis la fakturon.
Incorrect — receiving the invoice is still future.
✅ Mi pagos, kiam mi ricevos la fakturon.
I will pay when I receive the invoice.
Adding a person ending
❌ Ili venisis tro malfrue.
Incorrect — the past ending is exactly -is for every subject.
✅ Ili venis tro malfrue.
They came too late.
Key Takeaways
- -is is the invariant ordinary past for actions, states, habits, and background situations.
- Simple -is often corresponds to English simple past, past progressive, present perfect, or pluperfect.
- Time adverbs and context normally express completion and ordering more naturally than compound forms.
- Genuine indirect speech preserves the original tense rather than applying English-style backshift.
- A subordinate event that is future still takes -os, even where English uses a present form.
Related Topics
- Esperanto Verbs: The Complete SystemA1 — See how six invariant endings express infinitive, tense, conditionality, and volition without person or number conjugation.
- Relative Time without Sequence-of-Tense BackshiftA2 — Preserve the original verb form in reported speech and thought instead of applying English-style tense backshift.
- Tense in Subordinate ClausesB1 — Choose each subordinate verb from its own time and mood meaning rather than copying English tense patterns or mechanically matching the main verb.
- Compound Active TensesB1 — Combine esti with active participles to express ongoing, completed, or prospective action relative to a chosen reference point.