Knowing a verb's meaning is not enough: you must also know how it connects its participants. Esperanto says atendi la buson “wait for the bus,” dependi de la vetero “depend on the weather,” and respondi al ŝi “reply to her.” The preposition—or absence of one—is part of the verb's frame.
Esperanto frames are often semantically transparent, but they do not mechanically copy English prepositions. The case system and the prepositions al, pri, de, kun, je divide relations in their own way.
A frame is more than a word after the verb
A verb frame specifies the roles a verb licenses and how each role is marked. Compare doni:
Mi donis la rezervan ŝlosilon al mia najbaro.
I gave the spare key to my neighbor.
The giver is the subject, the transferred item la rezervan ŝlosilon is the accusative object, and the recipient follows al. This division remains stable if word order changes or the verb takes another ending.
Ĉu vi donos al ŝi la ŝlosilon morgaŭ?
Will you give her the key tomorrow?
Donu la ŝlosilon al ŝi antaŭ ol vi foriros.
Give her the key before you leave.
Future donos and volitive donu do not alter the complement frame. Likewise, doni, donas, donis, donus all take the thing given as object and the recipient with al.
Not every following prepositional phrase belongs to a fixed frame. In Mi legis la raporton en la trajno hieraŭ, la raporton is selected by legi, while en la trajno and hieraŭ merely add place and time. A frame concerns the participants needed to complete the verb's characteristic relationship.
For the case-marking side of this system, see two objects and valency.
Direct objects where English has a preposition
Several frequent Esperanto verbs take an accusative object even though English uses for, to, or at.
| Esperanto frame | Natural meaning |
|---|---|
| atendi iun/ion | wait for someone/something |
| serĉi iun/ion | look for someone/something |
| aŭskulti iun/ion | listen to someone/something |
| rigardi iun/ion | look at/watch someone/something |
Mi atendas la buson antaŭ la biblioteko.
I'm waiting for the bus in front of the library.
Ni serĉis niajn biletojn dum dudek minutoj.
We looked for our tickets for twenty minutes.
Bonvolu aŭskulti la tutan mesaĝon antaŭ ol respondi.
Please listen to the whole message before replying.
La infanoj rigardis la fulmotondron tra la fenestro.
The children watched the thunderstorm through the window.
The accusative does not mean that the noun is physically changed. It marks the participant treated as the verb's direct target. English speakers must resist inserting por, al, or je simply because the English phrase contains a preposition.
Al: recipient, addressee, and affected person
Al points toward a recipient or endpoint. It is central with verbs of transfer and communication.
Mi sendis la fakturon al la ĝusta retadreso.
I sent the invoice to the correct email address.
Ŝi respondis al mi nur post du tagoj.
She replied to me only after two days.
Tiu jako apartenas al mia frato.
That jacket belongs to my brother.
With plaĉi, English perspective reverses. The pleasing thing is the subject; the experiencer follows al:
Ĉu plaĉas al vi ĉi tiu koloro? — Jes, ĝi tre plaĉas al mi.
Do you like this color? — Yes, I like it a lot.
Literally, the color “is pleasing to you.” Vi plaĉas ĉi tiun koloron is not the standard frame.
Some verbs combine a direct object with al: montri foton al iu, pruntedoni monon al iu, klarigi regulon al iu. Esperanto does not normally use bare adjacent nouns as two unmarked objects. The role marker keeps the item and recipient distinct.
Pri: topic and concern
Pri marks what speech, thought, concern, or inquiry is about.
Ni parolis kun la posedanto pri la likanta tegmento.
We spoke with the owner about the leaking roof.
Mi ofte pensas pri tiu somero ĉe la maro.
I often think about that summer by the sea.
Ne zorgu pri la teleroj; mi lavos ilin poste.
Don't worry about the dishes; I'll wash them later.
Paroli illustrates how several roles can coexist: kun la posedanto is the conversational partner, while pri la tegmento is the topic. Al is possible when speech is directed one-way toward an addressee: La prezidanto parolis al la publiko. Choose the role you mean rather than memorizing one English equivalent.
With demandi, the person asked is a direct object and the topic follows pri:
Mi demandis la akceptiston pri la matenmanĝaj horoj.
I asked the receptionist about the breakfast hours.
The person answered, by contrast, normally follows al: La akceptisto respondis al mi.
De: source, separation, and dependence
De often marks the point from which something comes, differs, or depends.
La fina prezo dependos de la nombro de partoprenantoj.
The final price will depend on the number of participants.
Mi ricevis la dokumentojn de la sekretario hieraŭ.
I received the documents from the secretary yesterday.
La nova modelo multe diferencas de la antaŭa.
The new model differs greatly from the previous one.
English depend on is a notorious trap: Esperanto conceptualizes the dependent result as hanging from its condition, hence dependi de. There is no productive rule converting every English on into de; this is a lexical frame to learn.
Kun: partner and reciprocal relation
Kun introduces a participant accompanying or interacting with the subject.
Mi konsentos kun vi, se la ciferoj konfirmos vian analizon.
I will agree with you if the figures confirm your analysis.
Ĉu vi jam parolis kun la instruisto? — Ne, sed mi parolos kun ŝi post la leciono.
Have you spoken with the teacher yet? — No, but I'll speak with her after class.
The subject still controls the finite verb. Kun vi is not a compound subject: Mi kun vi konsentas still takes invariant konsentas, and the normal neutral order is Mi konsentas kun vi.
Je and frame-specific contrasts
Je has no single concrete meaning. It survives in established frames where a more specific preposition is absent or where the conventional choice distinguishes a meaning. Do not use it as a universal escape hatch.
The verb kredi provides a useful three-way contrast:
| Frame | Meaning |
|---|---|
| kredi ion | believe a claim or proposition |
| kredi al iu | believe that someone is telling the truth |
| kredi je iu/io | believe in the existence or reality of someone/something |
Mi kredas lian rakonton, sed mi ne kredas al lia frato.
I believe his story, but I don't believe his brother.
Ŝi ne kredas je fantomoj.
She doesn't believe in ghosts.
The preposition changes the relationship rather than adding style. Kalkuli je ies helpo means “count on someone's help”; je is conventional there, although kalkuli pri also occurs in accepted usage. This is genuine variation. For active use, learn one established frame per intended meaning before exploring alternatives.
Frames survive tense and mood changes
The six invariant endings contribute tense or mood, never a new preposition.
| Form | Frame in context |
|---|---|
| dependi de | infinitive |
| dependas de | present |
| dependis de | past |
| dependos de | future |
| dependus de | conditional |
| dependu de | volitive |
La decido ne dependu de unu sola persono.
Let the decision not depend on a single person.
There are no person endings: mi dependas, ili dependas. There is also no English-style esti auxiliary: say Mi serĉas la adreson, not Mi estas serĉi.... Conditional -us and volitive -u express different stances, not past and future variants of the frame.
Common Mistakes
Copying English “wait for”
❌ Ni atendas por la trajno.
Incorrect for waiting for the train — atendi takes a direct object.
✅ Ni atendas la trajnon.
We are waiting for the train.
Copying English “listen to”
❌ Mi aŭskultas al la podkasto.
Incorrect — the thing heard attentively is the direct object.
✅ Mi aŭskultas la podkaston.
I'm listening to the podcast.
Translating “depend on” with sur
❌ La dato dependas sur la vetero.
Incorrect — the established frame is dependi de.
✅ La dato dependas de la vetero.
The date depends on the weather.
Marking the person asked with al
❌ Mi demandis al ŝi pri la adreso.
Incorrect — the person asked is the direct object of demandi.
✅ Mi demandis ŝin pri la adreso.
I asked her about the address.
Using en for existential belief
❌ Li kredas en mirakloj.
Incorrect in the standard frame for believing that something exists.
✅ Li kredas je mirakloj.
He believes in miracles.
Key Takeaways
- Learn the verb together with its role markers, not by translating an English preposition.
- Atendi, serĉi, aŭskulti, and rigardi take direct accusative objects.
- Al commonly marks a recipient or addressee, pri a topic, de a source or dependency, and kun an interacting partner.
- A change of frame can change meaning, as with kredi ion / kredi al iu / kredi je io.
- Tense and mood endings change the status of the event but leave the complement frame intact.
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Start learning Esperanto →Related Topics
- Transitive and Intransitive VerbsA2 — Learn which verbs license a direct object, which require another construction, and how Esperanto systematically changes valency.
- Valency-Changing DerivationB1 — Use -ig- and -iĝ- to add a causer, remove a causer, and build precise causative and change-of-state verbs in Esperanto.
- Two Objects and ValencyA2 — How Esperanto distributes recipients, things transferred, and other participants between the accusative and prepositional phrases.
- AlA2 — Use al for movement toward a goal, recipients, orientation, and abstract targets without adding an unnecessary accusative ending.
- DeA2 — Use de for movement or development away from a source and for relationships such as possession, authorship, composition, time, and passive agency.
- PriB2 — Use pri to mark a topic, concern, or matter that an action, text, thought, or relationship is about.