La luiganto transdonis la ŝlosilojn hodiaŭ.

Because it contains three separate endings:

• ŝlosil- = the root, key
• -o = noun ending
• -j = plural
• -n = accusative, marking the direct object

So ŝlosilojn means keys as the thing being handed over.

In this sentence, the landlord is doing the action, and the keys are receiving that action, so ŝlosilojn needs the -n.

Transdonis is in the past tense.

In Esperanto:

• -as = present
• -is = past
• -os = future

So:

• transdonas = hands over / is handing over
• transdonis = handed over
• transdonos = will hand over

Esperanto verbs are very regular, so once you know the ending, the tense is clear.

It is made from:

• doni = to give
• trans- = across, over, from one side/person to another

So transdoni literally suggests give across / pass over, and in normal English it is often translated as hand over, turn over, or transfer.

That is why it fits well with something like keys.

Luiganto is a built word:

• lui = to rent
• -ig- = to cause, make happen
• luigi = to rent out, to let
• -ant- = someone who is doing the action
• -o = noun

So luiganto is literally a person who rents something out.

In ordinary usage, that is the landlord, lessor, or person letting the property.

A useful contrast:

• luanto = tenant / renter
• luiganto = landlord / person renting it out

No. By default, luiganto is not specifically male. It can mean landlord in a general, gender-neutral sense unless the context says otherwise.

If you specifically want to say female landlord / landlady, you can use:

• luigantino

That uses -in-, the usual feminine suffix.

La is the Esperanto definite article, equivalent to the.

So:

• la luiganto = the landlord
• la ŝlosilojn = the keys

It does not change for number, gender, or case. It is always just la.

It is used here because the sentence is talking about specific, identifiable things: a particular landlord and particular keys.

Hodiaŭ is an adverb meaning today.

It tells you when the action happened. Esperanto often uses simple adverbs of time like this without any extra word such as on.

So Esperanto says:

• hodiaŭ = today
• morgaŭ = tomorrow
• hieraŭ = yesterday

No special ending is added here; hodiaŭ is already the complete adverb.

No, Esperanto word order is fairly flexible.

Because ŝlosilojn has the accusative -n, you can still tell that it is the object even if the order changes.

For example, these are all possible:

• La luiganto transdonis la ŝlosilojn hodiaŭ.
• Hodiaŭ la luiganto transdonis la ŝlosilojn.
• La ŝlosilojn la luiganto transdonis hodiaŭ.

The first version is the most neutral and natural in many contexts, but the others are grammatically possible and may shift emphasis.

Yes. This sentence does not say who received them, but Esperanto can add that with al.

For example:

• La luiganto transdonis la ŝlosilojn al la luanto hodiaŭ.

Here:

• la ŝlosilojn = the thing handed over
• al la luanto = to the tenant

So transdoni can take a direct object, and the recipient can be added with al if needed.

The main things learners often notice here are ŝ and aŭ.

• ŝ sounds like English sh
  • ŝlosilojn begins roughly like shlo-
• aŭ sounds like the ow in cow
  • hodiaŭ ends with that sound

Stress in Esperanto normally falls on the second-to-last syllable:

• luiGANto
• transDOnis
• ŝloSIlojn
• hoDIaŭ

That regular stress pattern makes pronunciation much easier once you get used to it.