Ni bezonas herbojn.

In Esperanto, -as marks the present tense. So bezonas means need / are needing in the present.

The verb stem here is bezon-, and the full verb forms are:

• bezonas = need
• bezonis = needed
• bezonos = will need
• bezonus = would need
• bezoni = to need

So Ni bezonas herbojn is in the present: We need herbs / grasses.

Because -n marks the direct object in Esperanto.

In this sentence, the thing being needed is herbs, so that noun takes the object ending -n:

• herboj = herbs
• herbojn = herbs, as the direct object

So the structure is:

• Ni = we
• bezonas = need
• herbojn = herbs (the thing we need)

This object marker is very common in Esperanto and is one of the first endings learners get used to.

The -j marks the plural.

So:

• herbo = a herb / a grass plant
• herboj = herbs / grass plants

Then, because the noun is also the direct object, Esperanto adds -n after the plural ending:

• herboj
  • -n = herbojn

A useful pattern to remember is:

• noun: -o
• plural: -oj
• direct object: -on
• plural direct object: -ojn

The dictionary form is herbo.

Esperanto words are very regular, so you can often strip endings off to find the base form:

• herbo = base noun
• herboj = plural
• herbojn = plural direct object

This kind of ending-stacking is normal in Esperanto.

Esperanto does not use an indefinite article like English a or some.

So herbojn can mean things like:

• herbs
• some herbs

depending on context.

Esperanto does have a definite article, la, for the. If you wanted to say the herbs, you would say la herbojn.

So:

• Ni bezonas herbojn = We need herbs / some herbs
• Ni bezonas la herbojn = We need the herbs

Yes. Esperanto word order is fairly flexible, partly because the -n ending shows which noun is the object.

The normal order here is:

• Ni bezonas herbojn

But you could also say:

• Herbojn ni bezonas

That still means the same thing, because herbojn is clearly marked as the object by -n.

Even so, subject + verb + object is the most neutral and common order, especially for learners.

Yes, if you mean one herb or herb in a general singular sense, you could use herbon.

Compare:

• Ni bezonas herbon = We need a herb / herb
• Ni bezonas herbojn = We need herbs

The choice depends on what the speaker wants to say. The sentence you were given uses the plural, so it refers to more than one.

Ni is a personal pronoun meaning we.

Some related pronouns are:

• mi = I
• vi = you
• li = he
• ŝi = she
• ĝi = it
• ili = they
• ni = we

In this sentence, ni is the subject, the one doing the needing.

Yes. Pronouns can also take the accusative -n when they are direct objects.

For example:

• ni = we
• nin = us

So:

• Li vidas nin = He sees us

In your sentence, ni stays ni because it is the subject, not the object.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

Ni bezonas herbojn
≈ nee beh-ZOH-nahs HER-boyn

A few helpful points:

• ni sounds like nee
• z is always like the z in zoo
• oj sounds roughly like oy
• stress in Esperanto normally falls on the second-to-last syllable

So:

• be-ZO-nas
• HER-bojn

Often it is close, but exact word boundaries do not always match perfectly between languages.

Herbo can refer to grass, herbage, or an herb/plant, depending on context. In real use, the exact English translation may vary.

For a learner, the important grammar point in this sentence is that:

• herbo is the noun
• -j makes it plural
• -n marks it as the direct object

So even if the precise English wording changes with context, the Esperanto grammar stays clear.

Because Esperanto verbs do not change according to person or number.

So:

• mi bezonas = I need
• vi bezonas = you need
• li bezonas = he needs
• ni bezonas = we need
• ili bezonas = they need

The verb form stays bezonas every time in the present tense. This is one of the features that makes Esperanto grammar very regular.

You can break it down like this:

• Ni = subject pronoun, we
• bezonas = present-tense verb, need
• herbojn = noun in the plural accusative, herbs as the direct object

So the grammar pattern is:

subject + present-tense verb + direct object

That makes this a very typical basic Esperanto sentence.