Metu la tranĉtabulon sur la tablon.

Yes. Metu is the volitive form of meti (to put, to place).

In practice, this form is used for:

• commands
• instructions
• requests
• suggestions, depending on context

So Metu la tranĉtabulon sur la tablon means something like Put the cutting board on the table.

Esperanto does not have a special separate imperative form like English; the -u ending covers this function.

In Esperanto, commands often leave out the subject when it is obvious.

So:

• Metu la tranĉtabulon sur la tablon. means
• (Vi) metu la tranĉtabulon sur la tablon.

The vi is understood, just like English often leaves out you in commands:

• Put the cutting board on the table.

The -n ending marks the direct object.

Here:

• tranĉtabulo = a cutting board
• la tranĉtabulon = the cutting board, as the thing being put somewhere

Since the cutting board is what the action is being done to, it gets -n.

A quick breakdown:

• tranĉtabulo = base noun
• la tranĉtabulo = the cutting board
• la tranĉtabulon = the cutting board as the direct object

This is a very common Esperanto point.

After a preposition like sur (on), Esperanto uses:

• no -n for location
• -n for direction toward / movement onto

So:

• sur la tablo = on the table, at rest
• sur la tablon = onto the table, toward the table

In this sentence, the board is being moved onto the table, so sur la tablon is correct.

The difference is:

• sur la tablo = on the table as a location
• sur la tablon = onto the table as a destination

Examples:

• La libro estas sur la tablo. = The book is on the table.
• Metu la libron sur la tablon. = Put the book onto the table.

English often uses on for both ideas, but Esperanto distinguishes them clearly with the -n ending.

Because both nouns are being treated as specific, identifiable things:

• la tranĉtabulon = the cutting board
• la tablon = the table

In a practical instruction, this often means the speaker assumes both are known from the situation.

Esperanto uses la as its only definite article. There is no separate word for a/an.

Yes. Tranĉtabulo is a compound noun.

It is made from:

• tranĉ- = cut
• tabulo = board, plank

So tranĉtabulo literally means cutting-board.

This kind of word-building is very normal in Esperanto and is one of its most useful features.

The letter ĉ is pronounced like ch in church.

So:

• tranĉi sounds roughly like TRAN-chi
• tranĉtabulo sounds roughly like TRANCH-ta-BOO-lo

A few pronunciation notes:

• each letter has one consistent sound
• stress is on the second-to-last syllable
• so tranĉtabulon is stressed on bu: tra-nĉta-BU-lon

Esperanto word order is fairly flexible because endings show grammatical roles.

The normal, most natural order here is:

• Metu la tranĉtabulon sur la tablon.

Because la tranĉtabulon has the direct-object -n, and la tablon has the directional -n after sur, the roles are clear even if the order changes.

Still, learners should usually keep the standard order unless they have a reason to emphasize something.

Esperanto dictionary forms of verbs end in -i:

• meti = to put

But in actual sentences, the verb ending changes depending on its function:

• meti = infinitive, to put
• metas = puts / is putting
• metis = put
• metos = will put
• metu = put! / let ... put
• metus = would put

So metu is the correct form for a command or instruction.

Yes. The -u form is not always a harsh order. Depending on context and tone, it can sound like:

• a direct command
• an instruction in a recipe or manual
• a polite request
• a suggestion

So Metu la tranĉtabulon sur la tablon could be understood as:

• Put the cutting board on the table
• Please put the cutting board on the table
• Place the cutting board on the table

The exact tone comes from the situation, not from the verb ending alone.