Questions & Answers about Ni grimpas la monton.
Why does monton end in -n?
The -n is the accusative ending. In Esperanto, that usually marks the direct object of the verb.
Here, la monton is the thing being climbed, so it gets -n:
- Ni grimpas la monton = We climb / are climbing the mountain.
This is similar to English, where the mountain is the object of climb.
Is that -n a direct-object ending, or is it the directional -n?
In this sentence, it is best understood as the ordinary direct-object -n.
Esperanto also has a directional use of -n, but that is typically used with place expressions, often after a preposition or with words of location, such as hejmen or sur la monton.
In Ni grimpas la monton, la monton is simply the object of grimpas: it is the mountain that is being climbed.
Why doesn’t la also take -n?
Because la never changes. It is invariable.
So you say:
- la monto
- la monton
- la montoj
- la montojn
The noun changes, but la stays la.