La soldatoj marŝas laŭ la pado.

The ending -j marks the plural in Esperanto.

• soldato = soldier
• soldatoj = soldiers

This plural ending is used on nouns, and also on adjectives when they describe plural nouns.

In Esperanto, -as is the present-tense verb ending.

So:

• marŝi = to march
• marŝas = march / are marching

Esperanto verbs do not change based on the subject:

• mi marŝas = I march
• li marŝas = he marches
• ili marŝas = they march

That makes verb conjugation much simpler than in English.

Laŭ is a preposition meaning along, following, or sometimes according to, depending on context.

In this sentence, it means along:

• laŭ la pado = along the path

So the soldiers are moving along the path, not just standing on it.

La is the definite article in Esperanto, equivalent to English the.

So:

• la soldatoj = the soldiers
• la pado = the path

Esperanto uses the same article la for:

• singular and plural
• all genders
• all cases

Unlike English, there is no separate word for a or an in basic Esperanto.

Because pado is the object of the preposition laŭ, and nouns after prepositions normally do not take -n.

Here:

• laŭ = along
• la pado = the path

So laŭ la pado is correct.

English speakers often expect motion to cause -n, but in Esperanto the -n ending is mainly used for:

1. direct objects
2. direction in certain expressions

In this sentence, la pado is not a direct object of marŝas. It is part of the prepositional phrase laŭ la pado.

Laŭ is pronounced roughly like low in English, but with a clear Esperanto sound system.

A helpful breakdown:

• aŭ is a diphthong, pronounced somewhat like ow in cow, though in laŭ many learners hear it close to low
• stress in Esperanto is always on the second-to-last syllable

Since laŭ has only one syllable, the whole word is stressed.

Marŝas is pronounced approximately MAR-shas.

A few useful details:

• ŝ sounds like English sh
• the stress is on the second-to-last syllable: MAR-ŝas

So:

• marŝi = to march
• marŝas = marches / is marching

This is the most neutral and common Esperanto word order:

• La soldatoj = subject
• marŝas = verb
• laŭ la pado = prepositional phrase

So it follows a familiar subject–verb–other information pattern.

Esperanto word order is fairly flexible, but this version sounds natural and straightforward.

Yes. Esperanto present tense often covers both ideas.

• marŝas can mean march, are marching, or sometimes do march, depending on context.

So this sentence could be understood as:

• The soldiers march along the path
• The soldiers are marching along the path

Context usually tells you which one sounds best in English.

Because la soldatoj already gives the subject clearly: the soldiers.

In Esperanto, once the noun subject is stated, you do not need to add a separate pronoun.

So:

• La soldatoj marŝas = The soldiers are marching

Adding ili as well would usually be unnecessary unless you wanted special emphasis or clarification.

The dictionary forms are:

• la = the
• soldato = soldier
• marŝi = to march
• laŭ = along
• pado = path

In the sentence:

• soldato becomes soldatoj because it is plural
• marŝi becomes marŝas because it is present tense

This is a very common pattern in Esperanto: you learn the root or base form, then recognize the endings.