Purigu la ruston antaŭ ol meti grason.

the

Breakdown of Purigu la ruston antaŭ ol meti grason.

• antaŭ ol: before
• meti: to put
• purigi: to clean

Questions & Answers about Purigu la ruston antaŭ ol meti grason.

Why does purigu end in -u?

In Esperanto, -u is the ending for the volitive form. In practice, this often works like an imperative or command.

So:

• purigi = to clean
• purigu = clean! / let someone clean

In this sentence, Purigu la ruston means Clean the rust or Remove the rust by cleaning.

For commands to you, Esperanto usually does not need a separate word for you:

• Purigu! = Clean!
• Purigu la ruston! = Clean the rust!

Why is it la ruston and not just rusto or la rusto?

Because ruston is the direct object of purigu, it takes the accusative ending -n.

Compare:

• La rusto estas dika. = The rust is thick.
  Here rusto is the subject, so no -n.
• Purigu la ruston. = Clean the rust.
  Here ruston is the object, so it gets -n.

The la means the. It refers to the specific rust being talked about, probably the rust on the object in question.

So:

• rusto = rust
• la rusto = the rust
• la ruston = the rust, as a direct object