Questions & Answers about Mi evitas danĝerajn vojojn.
Why does evitas end in -as?
In Esperanto, -as marks the present tense. So evitas means avoid / am avoiding / do avoid, depending on context.
The verb is built like this:
- evit- = the root
- -as = present tense
Unlike English, the verb form does not change for different people:
- mi evitas = I avoid
- vi evitas = you avoid
- li/ŝi evitas = he/she avoids
So you do not need a special -s form for he/she like in English.
Why do both danĝerajn and vojojn end in -jn?
Because the noun phrase is both plural and the direct object of the verb.
Here is the breakdown:
- voj-o = road
- voj-oj = roads
- voj-ojn = roads, as a direct object
And the adjective has to agree with the noun:
- danĝera vojo = dangerous road
- danĝeraj vojoj = dangerous roads
- danĝerajn vojojn = dangerous roads, as a direct object
So:
- -j = plural
- -n = accusative/direct object
- together -jn
This agreement is very important in Esperanto.
What is the basic dictionary form of the words in this sentence?
The dictionary forms are:
- mi = I
- eviti = to avoid
- danĝera = dangerous
- vojo = road
In the sentence, some of these forms change because of grammar:
- eviti → evitas
- danĝera → danĝerajn
- vojo → vojojn
Why is vojojn plural? Could it be singular?
Yes, it could be singular if that is what you want to say.
In this sentence, vojojn is plural because the idea is roads rather than one road.
Compare:
- Mi evitas danĝeran vojon. = I avoid a dangerous road.
- Mi evitas danĝerajn vojojn. = I avoid dangerous roads.
So the plural is chosen because the meaning is plural.
Why is there no word for the or a in this sentence?
Esperanto does have a definite article, la, meaning the. But it does not have an indefinite article like English a/an.
So:
- vojo can mean a road or just road in a general sense
- la vojo means the road
In your sentence, there is no la because the sentence is talking about dangerous roads in a general way, not a specific set already identified.
So Mi evitas danĝerajn vojojn is perfectly natural.
Does eviti need a preposition, like English sometimes does?
No. Eviti is a transitive verb, which means it takes a direct object directly.
So you say:
- eviti ion = to avoid something
That is why Esperanto uses:
- Mi evitas danĝerajn vojojn.
There is no need for a preposition like from or of here.
Is the word order fixed?
The most normal word order is:
- Mi = subject
- evitas = verb
- danĝerajn vojojn = object
So this sentence follows the usual subject–verb–object pattern.
However, Esperanto word order is somewhat flexible because the -n ending helps show what the object is. For example, you could also say:
- Danĝerajn vojojn mi evitas.
That gives more emphasis to dangerous roads.
Still, for learners, the standard order Mi evitas danĝerajn vojojn is the safest and most natural choice.
Can the adjective go after the noun instead of before it?
Yes. In Esperanto, adjectives can usually go before or after the noun.
So both are possible:
- danĝerajn vojojn
- vojojn danĝerajn
But the normal, neutral order is usually adjective + noun, especially in simple sentences.
So danĝerajn vojojn is the most natural version here.
Why do we need mi? Can Esperanto drop the subject like Spanish does?
Usually, Esperanto keeps the subject pronoun.
That is because verb endings show tense, but not person. For example:
- evitas can mean I avoid, you avoid, he avoids, they avoid, depending on the subject
So if you just said Evitas danĝerajn vojojn, the listener would not automatically know who is avoiding them.
That is why mi is normally included.
How do I pronounce danĝerajn and vojojn?
A few useful pronunciation points:
- ĝ sounds like the j in judge
- j sounds like the y in yes
- stress in Esperanto normally falls on the second-to-last syllable
So:
- danĝerajn is stressed on ĝe: dan-ĜE-rajn
- vojojn is stressed on vo: VO-jojn
Also:
- aj sounds like the -y sound in my / eye
- oj sounds like the oy in boy
So the endings:
- -ajn ≈ -ine with an n ending, but best learned as Esperanto’s own sound
- -ojn ≈ oyn
What would change if the object were not plural or not a direct object?
The endings would change depending on the grammar.
Here is a useful pattern:
danĝera vojo = a dangerous road
singular, not objectdanĝeran vojon = a dangerous road
singular, direct objectdanĝeraj vojoj = dangerous roads
plural, not objectdanĝerajn vojojn = dangerous roads
plural, direct object
This is a very common Esperanto pattern:
- adjective and noun agree in number
- adjective and noun also agree in the accusative -n
So this sentence is a good example of that system.
Sign up free — start using our AI language tutor
Start learning EsperantoMaster Esperanto — from Mi evitas danĝerajn vojojn to fluency
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓Infinitely deep — unlimited vocabulary and grammar
- ✓Fast-paced — build complex sentences from the start
- ✓Unforgettable — efficient spaced repetition system
- ✓ AI tutor to answer your grammar questions