Breakdown of Ŝi deponis monon sen ke dungito demandis ion.
ke
that
demandi
to ask
mono
the money
sen
without
Questions & Answers about Ŝi deponis monon sen ke dungito demandis ion.
Why is it monon and not mono?
Because mono is the direct object of deponis.
In Esperanto, direct objects usually take -n:
- Ŝi deponis monon. = She deposited money.
- Ŝi vidis dungiton. = She saw an employee.
So monon shows what was deposited.
Why is it ion and not io?
For the same reason: ion is the direct object of demandi.
- demandi ion = to ask something
- demandi demandon = to ask a question
Here, the employee did not ask anything, and Esperanto uses ion as the object.
A useful point for English speakers: Esperanto often uses io/ion where English would use anything in a negative or negative-like context:
- Mi ne vidis ion. can mean I didn’t see anything
- sen ke dungito demandu ion = without an employee asking anything
Why is there no word for an before dungito?