La orlo estas sub la maniko.

In Esperanto, -o marks a noun. So:

• orl-o = hem
• manik-o = sleeve

This is one of the most regular parts of Esperanto grammar: if a word ends in -o, it is a noun.

La is the definite article, meaning the. Esperanto uses the same article for all nouns, no matter the gender or number.

So:

• la orlo = the hem
• la maniko = the sleeve

It appears twice because both nouns are definite. Esperanto does not change la the way English changes between the and no article.

Esperanto has no indefinite article. English uses a and an, but Esperanto simply leaves them out.

So:

• orlo can mean a hem or just hem, depending on context
• maniko can mean a sleeve

If you want the, you use la. If you want a/an, you usually use nothing.

Estas is the present-tense form of esti, meaning to be.

So La orlo estas sub la maniko literally works like:

• La orlo = the hem
• estas = is
• sub la maniko = under the sleeve

So estas links the subject to its location, just like is in English.

Sub is a preposition meaning under or below. It shows the relationship between the two things.

Here, sub la maniko tells you where the hem is located: it is under the sleeve.

Esperanto prepositions are usually straightforward, and sub is a very common one.

Because this sentence describes location, not movement.

• sub la maniko = under the sleeve, in that position

In Esperanto, the -n ending can sometimes show direction with a preposition:

• sub la manikon = to under the sleeve / into a position under the sleeve

But here nothing is moving. The sentence just says where the hem is. So maniko stays without -n.

Because orlo is the subject of the sentence.

In Esperanto, the direct object takes -n, but the subject does not. In this sentence:

• La orlo = the subject
• estas = verb
• sub la maniko = prepositional phrase showing location

There is no direct object here at all, so no noun needs the accusative ending.

Yes, Esperanto word order is fairly flexible, because grammar is shown clearly by endings and prepositions.

The normal order here is:

• La orlo estas sub la maniko.

But you could also say:

• Sub la maniko estas la orlo.

That can sound more stylistic or emphasize the location first. The original version is the most neutral and beginner-friendly.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

lah OR-lo EH-stahs soob lah mah-NEE-ko

A few helpful points:

• a sounds like ah
• e sounds like eh
• i sounds like ee
• o sounds like oh
• u sounds like oo

Also, Esperanto stress normally goes on the second-to-last syllable:

• OR-lo
• ES-tas
• ma-NI-ko

Yes. It is a completely normal grammatical sentence.

It has everything it needs:

• a subject: La orlo
• a verb: estas
• a location phrase: sub la maniko

Esperanto often builds sentences in a very direct, transparent way, so simple sentences like this are perfectly natural for learning and for real use.