Questions & Answers about La borilo kaj la segilo estas sur la tablo.
Why does the sentence use la so many times?
La is the definite article, meaning the.
So:
- la borilo = the drill
- la segilo = the saw
- la tablo = the table
Esperanto often uses la when talking about specific, identifiable things. It is the same word for all nouns: no changes for gender, number, or case in this sentence.
Also, Esperanto has no indefinite article. So a drill would usually just be borilo, not a separate word like English a or an.
Why do borilo, segilo, and tablo all end in -o?
In Esperanto, nouns normally end in -o.
So here:
- borilo = a drill
- segilo = a saw
- tablo = a table
This is one of the most regular parts of Esperanto grammar: if a word ends in -o, it is a noun.
What does borilo literally mean? Is it just a memorized word?