Questions & Answers about La planedo moviĝas laŭ la orbito.
Why is it moviĝas and not movas?
Because movi is usually transitive: it means to move something.
- Mi movas la seĝon. = I move the chair.
- La planedo moviĝas. = The planet moves.
The ending -iĝ- often makes a verb intransitive or gives the sense of undergoing a change/state. So:
- movi = to move something
- moviĝi = to move, to become moved
So in La planedo moviĝas, the planet is not moving another object; it itself is in motion.
What is the breakdown of moviĝas?
moviĝas can be divided into:
- mov- = move
- -iĝ- = become / get / undergo / intransitive-forming element
- -as = present tense
So moviĝas literally has the idea of is moving / becomes moved.
This is a very common Esperanto pattern. For example:
- fermi = to close something
- fermiĝi = to close, to become closed
Why is there no -n on planedo?