Entute ni vidas tri planedojn.

Entute means in total, altogether, or all told. It summarizes the count of what is being discussed.

So Entute ni vidas tri planedojn means something like Altogether, we see three planets.

It often appears near the beginning of the sentence, but Esperanto word order is flexible, so you may also see it elsewhere if the speaker wants a different emphasis.

In normal Esperanto, the subject is usually stated, so ni = we is included.

The verb vidas means see or are seeing, but by itself it does not specifically tell you who is doing the seeing. That is why ni is normally present.

So:

• ni vidas = we see
• ili vidas = they see
• mi vidas = I see

Unlike Spanish or Italian, Esperanto does not normally drop the subject pronoun.

In Esperanto, all present-tense verbs end in -as.

The verb here is based on vid-, the root meaning see. Then:

• vidas = see / are seeing
• vidis = saw
• vidos = will see
• vidi = to see

A very useful point for learners: Esperanto verbs do not change according to the subject.

So all of these use vidas:

• mi vidas = I see
• vi vidas = you see
• li vidas = he sees
• ni vidas = we see

Numbers in Esperanto normally do not change form. Tri always means three.

It does not take plural endings or case endings in this kind of sentence.

So:

• tri planedoj = three planets
• tri domoj = three houses
• tri libroj = three books

The noun changes as needed, but the number usually stays the same.

Because it is both:

• plural → -j
• a direct object → -n

So the endings stack:

• planedo = planet
• planedoj = planets
• planedojn = planets, as the direct object

In this sentence, we are doing the action, and planets are what we see, so tri planedojn is the direct object.

The direct object is the thing directly affected by the verb.

In we see three planets:

• we = the subject, the ones doing the seeing
• see = the verb
• three planets = the direct object, the thing seen

Esperanto usually marks the direct object with -n. This is called the accusative ending.

That is why you get:

• Mi vidas la hundon = I see the dog
• Ni vidas tri planedojn = We see three planets

This -n ending is very important because it helps show the role of the word in the sentence, even when word order changes.

Esperanto has the definite article la, meaning the, but it is only used when needed.

So:

• tri planedojn = three planets
• la tri planedojn = the three planets

If the English meaning is simply we see three planets, then no article is needed.

If you wanted to say we see the three planets, you would say:

• Ni vidas la tri planedojn

Yes. Esperanto word order is fairly flexible, especially because the accusative -n helps show what the object is.

The most neutral order here is:

• Entute ni vidas tri planedojn.

But you could also see things like:

• Ni vidas entute tri planedojn.
• Tri planedojn ni vidas entute.

These versions can sound more marked or emphasize different parts, but they are grammatically understandable because planedojn still has -n, showing it is the object.

Not in standard Esperanto for this sentence.

• planedoj = planets
• planedojn = planets as a direct object

Since the planets are the thing being seen, the accusative -n is required, so planedojn is the correct form.

Using planedoj here would sound ungrammatical to most speakers.

A rough English-friendly pronunciation is:

en-TOO-teh nee VEE-dahs tree plah-neh-DOYN

A few helpful notes:

• Esperanto stress is usually on the second-to-last syllable.
• So you get:
  • en-TU-te
  • VI-das
  • pla-ne-DOJN
• j is pronounced like English y
• oj sounds roughly like oy

So planedojn ends with a sound like doyn.

Either can be right, depending on context.

Esperanto present tense -as is broader than English simple present. It can often correspond to:

• see
• are seeing

So Ni vidas tri planedojn could mean:

• We see three planets
• We are seeing three planets

English chooses between those forms more often than Esperanto does. In Esperanto, the context usually makes the meaning clear.