Breakdown of Mi venas al la lernejo kun amikoj.
mi
I
amiko
the friend
la
the
lernejo
the school
kun
with
al
to
veni
to come
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Questions & Answers about Mi venas al la lernejo kun amikoj.
What does the sentence "Mi venas al la lernejo kun amikoj" mean in English, and what are its parts?
The sentence translates to "I am coming to the school with friends." Here’s the breakdown: • Mi – means “I.” • venas – is the present tense form of veni, meaning “to come.” • al – is a preposition meaning “to.” • la lernejo – means “the school” (with lernejo denoting a place for learning). • kun amikoj – means “with friends,” where kun means “with” and amikoj is the plural of amiko (“friend”).
How does verb conjugation work in Esperanto, as demonstrated by "venas"?
In Esperanto, verbs are extremely regular. The ending -as always indicates the present tense, regardless of who is performing the action. This means venas is used for all subjects (I, you, he, etc.), simplifying the conjugation process compared to many other languages.
What is the role of the preposition al in this sentence?
The preposition al means “to” and is used to indicate direction or destination. In this sentence, al la lernejo shows that the subject is coming towards the school.
Why is the definite article la used, and does it change with number or gender?
In Esperanto, la is the only form of the definite article and it does not vary with number, gender, or case. It consistently means “the,” so la lernejo always translates to “the school.”
Why is amikoj used instead of amiko, and how is the plural formed in Esperanto?
In Esperanto, the plural of a noun is formed by adding the suffix -j. Amiko means “friend,” so amikoj means “friends.” The presence of -j clearly indicates that more than one friend is meant in the phrase kun amikoj.
Why isn’t the noun lernejo marked with an accusative ending (‑n), even though the sentence indicates movement?
In Esperanto, when a noun is preceded by a preposition that already indicates direction—such as al meaning “to”—there is no need to add the accusative ending ‑n. The accusative is used in cases where movement is implied without a directional preposition or to add emphasis, which isn’t necessary here.