Mi havas libron, tamen mi ne havas tempon legi.

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Breakdown of Mi havas libron, tamen mi ne havas tempon legi.

• havi: to have
• tamen: however
• legi: to read

Questions & Answers about Mi havas libron, tamen mi ne havas tempon legi.

Why is the noun libro changed to libron in this sentence?

In Esperanto the direct object of a verb must receive the -n ending. Since libro is the object that is possessed in "Mi havas libron," it becomes libron to indicate that it is being had.

Why is tempo written as tempon, even though it represents an abstract idea like “time”?

Similarly, tempo takes the accusative ending because it is the direct object of havas in the clause "mi ne havas tempon legi." The ending -n shows that tempon is what is lacking—in this case, the time needed for the action described.

What does tamen mean and what is its role in the sentence?

Tamen means "however" or "nevertheless." It is used here as an adverb to introduce a contrasting idea. The sentence contrasts the fact that the speaker has a book with the fact that they do not have the time to read it.

What is the function of the infinitive legi at the end of the sentence?

Legi, the infinitive form of "to read," functions as a complement to tempon, specifying the type of time that is missing. Essentially, the phrase "tempon legi" translates as "time to read," linking the notion of lacking time directly to the action of reading.

Why isn’t there an object (like a pronoun) after legi to explicitly refer to the book?

In this sentence, the context makes it clear that the reading would pertain to the book mentioned earlier. Adding an object pronoun (for example, ĝi) isn’t necessary because the reference is already understood. However, if you wanted to emphasize the connection, you could include it.