Breakdown of La rapida kato saltas en la ĝardeno.
kato
the cat
la
the
en
in
ĝardeno
the garden
salti
to jump
rapida
fast
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Questions & Answers about La rapida kato saltas en la ĝardeno.
What does each word in La rapida kato saltas en la ĝardeno mean?
La means the; rapida means quick or fast; kato means cat; saltas is the present tense form of jump (i.e., jumps); en means in; and ĝardeno means garden.
How can I tell that rapida is an adjective modifying kato?
In Esperanto, adjectives always end in -a and typically precede the noun they describe. Since rapida ends with -a and comes right before kato, it clearly functions as an adjective describing the cat as quick.
Why does the verb saltas not change form for different subjects?
Esperanto verbs are designed to remain unchanged regardless of who or what is performing the action. The ending -as indicates the present tense and is used for all subjects without variation.
What role does the word la play in this sentence?
la is the definite article in Esperanto, equivalent to the in English. It is used to specify a particular noun, in this case both the cat and the garden, without any gender or number distinction.
What is the function of the preposition en in this sentence?
en is a preposition that means in. It indicates the location of the action, showing that the cat is jumping in the garden.
Why does ĝardeno have an -o ending, and what is the significance of the accented letter ĝ?
In Esperanto, nouns always end with -o, which signals that ĝardeno is a noun (in this case, garden). The letter ĝ is one of Esperanto’s unique letters with a circumflex, representing a sound similar to the j in judge. This diacritic helps differentiate it from other similar sounds in the language.