Kiam ŝi ploris, la avino brakumis ŝin kaj provis konsoli ŝin.

Kiam means when, and here it introduces a time clause: Kiam ŝi ploris = When she was crying / When she cried.

In Esperanto, it is very common to put this kind of subordinate clause first, followed by the main clause:

• Kiam ŝi ploris, la avino brakumis ŝin...

You could also put the main clause first:

• La avino brakumis ŝin kaj provis konsoli ŝin, kiam ŝi ploris.

But the version with kiam first is very natural.

This is because Esperanto marks the direct object with -n.

• ŝi = she (subject form)
• ŝin = her (object form)

So:

• ŝi ploris = she cried
  Here ŝi is the subject, the person doing the action.
• la avino brakumis ŝin = the grandmother hugged her
  Here ŝin is the object, the person receiving the hug.
• provis konsoli ŝin = tried to comfort her
  Again, ŝin is the object.

This subject/object distinction is one of the most important uses of -n in Esperanto.

La is the definite article, meaning the.

• avino = a grandmother / grandmother
• la avino = the grandmother

In this sentence, la avino refers to a specific grandmother, not just any grandmother. Very often in Esperanto, just like in English, you use la when the person is already identifiable from the context.

The ending -is marks the past tense in Esperanto.

So:

• plori = to cry

• ploris = cried / was crying

• brakumi = to hug

• brakumis = hugged

• provi = to try
• provis = tried

Esperanto uses the same past-tense ending for all verbs, with no change for person:

• mi ploris = I cried
• ŝi ploris = she cried
• ili ploris = they cried

That regularity is one of the easiest parts of Esperanto verb grammar.

After provi (to try), Esperanto normally uses the infinitive directly:

• provi fari = to try to do
• provis konsoli = tried to comfort

There is no extra word like English to before the second verb in this kind of structure. The infinitive itself already has the ending -i, which shows it is the basic verb form.

So:

• provis konsoli ŝin = tried to comfort her

Konsoli is an infinitive, the basic dictionary form of the verb:

• konsoli = to comfort

In the sentence, it depends on provis:

• provis konsoli ŝin = tried to comfort her

A useful way to see the structure is:

• main verb: provis
• infinitive complement: konsoli
• object of konsoli: ŝin

So the grandmother tried, and what she tried to do was comfort her.

Because both verbs have the same direct object, and Esperanto often states that object clearly with each verb when needed.

• brakumis ŝin = hugged her
• konsoli ŝin = comfort her

So:

• la avino brakumis ŝin kaj provis konsoli ŝin

This is very clear and completely natural.

Sometimes Esperanto can omit a repeated element if the meaning stays obvious, but repeating ŝin here is straightforward and good style for learners to notice. Each verb has its own relationship to the object.

Plori is usually intransitive, meaning it does not take a direct object in this sentence.

• ŝi ploris = she cried

She is simply performing the action of crying. There is no direct object here.

That is different from:

• brakumi iun = to hug someone
• konsoli iun = to comfort someone

Those are transitive and normally take an object.

Yes, Esperanto word order is fairly flexible, although the most neutral order is still usually subject-verb-object.

The given sentence:

• Kiam ŝi ploris, la avino brakumis ŝin kaj provis konsoli ŝin.

Because Esperanto marks the direct object with -n, some rearrangement is possible without causing confusion.

For example, you might also see:

• La avino brakumis ŝin kaj provis konsoli ŝin, kiam ŝi ploris.

But the original version is natural and easy to follow: first the time setting, then the main action.

The comma separates the subordinate time clause from the main clause.

• Kiam ŝi ploris = subordinate clause
• la avino brakumis ŝin kaj provis konsoli ŝin = main clause

Using a comma here is standard and helps the reader see the structure of the sentence clearly.

It can mean either, depending on context.

Esperanto past tense -is does not by itself force the same distinction that English often makes between:

• cried
• was crying

So:

• Kiam ŝi ploris can be understood as When she cried or When she was crying

Usually the surrounding context tells you which interpretation fits better. In many situations like this one, English speakers may naturally translate it as When she was crying, because that sounds smoother in context.

Brakumi means to embrace, hug, hold in one’s arms.

It comes from brako = arm, so the idea is literally something like taking someone in one’s arms.

In everyday translation, to hug is usually the best English equivalent.

Because the subject la avino naturally continues for both verbs:

• la avino brakumis ŝin kaj provis konsoli ŝin

That means:

• the grandmother hugged her
• and the grandmother tried to comfort her

Esperanto does not need to repeat the subject before the second verb when it is the same subject. English works the same way:

• The grandmother hugged her and tried to comfort her.

Repeating ŝi before provis would usually be unnecessary here.