Subite fulmo ekbrilis super la maro.

Subite means suddenly. It is an adverb, so it describes how the event happened.

Esperanto word order is fairly flexible, and adverbs are often placed early in the sentence for emphasis. Starting with Subite gives the sentence a dramatic feeling:

Subite fulmo ekbrilis super la maro.
= Suddenly, lightning flashed over the sea.

You could also place it elsewhere, but the original order sounds natural.

Fulmo is a noun meaning lightning or a flash of lightning.

The -o ending marks it as a noun. So here, fulmo is the thing doing the action.

• fulmo = lightning
• brilis = shone / flashed

So literally, the sentence is something like:

Suddenly a lightning flash began to shine over the sea.

In natural English, we usually just say lightning flashed.

Esperanto uses la only for a definite noun, like the in English.

Here, fulmo has no article because it is not presented as a specific, already-known lightning flash. It is more like:

• a flash of lightning
• or simply lightning

So:

• fulmo = lightning / a lightning flash
• la fulmo = the lightning (a specific one already identified)

In this sentence, leaving out la is natural.

This is one of the most useful parts of the sentence.

The verb root is bril-, meaning shine or glitter.
The ending -is makes it past tense: brilis = shone / was shining.

The prefix ek- adds the idea to begin suddenly or to start doing something.

So:

• brilis = shone
• ekbrilis = began to shine / flashed suddenly

With lightning, ekbrilis is especially appropriate because lightning is sudden and brief. It gives the sense of a sudden flash, not just a steady shining.

Often, yes. Ek- usually means the start of an action, and it often suggests that the start is noticeable or sudden.

Examples:

• ekkuri = start running
• ekparoli = begin speaking
• ekpluvi = start raining
• ekridi = burst out laughing / begin to laugh

So ekbrilis is not just past tense; it specifically means the shining started suddenly.

The ending -is is the regular Esperanto past-tense verb ending.

Some basic verb endings are:

• -as = present
• -is = past
• -os = future
• -us = conditional
• -u = command / wish
• -i = infinitive

So:

• ekbrilas = begins to shine / flashes
• ekbrilis = began to shine / flashed
• ekbrilos = will flash

In the sentence, -is shows that the event happened in the past.

Super la maro means over the sea or above the sea.

• super = over / above
• la maro = the sea

In this sentence, it describes where the lightning flashed.

Often:

• super suggests position higher than something
• in many contexts, it is translated as over

So here:

Subite fulmo ekbrilis super la maro.
= Suddenly lightning flashed over the sea.

Good question. In Esperanto, -n is used for:

1. the direct object, and/or
2. motion toward a place in some contexts

Here, super la maro describes location, not motion toward something. The lightning flashed over the sea; it did not move to above the sea.

So no -n is needed.

Compare:

• La birdo flugas super la maro. = The bird is flying over the sea.
• La birdo flugas sur la maron. = The bird flies onto the sea.

In your sentence, super la maro is just a place phrase.

Subite is an adverb, and the ending -e marks adverbs in Esperanto.

It comes from the idea sudden:

• subita = sudden
• subite = suddenly

This is very regular in Esperanto:

• rapida = quick
• rapide = quickly
• hela = bright
• hele = brightly

So Subite literally means in a sudden way, which is just suddenly in English.

Yes. That would also be correct.

Esperanto word order is more flexible than English because the grammar endings make the roles clear. So these are all possible:

• Subite fulmo ekbrilis super la maro.
• Fulmo subite ekbrilis super la maro.
• Super la maro fulmo subite ekbrilis.

They differ mainly in emphasis:

• Subite... emphasizes the suddenness first
• Fulmo... introduces the lightning first
• Super la maro... emphasizes the location first

The original version sounds very natural and vivid.

Grammatically, fulmo is singular because it ends in -o and not -oj.

However, in actual usage, it can be understood either as:

• a flash of lightning
• or lightning as a phenomenon

That is why the English translation may simply use lightning flashed instead of a lightning flash flashed, which would sound awkward.

So yes, it is singular in form, but the natural English meaning may be more general.

Not in the same way. Fulmo specifically means lightning. If the sentence is about the visible flash, fulmo is the right word.

Related words include:

• tondro = thunder
• fulmotondro = thunderstorm

So:

• Subite fulmo ekbrilis... = Suddenly lightning flashed...
• Subite tondro eksonis... = Suddenly thunder sounded...
• Subite fulmotondro komenciĝis... = Suddenly a thunderstorm began...

Each word refers to a different part of the weather event.

A very literal breakdown is:

• Subite = suddenly
• fulmo = lightning / a flash of lightning
• ekbrilis = began to shine / flashed
• super = over / above
• la maro = the sea

So the whole sentence is roughly:

Suddenly, a flash of lightning began to shine above the sea.

More natural English:

Suddenly lightning flashed over the sea.