Mi ŝatas tiun scenon.

In Esperanto, verbs do not change according to the subject. Instead, the ending shows the tense.

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

So ŝatas means like / likes in the present tense.

That means:

• Mi ŝatas = I like
• Vi ŝatas = you like
• Li ŝatas = he likes

Notice that the verb stays ŝatas every time.

The -n ending marks the direct object in Esperanto. The direct object is the thing receiving the action.

In Mi ŝatas tiun scenon, the thing being liked is that scene, so it is the direct object.

That is why:

• sceno → scenon
• tiu → tiun

Because tiun describes scenon, it matches it in grammar. This matching is a very important Esperanto rule: words that go together often agree with each other.

So:

• tiu sceno = that scene
• tiun scenon = that scene, as the direct object

Tiu is the basic form meaning that one / that. But here it refers to the direct object, so it also takes the accusative -n ending.

So:

• Tiu estas bela. = That is beautiful.
• Mi ŝatas tiun. = I like that one.

In your sentence, tiun is attached to scenon, so together they mean that scene.

Esperanto does have a definite article: la.

But you usually do not use la together with tiu in this kind of phrase, because tiu already makes the noun definite and specific.

So Esperanto normally says:

• tiu sceno = that scene

not

• la tiu sceno

This is similar to English, where you say that scene, not the that scene.

The letter ŝ is pronounced like English sh in shoe.

So:

• ŝatas sounds roughly like SHAH-tahs

A few helpful pronunciation points:

• ŝ = sh
• a = like a in father
• stress in Esperanto usually falls on the second-to-last syllable

So ŝa-tas is stressed on ŝa.

Tiun is usually pronounced as three sounds/syllabic parts: ti-u-n.

Roughly:

• ti = like tee
• u = like oo
• final n is pronounced normally

So it comes out roughly as TEE-oon, though learners often hear a slight separation between i and u.

Also remember that Esperanto spelling is very regular, so you pronounce what you see.

Yes, Esperanto word order is more flexible than English because the -n ending shows the direct object clearly.

The normal order is:

• Mi ŝatas tiun scenon.

But you could also say:

• Tiun scenon mi ŝatas.

This gives more emphasis to that scene.

Because scenon has -n, Esperanto speakers can still tell it is the object, even if it comes earlier in the sentence.

That said, the basic subject–verb–object order is the most neutral and most common for learners to use.

The basic dictionary form is sceno.

Esperanto nouns end in -o. Then you add other endings when needed:

• sceno = scene
• scenoj = scenes
• scenon = scene, as a direct object
• scenojn = scenes, as direct objects

So in your sentence, scenon is just sceno plus the object ending -n.

Usually, yes. Ŝati is the normal word for to like in the sense of finding something pleasant or appealing.

Examples:

• Mi ŝatas muzikon. = I like music.
• Ŝi ŝatas tiun filmon. = She likes that film.

It is a very common everyday verb. In most basic situations, you can think of ŝati as the direct equivalent of English like.

Esperanto changes words very regularly.

Singular:

• tiu sceno = that scene
• tiun scenon = that scene, as object

Plural:

• tiuj scenoj = those scenes
• tiujn scenojn = those scenes, as objects

Notice the pattern:

• -j marks plural
• -n marks direct object
• both words in the phrase match each other

That regularity is one of the nicest features of Esperanto grammar.