Questions & Answers about Ne malkaŝu la intrigon.
Why does malkaŝu end in -u?
In Esperanto, -u is the verb ending for a command, request, wish, or instruction.
So malkaŝu means something like:
- reveal!
- do reveal
- please reveal
With ne in front, it becomes a negative command:
- Ne malkaŝu = Don’t reveal
This -u form is used regardless of whether you are talking to one person or more than one person.
Why is there no word for you in the sentence?
Esperanto often leaves out the subject in commands, just like English does.
In English, we say:
- Don’t reveal the plot.
not usually:
- You, don’t reveal the plot.
Esperanto works the same way:
- Ne malkaŝu la intrigon.
If you wanted to include you, you could say Vi ne malkaŝu la intrigon, but that is less neutral and usually unnecessary.
What does ne do here?
Ne is the normal Esperanto word for not.
It goes before the word it negates. Here it negates the verb:
- malkaŝu = reveal