Ne malkaŝu la intrigon.

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.

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.

Ne is the normal Esperanto word for not.

It goes before the word it negates. Here it negates the verb:

• malkaŝu = reveal
• ne malkaŝu = do not reveal / don’t reveal

So this is simply the standard way to make a negative command.

Malkaŝu can be broken down into parts:

• kaŝ- = hide
• mal- = the opposite of
• -u = command/request form

So:

• kaŝi = to hide
• malkaŝi = to un-hide, uncover, reveal
• malkaŝu = reveal!

This is a very common Esperanto pattern. The prefix mal- often creates the opposite meaning of a root.

Because Esperanto often builds vocabulary systematically.

Instead of always using an unrelated word for the opposite, Esperanto frequently uses:

• a root
• plus mal- for the opposite

So if kaŝi means to hide, then malkaŝi naturally means to reveal / disclose.

This is one of the language’s regular and productive features, and learners are expected to get used to it.

The -n marks the direct object.

Here, the thing being revealed is the plot, so intrigo is the direct object of the verb malkaŝu.

That is why it becomes:

• intrigo → intrigon

A good way to think of it:

• who or what should not be revealed?
• la intrigon

So the -n is the normal accusative ending.

La is the definite article, meaning the.

So:

• intrigon = a plot / plot, as an object
• la intrigon = the plot, as an object

In a sentence like this, the plot usually refers to a specific plot already understood from context, such as the plot of a movie, book, or story.

That is why la sounds natural here.

Intrigo usually means plot in the sense of a story’s storyline, or sometimes an intrigue/scheme depending on context.

In this sentence, it most naturally means:

• the plot of a book
• the plot of a film
• the plot of a story

So Ne malkaŝu la intrigon is the kind of thing you would say to mean don’t give away the plot or don’t spoil the plot.

Yes. Esperanto word order is fairly flexible because the grammar endings show what each word is doing.

The most neutral order is:

• Ne malkaŝu la intrigon.

But other orders are possible for emphasis, such as:

• La intrigon ne malkaŝu.

That would put more focus on the plot.

Still, for most learners, the original order is the best and most natural one to use.

It can be either.

The -u form does not show number. And since Esperanto uses vi for both singular and plural you, the sentence could be said to:

• one person
• several people

So Ne malkaŝu la intrigon can mean:

• Don’t reveal the plot. said to one person
• Don’t reveal the plot. said to a group

The context tells you which one is meant.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

neh mahl-KAH-shoo lah in-tree-GON

A few helpful details:

• ne sounds like neh
• kaŝ has ŝ, which sounds like English sh
• -u sounds like oo
• g in Esperanto is always a hard g, as in go
• the stress is on the second-to-last syllable:
  • malKAŝu
  • intriGON

So the main stresses are:

• ne malKAŝu la intriGON

Yes, but the given sentence is very normal and straightforward.

Depending on nuance, you might also see expressions that mean things like:

• Don’t spoil it
• Don’t give it away
• Don’t disclose the story

But Ne malkaŝu la intrigon is a clear, direct way to say Don’t reveal the plot.

For a learner, it is a very good example of:

• ne for negation
• -u for commands
• mal- for opposites
• -n for the direct object