Ĉu vi parolas Esperanton?
Do You Speak Esperanto?
Ask ĉu vi parolas Esperanton, and name the language with -n.
How It Works
| Say | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Ĉu vi parolas Esperanton? | Do you speak Esperanto? |
| Jes, mi parolas Esperanton. | Yes, I speak Esperanto. |
| Mi parolas iom. | I speak a little. |
| Mi parolas la anglan. | I speak English. |
The language you speak is the object of parolas, so its name takes -n. Esperanto is a noun, so it becomes Esperanton.
Many languages are named with an adjective after la: la angla (English), la portugala (Portuguese), la japana (Japanese). The word lingvo (language) is left out because everyone understands it. The adjective carries the ending, so you say la anglan.
Use iom when your skill is small: it means a little.
Examples (5)
- Ĉu vi parolas Esperanton?
Do you speak Esperanto?
Esperanton is the object of parolas, so it ends in -n.
- Jes, mi parolas Esperanton.
Yes, I speak Esperanto.
The answer repeats the object with -n.
- Mi parolas iom.
I speak a little.
Iom says how much, and it needs no ending.
- Ana parolas la portugalan kaj Esperanton.
Ana speaks Portuguese and Esperanto.
Both language names are objects, so both take -n.
- Kenji parolas la japanan, sed ne la anglan.
Kenji speaks Japanese, but not English.
La japana and la angla are adjectives used as language names, and each gets -n.
Common Mistakes
Leaving -n off the language.
Mi parolas Esperanto.Mi parolas Esperanton.The language is what you speak, so it is the object and needs -n.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Asking about a language joins a ĉu question with an object that takes -n.
Related Patterns
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