-ec-

-ec-: Quality

Level 3

-ec- names a quality or a state.

How It Works

RootWith -ec-Meaning
bela (beautiful)belecobeauty
bona (good)bonecogoodness
amiko (friend)amikecofriendship
juna (young)junecoyouth

Compare -ec- with -aĵ-. A belaĵo is a beautiful thing you can point to, but beleco is beauty, the quality of being beautiful. The root can be an adjective, such as bela, or a noun, such as amiko.

Read the parts: bel (beautiful) + -ec- (quality) + -o (noun) gives beleco (beauty).

The word is a noun, so it takes the noun endings: Mi ŝatas la belecon de la ĝardeno.

Examples (4)

  1. Mi admiras la belecon de la ĝardeno.

    I admire the beauty of the garden.

    Beleco is the quality of being beautiful; it is the object, so it has -n.

  2. Amikeco inter landoj estas tre grava.

    Friendship between countries is very important.

    Amikeco is the state of being friends.

  3. Ni ĉiuj ŝatas Kofin pro lia boneco.

    We all like Kofi for his goodness.

    Boneco is the quality of being good.

  4. En la juneco Ewa lernis Esperanton.

    In her youth Ewa learned Esperanto.

    Juneco is the time of being young.

Common Mistakes

  • Using -aĵ- for a quality.

    Mi ŝatas la belaĵon de la montoj.
    Mi ŝatas la belecon de la montoj.

    Belaĵo is a beautiful thing. For the quality of being beautiful, use -ec-: beleco.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

-ec-Level 3-ec-: Quality

Learn This First

The ending -ec- names a quality.