l' and Dropping -o
Elision in Poetry
An apostrophe stands for a dropped -o or for the a of la; it is mostly used in poems.
How It Works
| Short form | Full form | Where |
|---|---|---|
| ĉiel' | ĉielo | the noun ending -o |
| de l' homaro | de la homaro | la after de, ĉe, je, tra, pri or pro |
| dank' al | danko al | a fixed phrase, also used in speech |
An apostrophe counts as a silent vowel, so the stress stays where it was: ĉiel' keeps the stress on the e of ĉielo. Of a noun, only the -o can be dropped, and only when -j or -n does not follow. An adjective cannot be shortened: ruĝ' is always ruĝo, never ruĝa.
PMEG advises writing l' as a separate word, with a space after it, and using it only after a preposition that ends in a vowel. In speech it joins the word before it, so de l' sounds like one word.
In prose almost nobody writes this way. Learn to read it, because many poems, especially early ones, use it.
Examples (5)
- Sub la sankta signo de l' espero
Under the holy sign of hope
From Zamenhof's La Espero: la becomes l' after de, which ends in a vowel.
- Al la mond' eterne militanta
To the ever-fighting world
From La Espero: mond' stands for mondo.
- Ĝis la bela sonĝo de l' homaro
Until the lovely dream of humankind
From La Espero: de l' homaro is de la homaro.
- Brilas la steloj en ĉiel' trankvila.
The stars shine in a quiet sky.
Ĉiel' stands for ĉielo, and trankvila describes it.
- Dank' al la helpo de Ana, ni finis la laboron.
Thanks to Ana's help, we finished the work.
Dank' al is a fixed phrase used in ordinary prose too.
Common Mistakes
Dropping the ending of an adjective.
La bel' domo estas nova.La bela domo estas nova.Only -o can be dropped. A word like bel' would be read as belo, a noun, and an adjective keeps its -a.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Elision drops a final vowel and keeps the stress where it was.
Related Patterns
Practice l' and Dropping -o in Bubblegum
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