The Basic Grammar of Ido/Sentence Construction

After learning the previous lessons, we can start forming sentences. The sentence structure in Ido is similar to that of English. Word Order As in the examples in the previous sections, the default word order in Ido is subject-verb-object, meaning that the initiator of the action is mentioned first, followed by the action itself, and finally the recipient of the action. For example, in "Me amas tu", we have "me" (I, subject), "amas" (to love, verb) and "tu" (you, object). However, the user may also change the word order in a sentence to reflect their natural speech patterns or, for example, for stylistic reasons, whilst retaining the original meaning. In this case, the accusative marker "n" must be used. Accusative Marker If a sentence does not follow the subject-verb-object word order (such as subject-object-verb), the accusative marker "n" must be used to avoid ambiguity. It is placed at the end of the direct object (the recipient of the action). For example, "Me tun amas" consists of "me" (I, subject), "tun" (you, object) and "amas" (to love, verb). When a noun is preceded by a preposition, it functions as an indirect object and therefore does not require an accusative marker. In addition, the accusative marker is only used with nouns or pronouns that function as the direct object. Adjectives do not take an accusative marker. Position of Adjectives In Ido, as the grammatical classes are already indicated, the position of the adjective is flexible. It can appear either before or after the noun. By default, the adjective comes before the noun. For example, "granda homo" (big man) can also be written as "homo granda". Interrogative Sentences General Questions For closed questions (yes or no), simply add "ka" before the sentence. For example, "Tu havas un kato" (You have a cat; affirmative) and "Ka tu havas un kato?" (Do you have a cat?; interrogative). Specific Questions To ask for specific information, you need to use specific question words. The three relative pronouns (see the section "Function Words: Pronouns: Relative Pronouns") Ube: where Kande: when Quale: how Pro quo: why Quanta: how many In interrogative sentences, question words are usually placed at the beginning of the sentence. For example, "Quale vu sentas?" (How do you feel?) It should be noted that if the three relative pronouns are direct objects in the question, they need to be marked as direct objects in the inverted order. For example, "Quin tu manjas?" (What are you eating?) Clauses Noun Clauses Noun clauses are clauses that function as nouns. They begin with "ke". For example, "Me volas ke tu lektas libri" (I want you to read books) Adjective Clauses Adjective clauses are used to describe the noun that precedes them. They are introduced by a relative pronoun. For example, "La homo qua kantas esas mea fratulo" (The man who sings is my brother). In addition, if the noun modified in the adjective clause is an object, the relative pronoun must take the object marker "n". For example, "La libro quon me skribis" (the book that I wrote). Adverbial Clause Adverbial clauses are introduced by various subordinating conjunctions and express time, cause, condition, etc. Here are the essential words in adverbial clauses: Por ke: for Pro ke: because Kande: when Se: if Malgre ke: although Examples Kande me esus richa, me ne laborus: When I'm rich, I won't work. Pro ke la vetero esis tre varma, me ne ekiris: Because it was very hot, I didn't go out. Comparative In Ido, comparisons are mainly expressed using three basic adverbs: plu (more), min (less) and tam (as much), and "kam" is used to introduce the element being compared. For example, "Me esas plu alta kam mea fratulo" (I am taller than my brother). Superlative To form the superlative, we can use the primitive adverbs: "maxim" (the most) and "minim" (the least). « Me esas la minim alta en la grupo » (I'm the shortest in the group). Exercises Try to translate the following sentences. The necessary roots are given below: I'm reading the book that you gave to me. Read: lekt Give: don Book: libr Are you shorter than your sisters? Sister: fratin Short: bas Where are you? When will you arrive? Be: es Arrive: ariv Answers * Me lektas la libro quan tu donis a me. Ka tu esas plu basa kam tua fratini? Or: Ka tu esas min alta kam tua fratini? Ube tu esas? Kande tu arivos? Or: Tu esas ube? Tu arivos kande? Category:Book:The Basic Grammar of Ido