Lesson 5:
Pronouns

Personal

Pronouns

Pronouns replace nouns.

They are me for "I" or "me", ni for "we" or "us", vu for "you" (singular), vi for "you" (plural), il(u) for "he" or "him", ili for "they" or "them" (masculine), el(u) for "she" or "her", eli for "they" or "them" (feminine), lu for "he, she, or it" or "him, her, or it", li for "they" or "them", ol(u) for "it", oli for "they" or "them" (things), and on for "one".

There are two special ones: tu for "thou" or "thee" and su is the reflexive pronoun. Tu is used about as much as in English. Su is used for an object (direct or prepositional) when it is the same as the subject and third person.

El amas su. El amas el. Me amas me.

She loves herself. She loves her. I love myself.

Possessive Adjectives

These adjectives show who owns the modified noun. These adjectives are formed from the pronouns by adding an -a. The (u) may not be omitted if an ending is added to the pronoun.

Me prizas elua hararo.

I like her hair.

Interrogative and Relative

Pronouns and Adjectives

These pronouns either inquire after a noun or serve to further define a given one.

Qua as a pronoun means "who", or as an adjective it means "which ...". Quo means "what" interrogatively or "which" relatively. Qui is the plural form of quo and of qua as a pronoun. An -n ending is used when the pronoun is the direct object and precedes the subject. Precede the pronoun with "di" to form the possessive case ("whose").

Qua desamas la Thompson-i di qui me prizas la kato?

Who hates the Thompsons, whose cat I like?

Quon vu prizas? Qua libro?

What do you like? Which book?

Demonstratives

Pronouns

These pronouns are used to point out something. They are (i)ta for "that person" as a pronoun or for "that" as an adjective, (i)to for "that (thing)", and (i)ti for "those (things)". The corresponding "this" form may be formed by changing the t to c. Use the corresponding relative pronoun to form "that which".

Ta Qua prizas to, anke prizas ci. Me desamas ca hundo!

That (person) who likes that, also likes these. I hate this dog!

Adding Gender

The prefixes il-, el-, or ol- may be used to add gender to the demonstrative pronouns or to other pronouns.

Ilica deziras elita.

This man desires that woman.

Indefinite

The Table

Facez irgo quon vu volas.

Do whatever you like.

Omni asistis. Omno, quon me dicis.

All were there. All I have said.

Donez ad me kelko.

Give me some.

Ulu dicis, ulo mankas. Ula libro. Uli.

Someone said, something's missing. Some book. Some (books).

Omnu parolis, singlu en sua linguo.

Everyone spoke, each in his own language.

Others

"Ones" is uni. "One" (unu) is omitted after demonstratives and adjectives.

Uni esis longa, l'altri esis kurta.

The ones were long, the others were short.

"Each other" is una altra or uni altri. "Either" is una od altra and "neither" is nek una nek altra.

Una od altra konvenos.

Either of them will do.

Nek una nek la altra pordo esis apertita.

Neither door was open.

Li amis una altra.

They loved each other.

"Few" is poka. "Several" is plura. "Much" and "many" are translated multa.

"Such" when refering to quality is translated tala.

Tala, quala ni esas

Such as we are

"Self" is given as ipsa after a noun or pronoun or as persono as a noun.

Nur me ipsa. Mea tota persono.

Only myself. My whole self.

To translate "both", follow a pronoun with du.

Omna du viri esis ebria.

Both the men were drunk.

The pronoun lo is the indeterminate object pronoun. It refers to ideas, notions, and facts, and not to things or people. It may be used with adjectives to mark the indeterminate sense.

Prenez ica pomo, me volas lo.

Take this apple, I desire it (that you take it).

Lo bona, lo vera, e lo bela.

The Good, the True, and the Beautiful.