The International Auxiliary Language Esperanto Part 11

Examples.--_Cu vi ne vidis lin?_ = Did you not see him? _Mi devas ne iri_ = I must not go.f[11] _Mi ne devas iri_ = I am not obliged to go.[11] _Ne mi, sed li, havas katon_ = It is not I, but he, who has a cat. _Mi ne havas katon_ = I have not (got) a cat.

Footnote:

[11] This distinction, however, is not observed by all writers.

(_b_). The nine correlative words, nenia, nenial, neniam, nenie, neniel, nenies, nenio, neniom, neniu, also imply negation.

Examples.--_Li havas nenian sperton_ = He has no kind of experience.

_Li ne havas ian sperton_ = He has not any kind of experience.

_Nenial li subite foriris de Londono_ = For no reason he suddenly left London. _Mi nenion trovis_ = I found nothing. _Mi ne trovis ion_ (_ion_, not _nenion_, here) = I did not find anything. (See correlative words, pars. 147-157).

(_c_). Nek = _nor_ and nek ... nek = _neither ... nor_ have also a negative meaning.

Examples.--_Nek mi nek li estis tie_ = Neither I nor he was there.

_Mi vidis nek Johanon nek Georgon_ = I saw neither John nor George.

Nek is generally used in the second clause of a sentence, although the first is negative.

Examples.--_Mi ne scias la francan lingvon, nek la anglan, nek la turkan_ = I do not know the French language, or (nor) English, or (nor) Turkish. _Nenio estas al mi pli kara, nek dolca, ol vi_ = Nothing is dearer to me or (nor) sweeter than you. _Mi ne renkontis lin, nek lian fraton_ = I did not meet him or (nor) his brother.

(_d_). Compound words with ne, sen, mal, have also a negative signification, and such words are often employed with a negative to express an affirmative a.s.sertion. (See par. 289.)

Examples.--_La okazo ne estis neatendita_ = The event was not unexpected. _Lia riceco ne estis senlima_ = His fortune was not unlimited. _Li ne estis malhonesta_ = He was not dishonest.

60. Double Negative.--Occasionally a double negative is used to give strong force to a negation. Dr. Zamenhof, in his translation of Hamlet, Act I., Scene 5, renders "Lay your hands again upon my sword: swear by my sword, never to speak of this that you have heard" by Metu viajn manojn denove sur la glavon, kaj ripetu, ke vi neniam al neniu diros pri la apero de la nokto, lit. = _Lay your hands again upon the sword, and repeat, that you never, to no one, will speak of the apparition of the night_.

Some Esperantists do not consider this a double negative, but it undoubtedly is, according to the literal English translation. Another explanation of the pa.s.sage is to supply mentally an omitted kaj after the word neniam.

61. Of course, when two negatives refer to different verbs, expressed or unexpressed, this is not a double negative.

Examples.--_Mi ne volis, ne skribi al vi_ = I did not wish, not to write to you. _Ne nur ne malamiko, sed kunbatalanto li estis_ = (He was) not only not an enemy, but he was a comrade in arms (fellow combatant).

62. Two negatives may be used in such an expression as "could not help," etc.

Example.--_Li ne povis ne kisi la malgrandulon_ = He could not help kissing the little one. Lit.:--He could not not kiss the little one.

QUESTIONS AND REPLIES (Demandoj kaj Respondoj).

63. Jes = _yes_ is the word used to answer a question affirmatively.

Examples.--_Cu vi vidis mian patron? Jes!_ = Did you see my father?

Yes. _Jes_, with the conjunction _ke_, is also used for "it is so,"

as, _mi vin certigas, ke jes_ = I a.s.sure you that it is so.

Ne = _no_, _not_, is used in a similar way to answer a question negatively.

Example.--_Mi vin certigas, ke ne_ = I a.s.sure you that it is not so.

64. To give force to affirmative or negative replies one can add to ne or jes any suitable adverb, as certe = _certainly_, ja = _indeed_, kompreneble = _of course_, etc., etc., or repeat the verb of the interrogation without its complement, in the same way as in English we often repeat the auxiliary of the verb.

Examples.--_Cu vi faris tion?_ = Did you do that? _Jes! Jes! Mi faris_, or _Ne! Ne! Mi ne faris_ = Yes, yes, I did, _or_ No, no! I did not. _Cu vi finis vian laboron?_ = Have you finished your work?

_Jes! mi finis_, or _Ne, mi ne (finis)_ = Yes, I have, _or_, No, I have not. _Cu vi mortigis tiun birdon?_ = Did you kill that bird?

_Jes! Certe mi mortigis_, or, _Certe jes!_ or, _Ne, kompreneble, mi ne mortigis_, or, _Kompreneble ne!_ = Yes! Certainly I did, _or_, No!

Of course, I didn't! _Cu vi deziras kafon?_ = Do you want coffee?

_Jes, mi deziras_, or _Ne, mi ne deziras; mi jam havas_ = Yes, I do, _or_, No, I do not; I have (some) already.

64 (_a_). When the verb is omitted in the reply, the case must be used which would have been used had the verb been expressed.

Examples.--_Kiom kostis la capelo? Nau silingojn (au, gi kostis nau silingojn)_ = What did the hat cost? Nine shillings (_or_, it cost nine shillings). _Kien vi iras? En la gardenon (au, mi iras en la gardenon)_ = Where (whither) are you going? Into the garden (_or_, I am going into the garden). _Kiom pezas la kesto? Dek nau funtojn_ = What does the chest weigh? Nineteen pounds; but, _Kiom estas la pezo de la kesto? Dek nau funtoj_ = what is the weight of the chest? Nineteen pounds.

THE ACCUSATIVE (La Akuzativo).

65. Accusative: when used.--The accusative is used in Esperanto:--

(1). To show the direct object of a verb.

(2). To show motion towards something (Rule 13, par. 94).

(3). To show a preposition has been omitted (Rules 8 and 14, par.

94).

The following are examples of these three uses:--

66 (1). To show the direct object of a verb.

(_a_). After transitive verbs the accusative is used to show the direct object.

Examples.--_Johano vidas la knabon_ = John sees the boy. _Georgo acetis bonan cevalon_ = George bought a good horse. Now in either of these sentences the order of the words can be changed without altering the meaning. _La knabon vidas Johano_ would still mean "John sees the boy," because _Johano_, being in the nominative, is clearly the subject, and _knabon_, being in the accusative, is clearly the object. But if we inverted the words in English, the sense would be entirely changed (see order of words, pars. 73-93).

(_b_). After participles.--The accusative is also used after active participles (adjectival or adverbial) to denote the object.

Examples.--_Johano estis rigardanta la knabon, kiam mi lin vidis_ = John was looking at the boy, when I saw him. _Johano, vidante la knabon, donas al li pomon_ = John, seeing the boy, gives him an apple. _Georgo estis acetinta cevalon_ = George had bought a horse.

_Georgo, acetinte cevalon, donis gin al sia frato_ = George, having bought (_or_, after buying) a horse, gave it to his brother (par. 212 (_d_)).

(_c_). When a verb is omitted.--The accusative is also used in exclamations and in expressions in which some verb expressing "wish"

or "desire" is understood (see par. 64 (_a_)).

Examples.--_Peston al la trancilo: Mi trancis al mi la fingron!_ = Plague on the knife! I have cut my finger! _Bonan tagon, Sinjoro_ = Good day, sir. _Saluton al vi, sinjorino_ = (lit.) Salutation to you, madam. In reply to a question the accusative is used whenever the verb in the reply, which is omitted, governs the accusative, as:--_Kiom kostas tiu ci krajono? (Gi kostas) du pencojn_ = How much does this pencil cost? (It costs) twopence. _Kiom estas la kosto de tiu ci krajono? (Gi estas) du pencoj_ = What is the price of this pencil? (It is) twopence.

67 (2). To show motion towards something.