1. The words used to name things - living or inanimate - are called nouns. In Esperanto, all nouns in the singular end in -o:
| patro | a father | tablo | a table | |
| besto | an animal | meblo | a piece of furniture | |
| filo | a son | viro | a man | |
| domo | a house | pomo | an apple | |
| hundo | a dog | pupo | a doll |
The singular noun can be shown in English by putting 'a' or 'an' before it, although it is often omitted. As all nouns end in -o in Esperanto, there is no need for a separate word for 'a' or 'an'. Therefore patro = a father or just father; tablo = a table or just table; and similarly with all other nouns.
2. Nouns in the plural add j to the o:
| patroj | fathers | tabloj | tables | |
| bestoj | animals | mebloj | pieces of furniture | |
| filoj | sons | viroj | men | |
| domoj | houses | pomoj | apples | |
| hundoj | dogs | pupoj | dolls |
(Remember: oj is sounded oy as in 'boy'.)
3. La (the)
La is used with nouns both in the singular and plural without change:
| la patro | the father | la patroj | the fathers | |
| la filo | the son | la filoj | the sons |
4. Kaj (and)
Kaj is pronounced like the ky in 'sky'.
| patro kaj filo | father and son |
| viro kaj hundo | a man and a dog |
5. The words used to name an action or state are called verbs. When we wish to show that the action is taking place at the present time, or the present state of something (i.e. the present tense), the verb ends in -as:
Note: Do not put estas before another verb.
6. Continous tense - Although there is a form in Esperanto similiar to the English 'am --ing', it is little used, and the ending -as is generally used to translate both the simple and continous tenses:
| Mi legas | I read and I am reading |
| Li staras | He stands and He is standing |
| Ni sidas | We sit and We are sitting |
In translating from Esperanto into English, either of the English forms is used, according to the context.