Notices
Esperanto Reading 1
Chapter 2 · Notices and Everyday Texts
🪧 Notices and Everyday Texts — Avizoj kaj ĉiutagaj tekstoj
Chapter 1 gave you a method. Here you try it on the shortest kinds of text: signs, adverts, timetables, menus and messages. These are written in a few fixed patterns, so once you know them you can read a whole page of notices at a glance.
Signs
A sign often has one word and no verb. Treat it as a label:
| Sign | Meaning | Parts |
|---|---|---|
| Eniro | Entrance | en-iri: to go in, so the noun is "going in" |
| Eliro | Exit | el-iri: to go out |
| Malfermita | Open | mal- + ferm- + -ita: "unclosed" |
| Fermita | Closed | ferm- + -ita: "closed" |
| Tiru / Puŝu | Pull / Push | commands from tiri, puŝi |
| Atentu! | Be careful! | command from atenti |
| Libera / Okupita | Free / Occupied | adjective and a participle |
| Fumado malpermesita | No smoking | "smoking forbidden": mal- + permes- + -ita |
Two patterns to notice. A word ending in -ita (fermita, okupita, malpermesita) describes a state that has been brought about, and Chapter 4 explains this participle fully. A word ending in -u is a command or request.
Polite requests: Bonvolu + infinitive
The most common formula on public notices is Bonvolu followed by an infinitive. It means "please" and is the polite way to ask for something:
| Notice | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Bonvolu atendi. | Please wait. |
| Bonvolu silenti. | Please be quiet. |
| Bonvolu ne fumi. | Please do not smoke. |
| Bonvolu fermi la pordon. | Please close the door. |
To forbid something, put ne before the infinitive, as in Bonvolu ne fumi.
Adverts
Adverts are short, factual and often leave out the verb "to be". Here are two, with the words to help you:
① Vendiĝas
② Kurso
| Esperanto | English | Esperanto | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| vendiĝi | to be for sale | biciklo | bicycle |
| stato | condition | prezo | price |
| pundo | pound | skribi | to write |
| kurso | course | komenciĝi | to begin |
| lunde | on Monday | bonvena | welcome |
| okazi | to take place | semajno | week |
The ending -iĝ- means "become" or "happen to itself": vendi is "to sell" and vendiĝi is "to be sold", so Vendiĝas biciklo is "a bicycle is for sale". In the same way komenci is "to begin (something)" and komenciĝi is "to begin (by itself)". The day-adverb lunde comes from lundo (Monday); every weekday works the same way.
Timetables
A timetable is mostly names and numbers, with a few verbs and adverbs to know:
| Trajno al Glasgovo | Foriras | Alvenas | Veturas |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frua trajno | 8.15 | 9.05 | ĉiutage |
| Posttagmeza trajno | 14.30 | 15.20 | ne dimanĉe |
- foriras departs; alvenas arrives; veturas runs, travels.
- ĉiutage every day (ĉiu + tago + -e); ne dimanĉe not on Sundays.
- frua early; posttagmeza afternoon (post "after" + tagmezo "midday" + -a).
Menus
Menus are lists of nouns, and the nouns are mostly familiar-looking roots:
Manĝejo — menuo
Soup, bread and butter, cheese, cake, coffee, tea and milk. The phrase de la tago means "of the day". Take manĝejo apart: manĝ (eat) + -ej- (place) + -o, a place to eat.
Short messages
A text message is a real piece of writing in miniature. Read for who, what and when:
Mesaĝo
| Part | What to notice |
|---|---|
| alvenos | Future tense (-os): she will arrive. |
| per la trajno de la oka | "by the train of the eighth hour", that is the eight o'clock train. |
| atendi min | mi + -n = min, "me" as the object of atendi. |
| Ĝis morgaŭ! | "Until tomorrow", the usual goodbye when you will meet again. |
✏️ Try It Yourself — Ekzercoj
Say the answer first, then click to check.
1. What do Eniro and Eliro mean, and which two parts make the difference?
Show answer
Entrance and exit. The prefixes en- (in) and el- (out) differ, with the same root ir- (go).
2. A door says Tiru. What should you do?
Show answer
Pull. Tiru is the command form of tiri.
3. Translate Bonvolu ne fumi.
Show answer
Please do not smoke.
4. Write the Esperanto for "Please close the door."
Show answer
Bonvolu fermi la pordon. The door is the object, so it takes -n.
5. Read the advert: Vendiĝas malnova biciklo. Prezo: dek kvin pundoj. What is for sale and how much does it cost?
Show answer
An old bicycle, for fifteen pounds (dek kvin = ten five).
6. What is the difference between komenci and komenciĝi?
Show answer
komenci is to begin something (someone does it); komenciĝi is for something to begin on its own, as in a course that begins on Monday.
7. In the timetable, when does the early train to Glasgow depart, and does it run on Sundays?
Show answer
It departs at 8.15 and runs every day (ĉiutage), so yes. The afternoon train is the one that does not run on Sundays (ne dimanĉe).
8. Read the message again. When does Maria arrive and what is Petro asked to do?
Show answer
She arrives tomorrow, on the eight o'clock train. Petro is asked to wait for her at the station building.
9. Make the adverb "on Tuesday" from mardo, and "on Friday" from vendredo.
Show answer
marde and vendrede.
10. Write a two-line notice for a café that is closed on Sundays.
Show answer
One possibility: Kafejo. Fermita dimanĉe. Another: La kafejo ne estas malfermita dimanĉe.
Words used in this chapter
eniro entrance · eliro exit · fermita closed · malfermita open · tiri pull · puŝi push · atenti pay attention · libera free · okupita occupied · fumi smoke · malpermesita forbidden · bonvolu please · atendi wait · silenti be quiet · pordo door · vendiĝi be for sale · biciklo bicycle · stato condition · prezo price · pundo pound · kurso course · komenci(ĝi) begin · okazi take place · semajno week · foriri depart · alveni arrive · veturi travel · ĉiutage every day · frua early · supo soup · pano bread · butero butter · fromaĝo cheese · kuko cake · lakto milk · ĝis until · ĉe at