Esperanta vortfarado - fino (Word formation in Esperanto - end)
I) Suffixes and prefixes:
1) mal- : signifies the contrary, the direct opposite
fermi = to close; malfermi = to open
dekstra = right; maldekstra = left
prava = correct;malprava = wrong, incorrect
ne-: signifies absence or negation
utila = useful; neutila = useless
ebla = possible; neebla = impossible
2) -ebl : signifies a possibility, an ability, a capacity
vidi = to see; videbla = visible
kredi = to believe; kredebla = credible, believable
-ind : signifies «worthy of», «deserving to»
foto = picture; fotinda = worthy of being taken a picture of
legi = to read; leginda = that should be read, worth reading
-end : signifies a necessity, an obligation; «that should be»
pagi = to pay; pagenda = that should be paid
respondi = to reply; respondenda = that should be answered
3) -an : signifies a person who belongs to an organization, a community, etc
civito = society;civitano = citizen (member of a society)
ŝtato = state; ŝtatano = citizen
-ism : signifies a doctrine, a system of thought, an ideology
komuna = common; komunismo = communism
imperio = empire; imperiismo = imperialism
-estr : signifies the authority, the head, the director, the person in power
ŝipo = ship, boat; ŝipestro = ship captain
urbo = city, town; urbestro = mayor, head of the city
4) re- : signifies the repetition of an action
veni = to come; reveni = to come back, to return
ŝarĝi = to charge; reŝarĝi = to recharge
mis- : signifies an erroneous or inappropriate action
uzi = to use;misuzi = to misuse
kompreni = to undestand; miskompreni = to misunderstand
dis- : signifies propagation in multiple directions, spreading
doni = to give; disdoni = to distribute
flugi = to fly; disflugi = to fly in different directions
II) Some practice: translate the following words
nekredebla ŝtataneco
nekredinda disigi
lernejestro reskribi
misparoli alkoholisto
ree estraro
nee male
The remaining suffixes and prefixes
To make people’s names sound more affectionate, you can use:
-ĉj for male names, - nj for female names
Aleksandro becomes AleksaĉjoMaria becomes Manjo
patro becomes paĉjo (daddy)patrino becomes panjo (mommy)
To play around with numbers, use the three suffixes –obl, -on, and –op:
kvar = fourkvaroblo = quadruple
kvarono = quarterkvaropo = a group of four, a quartet
To make the noun denoting a concrete object, use the suffix –aĵ:
trinki = to drinktrinkaĵo = a beverage
teatro = theaterteatraĵo = a theater performance
Family relations: if it’s something resulting from marriage, use the prefix bo- :
frato = brotherbofrato = brother-in-law
kuzo = (male) cousinbokuzo = “cousin-in-law”
The prefix ge – refers to people of both genders:
gefratoj = brother and sistergeavoj = grandfather and grandmother
The prefix ĉef- refers to the main or most important (person, place, time):
ĉefredaktoro = chief editor ĉefurbo = capital city
The prefix eks- refers to a quality that someone no longer possesses:
eksprezidanto = former presidenteksedziĝi = to divorce (edzo = spouse)