• The boat had not been intended to be lived in → La batelo ne esis destinita por habitado.
• The church had not been preached in for many years → On ne predikabis en la kirko dum multa yari.
A word which is a preposition, if before a noun or pronoun, may be an adverb, if alone:
• Near the brook → Proxim la rivereto.
• The brook ran near, La rivereto fluis proxime.
All Ido prepositions can be changed into adverbs by the addition of an -e:
dum, during; dume, meanwhile.
lor, at the time of; lore, then.
pos, after; pose, afterwards.
ante, before; antee, previously.
kontre, against; kontree, on the other hand, contrariwise.
As adjectives, antea means previous, posa, subsequent, kontrea, opposing.
(Extere, interne, are used in place of ene, eke.)
Some prepositions are used as adverbs in English with a different sense:
• About an hour, Cirkum un horo.
• They ran about, Li kuris hike ed ibe.
• On the bell, Sur la klosho.
• They rang on, Li sonigadis.
• Over the way, Trans la voyo,
• The storm was over, La sturmo esis finita (o: cesabis).
• Up a tree, Supre di arboro.
• The door is shut up, La pordo esas tote klozita.
• Turn round the horse, Turnez cirkum la kavalo.
• Turn the horse round, Turnez la kavalo.
Prepositions in English, are often used with the full meaning of a verb, the verb accompanying them having only the value of an adverb:
• To walk in, ride in, creep in, run in, float in (= to enter by walking, riding, creeping, running, floating) → En-irar marchante, vehante, reptante, kurante, flotacante.
• I wind about and in and out → Me sinuifas, en-iras, ek-iras.
• He was trudging through the woods, up hill and down dale → Il pene tra-iris boski, acensis kolini, decensis vali.
• It was blown off into the dirt → Ol esis de-portata da la vento aden la fango.
The consequence of this peculiar use is that an intransitive verb can (apparently) take a direct object:
• Will you row me to the bridge? → Ka vu voluntas rem-vehigar me a la ponto?
• The child will cry her eyes out → La infantino ruinos sua okuli per lakrimi.
• Kiss away her tears → Sikigez elua lakrimi per kiso.
• He was argued into allowing the fact → Il esis obligata per argumenti aceptar la fakto.
Adjectives are also used in the same way:
• They walked themselves dry → Li per marcho sikigis su.
Lesson XVII
When the speaker does not want to name, or does not know, the author of an action, he states it in the passive voice in English:
• The father is loved.
In Ido, the indefinite pronoun is used:
› On amas la patrulo.
This avoids such passive constructions as:
• He was not told the whole truth,
› On ne dicis ad il la tota verajo.
Sometimes, instead of the passive voice, a pronoun is used in English; the pronoun we is used when the speaker wants to associate himself with the statement:
• We are all mortal.
› Ni omna esas mortiva.
But when the statement applies to everybidy, on should be used:
• When we hear hear but one bell, we hear but one sound,
› Kande on audas nur un klosho, on audas nur un sono.
The same is true of the pronouns they, you and the expressions people, somebody:
• They manage those things better in America,
› On administras ta kozi plu bone en Amerika.
• You cannot eat your cake and have it,
› On ne povas manjar sua kuko e konservar ol.
• People say it is their own fault,
› On dicas, ke ol esas lia propra kulpo.
• A man is not always lucky,
› On ne sempre esas fortunoza.
Any preposition can be used before an infinitive, as the infinitive is the equivalent of a noun:
› Loko por studiar (= loko por studio), A place for studying (= a place for study).
› Sen dormar, without sleep.
› Ante departar, before starting.
› Ante departo, before departure.
› Sen parolir, without having spoken.
Preposition to is not translated if it is part of the infinitive:
• I want to come, me volas venar.
If it means in order to, use por:
• He wrote to come, Il skribis por venar.
If you could use the form in -ing with nearly the same sense, the por is not necessary:
• To be or not to be (= being or not being), Esar o ne esar.
After an adjective, preposition to means neither in order to nor an infinitive:
• Easy to learn (= easily learnable), Facile lernebla.
• Difficult to understand, Desfacile komprenebla.
• They have only themselves to blame, Li ipsa esas sola blaminda.
For the infinitive clause, “I want you to come,”, etc., see Lesson XII.
Verbs like to rain, to snow, to hail have no real subject; therefore the English pronoun it is not translated:
• It rains. Pluvas.
• It snowed. Nivis.
• It is going to hail. Esas balde grelonta.
(See also Lesson XX.)
The same is true when the pronoun it does not refer to anything:
• It is you. Esas vu.
Translate such phrases by means of sentar, to feel, used reflexively:
› Me sentas me kolda.
› Vu sentos vu tro varma.