# Esperanto lesson 6: past and future tense, days

Source: https://esperantopedia.org/learn/course/lesson-06/
Language: en
Updated: 2026-10-08

> Esperanto has three tense endings: -is for the past, -as for the present, -os for the future. Learn them with yesterday, tomorrow and the seven days.

In this lesson you learn to talk about the past and the future. Esperanto has three tense endings – *-is* for the past, *-as* for the present and *-os* for the future – and they work the same way for every verb. You will also learn the days of the week, words like *hieraŭ* "yesterday" and *morgaŭ* "tomorrow", and how to say "on Monday".

## Dialogue

Ana has news. She calls Tomo on a Tuesday evening.

| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| **Ana:** Tomo! Mi havas grandan novaĵon! | Tomo! I have big news! |
| **Tomo:** Kio okazis? | What happened? |
| **Ana:** Hieraŭ mi aĉetis flugbileton. En Julio mi iros al la Universala Kongreso! | Yesterday I bought a plane ticket. In July I'm going to the World Congress! |
| **Tomo:** Vere? Bonege! | Really? Great! |
| **Ana:** Kaj vi? Vi ankaŭ venos, ĉu ne? | And you? You'll come too, won't you? |
| **Tomo:** Mi ankoraŭ ne decidis. Mi devos peti feriojn. | I haven't decided yet. I'll have to ask for holidays. |
| **Ana:** Vi devas veni! Ni finfine renkontiĝos! | You have to come! We'll finally meet! |
| **Tomo:** Vi pravas. Lundon mi parolos kun mia ĉefo. | You're right. On Monday I'll talk to my boss. |
| **Ana:** Bone! Kaj kion vi faris dum la semajnfino? | Good! And what did you do at the weekend? |
| **Tomo:** Sabaton mi vizitis mian avinon. Dimanĉon mi dormis la tutan tagon! | On Saturday I visited my grandmother. On Sunday I slept all day! |
| **Ana:** Ha ha! Mi ne dormis multe. Mi kantis kun la koruso en du koncertoj. | Ha ha! I didn't sleep much. I sang with the choir in two concerts. |
| **Tomo:** Kaj kion vi faros morgaŭ? | And what will you do tomorrow? |
| **Ana:** Morgaŭ mi havos ekzamenon pri biologio. Hodiaŭ mi devas studi! | Tomorrow I'll have a biology exam. Today I have to study! |
| **Tomo:** Bonŝancon! Mi skribos al vi lundon, post la renkontiĝo kun la ĉefo. | Good luck! I'll write to you on Monday, after the meeting with the boss. |

*Ĉu ne?* at the end of a sentence works like "won't you?", "isn't it?" or "right?".

## New words

| Esperanto | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| *hieraŭ* | yesterday | |
| *hodiaŭ* | today | |
| *morgaŭ* | tomorrow | |
| *ankoraŭ ne* | not yet | *ankoraŭ* "still" |
| *finfine* | at last, finally | |
| *havi* | to have | |
| *aĉeti* | to buy | |
| *iri* | to go | |
| *okazi* | to happen | |
| *decidi* | to decide | |
| *peti* | to ask for, to request | |
| *paroli* | to speak, to talk | |
| *viziti* | to visit | |
| *dormi* | to sleep | |
| *skribi* | to write | |
| *renkontiĝi* | to meet (each other) | *renkontiĝo* "a meeting" |
| *pravi* | to be right | *Vi pravas.* "You're right." |
| *novaĵo* | (piece of) news | from *nova* "new" |
| *flugbileto* | plane ticket | *flugi* "to fly" + *bileto* "ticket" |
| *ferioj* | holidays, vacation | usually plural; *ferio* "a day off" |
| *ekzameno* | exam | |
| *semajnfino* | weekend | *semajno* "week" + *fino* "end" |
| *dum* | during | |
| *pri* | about | *ekzameno pri biologio* |
| *post* | after | *post la renkontiĝo* "after the meeting" |
| *multe* | much, a lot | *Mi ne dormis multe.* |
| *tuta* | whole | *la tutan tagon* "all day" |
| *kongreso* | congress | *la Universala Kongreso* "the World Esperanto Congress" |
| *bonŝancon!* | good luck! | |

## Grammar

### Three tenses, three endings

Esperanto verbs have one ending for each tense, the same for every person. Change *-as* to *-is* for the past or *-os* for the future. More on the [verbs](https://esperantopedia.org/grammar/verbs/) page.

| Infinitive | Past *-is* | Present *-as* | Future *-os* |
|---|---|---|---|
| *esti* – to be | *estis* – was, were | *estas* – am, is, are | *estos* – will be |
| *labori* – to work | *laboris* – worked | *laboras* – work(s) | *laboros* – will work |
| *iri* – to go | *iris* – went | *iras* – go(es) | *iros* – will go |
| *havi* – to have | *havis* – had | *havas* – have, has | *havos* – will have |

The *-is* form covers English "I worked", "I was working" and "I have worked". *Mi jam manĝis* means "I have already eaten".

| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| *Hieraŭ mi aĉetis flugbileton.* | Yesterday I bought a plane ticket. |
| *Mi ankoraŭ ne decidis.* | I haven't decided yet. |
| *En Julio mi iros al la kongreso.* | In July I'll go to the congress. |
| *Morgaŭ mi havos ekzamenon.* | Tomorrow I'll have an exam. |

Where English often uses the present for plans – "In July I'm going to the congress" – Esperanto normally uses *-os*: *En Julio mi iros al la kongreso*.

:::ending Past, present or future?
- is as os
? Yesterday I bought a plane ticket.
= Hieraŭ mi aĉet[is] flugbileton.
? Tomorrow I'll have an exam.
= Morgaŭ mi hav[os] ekzamenon.
? Now I'm studying.
= Nun mi stud[as].
? On Sunday I slept all day.
= Dimanĉon mi dorm[is] la tutan tagon.
? In July I'm going to the congress.
= En Julio mi ir[os] al la kongreso.
:::

### Time words

| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| *antaŭhieraŭ* | the day before yesterday |
| *hieraŭ* | yesterday |
| *hodiaŭ* | today |
| *morgaŭ* | tomorrow |
| *postmorgaŭ* | the day after tomorrow |
| *nun* | now |
| *baldaŭ* | soon |
| *jam* | already |
| *ankoraŭ* | still; *ankoraŭ ne* – not yet |
| *poste* | later, afterwards |

### Days of the week

Days are nouns written with a small letter. The [days and months](https://esperantopedia.org/phrases/days-months/) page has months and dates too.

| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| *lundo* | Monday |
| *mardo* | Tuesday |
| *merkredo* | Wednesday |
| *ĵaŭdo* | Thursday |
| *vendredo* | Friday |
| *sabato* | Saturday |
| *dimanĉo* | Sunday |

:::match Days of the week
lundo = Monday
mardo = Tuesday
merkredo = Wednesday
ĵaŭdo = Thursday
vendredo = Friday
sabato = Saturday
dimanĉo = Sunday
:::

### "On Monday", "on Mondays"

To say "on Monday", use *-n* or *en*: *lundon* or *en lundo*. The adverb *lunde* means "on Mondays" – every Monday, or on some Monday. The same *-n* shows how long something lasts: *la tutan tagon* "all day".

| Esperanto | English |
|---|---|
| *Lundon mi parolos kun la ĉefo.* | On Monday I'll talk to the boss. |
| *Sabate mi kantas en koruso.* | On Saturdays I sing in a choir. |
| *Mi dormis la tutan tagon.* | I slept all day. |

:::write When?
? "on Friday" (one word)
= vendredon
! vendrede → *Vendrede* usually means "on Fridays". For one particular Friday, add -n: *vendredon*.
? "on Fridays", every Friday (one word)
= vendrede
! vendredon → *Vendredon* is one Friday. "On Fridays" is the adverb: *vendrede*.
? "all day" (three words)
= la tutan tagon
? "the day after tomorrow" (one word)
= postmorgaŭ
:::

## Practice

:::quiz Lesson 6 practice
? Which ending marks the future?
- -is
- -as
- -os *
? Translate: "Yesterday I worked."
= {Hieraŭ} {mi} {laboris}
? Put into the past tense: *Mi dormas.*
= Mi dormis
? Translate: "Tomorrow we will go to the congress."
= {Morgaŭ} {ni} {iros} {al la kongreso}
? Which day comes after *merkredo*?
- *mardo*
- *ĵaŭdo* *
- *vendredo*
? What does *Lunde mi laboras* mean?
- "I work on Mondays." *
- "I worked on Monday."
- "I'll work on Monday."
? Fill in *esti*: *Hieraŭ la vetero ___ bela.*
= estis
? Translate: "I haven't decided yet."
= Mi ankoraŭ ne decidis
? Translate: "On Saturday I visited my grandmother."
= Sabaton mi vizitis mian avinon | En sabato mi vizitis mian avinon | Mi vizitis mian avinon sabaton | Mi vizitis mian avinon en sabato
:::

## Culture corner

The most widely celebrated Esperanto holiday is **Zamenhof Day**, 15 December – the birthday of the language's creator, born in 1859 in Białystok. Since the 1920s it has also been Esperanto Book Day, when speakers buy or give a book in Esperanto. Local clubs meet for talks, dinners or a birthday cake. Read more about [Zamenhof Day](https://esperantopedia.org/about/zamenhof-day/).

## Common questions

### How do you say "I have done" in Esperanto?

Usually with the simple past: *Mi jam manĝis* – "I have already eaten". Compound forms with [participles](https://esperantopedia.org/grammar/participles/) exist, but you rarely need them; you will see them briefly in [Lesson 12](https://esperantopedia.org/learn/course/lesson-12/).

### Are days of the week capitalised in Esperanto?

No. Days are written with a small letter: *lundo, sabato*. Month names were traditionally capitalised – *Julio* – and the reference grammar PMEG recommends this, though many people now write them in small letters.

### How do you say "next week" and "last week"?

*La venontan semajnon* is "next week" and *la pasintan semajnon* is "last week". Both take *-n* because they say when something happens.

## Sources

- [Fundamento de Esperanto – grammar in English (rule 6, verbs)](https://www.akademio-de-esperanto.org/fundamento/gramatiko_angla.html)
- [PMEG: IS (the past tense)](https://bertilow.com/pmeg/gramatiko/verboj/reala/pasinta_tempo.html)
- [PMEG: Venonta tempo – OS-finaĵo (the future tense)](https://bertilow.com/pmeg/gramatiko/verboj/reala/venonta_tempo.html)
- [PMEG: N-finaĵo por tempopunkto (lundon)](https://bertilow.com/pmeg/gramatiko/rolmontriloj/n/tempopunkto.html)
- [PMEG: Bazaj reguloj por E-vortoj (lunde, matene)](https://bertilow.com/pmeg/gramatiko/e-vortoj/bazaj_reguloj.html)
- [PMEG: Majuskloj ĉe propraj nomoj (months and weekdays)](https://bertilow.com/pmeg/gramatiko/propraj_nomoj/majuskloj.html)
- [Wikipedia: Zamenhof Day](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zamenhof_Day)