"Provu plibonigi vian Esperanton."
Translation:Try to improve your Esperanto.
23 CommentsThis discussion is locked.
Pli (more) + bono (good) + igi (to become) = plibonigi (to improve/to become better)
I think it would be better to say "peni" or "klopodi" when saying "make an effort." Provi does mean that but it also means "to try out" as in try a certain food or "put to the test" as in our knowledge of Esperanto ;)
boni is not a root verb, so turning an adjective (bona) into a verb does not really produce a meaningful word. The ig/iĝ is necessary to "verbify" it by adding the concept of making or becoming to the adjective.
What I heared once: X-i from an adjective X-a means "to be X" or "to have the property X" - which is a kind of 'verbifying' different from "making" or "becoming". I saw "gxi bonas" with that meaning already.
The question, however, was not about bonas but rather plibonas. I'm not convicned that plibonas is a possible word.
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Seems that I was wrong, sorry. So, are you saying that verbs directly formed out of an adjective root, like "boni" (to be good) or "beli" (to be beautiful) should be avoided? I'm quite confused now because Lernu's dictionary mentions "beli", but not "boni"...
I do say that - or a variation of that - at times, but what I am saying here is that "plibonas" is not a word, but "bonas" is. "Pli bonas" needs to be written as two words.
According to Zamenhof himself, the resulting verb should still retain some "verbality" to it: biciklo - bicycle, bicikli - to (go by) bicycle. There is no "verbality" to "to be good" or "to be beautiful.
Esperanto is not Japanese
