For example, which of these is preferred?
Ĝi estas bongusta
or
Ĝi bongustas
I prefer the latter aesthetically, but I'm not sure what is more idiomatic.
Esperanto Language Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for teachers and students of the Esperanto language. It only takes a minute to sign up.
Sign up to join this communityFor example, which of these is preferred?
Ĝi estas bongusta
or
Ĝi bongustas
I prefer the latter aesthetically, but I'm not sure what is more idiomatic.
For that example, I don't think it matters. I would probably say, "Ĝi bongustas". But it could matter in other cases. PMEG has a couple things to say about the subject if you're interested.
Sometimes the phrase just sounds weird. "La ĉielo bluas" is an example of that. People just tend to say "La ĉielo estas blua". If you want to add variety to your conversation, then you may say "La ĉielo bluas", but don't overuse it.
Sometimes the phrase changes meaning when you change the adjective to a noun. An example of this is "La bildo estas kolora" versus "La bildo koloras". The former means, "The picture is colorful" and latter means, "The picture is giving color".
Check out this page for more info on when to omit esti.
It is possible (and increasingly common) to drop the esti form and apply the verb ending directly to the adjective stem to form a “stative” verb:
- Vi pravis. = You were right.
- La mono ĉiam necesas. = Money is always necessary.
- La muro ruĝos. = The wall will be red.
There are a few people who are very depressed by this structure... It is part of Esperanto, but not yet common to the whole community of speakers.... Accordingly if you use stative verbs very much you can expect occasional whining and grumbling... they obviate the overuse of esti; and they will probably be a dominant form in Esperanto by the year 2050.