Esperanto · Chapter 7 · Lesson 8 · Grammar primer
-us and -u beyond the basics
The conditional -us for what would happen, and the volitive -u for commands, wishes and let-clauses. Ni iru is let's go; se mi scius is if only I knew.
The short version
se does not automatically take -us
-us marks a condition contrary to fact, and it goes on both halves: se mi estus reĝo, mi donus al vi ĉion. A real, open condition takes the ordinary tense instead: se vi venos morgaŭ, mi estos hejme. Over-applying -us after se is the commonest mistake in the area. The test is whether the thing could actually happen. If it could, leave -us alone. And -us carries no tense of its own at all.
Se vi venos morgaŭ, mi estos hejme.
-u is the volitive, which is bigger than the imperative
Venu is come, ni iru is let us go, li venu is let him come, kion mi faru is what should I do. The same ending turns up after ke whenever the main clause wants, asks, orders or permits something. It never shifts for tense either, so mi volis, ke li venu keeps its -u. Use a plain infinitive only when no new subject appears: mi volas veni, but mi volas, ke vi venu.
Mi volas, ke vi venu.
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