Kilo Lingo
Esperanto grammar Part of Chapter 20

CEFR B1-B2

5 min read

Test yourself (27 questions)

Esperanto False Friends: Words That Lie to English Speakers

By Michael McGettrickUpdated 12 October 2026

A few dozen words look like English words and mean something else. is topical, not actual; is to claim, not to pretend. The fix is always a different word, and it is usually one you already know.

the false friendthe word you wantedWhat do the colours mean?

The ten that cause the most trouble:

False friendMeansSay instead
topical real
possible final
odd, remarkable curious
wide large
to claim pretend
to check control
to ask (a question) demand
to wait attend
fate sort
department store magazine

Quick check

Now use it: three quick questions on the chart above. The full practice is further down.

Pick the right one

0/3

Pick the word that says what the English says. The lookalike is usually the trap.

  1. (a curious child, one who asks questions)

  2. (a curious story, meaning an odd one)

  3. (the actual price: the real one, not the one on the label)

Why English is the odd one out

Almost every false friend is a root English borrowed from Latin or French and then moved. Esperanto took it at the value French still gives it:

EsperantoFrenchWhat English did
actuelactual came to mean real
éventueleventual came to mean final
contrôlercontrol came to mean rule
largelarge came to mean big
attendreattend came to mean go to
demanderdemand came to mean insist

So a French speaker reads (I am waiting for the bus) without a second thought. The English speaker has to remember where everybody else stayed.

Adjectives that lie

the false friendthe word you wantedWhat do the colours mean?
EsperantoMeansSay instead
topicalactual:
possibleeventual:
odd, remarkableinquisitive:
widelarge:
likeablepitying:
punctualaccurate:
suitable, fittinghandy:
carefreecareless: nezorgema

is the big one. Its core sense is topical, of current interest:

  • . - That is a topical subject.
  • ? - What is the actual price?
  • . - The current situation is difficult.

The calls an eminent false friend and advises for plain current. You will still meet everywhere; is the careful choice. Actually is or .

points at a in the road, not the end of it:

  • , . - Write to me, or phone if need be.
  • . - Eventually he came.

took only one half of English curious:

  • . - An odd story.
  • . - She is a curious (inquisitive) child.

measures across; it does not mean big:

  • , . - A wide street, but a small house.

is usually likeable; for feeling sorry for someone, use a:

  • . - He is very likeable.
  • . - She is compassionate towards the poor.

is punctual: . - He is always on time. The dictionary marks the sense exact as one to avoid; say .

fits the occasion; is free of worries:

  • - suitable clothes for the party
  • - a convenient time
  • infanaĝo - a carefree childhood

And one that is usually praise where English often sneers: is a magnificent, imposing cathedral.

Verbs that lie

the false friendthe word you wanted-ig-, to makeWhat do the colours mean?
EsperantoMeansSay instead
to claimpretend:
to check, to inspectrule:
to ask a questiondemand:
to wait, to expectattend:
to carry outgrasp:

claims: a right, the way a pretender claims a throne, or, often boastfully or falsely, that something is true. That second sense is as close as it gets to English pretend; acting something out, making believe, is to make it seem:

to seem; to make it seem, to pretend
  • . - He claims the throne.
  • , . - He claims (with no proof) that he knows the king.
  • , . - He pretended to be asleep.

checks, inspects and supervises; it does not rule. To rule or command is :

  • . - Check the numbers.
  • . - The king rules the country.

asks for information. Asking for a thing or a favour is ; demanding is :

  • , . - He asked where I live.
  • . - I asked him to help.
  • . - They demand more money.

waits. To attend is to be present, :

  • . - I waited for you for an hour.
  • . - I attended the meeting.

makes a plan real. Realising a fact is i:

  • . - We carried out the plan.
  • , . - Suddenly I realised that she was right.

Nouns that lie

the false friendthe word you wantedWhat do the colours mean?

Four of them, with what the word really shows:

  • a department storea department store
  • a magazinea magazine
  • a factorya factory
  • a pencila pencil
EsperantoMeansSay instead
fatea sort:
chancea hazard:
store, warehousemagazine:
factoryfabric:
rentoincome from capitalrent:
short storya novel:
a biological speciesa kind:

In sentences:

  • . - Such was his fate.
  • ? - What kind of book is it?
  • . - We met by chance.
  • . - I bought it in a big department store.
  • . - I read it in a magazine.
  • . - That bird is a rare species.

Two neighbours are worth knowing. , one vowel away, does mean an illustrated popular magazine, though the prefers , the everyday word. And is an academic secondary school, a grammar school, not a gym.

is any active substance, medical, poisonous or narcotic, and in everyday talk often the narcotic. Ask the doctor for a :

From the doctorFrom the street
  1. medikamentoa medicine
  2. drogoa drug, any active substance
  3. drogaĉoa street drug, with -aĉ-

Mistakes English speakers make

WrongRightWhy
for attended: waits
is, for acting asleep: claims
for a big house: is wide
for in a magazine: is a shop
for an odd story: is inquisitive
asking for help is

What to do next

  1. Learn the ten in the top table today, each with the word you wanted.
  2. Say three sentences aloud with , and .
  3. Then read word building: it is why i and are transparent and is not.

See also

Practise: test yourself

Pick the right one

0/8

Pick the word that says what the English says. The lookalike is usually the trap.

  1. (a curious child, one who asks questions)

  2. (a curious story, meaning an odd one)

  3. (the actual price: the real one, not the one on the label)

  4. (a large house)

  5. (I attended the meeting)

  6. (They demand more money)

  7. (He pretended to be asleep: eyes shut, not saying a word)

  8. (I read it in a magazine)

Sort into groups

0/6

Do you go into it, or read it?

Tap a word, then the group it belongs in.

Build the word

0/4

The word you actually wanted is built from parts you know. Build it.

  1. to pretend (to make it seem)

    Accents optional - cx, gx, ux work for ĉ, ĝ, ŭ

    Your word is empty.

  2. curious, inquisitive (wanting to know)

    Accents optional - cx, gx, ux work for ĉ, ĝ, ŭ

    Your word is empty.

  3. compassionate (inclined to pity)

    Accents optional - cx, gx, ux work for ĉ, ĝ, ŭ

    Your word is empty.

  4. to carry out, to make real

    Accents optional - cx, gx, ux work for ĉ, ĝ, ŭ

    Your word is empty.

Complete the story

0/3

Choose the word that fits each gap.

A long wait

Mi mian amikon dum unu horo ĉe la stacidomo. Kiam li finfine venis, li min, kioma horo estas. En la trajno oni niajn biletojn.

Gap 1 of 3

Matching

0/6

The lookalike, and what it really means.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the worst false friend in Esperanto for English speakers?
, because it is common and the wrong reading still parses. Its core meaning is topical, of current interest: , a topical subject. For actual, meaning real, say , and for actually, efektive. The calls it an eminent false friend, and also advises rather than for plain current, although is common in the wild.
Does mean curious in Esperanto?
Only in the sense of odd or remarkable: is a curious, strange story. For curious meaning inquisitive, say (wanting to know), or for the character trait. The 's note on says plainly not to use it in the sense of .
What is the difference between and in Esperanto?
is a kind or sort, the everyday word: ?, what kind of book? is the biological rank: , that bird is a rare species. Reaching for when you mean a kind of thing is the mistake. Neither is related to , which simply means special.
Does mean to pretend in Esperanto?
Not in the make-believe sense. is to claim: something as yours by right, the way a pretender claims a throne ( ), or, often boastfully, a quality or a fact ( , ). That second sense comes close to English pretending to be an expert, but acting something out is i, from (to seem) plus -ig- (to make): is, , he pretended to be asleep.
Why does a designed language have false friends at all?
Because Zamenhof took each root at the value continental Europe gave it, and English is the language that moved. French actuel means present-day, contrôler means to check, large means wide, attendre means to wait. Esperanto sits with French on every one. They are false friends of English, not faults of Esperanto, and a French learner barely notices them.