qëndroni

Qëndroni is the second-person plural imperative form of the Albanian verb qëndroj, which means to stay or remain. In standard Albanian, the imperative mood is used to give commands or directions, and qëndroni is specifically used when addressing more than one person. The singular imperative of the same verb is qëndro, while qëndroni serves for you all.

Usage and examples include telling a group to stay in place, such as Qëndroni këtu derisa të kthehem, meaning "Stay here until I return." The form appears in everyday speech, instructions, and signs that address multiple people. Negation is formed with mos: Mos qëndroni këtu means "Do not stay here."

Form and relation to other forms: Qëndroni derives from the verb qëndroj and shares its stem. The suffix -oni marks the second-person plural imperative. The corresponding singular form is qëndro, and the full verb family includes related forms for different tenses and moods.

Pronunciation and orthography: The word begins with q, a voiceless palatal sound in Albanian, followed by ë and the ending -roni. It is written as qëndroni with the diacritic ë, which affects pronunciation and stress placement in Albanian phonology.

See also: Albanian grammar, imperative mood, qëndroj (to stay). While qëndroni is primarily a grammatical form, it can appear in everyday dialogue, instruction, and signage where multiple people are addressed.