Italian grammar 0064601994

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ITALIAN rammar SECOND EDITION

BASIC VOCABULARY/ESSENTIALS OF GRAMMAR PRONUNCIATIONIPRACTICE EXERCISES

LAWRENCE KLIBBE REVISED BY WAYNE STOREY

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ITALIAN GRAMMAR

ITALIAN GRAMMAR Second Edition

By Lawrence Klibbe Revised by Wayne Storey University o/ Virginia

11T11

BAR N ES & NOBLE BOOKS A DIVISION OF HARP ER & ROW, PUBLISHERS New York, Cambridge, Philadelphia, San Francisco, London, Mexico Ci ty, Sao Paulo, Sydney

Second Edition. Copyright © 1982 by Salomon Schwartz. Al! rights reserved. Printed i n the Un ited States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced i n any manner whatsoever without written permission except ITALIAN GRAMMAR,

in the case of brief quotations embodied in criticai a rticles and reviews. For informa­ tion address Harper & Row, Publishers, !ne., 10 East 53rd Street, New York, N.Y. 10022. Published simuha neously in Ca nada by Fitzhe nry & W h iteside L i m ited, To­ ronto. Designer: C. Linda Dingler

Library of Congress Catalogi ng in Publication Data K l i bbe, Lawrence Hadfìeld, 1923l talian grammar. English and Italian. I ncludes i ndex.

I. l talian la nguage-Grammar-1950PCI l 12.K5

1982

458.2'421

ISBN 0-06-460199-4 (pbk.)

87 88 89 90

I. Storey, Wayne.

81-48165 AACR2

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

I l . Title.

CONTENTS

l.

Suggestions

2.

Guide to Pronunciation : The Alphabet, Vowels and Consonants, Double Consonants, Diphthongs, Syllables, Stress and Accents; Capitalization

3

Gender; Singular and Plural of Nouns; Indefinite and Definite Articles

7

Subject Pronouns; Mood and the Present Indicative Tense; Most Common Irregular Verbs

11

The Third Conjugation; Sentence Patterns; ldiomatic Usage; Definite and Indefinite Articles-Further Uses

18

The Adjective: Position a n d Form; Irregular Plurals

23

The Possessive; The Pa rtitive; Prepositions

28

Review Exercises, Topi es 2-7

30

Numbers; Days, Seasons, M onths; Telling of Time; l rregular Verbs in the Present Tense: Tenere, Venire, Dare

32

Future a n d Conditional Tenses; The Reflexive Verb; The Weather; The Verb "To Know"; Irregular Future and Conditional Stems

38

Pronouns; Moda! Auxiliaries; Prepositions Before lnfinitives; More I rregular Verbs: Volere, Potere, Dovere

43

The Past Participle; Present, Future, and Conditional Perfect Tenses; Past Participle: Absolute Construction and Adjectives

50

Review Exercises, Topics 8 - 1 1

55

3. 4. 5.

6. 7. 8.

9.

1 0.

11.

V

Contents

VI

The Subj unctive: Formation of Present and Present Perfect Forms; Irregular Verbs

58

13.

Uses of the Subjunctive

62

1 4.

Relative Pronouns; Further Uses of Prepositions; Impersonai Verbs

65

The Imperative Mood; Position o f Object Pronouns; Participles; Uses of the Pa rtitive

69

Comparisons: Adjectives and Adverbs; Conjunctions

74

Review Exercises, Topics 1 2- 1 6

79

1 7.

Past Time: The Imperfect and the Pluperfect

82

18.

The Preterit; Progressive Tenses; Conditional Sentences; Stare

87

The Passive Voice; Suffixes: Augmentatives and Diminutives; Verba ls: Addition and Review; Fare and Vedere + Infinitive; Indefinite Pronouns

91

Irregular Verbs; Orthographic Changes in Verbs; Abbreviated Patterns for Irregulars

96

1 2.

15. 1 6.

1 9.

20

21 .

Review Exercises, Topics 1 7 -20

1 02

Reading and Translation

1 04

Answers to Review Exercises

1 09

Alphabetical List of lrregular Verbs

1 19

English-Italian Vocabulary

1 29

ltalian-English Vocabulary

1 39

lndex

151

TO PICI

SUGGESTIONS

These suggestions are directed primarily to the student using ltal­ ian Grammar as a supplementary outline of essential grammatica! points to improve his or her mastery of tbe Janguage. However, tbis brief and summarizing treatment of Italian is designed also for tbose wbo bave never studied tbe la nguage before and wisb a rapid course i n essential Italian grammar. Following such a course, some basic considerations should be kept in mind. 1. ENGUSH GR AMMA R. This will normally not be stressed u nless to clarify and empbasize a major difference between tbe Englisb and Italian forms. Rather, i t is suggested that the student concentrate on the Italian model and rely on memorization of clear and basic formulas, reducing tbe act of translating word for word to tbat of comprehending phrase patterns.

2. VOCA B U LA R Y . Here tbe main aim bas been to employ a basic and essential vocabulary in ali examples so tbat tbe student may bave at bis or ber disposal the fou ndation for reading and speaking immediately. Furtber i mprovement in vocabulary sbould come from readers and otber outside materiai. 3. V E R BS A N D T H E I R U S ES. Tbere is no doubt tbat the old dictum that verbs are the heart of a language is correct. Time and attention have been spent on stressing the verb i n tenses, moods, and voices. Particular attention should be devoted to the distinctions in tense usage (particularly in the past tenses) with respect to related and sometimes confusing tenses: for example, the expressive potential of the present perfect, the imperfect, and the preterit. 4. ST R U CT U R E A N D P H R A S EOLOGY. The greatest differences be­ tween English and ltalian are found in the arrangement and modi­ fication of words and phrases. What may be the most unlikely com­ bination and order of words to a native speaker of English may for the Italian speaker be the most succinct expression of the simplest phenomenon, and vice versa . This often "idiomatic" structure re­ flects not only a different linguistic history and separate cultura! development, but also a unique and equally concise means of peri

2

/talian Grammar

ceiving and expressing the same event. These differences should be noted and given extra attention to facilitate a better understanding of the grammatica! structure as well as the cultura! basis of the language. Chapters in this book vary in length and in difficulty. Review exercises test the student on the area covered by groupings of chap­ ters. lt is hoped that this grammar review will reinforce and clarify the student's comprehension of the Italian language for his or her own better knowledge and perhaps for a better mark on the next test.

TOPIC 2

GU IDE TO PRONU NCIATION: THE ALPHABET, VOWELS AND CONSONANTS, DOU BLE CONSONANTS, DIPHTHONGS, SYLLABLES, STRESS AND ACCENTS; CAPITA LIZATION

THE ALPHABET

letter

Name

letter

Name

a b c d e f g h

a bi ci di e effe gi acca

n o p q r s t u

I

V

z

m

elle emme

enne o pi cu erre esse ti u vu zeta

These letters may be used in words of foreign derivation:

letter

Name

letter

Name

j

i lungo kappa doppio vu

X

ics ipsilon

k w

y

Although English equ ivalents are l isted for the correspond ing sounds in Italian, the student should remember that these are only approximations. VOWELS

a is pronounced like a in father: sala. e (open) is pronounced like e in set: contento, mensa. 3

Italian Grammar

4

e (close) is pronounced like a in baby: che, sera. i is pronounced like i in machine: aprire. o (open) is pronounced like o in off: porta, bocca. o (close) is pronounced like o in open: pacco, posta. u is pronounced like oo in cool: luna.

CoNSONANTS The consonants in Italian are pronounced approximately as the same consonants in English, but the following exceptions should be noted: e is pronounced like k in kitehen before a, o. u: casa. eh is also pronounced like k in kiteh en: chiesa. e is pronounced like eh in ehurch before e, i: cento. g is pronounced like g in goat before a, o, u: gatto, gomma, guerra. g is pronounced like g in generai before e, i: gente, gioco. gh is pronounced like g in get: laghi. gli may be difficult to master, but can be practiced through the rapid pronunciation of stee/yard and the resulting I from the combi­ nation of the ly: figlio, migliore. gn is pronounced like ni in onion: sogno. h is always silent never pronounce this letter. qu is pronounced like qu in question: quaderno. r is rolled, while the double r is trilled. s is pronounced like s in rose before a voiced consonant (b. d, g, I, m, n, r, v) and between vowels: sbaglio, slancio, mese. s is pronounced like s in sent at the beginning of a word before a vowel, when the s is doubled, and when the s is followed by a voice­ less consonant {e, f. p, q, t ) : subito, basso, spazio. z is pronounced like ts in gets i n words such as: zio, zucchero, pezzo. z is pronounced like ds in pads in words such as: mezzo, pranzo, analizzare. -

Dou BLE CoNSONANTS In ltalian, ali double consonants are pronounced, often distinguish­ ing meaning. Some examples are: sette, sete, sonno, sono, carro, caro.

Pronunciation set-te seven son-no sleep car-ro cart

5

sete thirst so-no I am, they are caro dear

Some are only lengthened: pazzo

faccia

DI PHTHONGS DEFINITION. Letters a, e, o are the strong vowels; u and i are the weak vowels. A combination of two vowels, weak and/or strong, forms a diphthong. The generai principle for stress is: 1. FI RST vowEL for these groups: au, eu, ai, ei, oi, ui.

2. SECOND vowEL for these groups: ie, io, ia, iu, ue, uo, ui.

SYLLABLES Words are separated into syllables in this way: 1 . Single consonants go with the next syllable: sa-lu-to. 2. A double consonant is separated : bel-lo. 3. lf the first of two consonants is I, m, n, r, the syllable is d ivided: bal-co-ne. 4. Any other group of two consonants is pronounced with the next syllable: fi-glio. 5. Except for s, the first of three consonants will go with the pre­ ceding syllable: al-tro, fi-ne-stra. 6. A diphthong is not separated: buo-no.

STRESS A N D AccENTs

1 . In most ltalian words the stress falls on the next-to-last (pen­ ultimate) syllable: lavoro, contento, finestra. 2. In some words the stress falls on the last syllable; this is always indicated in printed and written ltalian by a grave accent: città, università. 3. In some words the stress falls on a syllable other than the next­ to-last or the last; i n this book such a stressed syllable will be indi­ cated by a dot under the syllable's vowel: s�bito, di�logo, �bitano.

6

ltalian Grammar

CA PITALIZATION Capitalization is used /ess in Italian than in English. Words in the following categories are not capitalized i n Italian: 1 . Days of the week. 2. Months of the year. 3 . Proper adjectives . For example: Un libro italiano Giovanni è italiano BUT G/'Italiani sono simp?tici 4. Titles, including Mr., Mrs., Miss. For example: La signora Falcone Il principe Salerno 5. The pronoun for I: io. Stili capitalized in more conservative and formai situations, the fol­ lowing are now often written lower-case: she: ella you: lei (singular, polite) you: loro (plural, polite)

TOP I C 3

GENDER; SINGULAR AND PLURAL OF NOUNS; INDEFINITE AND DEFI NITE ARTICLES

G ENDER

Ali nouns are mascu/ine or feminine. There is no neuter gender in ltalian. 1. THE FI RST RULE is that of "natural" gender, implied i n the meaning of the word:

uomo man donna woman

padre father sorella sister

(masculine) (feminine)

2. THE ENDING of a noun will genera/ly indicate the gender. (a) I f the noun ends i n o, it is normally masculine. (b) If the noun ends in a, it is normally feminine. (c) I f the noun ends in e, it may be either masculine or feminine and must be memorized for the proper gender: Libro (masculine) Scuola (feminine) Esame ( masculine) Classe (feminine) 3. EXC EPTIONS. There are some exceptions to these rules which must be learned . For example, mano is feminine and poeta is mas­ culine. S1 NGU LA R ANO PLU RAL OF NouNs The basic rule to follow i nitially is: 1 . If the final letter of a singular noun is o, or e, change that letter to i. 2. If the final letter of a singular noun is a, change that Ietter to e.

Singu/ar

Plura/

libro professore scuola

libri professori scuole 7

8

Ita/ian Grammar

EXCEPTIONS. Certain exceptions to the preceding rules occur in the irregular or orthographic formation of the noun. I. Some masculine nouns which end in o in the singular change in the plural to feminine gender. braccio-- b raccia uovo--uova paio--paia 2. Generally, nouns ending i n co and go and whose stress is penulti­ mate change to chi and ghi in the plural, but some such nouns may form their plurals regularly. fuoco becomes fuochi lago becomes laghi amico becomes amici m�dico becomes m�dici 3. If a noun ends in io: (a) io becomes ii i f the singular i is stressed . zio--z ii (b) io becomes i if the singular i is unstressed. figlio--figli 4. l f a noun ends i n ca or ga, the letter h is placed before the plural e. amica becomes amiche 5. If a noun ends with a written accent, no change is made for the plural. università (singular) remains università (plural) . In addition t o these exceptions, other irregular formations may oc­ cur and must be learned by simple memorization . For example, uomo (singular) becomes u9mini (plural) . When in doubt as to a noun's gender and plural form, consult the vocabulary for each les­ son, the generai vocabularies at the end of this book, or a good dictionary that gives such information . In most cases, however, Ital­ ian nouns follow the basic rules outlined here.

INDEFINITE ARTICLES 1. THE RULE. The indefinite articles (a and an) in Italian are: (a) Un before a masculine noun. un muro (b) Una before a feminine noun. una casa

Gender

9

2. EXCEPTIONS: (a) Uno before masculine nouns beginning with z or "impure s" (s + a consonant) . uno z9ccolo uno stato (b) Note that before a feminine noun that begins with a vowel, una becomes un'. un'amica un'isola 3. THERE IS NO PLURAL for the indefinite article. The use of di + the definite article for expressing "some" and "any" will be treated later. DEFINITE ARTICLES The definite article (the) in Italian must agree in gender and num­ ber with the noun to which it belongs. The definite article normally precedes the noun. 1. MASCULINE. For the mascu line gender, two basic singular forms are used : (a) il before nouns beginning with a consonant, forming its plural in i. il libro i libri il cane i cani (b) lo before nouns beginning with a vowel, an "impure s" or a z. It forms its plural in gli. l'invitato*-gl 'invita ti* lo sbaglio-gli sbagli lo zio-gli zii * Note that lo before a vowel becomes /', while gli before an i elides to gl ' (gl'Italiani, but gli Americani) .

2. FEMINI NE. For the feminine gender, one set of articles (singu­ lar and plural) is used. (a) La (singular) and le (plural). la stazione le stazioni (b) La before a noun beginning with a vowel becomes /'. l'amica l'epoca 3. USAGE. Unlike English, the indefinite and definite articles are usually repeated before each noun. The men and women Gli uQmini e le donne

ltalian Grommar

10

A hat and coat Un cappello e un cappotto The following chart will aid in the memorization of the forms of the definite articles.

Singular Plural

Mascu/ine

Feminine

il lo I' i gli gli

la I' le le

0BSERVATIONS

1 . The main idea to bear in mind is that the indefinite or the definite article must agree in gender and number with the noun it modifies. For example, if a noun is feminine plural (stagioni), the article must be feminine plural (le stagioni) . 2. The student will find i t most helpful t o (a) learn carefully the gender and ending of each noun (noting especially irregular plurals) as s/he encounters a new word, and (b) maintain a persona! con­ tinuing vocabulary list of problematic or hard-to-remember nouns which may turn up repeatedly in readings.

TOPJC

4

SUBJECT PRONOUNS; MOOD AND THE PRESENT INDICATIVE TENSE; MOST COMMON IRREGULAR VERBS

SU BJECT PRONOUNS The subject pronouns i n ltalian are:

Singular l st person: 2nd person : 3rd person:

io I tu you lui be lei she Lei you

Plura/ noi voi loro loro Loro

we you they (m.) they (f.) you

The above forms of the subject pronou ns are the ones used i ncreas­ i ngly in the spoken language, but other forms may be encountered in reading, writing, and formai conversation.

Singular 3rd person:

egli ella esso essa

he she it (m.) it (f.)

Plural essi they (m.) esse they (f.)

Subject pronou ns are usually not expressed in Italian because the ending of a verb will indicate the person and the number. H owever, subject pronouns are used for emphasis, clarity, and contrast. If a sentence contains any of these elements, then the subject pronoun is inserted . THE POLITE ANO FAMI LIAR. The rendering of the "you" address in Italian may cause some confusion for the beginning student. Note that there is a socio-grammatical division between the polite (Lei) and the familiar (tu) forms of address. Use the following rules regarding the polite form: Il

12

lta/ian Grammar

(a) Lei is used for "you" s i ngular when addresssing a person toward whom a certain respect is expected or desi red, including mutuai respect or a dilference in socia! leve! (as with a doctor, a lawyer, a teacher, an older person, or even a new acquaintance) . The accompanying verb must be third person singular. Viene, Lei? Are your coming, Sir? (b) Loro is used for the plural address, using third person plu ral. Vçngono, Loro ? Are you coming (/adies and gentlemen)? Use the following guidelines regarding the fami/iar form: (a) Tu (singular) is used usually with: ( 1 ) members of the family, (2) dose friends-people with whom you are on a first-name basis, (3) children, and (4) animals. The accompanying form of the verb must be second person singular. Vieni tu? Are you coming? (b) Voi is used for plural address, now in use also for groups of people who may be addressed individually with the Lei form. In today's usage Loro (polite plural) is required only in the most for­ mai situations. For voi the accompanying form of the verb must be second person plural . Venite voi ? Are you coming? Note that in the past the polite forms were much more widely used . But today the strictness of the polite forms is giving way to less formai speech, particularly in egalitarian settings. Neverthe­ less, it is important for the student to be competent in both forms of address, and close attention should be given to both . Note: Ciao (used for both "hello" and "goodbye") is used only with people whom you would address as tu. Mooo A mood is a form of a verb which explains the way in which a state or action is to be expressed . Like English, Italian has three separate categories of moods: 1 . To make a statement or ask a question . 2 . To convey doubt, uncertainty, contrary-to-fact expressions, wishes, and certain idiomatic constructions. 3. To give a command or make a request. The first is thc indicative mood ; the second is the subjunctive mood; the third is the imperative mood. These three moods will be taken up in this order, beginning with the present tense of the indic­ ative.

13

Subject Pronouns

PRESENT TENSE The point of departure for all verbs in Italian is the infinitive. This is the form which is listed first in vocabularies and dictionaries. Thus, if you wish to know the word for "speak" or "talk" in ltalian, you will find the form parlare, which means "to speak" or "to talk." There are three conj ugations of verbs i n Italian. (The third will be discussed in Topic 5.) These classes of verbs are determined by the ending of the verb. 1 . If an infinitive ends in -are, then the verb belongs to the first conjugation . parlare-- fi rst conj ugation 2. If an infinitive ends in -ere, then the verb belongs to the second conjugation . vçndere-- s econd conjugation In each of the two examples, the infinitive may be divided into the "root," or the "stem," as the fi rst part, and the "ending" as the second part. parlare vçndere

pari-are vend-ere

root or stem ending root or stem ending

It is important to keep this distinction in mind because the for­ mation of the tenses i n Italian will be based upon the root or stem of the verb. The present tense i n Italian is formed by dropping the ending of the infinitive and inserting a new set of endings. 1 . To the root of an -are infinitive, such as parlare, these endings are added :

l st person: 2nd person: 3 rd person:

Singular

Plural

-o -i -a

-iamo -iate -ano

2. To the root of an -ere infinitive, such as vçndere, these endings are added:

14

Italian Grammar

l st person: 2nd person: 3 rd person:

Singular

Plural

-o -i -e

-iamo -ete -ono

3 . Thus, the present tenses of the verbs parlare and Vfndere are formed as follows:

Singular

Plural

l st person: 2nd person: 3 rd person:

parlo parli parla

parliamo parlate p�rlano

l st person: 2nd person: 3 rd person :

vendo vendi vende

vendiamo vendete Vfndono

One should always look for similarities in the endings of the various tenses. For example, the endings of the first and second persons singular and the first person plural are the same i n the present tense in both conjugations. And only the first vowel of the ending undergoes any change in the other three persons of the first and second conj ugations. TEM PORAL rnsTtNCTIONS of the present tense. The present tense in Italian has three possible renditions in English. 1 . Parlo and vendo may express three separate states in the present: parlo I speak, I do speak, I am speaking vendo I sei/, I do sei/, I am selling 2. In English, these variations of the present tense may be consid­ ered as the simple present, the emphatic present, and the progres­ sive tenses. 3. Since the three forms of the present tense are expressed by the same verbal form in Italian, auxiliary words (such as "do," "am," and "are") are not stated . Therefore, the expression of the present tense in Italian, using the regular verbs parlare and Vfndere as examples, with the subject pro­ nouns (understood but not stated ) , and with the corresponding En­ glish translations, will be as follows: parlare.-to speak parlo (io)

I speak, I do speak, I am speaking

Subject Pronouns (tu)

parli

(egli, ella lui, lei) (Lei)

parla

(noi)

parliamo

(voi)

parlate

parla

(loro, essi, p;;i.rlano esse) (Loro) p;;i.rlano vçndere-to sell vendo (io) vendi (tu) (egli, ella, vende lui, lei) vende (Lei) (noi) vendiamo (voi) vendete (loro, essi, vçndono esse) (Loro) vçndono

15

you speak, you do speak. you are speaking he, she, it speaks; he, she, it does speak; he, she, it is speaking you speak, you do speak, you are speaking we speak, we do speak, we are speaking you speak, you do speak, you are speaking they speak, they do speak, they are speaking you speak, you do speak, you are speaking I se/I, I do sei/, I am selling you sei/, you do se/I, you are selling he, she, it sells; he, she, it does sei/; he, she, it is selling you sei/, you do sei/, you are sel/ing we sei/, we do se/I, we are sel/ing you sei/, you do sei/, you are se/ling they se/I, they do sei/, they are sel/ing you sei/, you do sei/, you are selling

From this point on, the tenses in Italian will be developed according to this model. The subject pronouns will not be indicated in suc­ ceeding lessons. Therefore, the preceding detailed outline of the present tense for the first and second conj ugations should be re­ ferred to by the reader. Parlare and vçndere are regular verbs of the first and second conj ugations. Their endings follow a certain pat­ tern; if one learns the proper set of endings, then ali regular verbs can be conjugated in the same fashion. MosT CoMMON IRREG ULAR VERBS Unfortunately, some verbs do not adhere to any established set of rules. These are irregular verbs w hich must be memorized as they occur. While the majority of verbs in Italian fa]) within the catego-

16

Jtalian Grammar

ry of regular verbs of the three conj ugations, some verbs of high frequency are irregular verbs. Four of the most common irregular verbs are: avere çssere stare fare

to to to to

have be be do, to make

Al'ere and çssere are auxiliary verbs used to construct the com­ pound tenses in Italian. (For example, ho visto, sono andato.) For this reason , pay close attention to these two verbs. ]i:ssere and stare often appear to mean the same thing in English. They both express the concept "to be." However, i n Italian their uses and meanings are different and distinct. These differences in meaning will be covered later. The forms of these basic verbs should be memorized.

Present Tense al'ere

çssere

stare

fare

ho hai ha sono sei è sto stai sta faccio (fo) fai fa

abbiamo avete hanno siamo siete sono stiamo state stanno facciamo fate fanno

Note: This procedure also illustrates the pattern to be followed in this book for the tenses of ali verbs. Other commonly used irregular verbs should be learned immediate­ ly in the present tense. Consult the list of irregular verbs at the end of this book. andare to go (p. 1 2 l ) bere to drink (p. 1 2 1 )

Subjecl Pronouns dire lo say (p. 1 22) sapere lo know. lo know how lo Here are some examples, used in sentences: I. Lui va a casa e io vado in biblioteca . He is going home and I am going lo lhe library. 2. Bevo il vino di Roma. f'm drinking Roman wine. 3. Dico ciò che penso. I say what I think. 4. Loro sanno ciò che diciamo. They know what we are saying. Lei sa suonare il pianoforte. She knows how lo play lhe piano.

17

TOPIC 5

THE THIRD CONJUGATION; SENTENCE PATTERNS; IDIOMATIC USAGE; DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES-FURTHER USES

THE Turno CoNJ UGATION In Topic 4, the conjugations for -are and -ere verbs were discussed. The third grouping consists of ali verbs whose infinitives end in -ire. To the root of an -ire infinitive, such as partire, these endings are added:

l st person: 2nd person : 3 rd person:

Singu/ar o e

P/ural i amo ite ono

Thus, the present tense of the verb partire is formed as follows:

l st person : 2nd person: 3rd person:

Singular parto parti parte

Plural partiamo partite p�rtono

However, many Italian verbs ending in -ire require the insertion of -isc as part of the endings in ali persons in the singular and in the third person plural. Thus, for capire (to understand) , the conjuga­ tion is as follows:

Singular

Plura/

(io) cap-isc-o (tu) cap-isc-i (lei/lui) cap-isc-e

(noi) cap- iam o (voi) cap- ite (loro) cap-isc-ono

Note the similarities and differences in the endings of the three conjugations: 18

19

Third Conjugation -are

-ere

-ire

-o

-o

-o

-I

-I

-I

-a -1amo -ate - a no

-e -iamo - ete - o no

-e -1amo - i te - o no

OR (io) (tu) (lei/lui) (noi) (voi) (loro)

-isco -i sci -isce -iamo -i te -iscono

From this table, it is easy to see that first and second person singu­ Iar always end i n o and i. respectively. Third person singular has but one variation: a / e , like third person plural -ano/ono. First per­ son plural is always -iamo. Second person plural is formed with the first vowel of the infinitive ending plus te: for example, port-are is port -ate, fin-ire is fin -ite. The difficulty in determining which -ire verbs require the -isc form will decrease with familiarity a nd practice. If in doubt, always con­ sult a dictionary or check this book's Vocabulary, in which -ire verbs that take -isc are marked with a plus ( + ) .

SENTENCE PA"ITERNS The four pri ncipal types of sentence patterns are now apparent: the dee/arative, the interrogative. the negative, and the negative-inter­ rogative. 1 . dee/arative: li padre arriva presto. The father is arriving soon. 2. interrogative: Arriva presto il padre ? ls the father arriving soon? 3. negative: Il padre non arriva presto. The father is not arriving soon. 4. negative-interrogative: Non arriva presto il padre ? lsn 't the father arriving soon? INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES are easy to form. These are sentences that ask a question. They may be clone in severa( ways. 1. INVERSION of the word order of a statement. This may include the placement of the subject at the end of the question, as with the third example below .

20

ltalian Grammar

Marco studia la lezione. Marco is studying the lesson. Studia Marco la lezione? /s Marco studying the lesson? Studia la lezione Marco? /s Marco studying the lesson? 2. IN FLECTION of the declarative statement, adding the question mark. Marco fa i c9mpiti stasera? Is Marco doing his homework tonight? Note the declarative form: Marco fa i c9mpiti stasera. 3. ADDITION of non è vero? or vero? Marco studia la lezione, non è vero ? Marco is studying the les­

son, isn 't he? Marco fa i c9mpi ti stasera, vero ? Marco is doing his homework tonight, isn 't he? Note the si mplification of the usually difficult addition in English of "isn't he" or "doesn't he," rendered by the non è vero? (is that not true ?) or vero? (true?) construction in ltalian. NEGATIVE SENTEN O:S AND THE DOUBLE NEGATI VE. A negative sen­ tence is formed by placing the word non before the verb. Gli studenti non capiscono il professore. The students don 't un­ derstand the professor. Italian usually depends upon the double negative (non + another negative expression)-a form not acceptable in standard English­ to express the following negatives: non . . . mai (never) non . . . niente (nothing) non . . . nulla (nothing) non . . . nessuno (no one) non . . . nè . . . nè (Neither . . . nor) neanche (not even) non . . . più (no more, no longer)

Non dorme mai. He never sleeps. Non vende niente. She's not selling anyth ing. Non faccio nulla. f'm not doing anything. Non vedo nessuno. I don 't see anyone. Non fa nè caldo nè freddo. It 's neither hot nor cold. Neanche lui capisce tutto. Not even he understands everything. Non aspettiamo più il dentista. We 're not waiting (we won 't wait) any /onger for the dentist.

Third Conjugation

21

IrnoMATIC UsE oF THE PRESENT TENSE If an action begins in the past and continues into the present, the present indicative form of the verb is used. Studiamo l'italiano da due anni. We have been studying Italian for two years. Notice the tense change in English! I n the above example, the use of the present tense i n Italian indi­ cates that the subject stili studies Italian. Whereas: Ho studiato l'italiano per due anni. I studied Italian for two years. tells us that the subject no longer studies the language; that is, Non studio più l'italiano. I no /onger study Italian. '

DEFINITE ANO INDEFINITE ARTICLEs-FuRTHER UsES 1. coNCEPTS. The definite article is used with nouns that express a generai idea or an abstract concept. Il tempo è prezioso. Time is precious. La sincerità è una virtù. Sincerity is a virtue.

2. TITLES. The definite article is used with titles except i n direct address. Il professore viene ora . The professor is coming now. Come sta, Signorina Sallese? How are you, Miss Sa/lese? 3. GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES. The definite article is used with the name of a large geographical unit, such as a country or large island. L'Italia è in Europa. Italy is in Europe. La Sicilia è bella. Sicily is beautiful. Exception. The definite article is omitted when the preposition in (to, in) is used before a geographical name that is feminine and unmodified . Otherwise, the definite article is retained. La città è negli Stati Uniti. The city is in the United States. Stati Uniti is masculine plural. BUT Roma è in Italia. Rome is in Italy. AND Vado in Francia. f'm going to France. BUT

22

lta/ian Grommar

Vado nella bella Francia. /'m going to beautiful France. Exception. The indefinite article is omitted with an unmodified predicate noun indicating a profession, religion, or nationality. Giuseppe è studente. Joseph is a student. BUT Giuseppe è un buono studente. Joseph is a good student.

TOPIC 6

THE ADJ ECTIVE: POSITION AND FORM; IRREGULAR PLURALS

Sin ce an adjective is used to modify a noun, the rules for the forma­ tion of the singular and plural, masculine and feminine forms gen­ erally follow those established for nouns. Adjectives, like nouns, are d ivided i nto two basic dec/ensions, or groups of endings. The fol­ lowing show the first and second declensions: 1. FIRST DECLENSION

mascu/ine feminine

Singular

Plural

-o (italiano) -a (italiana)

-i (italiani) -e (italiane)

Singu/ar -e ( francese)

P/ura/ -i (francesi)

2. SECOND DECLENSION

mascu/ine and feminine

Notice that in the second declension, masculine and feminine singu­ lar adjectives have the same endings, as do masculine and feminine plural adjectives. il libro italiano-i libri italiani la rivista italiana-le riviste italiane il libro francese-i libri francesi la rivista francese-le riviste francesi An adjective must agree in number and gender with the noun it modifies. Don't be fooled by seemingly dissimilar endings: for ex­ ample, le città francesi is the correct rendering for "the French cities." Pos1TION AND FoRM An adjective either describes or li mits (in the sense of "specifies") the noun it modifies. The following generai rules can be applied: 23

24

lta/ian Grammar

1 . Descriptive adjectives go after the modified noun. 2. Limiting adjectives go be/ore the modified noun. DESCRIPTIVE ADJECTIVES. These normally follow the noun. How­ ever, some exceptions to this rule are: antico bello bravo breve brutto buono cattivo

ancient, old beautiful fine, ab/e brief. short mean, ugly good bad

giQvane grande lungo nuovo piccolo stesso

young big, great, /arge long new little, small sa me

lf one wishes to emphasize the quality, then even these adjectives come after the noun. This is a matter of style and depends a great deal upon the speaker's intention . (a) Some adjectives may change meaning, depending upon their posi ti on before or after the noun. Il professore p9vero. The poor professor. (in terms of money) Il pQvero professore. The poor professor. (unfortunate) (b) Note that adjectives of: ( 1 ) race, religion, nationality; (2) color; (3) shape; and (4) temperature always follow the noun. (c) Some common descriptive adjectives which normally precede the noun bave more inflected forms. Two such adjectives are bello and buono. The first follows the usage of the definite article to de­ termine its forms, while the second is determined by the indefinite article usage. For bello: un bel libro (i/ libro) un bel/o stato (lo stato) un be/l'armadio (l'armadio) For buono (remembering the indefinite articles ) : un buon libro ( u n libro) un buono stato ( uno stato) un buon armadio ( un armadio For the plural forms of bello: I libri sono belli Sono bei libri Le belle ragazze; Le ragazze sono belle Note belli becomes begli (begl' before an i) before a vowel and the "s impure" combinati on.

25

The Adjective

UM ITING AUJ ECTIVES. The proper position of limiting adjectives is before the nouns they modify. Two classifications of limiting adjectives are: the demonstra tive and the possessive adjectives. DEMONSTRATIVE A DJ ECTIVES. In English, the demonstrative ad­ jectives are "this" and "that" in the singular; "these" and "those" in the plural. The corresponding forms in Italian are: questo

masculine feminine

Singu/ar

P/ura/

questo questa

questi queste

Questo ragazzo e queste ragazze. This boy and these gir/s. Note that quest' is used in the singular if the noun begins with a vowel; quest' is used in the plural if the noun begins with e or i. quello

masculine feminine

Singu/ar

P/ura/

quello quella

quelli quelle

Quel ristorante e quelle case. That restaurant and those houses. It is important to note that questo inflects like most adjectives, whereas quello resembles bello in its formation, cueing on the defi­ nite article pattern: quel ragazzo quel /o stato quell'amico quel la ragazza quell'amica

quei ragazzi quegli stati quegli amici quel le ragazze quel le amiche

POSSESSIVE ADJ Ec-r1 vES. Jn English, the possessive adjective (my, our, his, etc.) agrees with the possessor. J n I talian, the possessive adjective agrees with the thing possessed . Like ali adjectives, the possessive adjective must be in agreement with the noun modified. I. The forms are: (a) mascu/ine

Singu/ar il mio il tuo

P/ural 1 m1e1 i tuoi

26

Italian Grammar il il il il (b) feminine

suo nostro vostro loro

Singular la la la la la la

mia tua sua nostra vostra loro

i i i i

suoi nostri vostri loro

Plural le le le le le le

mie tue sue nostre vostre loro

2. The order of a phrase with the possessive adjective will be: DEF­ INITE ARTIC LE-POSS ESS IVE ADJECTIVE-NOUN. I I mio libro. My book. La sua matita. His (or her) pencil. 3. The definite article is always used with the possessive adjective except in the following situations: (a) Singular, unmodified kinship not using loro; sua sorella mio padre il loro padre BUT le sue sorelle (b) Some idiomatic uses and direct address: Viene a casa mia. He's coming to my house. Amico mio, come stai? My friend, how are you? 4. In the case of suo, sua, suoi, sue, context normally determines meaning (his or her or even your) . However, to avoid ambiguity, suo and suoi and sua and sue may be replaced by di lui and di lei. la sua matita his/her pencil la matita di lui his pencil la matita di lei her pencil I NTERROGAT I V E A DJ ECTI V ES which agree with the noun are: quanto, quanta, quanti, quante (how much, how many) ; and quale, quale, quali, quali (which ) . Their established position is be/ore the noun, so that these interrogative adjectives a re a lso classified as limiting adjectives. I. "What" as a limiting adjective is rendered as che in che cosa; however this ph rase often becomes simply che or cosa.

The Adjective

27

Che cosa vuol dire? What does that mean? Cosa fai ? Che fai? What are you doing? 2. "Whose" as a lirniting adjective i s rendered as di chi. Di chi è questa lçttera ? Whose letter is this? Questa lçttera è di lui. This letter is his. *Notice the repetition of the preposition di in the response. IRREG U LAR PLURALS FOR ADJ ECTIVES Some rules should be rnernorized to avoid confusion. 1. If a ferni nine adjective ends i n ca or ga, then the letter h must be used in the plural: lunga, lunghe. 2. If a rnasculine adjective ends in go, then h is used in the plural: lungo, lunghi. 3. If a rnasculine adjective ends in co with the stress on the preced­ ing syllable, the letter h is inserted in the plural: bianco, bianchi. 4. If a ferninine adjective ends i n eia or gia, then the i is ornitted when the plural ending is added: grigia, grige. The preceding rules also hold true for nouns which fall i nto those categories.

TOPIC 7

THE POSSESSIVE; THE PARTITIVE; PREPOSITIONS

THE POSSESSIVE In English, possession may be indicated in two ways: (a) By the use of the word "of' as part of the prepositional phrase. The book of the boy (b) By the use of '"s" in the singular and "s' " in the plural. In Italian, the equivalents of the " 's" and "s"' do not exist, so that possession must be expressed by the prepositional phrase using the word di ("of" ) . With a vowel, di becomes d'. II libro di Roberto. Robert 's book. II libro d'Antonio. Antonio 's book. THE "PREPOSIZIONI ARTICOLATE. " When the preposition di occurs with the definite article singular and plural, the following "contrac­ tions" take place.

di di di di di di di

and and and and and and and

il lo la i gli g/' le

No: L'aula di la università. Yes: L'aula de/l'università. The university's room. No: La penna di la ragazza. Yes: La penna della ragazza. The gir/'s pen. 28

del dello della dei degli degl' delle

29

The Possessive

THE PARTITIVE The idea of the partitive (pari of the whole concept) is expressed in English by the words "some" or "any." I n Italian, the words "some" or "any" are translated by the preposition di and the corre­ sponding definite article. C9mprano del pane. They are buying some bread. However, if the sentence is negative or interrogative, then the parti­ tive is frequently noi used. Vende Lei libri ? Are you selling some books? Non vendo libri. I am noi sel/ing any books. The following expressions are also considered as partitives: alcuni, alcune, qualche, un po' di. PREPOSITIONS In addition to the "contracting" of di plus the forms of the definite article, the following prepositions change when used with definite articles: a

a a a a a a a a

in

in and in and in and in and in and in and in and in and

and and and and and and and and

il lo la /' i gli g/ ' le le lo la /' i gli g/' le

al allo alla ali' a1 agli agi' alle

da da da da da da da da da

and and and and and and and and

il lo la /' i gli g/ ' le

dal dallo dalla dal!' dai dagli dagl' dalle

nel nello nella nell' net negli negl' nelle

su

and and and and and and and and

il lo la /' i gli g/ ' le

sul sullo sulla sul!' sui sugli sugl' sulle

su su su su su su su su

Be careful not to assign any one meaning to the preposition in Italian. The following mea nings are usually employed :

30

Ita/ian Grammar di a da m

su

of. from (This mea ning has been seen m the use of di as meaning possession.) at, in, to by, from, at the house of. at the office of in, into, within on, upon

But in a sentence their meanings may vary: Vado in Amçrica. /'m going to Am(frica. Sono a Firenze. /'m in F/orence. Finally, become familiar with the contracted forms of con ("with") and per ("through," "in order to"), found normally in journalistic prose.

con + il = col per + il = pel

con + i = coi per + i = pei

R EVIEW EX ERCISES, TOP I CS 2-7

PATTERN ORI LLS. Write the following sentences, changing the verb to agree with the following subject pronouns: ( 1 ) noi; (2) loro; (3) lei; ( 4) io ; (5) voi; ( 6) tu. l . Non parlo inglese. 2. Studio quelle lezioni a casa . 3. Ripeto le parole lunghe. 4. Ascolto ora. 5 . H o i l libro d i Marta. 6. Capisco molto bene. 7. Non sono in Italia, sono i n Svizzera. 8 . Vado a Firenze. 9. Non sapete niente. l O. Dico la verità . TRANSLATE the following sentences into Italian. 1 . John never reads the ltalian lessons. 2. Good morning, Miss Bolaffi. How are you? 3 . Are you going to the university today ? 4. We are not studying Italian today or tomorrow. 5. He listens to the professor and he understands everything. 6. Why is she arriving early at school ? 7. Mr. Buoncore is a good teacher. 8 . You (pi.) are doing ali the lessons, aren't you ?

31

Review Exercises 9. 1 0.

l l.

1 2. 13. 14. 15.

Are w e leaving for Rome soon ? When does he get (arrive) home? They prefer Joseph's automobile. It's very beautiful. Here is the doctor! He's running. You know everything. Is he drinking the water ? We are going to the museum.

TRANSLATE t h e following sentences into Italian. Then wherever possible change ali units to the plural. l . The boy is finishing this book. 2 . Does t h e giri understand those lessons? 3 . The French city i s beautifu l . 4 . He listens t o the professor of ltalian. 5. I am not at the u niversity; it is she who goes (frequentare) to that u niversity. 6. I'm going home to (in order to) do my homework. 7 . H i s brother has m y pencil . 8 . He knows the homework. 9 . We are going t o Arezzo t o see t h e churches. 1 0. They are making beautiful blue boxes. GIVE the correct preposizione articolata (contracted preposition) before each noun. l . (di) scuola, stato, lezioni, ragazzi, amico tavola, giornale, libri, �otico libro, 2. (su) casa 3 . (da) padre, gesso ragazzo, scrittori, vocabolario libro, piccola casa, caso, stati, 4. (in) bagni telefono macchina, amiche, studenti, 5 . (a) ragazzo, professore, un buon libro, 6 . (con) automobile. __

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

--

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

__

TOPIC 8

NUMBERS; DAYS, SEASONS, MONTHS; TELLING OF TIME; IRREGULAR VERBS IN THE PRESENT TENSE: TENERE, VENIRE, DA RE

NUM BERS THE CARDINAL NUMBERS. Note stress markings (l!ndici) for some pronunciations.

O zero l uno, una 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

due tre quattro cinque sei sette otto nove dieci vndici dQdici trçdici quattQrdici quindici sçdici diciassette diciotto diciannove venti

21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 50

60 ventuno 70 ventidue ventitrè 80 ventiquattro 90 venticinque 1 00 101 ventisei 1 02 ventisette 1 03 ventotto 1 10 ventinove 1 20 trenta 121 trentuno 1 30 trentadue 1 40 trentatrè 200 t ren taqua ttro 1 .000 trentacinque 1 .500 trentasei 2.000 trentasette 2.500 trentotto trentanove 1 00.000 1 .000.000 quaranta 2.000.000 cinquanta

sessanta settanta ottanta novanta cento centouno centodue centotre centodieci centoventi centoventuno centotrenta centoquaranta duecento mille millecinquecento duemila duemilacinquecento centomila un milione due milioni

Points to remember: l . The indefinite article in the singular is also used as the cardinal number one. 2. Cento means "one hundred"-the "one" i n the group is not ex· pressed. 32

33

Numbers

3 . The numbers lenti, trenta, quaranta, cinquanta, sessanta, setM tanta, ottanta, and noYanta do not use the last vowel when joined with uno and otto. 4. The number tre must be accented when expressing "twenty­ three," "thirty-three," etc. Il francobollo vale duemilatrecentoquaranta dollari. The stamp is worth $2, 340. Note: In English one may say "twenty-three hundred and forty dol­ lars," as well as "two thousand, three hundred and forty dollars"; in ltalian, only the latter method of counting is used . THE ORDINAL NUMBERS l st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th I Oth l l th l 2th l 3th

primo secondo terzo quarto quinto sesto sçttimo ottavo nono dçcimo undicçsimo dodicçsimo tredicçsimo

1 4th 1 5th 20th 2 l st 22nd 23rd 30th I OOth I O i th 1 02nd 2000th I OOOOOOth

qua ttordicçsimo quindicçsimo ventçsimo ventunçsimo ventiduçsimo ventitreçsimo trentçsimo centçsimo centçsimo primo centçsimo secondo d uemillçsimo milionçsimo

Note: The ordinai numbers through tenth have distinct forms from the card inal numbers. However, the ordinai nu mbers beginning with eleventh are formed by eliminating the last vowel of the cardi­ nal number before adding the suffix -çsimo. ( Exception : 23, 3 3 , 43, etc., do not drop that last vowel.) DESIGNATION OF CENTURIES. Although centuries are designated by the ordinai numbers, the following modem eras have their own characteristic designation: il il il il il il

Duecento Trecento Quattrocento Cinquecento Seicento Settecento

J 3th century J 4th century

1 5th 1 6th 1 7th 18th

century century century century

ltalian Grammar

34

l'Ottocento il Novecento

1 9th century 20th century

Of course, the designation may also be made explicitly. li quarto secolo the fourth century NUMBERS AS ADJECTIVES. The cardinal and ordinai numbers are considered as limiting adjectives and as a rule are placed before the no un. li dçcimo libro the tenth book With sovereigns and others with such numerica) designations, the ordinai number will be after the noun. Pio nono Pius IX NUMBERS AS OATES. Dates are translated as day, month, year. Ex­ cept for the first day of the month, cardinal numbers are employed for the dates; in the case of the first day, the ordinai number primo is used . li quattro luglio millesettecentosettantasei July 4, 1 776 Il primo gennaio millenovecentosessantasette January I, 1 967 The translations commonly used for dates are: Quanti ne abbiamo oggi? What is today's date? Oggi ne abbiamo . . . , or Oggi è il . . . Today 's date is . . . DAYS, SEASONS, l\10NTHS OAYS OF THE WEEK domçnica lunedì martedì mercoledì giovedì venerdì Si}.bato

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Th ursday Friday Saturday

The days of the week are not capitalized. They are ali masculine, with the definite article il, except for Sunday, which has the defi­ nite article la. In English, the singular is used for one day; the plural for more than one day. But in Italian : Mi diverto la domçnica. I have a good time o n Sundays.

35

Numbers

Mi diverto dom�nica. I have a good time on Sunday. Note: Sometimes the idea of next and fast may be contained in the day without the definite article. THE SEASONS la primavera l'estate (f.)

spring summer

l'autunno l'inverno

autumn winter

MONTHS oF THE YEAR. The months of the year are ali masculine. gennaio febbraio marzo aprile maggio giugno

January February March Aprii May June

July luglio agosto A ugust settembre September October ottobre novembre November dicembre December

HOLIDAYs. Some of the principal holidays are: il Capodanno l'Epifania le C�neri il Venerdì Santo la Pasqua la vigilia di Natale il Natale

New Year's Day Epiphany Ash Wednesday Good Friday Easter Christmas Eve Christmas

TELLING OF TIME The idea of time is translated literally in Italian by the word for "hour" or "hours." It is, of course, impossible to transiate exactly into English this concept as used in Italia n. Thus, the expression : What time is it? is rendered as: Che ora è? What hour is it? OR Che ore sono? What hours are they? The answer then becomes singular for the first hour (one o'clock), noon and midnight and plural for ali succeeding hours. (The words ora and ore are not expressed, but are understood within the frame­ work of the answer.)

Ita/ian Grammar

36

lt is one o 'c/ock. È l'una. È mezzogiorno It is noon. Sono le due. Sono le tre.

It is two o'clock. It is three o 'c/ock.

QUARTER 11ouRs. The quarter divisions of the hour are deter­ mined by the addition or subtraction of the fifteen-minute period from the hour. Sono le due e un quarto. It is a quarter after two, OR, It is 2:1 5. Sono le due e mezzo. It is half-past two, OR, It is 2:30. Sono le tre meno un quarto. It is a quarter to three, OR, It is 2:45. Sono le tre meno venti minuti. It is twenty minutes to three, OR, It is 2:40. COMMON EXPRESSIONS OF TIME il mezzogiorno la mezzanotte il giorno il pomeriggio la notte domani oggi ieri la mattina la sera in punto

noon midnight day afternoon nigh t tomorrow today yesterday morning evening sharp, exactly

Some other methods to express time in Italian are: l . Officiai schedules use the twenty-four-hour system which, in­ stead of stopping at noon and beginning the count again at one p.m., continues to twenty-four hours. Thus one p.m. is translated as "thirteen hours." 2. A . M . and P . M . are rendered as: (a) di mattina-in the morning, A . M . (b) del pomeriggio-in the afternoon , P . M . (e) di sera in the evening, P . M . 3. Another way to teli time is by use of the verb sonare. Suona l'una. /t 's striking one o 'c/ock. Suonano le due. /t 's striking two o'clock. -

Numbers

37

4. The verb avere is used to determine the age of a person . The English usage of "to be" is interpreted as "to have" in Italian. Quanti anni ha Lei ? OR Che età ha Lei? How old are you? Ho quarantatrè anni. I am forty-three years old. IRREGULAR VERBS IN TUE PRESENT TENSE! TENERE, VENIRE, DARE. Notice the similarities in the conjugation of tenere and venire. Dare is similar to an irregular already learned: stare. tenere tengo tieni tiene venire vengo vieni viene dare do dai dà

teniamo tenete t ç ng ono veniamo venite vç ngono diamo date d anno

TOPIC 9

FUTURE ANO CONOITIONAL TENSES; THE REFLEXIVE VERB; THE WEATHER; THE VERB "TO KNOW"; IRREG ULAR FUTURE ANO CONOITIONAL STEMS

THE FUTURE TENSE The future tense is characterized by the use of "shall" and "will" in English. In ltalian, the future tense is formed by using the whole infinitive, except for the final e, and adding the same set of endings for the three conjugations. However, in the first conjugation the ending yields e instead of a; and thus the future stem of parlare becomes parler. Some verbs such as venire, andare, and fare have irregular future stems and will be treated at the end of this chapter. The endings for the future tense are: -ò -ai -à

-emo -ete -anno

Three model verbs in the future tense are conj ugated as follows: parlare

v�ndere

capire

parleremo parlerete parleranno venderemo venderete venderanno capiremo capirete capiranno

parlerò parlerai parlerà venderò venderai vederà capirò capirai capirà

OTHER usEs. In addition to the regular use of the future tense to transiate "shall" and "will," the following usages are observed: l . Possibility and probability may be rendered by the future tense. 38

Future Tense

39

Daranno il romanzo al mçdico. They wil/ probably give the nove/ to the doctor. 2. If the future is understood in a dependent clause, then the future tense is used to express the dependent verb. (Both verbs are placed in the future tense.) Quando verra nno, partirò. When they come, I shall /eave. 3. The concept of "going to" (showing intention) is sometimes ex­ pressed by the future. Compreremo questa casa rossa . We are going to buy this red house. OR We sha/I buy this red house. 4. The present indicative may also be used if �he action expressed is in the near future. Mando il regalo a Giovanni. /'m sending the gift to John. THE CONDITIONAL TENSE The conditional tense should be compared with the future tense. Both tenses are formed in the sa me manner. For example, the con­ di tional tense will also use the entire infinitive after omitting the final e; the same endings are added to the three conjugations; and the first conjugation will change the a in the stem to e. Note that the translation in English of the condìtional tense ìs "should" or "would ." The endings for the conditional tense are: -ei -est i -ebbe

-emmo -est e -çbbero

Three model verbs in the conditional tense are conjugated as fol­ lows: parlare

v�ndere

capire

parlerei parleresti parlerebbe venderei venderesti venderebbe capirei capiresti capirebbe

parleremmo parlereste parlerçbbero venderemmo vendereste venderçbbero capiremmo capireste capirçbbero

40

ltalian Grommar

SPECIAL usEs of the conditional tense are:

I . Possibility and probability in past time may be rendered by the conditional tense. Ritornerçbbero ben presto. They were probab/y returning very soon. 2. Statements on the authority of someone else are placed in the conditional tense. Secondo lui, starçbbero a Roma . According to him, they are in Rome. 3. The conditional tense must be used in the sequence of tenses with conditional sentences. This issue will be treated in Topic 1 7 under Conditional Sentences. IRREGULAR FUTURE AND CONDITIONAL STEMS Some verbs have ir­ regular stems to which the regular future and conditional endings are added. Of these irregulars there are three basic variations, typi­ fied by venire, andare, and fare.

l . Those verbs that undergo a complete change of the stem, con­ taining a dou ble r. venire verrò, verrai, verrà, and so forth tenere terrò, terrai, terrà, and so forth 2. Those verbs that drop an internal vowel . Andare andrò, andrai, andrà, a n d s o forth vedere vedrò, vedrai, vedrà, and so forth 3. Those -are verbs that retain a in the future stem. fare farò, farai, farà, and so forth stare starò, starai, starà, and so forth

THE REFLEXIVE VERB The reflexive verb is used more often in Italian than in English. In English the reflexive object, which "reflects" or refers back to the subject, is often understood . Thus "I am dressing" actually means " I am dressi ng myse/f. " In ltalian, the reflexive pronoun is always expressed. The reflexive object must always agree with the subject; and there are reflexive objects corresponding to the subject for the three per­ sons in the singular and in the plural, as follows:

Fu ture Tense IO

tu lui lei Lei noi voi loro Loro

}

mi ti si ci

}

VI

si

{ {

41

myse/f yourself (informai) Mmself herself yourself (formai) ourselves yourse/ves (informai) themselves yourse/ves (formai)

A reftexive verb is indicated by the use of si attached to the infini­ tive; thus "to amuse oneself ' is noted as dil'ertirsi (dil'ertire + si) POSITION. Normally the reftexive object is before the verb. Thus the present tense of the reftexive verb dil'ertirsi is:

mi diverto ti diverti si diverte

ci divertiamo vi divertite si div�rtono

Shown in a sentence it is: Io mi diverto. I am having a good time. Io non m'alzo alle sette di mattina. I do not get up at seven o 'clock in the morning. usES. Some particular uses of the reflexive verb in addition to the regular usage are as follows: l . The reflexive form may be employed to express the reciprocai idea . Non si p�rlano. They do not speak to each other. 2 . The indefinite person-"one," "you," "they," "people," etc.-is rendered by the reflexive form of the verb. Si parla italiano. Peop/e speak !ta/ian. OR ltalian is spoken. 3. As observed in the preceding example, the reflexive form is one method of expressing the passive voice when the sentence includes no agent or doer of the action . Si m�ndano molte l�ttere. Many /etters are sent. 4. The reflexive object may be used with the definite article before the noun when an article of clothing or a part of the body is in­ volved. Mi metto il cappello. I put on my hat. Mi lavo le mani. I wash my hands.

42

Jtalian Grammar

THE WEATHER An impersonai reaction to the weather will generally use the verb fare. A personal reaction to the weather will generally use the verb afere. Che tempo fa? How is the weather? Fa bel tempo. The weather is beautiful. Ha freddo Lei? Are you cold? Non ho freddo. I am not cold. Fa freddo oggi. lt is cold today. Note these uses of fare and afere with the weather: fare caldo OR avere caldo to be warm fare freddo OR avere freddo to be cold Some aspects of the weather have their own verbs: pi9vere to rain nevicare to snow

Piove. lt is raining. Nçvica . lt is snowing.

TttE VERB "To KNow " There are two verbs to express the idea "to know": sapere and co­ n9scere. Sapere means "to know" in the sense of knowing a fact or knowing how to do something. Conqscere is used when the sense is "to know" a person or in generai cases of familiarity. Sanno quando veniamo (OR, verremo) ? Do they know when we are coming? Sai giocare a carte ? Do you know how to play cards? Conosco Maria molto bene. I know Mary very well. Non conosco Roma . / 'm not familiar with Rame.

TOPI C I O

PRONOUNS; MODAL AUXILIARIES; PREPOSITIONS BEFORE INFIN ITIVES; MORE IRREGULAR VERBS:

VOLERE, POTERE, DOVERE?

THE 0BJ ECT PRONOUNS A pronoun substitutes for the noun. The direct object pronoun will answer the questions Who? and What? The indirect object pronoun will answer the questions To whom ? and For whom? Instead of saying "We see the book," one can say "we see it." Notice that in Italian the characteristic position of the object projouns, direct and indirect, is before the verb, j ust as with the reftexive pronoun (ex­ plained in topic 9 ) . T H E DIRECT OBJ ECT PRONOUNS in Italian a n d English are: mi ti lo la La ci vi li le Li Le

me you (informai) him. il (masculine) her, it (feminine) you (formai) us you (informai) them (masculine) them (feminine) you (formai masculine) you (formai feminine)

For example: I . Vediamo il libro. lo vediamo. (We see the book. We see it.) 2. CQmprano le reviste. le CQmprano. (They buy the magazines. They buy them.) 3 . Tengo le ch iavi. le tengo. (I keep the keys. I keep them.) 4. Do gli esami. li do. (I am taking the exams. I am taking them.) 43

lta/ian Grammar

44

Notice this change in the forms of the direct object pronouns: Mi, ti, lo, la, vi omit their vowel before another vowel and the letter h . The apostrophe i s substituted fo r t h e missing vowel. 1 . Insegno la lezione. L'insegno. (I am teaching the lesson. I am teaching it.) 2. Hanno visto lo spettqcolo. L'hanno visto. (They have seen the show. They have seen it.) TllE INDIRECT OBJ ECT PRONOUN. The indirect object pronouns in Italian and in English are: m1 ti gli le Le ci v1 loro Loro

to, for me to, for you (informai) to, for him; to, for it (masculine) ; to, for them to, for her; to, for it (feminine) to, for you (formai, masculine and feminine) to, for us to, for you (informai) to, for them (masculine and feminine) to, for you (formai, masculine and feminine)

For example: 1 . Mando il regalo a Giovanni. Gli mando il rega lo. (l'm sending the gift to John. I'm sending the gift to him.) 2. Diamo tutto a Marta. Le diamo tutto. (We give everything to Marta. We give everything to her.) 3. Presta dei soldi a me. Mi presta dei soldi. (She is lending some money to me. She is lending me some money.) 4. Faccio una domanda a loro. Faccio loro una domanda . OR Gli faccio una domanda. (I am asking a question of them. I'm asking them a question .) 5 . C9mprano i fiori a te. Ti c9mprano i fiori. (They buy flowers for you. They buy you flowers .) Notice this change in the forms of the indirect object pronouns: Mi, ti, vi omit their vowel before another vowel and the letter h, and the apostrophe is substituted for the missing vowel . Mi invia i migliori saluti . (He sends me best wishes.) M'invia i migliori saluti.

Pronouns

45

Pos1T10N or 0BJ ECT PRoNouNs I. THE FORM U LA. The combina tion of a direct and an indirect object will always result in the following formula: IO + DO + V ( Indirect Object plus Direct Object plus Verb) . Some changes in the spelling of the combination may take piace, as the following lists indicate:

me lo me li te lo te li glielo

me la me le te la te le gliela

glieli se lo se li ce lo ce li

gliele se la se le ce la ce le

ve ve se se

lo li lo li

ve la ve le se la se le

2. EXCEPTtoNs. The two indirect pronouns, loro and Loro, do not enter this list because of course they follow the verb with a direct object pronoun . L u i vende loro l a m�cchina. He se/ls them t h e car. Lui la vende loro, or Gliela vende. He se//s it to them. 3. SPELLING CHANGES. Notice that in the preceding lists certain changes have occurred in the spelling of some forms: (a) Mi, ti, ci, and vi change i to e before lo, la, li, and le. (b) Gli becomes glie before lo, la, li, and le, which are added to it. Gliele mando. I send them to him. ( G/i to him-has become glie before le which is joined to it.) Mi legge la l�ttera. He reads me the /etter. Me la legge. He reads it to me. (Mi changes to me before la. ) -

THE D1sJUNCTIVE PRONOUN The main group of disjunctive pronouns comprises those which are utilized with a preposition in a prepositional phrase. These preposi­ tional pronouns in Italian and in English are: me te lui lei Lei se

me you (informai, singular) him her you (formai, singular) himself. herself. itself. yourse/f

46

Italian Grammar noi VOI

loro Loro se

us you (informai, plural) them you (formai, plural) themselves, yourselves

1. usE oF "sE." Se is used only when this prepositional object is the same person as the subject. Lo fa da sè. He does it by himself Conversa con noi. He is chat ting with us. In addition to the regu lar use of the prepositional pronouns, the forms may be substituted for clarity, contrast, or emphasis when two object pronouns are involved. Vede me, non te. He sees me, not you.

2. usEs oF "s1." Notice the importance of the grave accent m written Italian, as illustrated by the word si: (a) sì: to mean "yes." (b) si compra : one, you, people (as an indefinite person) buy. (c) si vede: reflexive object used as a substitute for the passive when no agent is expressed (it is seen, one sees) . (d) sl: sometimes as th us, so, as. THE DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUN The demonstrative pronouns, which take the piace of a demonstra­ tive adjective or a noun, have the same inflections as the demon­ strative adjectives given in Topic 1 6.

1 . "This (one), " "these " masculine: feminine: 2. "That (one), " "those " masculine: /eminine: Preferisco I prefer this Preferisco I prefer this

Singular

Plural

questo questa

questi queste

quello quella

quelli quelle

questo libro, non quel libro. book, not that book. questo, non quello. one, not that one. (book)

Pronouns

47

THE POSSESSIVE PRONOUN These have the same forms as the possessive adjectives, listed in Topic 6. The noun is, of course, omitted . Usiamo il nostro passa porto e Carlo usa i l suo passaporto. (adjec­ tive) We are using our passport and Charles is using his passport. Usiamo il nostro e Carlo usa il suo. (pronoun) We are using ours, and Charles is using h is. ANALOGI ES OF THE REFLEXIVE, INDIRECT, A N D DIRECT 0BJ ECT PRONOUNS SIMILARITIES OF FORM 1 . The reflexive, indirect, and direct object pronouns will have the same forms in the first and second persons singular and plural: mi, ti, ci, vi. 2. In the third person singular and plural, the reflexive object pro­ noun will have the same form: si. 3. Note that the forms c'è (there is) and ci sono (there are) reflect the use of ci meaning "there" rather than "us" or "to us." CoNJ U NCTIVE PRONOUN/PARTITI VE Ne takes the piace of the prepositional phrase which begins with di. Ne is placed before the verb. 1 . Mangia della carne. Ne mangia. (She is eating some meat. She is eating some of it.) 2. Compro del latte. Ne compro un po'. (I buy some mi/k. I buy a little of it.) Observe that the partitive construction must be inserted in Italian though it is often hidden in English. Le matite? Quante ne vuoi ? The pencils? How many (of them) do you want? MODAL AUXILIARIES These are verbs, such as potere, volere, and dovere, which stand alone before an infinitive and often require the infinitive to com­ plete their thought. Non voglio parlare. I don 't want to speak. Non può venire. He can 't come.

lta/ian Grammar

48

PREPOSITIONS BEFORE INFINITIVES Many verbs do not require a preposition before an infinitive (in­ cluding the modals) . Preferisco venire con te. I prefer to come with you. However, some verbs cali for the preposition a before a dependent infinitive. These verbs are usually: (a) verbs of beginning, prepar­ ing, or continuing; (b) verbs of motion; and (c) verbs of learning or instruction. Other categories should be learned as they appea r. Comincia a studiare la lezione. He is beginning to study the /esson. Vengo a trovare un mio amico. /'m going to see a friend of mine. Impariamo a scrivere molte l�ttere. We are /earning to write many /etters. Many verbs require the use of the preposition di before an infini­ tive. Their categories and usages are highly varied, but some gener­ ai classifications are: (a) verbs of command and request; (b) verbs of trying; (c) verbs of hope and belief; and (d) some verb + noun formations. Ti prega di non andare a casa. He begs you not to go home. Cerchiamo di capire. We are trying to understand. Cn;dono di poter partire presto. They believe they will be ab/e to /eave soon. Ho bisogno di venire con voi . I need to come with you (pi ) . Note that da before an infinitive normally denotes purpose. Cosa c'è da fare? What is there to do? (that needs to be done) MORE IRREGULAR VERBS Three verbs introduced previously as moda/ verbs (Yolere, potere, and dol'ere) are irregular. Their future stems as well as their pres­ ent indicative forms should be noted.

l'olere

Present

Future

voglio vuoi vuole

vorrò etc.

49

Pronouns

potere

dovere

vogliamo volete v9gliono posso puoi può possiamo potete p9ssono devo devi deve dobbiamo dovete dçvono

potrò etc.

dovrò etc.

TOP I C I l

THE PAST PARTICIPLE; PRESENT, FUTURE, ANO CONDITIONAL PERFECT TENSES; PAST PARTICIPLE: ABSOLUTE CONSTRUCTION ANO ADJECTIVES

The Italian verb is formed in three ways: 1 . By using the stem of the infinitive after dropping the ending, as in the present, imperfect, and preterit tenses. 2. By using the complete infinitive to which a set of endings is added, as in the future and conditional tenses. 3. By using a helping verb (avere or essere) plus the past participle to form compound tenses. From this third combination five additional tenses in the indicative may be created, three of which we will see in this Topic: the pas­ sato prossimo (the present perfect), the futuro anteriore (the fu­ ture perfect) , and the condizionale passato (the conditional per­ fect) . THE PAST PARTICIPLE The past participle is formed regularly in the way indicated below, while for some verbs the past participle is formed irregularly. REGULAR FORMATION

Verb

Stem

parlare v�ndere capire

pari + vend + cap +

Ending ato uto ito

=

=

=

Pasl Participle parlato spoken venduto sold capito understood

To the stem of the infinitive (infinitive minus the ending) is added the new ending: -alo for the first conjugation; -ulo for the second conjugation; and -ilo for the third conjugation. Note the equivalent part of speech in English (parlate>-spoken ) . Remember that the past participle does nol stand alone a s a verb form (except in the Absolute construction seen at the end of this Topic) . I t must be accompanied by the helping verb. 50

The Past Participle

51

I RREGULAR FORMATION: A partial list of irregular past participles with their infinitives follows.

Infinitive

Past Participle

aprire morire bere offrire chiçdere prçndere chivdere rimanere dire scrivere fare vedere lçggere venire mettere vivere

aperto morto bevu to offerto chiesto preso chiuso rimasto detto scritto fatto visto (veduto) letto venuto messo vissuto

THE PRESENT PERFECT TENSE (Il passato prossimo) The present perfect tense of parlare is: ho parlato hai parlato ha parlato abbiamo parlato avete parlato hanno parlato

I have spoken you have spoken he, she (you) (has or have) spoken we have spoken you have spoken they have spoken

The present perfect tense of v�ndere is: ho venduto hai venduto ha venduto abbiamo venduto avete venduto hanno venduto

I have sold yo u have sold he, she (you) (has or have) sold we have sold you have so/d they have sold

/talian Grammar

52

The present perfect tense of capire is: ho capito hai capito ha capito abbiamo capito avete capito hanno capito

I have understood you have understood he, she (you) (has or have) understood we have understood you have understood they have understood

FORMATION WITH AUXILIARY VERBS. The majority of verbs use avere as an auxiliary verb in the present perfect tense; for example, ali transitive verbs (those which take a direct object) use avere. But some verbs are not conjugated with avere, but with �sere. For ex­ ample, intransitive verbs (those which do not take a direct object) generally require tssere; and most verbs of motion take �sere. The following verbs are the most common ones which employ tssere instead of avere as the helping verb in the compou nd tenses. andare arnvare cadere CQrrere entrare morire n�scere partire restare ritornare salire scctndere stare uscire venire

to go to arrive to fai/ to run to enter to die to be born to leave to stay to return to go up to go down to be to go out to come

Thus the present perfect tense of the verb venire will consist of the present tense of the verb tssere and the past participle of the verb venire. sono venuto/a sei venuto/a è venuto/a siamo venuti/e

I have come you have come he, she (you) (have or has) come we have come

The Past Participle siete venuti/ e sono venuti/e

53

you have come t hey ha ve come

AVERE ANO �SERE. The verbs �ssere and avere as main verbs re­ quire the helping verb �ssere and avere respectively. The present perfect tense of these two verbs in thus: avere

�ssere

ho avuto hai avuto ha avuto abbiamo avuto avete avuto hanno avuto sono stato/a sei stato/a è stato/a siamo stati/e siete stati/e sono stati/e

I h ave had you have h ad he, she (you) (has or have) had we have had you have had they have had I h ave been you have been he, she (you) (has or have) been we have been you have been they have been

Note: The endings of stato, just as those of venuto, are marked by a, i, and e, so that the respective past participles are: stato, stata, stati, state; venuto, venuta, venuti, venute. RULES OF AGREEM ENT.

l . A past participle conj ugated with the verb �ssere agrees in gen­ der and number with the subject. The change in spelling to achieve agreement is the same as that for regular nouns o, a, i, e. 2. A past participle conjugated with the verb avere agrees with the direct object when it is a person and comes before the verb. Agree­ ment is compulsory if the pronouns lo, la, li, le and ne precede the verb. If the direct object is not a person but stili comes before the verb, agreement is optional. Non abbiamo studiato l'italiano. We have not studied Jta/ian. OR We did not study Italian. Sono andati a casa sua. They have gone to his house. L'ho veduta . I have seen her. OR I saw her. PRESENT PER FECT ANO PERTERIT. The present perfect tense, be­ sides the !iterai translation as a compound verb, may be rendered as the preterit tense in English. In fact, conversational and generai usage in Italian prefers the present perfect tense to the preterit

ltalian Grammar

54

tense. For example, the Italian phrase "Gli ho scritto ieri" is trans­ lated most idiomatically by using the English preterìt: "I wrote to him yesterday" (instead of I have written) . Yet in this case spoken ltalian prefers the use of the present perfect and not the preterit. THE FUTURE PER FECT ANO CON DITIONAL PER FECT TENSES (li futuro anteriore e Il condizionale passato) The future perfect tense is formed by using the future tense of avere or �ssere plus the past participle. MODEL VERBS. The model verb parlare becomes: avrò parlato avrai parlato avrà parlato avremo parlato avrete parlato avranno parlato

I sha// have spoken you wil/ have spoken he, she (you) will have spoken we shall have spoken you will have spoken they wil/ have spoken

The future perfect tense of venire is: sarò venuto/a sarai venuto/a sarà venuto/a saremo venuti/e sarete venuti/e saranno venuti/e

I sha/I have come you will have come he, she (you) will have come we shall have come you will have come they wi/I have come

The conditional perfect tense is formed by using the conditional tense of avere or �ssere plus the past participle. MODEL VERBS. The regular verb parlare of the first conjugation becomes: avrei parlato avresti parlato avrebbe parlato avremmo parlato avreste parlato avr�bbero parlato

I shou/d have spoken you would have spoken he, she (you) would have spoken we should have spoken you would have spoken they wou/d have spoken

The cond itional perfect tense of venire is: sarei venuto/a saresti venuto/ a

I should have come you would have come

Review Exercises sarebbe venuto/a saremmo venuti/e sareste ven uti/ e sarçbbero venuti/e

55

he, she (you) wou/d have come we should have come you would have come they wou/d have come

OTHER USES OF' THE FUTURE AND CONDITIONAL PER F'ECT. In addi­ tion to the regular use of the future perfect and conditional perfect tenses to transiate English equiva lents of the same meaning, there are some additional uses in Italian of these tenses. 1 . Probability or possibility in the present perfect tense is rendered by the future perfect tense i n Italian. Avremo perduto la busta. We have probably /ost the envelope. 2. lmp/ication. When the future perfect and the conditional perfect tenses are implied in English, they must be utilized in Italian. Ha detto che sarçbbero arrivati orma i . He said that they wou/d have arrived by now. PAST PARTICI PLE: ABSOLUTE CONSTRUCTION AND ADJECTIVES The past participle may stand alone (without a helping verb) when it functions ( l ) in an absolute construction, and (2) as an adjective. For example: l. Scritte due lçttere, ho cominciato a studiare l'italiano. (Having written two /etters, I began studying ltalian.) 2. Arrivata a casa, Marta è andata a letto. (Having gotten home, Marta went to bed. ) 3 . Impariamo la lingua scritta e la lingua parlata. ( We are learning the written /anguage and the spoken /an­ guage.) Note that in Example l, scritte ( from scrivere) must agree with its direct object, l�ttere ( feminine plural). Ali transitive verbs used in this construction follow this rute. I n Example 2, arrivata (from arri­ vare--a n intransitive verb) agrees with the subject who has already arrived home. Finally, in Example 3, we see scritta and parlata functioning as adjectives modifying lingua. REVIE W EX ERCIS ES, TOPICS 8-1 I

PATTERN 1>R1 LLS. Use the following infinitives in these tenses to complete the sentences. (a) present, (b) present perfect, (c) future, (d) future perfect, (e) conditional, and (f) conditional perfect. I . Il professore non (venire) in classe.

lta/ian Grammar

56 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

Oggi tutti (divertirsi) molto. Quando (potere) Lei lçggere i l mio giornale? Noi (conoscere) a poco a poco la nuova studentessa francese. Voi (volere) rimanere a casa? Io (continuare) a tenere a mente la poesia latina. Lo studente i nglese (dovere) parlare tedesco. Noi (prendere) il treno che (partire) alle otto e dieci. the following into Italian: What time is it? lt's 5 : 3 0 i n tbe morning, more or less. Wbere are the Italian books ? We sball give them to him. Tbese houses painted blue and wbite are i nteresting-we ougbt to visit them. Do you need to buy some milk? (Lei) This flower seems large a n d beautiful, but t h e garden i s very small. Do you bave your sweater? I bave mine, and be bas bis. There are many large buildings i n Rome. Wbere are you ? I ' m here. Having bad (prendere) a coffee, I went bome. Now there is only a little money. Today is November l , 1 982. I am going to leave on the second Sunday i n January. But as always 1'11 be back on the next Wednesday. I always want to get there at 3 :45 sharp. How old is John? He is probably twenty-four years old. However, according to him, he's only twenty. She sold tbem to Mary. Did you buy them? Can I give you a hand? I bave understood everything you 're doing. Have you already drunk yours? He pu t (mettere) the money i n bis pocket. They saw her twice yesterday.

TRANSLATE

l. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

l O. ll. 1 2. 1 3. 1 4. 1 5. 1 6. 17. 18. 1 9. 20.

tbe following into Italian: Did you u nderstand tbat we bave to go to tbeir house? She needs a pair of shoes. He bad a good time since (siccome) be knows bow to play the piano. Tbey will have sold everytbing. I'm sending it to him.

TRANSLATE

l. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Review Exercises 6. 7. 8. 9. 1 0.

They see us often. D o you know w h o they are? Yes, I know them. Only ltalian is spoken here. I'm putting on my gloves. We will not have understood the written word.

57

TOPIC 1 2

THE SUBJUNCTIVE: FORMATION OF PRESENT AND PRESENT PERFECT FORMS; IRREG ULAR VERBS

The subjunctive (congiuntivo) indicates a mood (see Topic 4), and thus conveys the intention of the user of the verb. For the moment it is enough to remember that this mood expresses what is not a certainty. Within the subjunctive mood there are four basic tenses of interest to us, two of which will be explored in this Topic. The formation of the present and present perfect subjunctive should be learned as thoroughly as their parallel tenses in the indicative mood. THE PRESENT SueJUNCTIVE The present subjunctive tense of four model verbs is: parlare

v.;ndere

servire

capire

parli parli parli venda venda venda serva serva serva capisca capisca capisca

parliamo parl ia te Pl!-rlino vendiamo vend ia te vçndano serviamo serv ia te sçrva no capiamo capiate cap (sca no

A brief systematic arrangement of this tense will reveal interesting and helpful similarities and differences with regard to its parallel tense in the indicative. (See also p. 1 8 , Topic 5 . )

-are

-ere

-ire

-I

-a

-a

(a) io

58

(b) -isca

59

The Subjunctive tu lei/lui noi voi loro

-I -I

-iamo -iate -in o

-a -a -iamo -iate - a no

-a -a -i amo -iate - a no

-isca -isca -iamo -iate -iseano

The most striking feature of the present subjunctive is the repeti­ tion of the first three endings for the singular persons. This possible point of confusion often necessitates the use of the subject pro­ nouns (io, tu, lei/lui) for clarification. Note also the i nvariable forms of first and second plural (iamo and iate throughout), while the third person plural admits but one variation: ino, ano, ano, iseano. AVERE ANO i;:ssERE. The present subjunctive forms of avere and �ssere are: avere

?bbia ?bbia ?bbia

abbiamo abbiate ?bbiano

�ssere

sia sia sia

siamo siate siano

TTH E PRESENT PER FECT SuoJUNCTIVE The present perfect subjunctive (passato prossimo congiuntivo) is constructed on the same principle as its compound counterpart in the indivative. The auxiliary verb (avere or �ssere) conj ugated in the present subjunctive is combined with the past participle of the principal verb. MODEL VERos. The present perfect subjunctive of three model verbs is: parlare

v�ndere

servire

?bbia i;tbbia i;tbbia ?bbia ?bbia l}.bbia ?bbia ?bbia i;tbbia

parlato parlato parlato venduto venduto venduto servito servito servito

abbiamo parlato abbiate parlato ?bbiano parlato abbiamo venduto abbiate venduto ?bbiano venduto abbiamo servito abbiate servito ?bbiano servito

Italian Grammar

60

NOTE 1 . I n the present perfect, the verb capire does not differ from the model servire: that is, �bbia capito, and so forth. 2. Again, for clarification the subject pronouns should be used for the first three persons of the verb. 3. The typical verb arrivare, conj ugated with çssere, must have the past principle in agreement with the subject, as in the indicative mood. Thus the present perfect subjunctive of arrivare would be: sia arrivato/a sia arrivato/a sia arrivato/a

siamo arrivati/e siate arrivati/e siano arrivati/e

IRREC. U LA R VERBS One essential point should be remembered regarding the formation of irregular verbs in the present subjunctive. Normally, the verb may be arrived at by taking the verb's first person singular (io) form of the present indicative and substituting the present subjunc­ tive ending. t3

Subjunctive

Indicative venire

vengo

dire

dico

venga venga venga dica dica dica

veniamo veniate vyngqno diciamo diciate djcqno

But note the irregular nature of andare and dare. t3

Subjunctive

Indicative andare vado

dare

r.jo

vada vada vada dia dia dia

andiamo andiate v�dano diamo diate dfano

The Subjunctive

61

In the meantime ali these verbs are formed "regularly" in the pres­ ent perfect subj unctive, employing the proper helping verb. Sia venuto/a �bbìa detto sia andato/a �bbia dato

TOPIC 1 3

USES O F THE SUBJUNCTIVE

Recalling Topic 1 2 , we must remember that the subjunctive mood expresses the uncertain, the hypothetical. lts use in a sen tence is usually dependent upon the presence of another grammatica! ele­ ment which conditions and demands the use of the subjunctive mood. Verbs in a main clause which express, in generai, emotion, desire, doubt, or opinion, as well as impersonai expressions, will require the use of the subjunctive in the subordinate clause-usual­ ly introduced by che (that, who, which ) . REQUIRED UsAGES The basic categories in which the use of the subjunctive mood is obligatory should be studied carefully. The subj unctive is required following verbs of: I. EMOTION including hope, fear, happiness, sorrow, and so forth . Maria ha paura che L e i non venga domani sera. Maria is afraid that you 'll noi come tomorrow evening. Spero che siate contenti. I hope that you are happy. Mi dispiace che non mi qbbia scritto lui. J'm sorry thai he hasn 't written me.

vounoN (wishing or wanting). Vogliamo che tutti si divçrtano. We want everybody to have a good time. Voglio che lei venga verso le otto. I want her to come around eight. 2.

3. DOU BT, BELI EF, OPINION. Dvbito che me qbbiano mandato il pacco chiesto. I doubt that

they seni me the package I asked for. Credo che voi abbiate avuto ragione. I think/believe that you were righ t. Penso che lui debba andarci al più presto possibile. I think he ought (dovere) to go there as soon as possible. 62

Uses of the Subjunctive

63

But note the following exceptions: I f one is certain of facts, then the future or the present indicative (depending upon the initial verb) may be substituted for the present subjunctive. Credo che lui verrà a frequentare le lezioni . I think h e 'll come to attend c/ass. Non d1,1bito che arrivano in anticipo. I don 't doubt that they are arriving early. Note also that if the subject does not change, the subjunctive is replaced by an infinitive. Penso di andare in montagna . I think that I will go to the moun­ tains. Not: Penso che vada in montagna. 4. I MPERSONAL EXPRESSIONS. È meglio che io telefoni a lei prima di partire. ft 's better that I

telephone her be/ore leaving. È possibile che Claudia non sia partita ieri sera ? ls it possible that Claudia might not have left fast nigh t? Note: When the subject is impersonai (it) in both clauses, the sub­ junctive is not required but is substituted for by the infinitive. È possibile fare una conferenza s1,1bito. lt is possible to give a /ecture immedia/ely. 0THER UsEs Other uses and grammatica! conditions which involve the subjunc­ tive are: 1. SUPERLATI V ES (see Topic I 6). Questa è l a p i ù bella casa che i o qbbia m a i vista. This is the most beautiful house /'ve ever seen.

2. INDEFINITE EXPRESSIONS following whatever and whoever. checchè chiunque

whatever whoever

il primo che il solo che l'ultimo che

the first who the on/y one who the fast one who

Checchè fqcciano, non riuscirà. Whatever they do, it won 't work out.

64

ltalian Grammar

3. BENCHÈ AND SEBBENE (although, even though) . Benchè io sia partito presto, sono arrivato in ritardo. Even though I left early, I arrived late. 4. INDEFI NITE ANTECEDENTS. Cerco una segretaria che sappia l'italiano. J'm /ooking for a sec­

retary who knows Jtalian. But notice the change in mood conditioned by a definite anteced­ ent: Conosco una signorina che sa molto bene l'italiano. I know a young woman who knows /talian very wel/. 5. VERBS OF COM MANDING, FORBIDDING, AND REQUEST. Vi dico che finiate l'esame svbito. J'm telling you to finish the exam immediately. But with no command implied : Vi dico che questo esame è molto difficile. J'm tel/ing you that this exam is very diffic ult.

TOPI C 1 4

RELATIVE PRONOU NS; FU RTHER USES OF PREPOSITIONS; I M PERSONAL VERBS

UsEs oF RELATIV E PRoNouNs The relative pronoun is of specia l use in extending sentence con­ struction beyond the simple SUBJECT-VERB-OBJECT pattern. With these relative pronouns, complex sentences can be constructed with ease. But keep in mind the difference between ltalian and English usage: In Italian the relative pronoun must be used at ali times. THE FORMS of the relative pronoun are:

l . che (that, who, whom, which) never changes and may be used as the subject or the d irect object. Conosco Pietro che legge bene i l francese. I know Peter, who reads French well. 2. cui (whom, which, whose) . (a) Used with a preposition: Ecco i l ristora nte in cui mangiamo bene. Here is the restaurant in which (where) we eat well. (b) Cui may also be used as a relative adjective when accompanied by the definite article and a noun (whose) . È G iovanni il cui padre torna in Italia. It is Giovanni whose fa­ ther is returning to ltaly. 3. In case of ambiguity cui and che may be substituted for: il quale, la quale, i quali, le quali. La nipote di mio marito la quale sta seduta in classe ha �ndici anni. (La quale refers to the niece.) My h usband's niece who is seated in class is eleven years old. 4. Quello che, quel che, ciò che (what) . Sappiamo ciò che pensa lui. We know what he th inks. 5. Chi may be used for the indefinite person (he who, the one who, etc.) . Chi dorme non piglia pesci. He who sleeps doesn 't catch jìsh. (The early bird catches the worm.) 65

ltalian Grammar

66

PREPOSITIONS ESSENTIAL PROPOSITIONS which are used continually are: a con da di durante

at, in, to with /rom, by of during

m

lu ngo per su tra or fra

in, to, within a/ong by, through on, upon among, between

PR EPOSITIONS WITH "A." Propositions which are generally fol­ lowed by the additional preposition a are: accanto a attorno a circa (a) or incirca (a) conforme a dentro a dietro a or di dietro a fino a

beside around about in conformity with inside behind as far as, unti/

in faccia a in mezzo a in rispetto a or inquanto a innanzi a or dinanzi a or davanti a intorno a vicino a

opposi te amidst concerning

be/ore about near

PREPOSITIONS WITH " DA. " Prepositions which are generally fol­ lowed by the additional preposition da are: fin da lontano da

/rom far /rom

1 . Da is sometimes put before an infinitive. The preposition da serves to indicate purpose or necessity, meaning literally for . . . but rendered idiomatically always as to + verb. Hanno molto da fare. They have a lot to do. * • Note that this construction usually follows a noun. If not, a noun is understood . Ho da fare. I have things I have to do. 2. Da also functions idiomatically to mean at the home of. at the shop of. etc. Vai da Francesco? Are you going to Francesco 's house? PREPOSITIONS wnu " m . " Prepositions which are generally fol­ lowed by the additional preposition di are:

Relative Pronouns a causa di a dispetto di a forza d i a piè d i a ragione d i a modo di a secondo di al di là di al di qua di al di sopra di alla volta d i all'infuori d i di dentro di fuori di sotto fuori di in favore d i in luogo di, or invece di per mezzo d i presso di prima d i

67

by reason of. because in spite of by dint of a t the foot of on account of in the manner of according to on the other side of. beyond on this side of above in the direction of except within outside underneath outside of in favor of instead of by means of near before

IMPERSONA L VERBS Those verbs which express a state without reference to a person are called impersonai verbs. Usually these verbs are found only i n t h e third person singular (it) a n d plural (they) . accadere (to happen) : accade (it happens) . avvenire (to happen) : è avvenuto (it happened) . bastare (lo be enough ) : basta (it is enough) , b?stano (they are suf­ ficient) . Note: Ce ne b?stano tre. ( Three of them are enough .) bisognare (to be necessary) : bisogna (it is necessary). Note: Bi­ sogna andarci s1,1bito. (/t is necessary to go there at once. ) capitare (to happen): qpita (it happens) . convenire (to be fitting) : conviene (it is fitting) . Note: Ti conviene. (/t fits you. ) dovere �sere (to b e obligatory) : dev'çssere ( i t m ust be) , dovrebb\�s­ sere (it ought to be) . Note: Dev'çssere vero. (/t must be true. ) importare (to matter) : importa (it matters); non importa (it doesn 't matter, or never mind) .

68

ltalian Grommar

occc;>rrere (to be needed) : occorre (it is needed) . parere (to appear, seem): pare (it appears, seems) . Note: Non ti pare vero? (Doesn 't it seem true to you?) *piacere (to be pleasing) : piace (it pleases); pi�cciono (they are pleasing) . sembrare (to seem): sembra (it seems) . Note also: addirsi (to suit) : si addice (it is suiting) . çssere lçcito (to be allowed) : è h(cito (it is allowed) . *Piacere means literally "to be pleasing." Thus to render the Eng­ lish "I like it," the phrase must be recognized in its Italian con­ struction : Mi piace il nuovo film. (Literally: To me the new film is pleasing. ) ( Idiomatic: I like the new film.) Note the change in the verb to the plural for objects which "are liked." M i piqcciono i fiori . (Fiori is the subject of piacere.) (I like the flowers.) IM PERSONAL VERBS IN WEATHER EXPRESSIONS. I mpersonai verbs are also used in weather expressions: see Topic 9 . fioccare ( t o fai/ in flakes) : fiocca (Flakes are fal/ing. ) gelare (to freeze): gela (It is freezing.) lampeggiare (to lightning) : lampeggia ( There is ligh tning. ) nevicare (to snow) : nçvica (It is snowing. ) pi9vere (to rain) : piove (It is raining. ) sgelare (to thaw) : sgela (It is thawing. ) tirare vento (to be windy) : tira vento (It is windy.)

TOPIC 1 5

THE IMPERATIVE MOOD; POSITION OF OBJECT PRONOUNS; PARTICIPLES; USES OF THE PARTITIVE

THE IMPERATIVE Mooo The third and final mood we will look at is the imperative mood. The imperative mood expresses a command which may be either affirmative or negative. (An exclamation point is often the indica­ tion of a command.) In this mood there is one tense: the present. Review the present indicative and subjunctive moods to help stan­ dardize the forms for any i mperative construction. The command forms corresponding to the subject pronouns tu, Lei, noi, voi, Loro (which are not inserted with the verb) are as follows for the model verbs of the three conjugations: For the -are endings, using parlare:

io tu Lei noi voi Loro

Indicative

Imperative

Subjunctive

parlo parli par Il} parliamo parlate p�rlano

parla parli parliamo parlate p�rlino

parli parli parli parliamo parliate p�rlino

The -ere and -ire endings are alike. Note capire.

v�ndere

Indicative

Imperative

Subjunctive

vendo vendi vende vendiamo vendete vçndono

vendi venda vendiamo vendete vçndano

venda venda venda vendiamo vendiate vçndano

69

70

lta/ian Grammar

servire

capire

Indica tive

Imperative

Subjunctive

servo servi serve serviamo servite sçrvono

servi serva serviamo servite sçrvano

serva serva serva serviamo serviate sçrvano

Indicative

Imperative

Subjunctive

capisco capisci capisce capiamo capite capiscono

capisci capisca capiamo capite capiscano

capisca capisca capisca capiamo capiate capiscano

Clearly, the imperative mood may be formed with already existing forms of the indicative and subjunctive moods. Ripetete ad alta voce. Repeat-a/l of you-aloud. Mi scriva al più presto possibile. Please write me, Sir, as soon as possible. Serviamo il caffè S\lbito. Let 's serve the coffee immediately. Non partecipare a quello scherzo. Don 't take part in that joke. Note that �ssere, sapere, and avere use siate, sappiate, and abbiate (from the subjunctive instead of indicative) for the voi form com­ mand. The complete imperative form of avere is: abbi (tu) �bbia (lei) abbiamo abbiate �bbiano (loro) Abbi pazienza! Be patient! Pos1T10N oF 0BJ ECT PRoNouNs Note the following rules regarding placement of the object pro­ nouns. (See also Topic 1 0 .)

71

Imperative Mood 1. IN N EGATIVE SENTE1'CES, non precedes ali object pronouns.

2. IN COM POU ND SENTE1'CES, the pronouns precede the auxiliary verbs.

3. PRECEDENCE. The object pronouns--direct, indirect, and re­ flexive-are placed before the verb except in the following cases where the pronouns follow and are joined to the verbs. (a) The infinitive. Lo vede Lei? Do you see him? Vorremmo vederlo. We wou/d /ike to see him. Note: Loro and loro are, of course, exceptions. Non potremo parlare loro domani. We shal/ not be ab/e to speak to them tomorrow. (b) The present partici pie. scrivçndogli (c) The past participle without auxiliary verb. vedvtala (d) The affirmative imperative (but not in the subjunctive). M�ndamelo. Send it to me. But in the polite command: Me lo mandi. Please send it to me. Note the relative positions of the direct and indirect object pro­ nouns (see #4) . (e) with ecco. I;.ccolo. Here it is. (f) It is important to note that the originai stress of the word to which pronouns are attached does not change. Thus: scrivçndogli

vedvtala

m:i.ndamelo

4. INDIRECT vs. DIRE