Italian All-in-One For Dummies (127 page)

Point to a conclusion or a consequence with
quindi
(
thus
) or
perciò
(
therefore
).

Convey a temporal sequence with
allora, poi
(
then
).

Consider the following example:

Mia le fa un regalo, ma non dirglielo.
(
Mia will give her a present, but don't tell her.
)

Joining a dependent clause with an independent one

If you subordinate one sentence to another, you establish a relationship of dependence between a main or independent clause and a subordinate or dependent one. With subordination, the meaning of the combined sentences is very different from their meanings if left independent of one another. Consider this example:

Mangio la verdura perché fa bene.
(
I eat vegetables because they're good for me.
)

This sentence means that you eat vegetables because they're healthy food. Now take a look at the following:

Mangio la verdura. La verdura fa bene.
(
I eat vegetables. Vegetables are good for one's health.
)

In this instance, you may eat vegetables because you like them, because you have nothing else in the refrigerator, or for any other reason. The fact that you eat veggies isn't necessarily tied to their health benefits.

You can subordinate a dependent clause to a dependent one in two ways:

With a subordinating conjunction

With a preposition or prepositional phrase that does the work of a conjunction

With a subordinating conjunction

Subordinating conjunctions tie one or more dependent clauses to an independent one, as in
Gioco con te se mi presti la tua bici
(
I'll play with you if you lend me your bike
). This process is called
subordination.

Table 7-2
lists the most common subordinating conjunctions.

Conjunctions are invariable, with the exception of words you use to convey comparisons, such as
tante . . . quante
(
as many . . . as
).

When you link sentences through subordination, the main clause and the conjunction you choose determine the mood and tense of the verb in the dependent clause. You can link sentences with the declarative and the
if . . . then
constructions, which often use the subjunctive. Other constructions require the conjunction in the dependent clause, including
affinché
(
in order
to
),
perché
(when it means
in order to
),
a meno che
(
unless; except if
),
nonostante/nonostante che
(
although
),
prima che
(
before
),
purché
(
as long as; provided that
),
sebbene/benché
(
although; even though
), and
senza che
(
without
). Here's an example:

Mi spiegate cosa sta succedendo sui mercati affinché non perda tutti i miei soldi?
(
Can you explain to me what's happening in the markets so I won't lose all my money?
)

With a preposition or prepositional phrase

As long as the subject of both clauses is the same, you can introduce a dependent clause with a preposition, or with phrases that include a preposition, followed by an infinitive. In the sentence
Ho deciso di andare a pescare
(
I've decided to go fishing
), the preposition
di
(
to
) introduces a dependent clause. In fact, you can replace the preposition with the declarative conjunction
che
(
that
):
Ho deciso che vado a pescare
(
I've decided that I'll go fishing
).
Table 7-3
lists prepositions and phrases with prepositions that can introduce verbs in the infinitive.

When you use the preposition
da,
the infinitive can refer to the object of the sentence, as in
Dammi un libro da leggere
(
Give me a book to read/that I can read/for me to read
). And you can have two different subjects when you use
su
+ article, as in
Partimmo sul sorgere del sole
(
We left while the sun was rising
).

Joining Clauses That Belong Together

You may need a full sentence to point to a person or a thing already mentioned. Consider this example:

L'attrice ha vinto l'Oscar. L'attrice è francese.
(
The actress won the Oscar. The actress is French.
)

You can link the two sentences by using a relative pronoun, which introduces a relative clause. The two sentences become one:

L'attrice che ha vinto l'Oscar è francese.
(
The actress who won the Oscar is French.
)

In this sentence,
che
(
who
) is the relative pronoun that introduces the relative clause,
ha vinto l'Oscar
(
won the Oscar
).

There's a special set of combined demonstrative + relative pronouns that do double duty: The (implied) demonstrative pronoun belongs to the independent clause while the relative component introduces the dependent clause, as in
Hai visto chi ha mandato questo pacco?
(
Did you see who sent this package?
) In this example,
chi
combines
la persona che
(
the person who
) and
quello che
(
the one who
). (You can also use the non-combined form if you prefer, but the combined form is handy.)

In English, you often can skip the relative pronoun unless it's the subject of the relative clause. In Italian, you may not. For example, in English, you may say
Did you like the wine that we drank last night?
or
Did you like the wine we drank last night?
Either is correct. In Italian, though, you must include
che
(
that
):
Ti è piaciuto il vino che abbiamo bevuto ieri sera?
(
Did you like the wine that we drank last night?
)