{"id":16513,"date":"2018-06-25T12:07:19","date_gmt":"2018-06-25T10:07:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/?p=16513"},"modified":"2018-06-26T12:15:04","modified_gmt":"2018-06-26T10:15:04","slug":"using-the-passato-prossimo-in-italian-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/using-the-passato-prossimo-in-italian-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Using The Passato Prossimo In Italian – Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

In part 1<\/span><\/strong><\/a> we looked at how to construct the passato prossimo<\/strong> (present perfect<\/em>) in its simplest form. Today we’re going to find out what happens when a direct object is replaced by a direct object pronoun in the past tense. Read on and all will be explained.<\/span><\/p>\n

Let’s begin with an example and an analysis:<\/p>\n

Example 1: ‘The dog has eaten all the biscuits!’<\/em>
\nFrom our verb list we find the verb mangiare<\/strong> (to eat). Now we find the past participle, mangiato<\/strong><\/em>, and in brackets the relevant auxiliary verb, which for mangiare<\/strong> is avere<\/strong>.
\nHence our Italian sentence is: ‘Il cane ha mangiato tutti i biscotti!’<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here’s that sentence broken down into its main grammatical components:
\nIl cane<\/strong> (subject<\/em>) ha mangiato<\/strong> (present perfect of the verb mangiare<\/strong><\/em>) tutti i biscotti<\/strong> (direct object<\/em>)<\/p>\n

Now let’s see what happens when the direct object<\/em> is omitted and replaced by the direct object pronoun<\/em> (it\/them):
\nQuestion: Dove sono i biscotti?<\/strong> = Where are the biscuits?
\nAnswer: Il cane<\/strong> (subject<\/em>) li<\/strong> (direct object pronoun<\/em>) ha mangiati tutti<\/strong> = The dog has eaten them all<\/p>\n

Here are a couple more examples:<\/p>\n

Example 2: ‘We left the car at the station’<\/em>. = ‘Abbiamo lasciato la macchina alla stazione’<\/strong>.
\nOnce again we’re going to replace the direct object (la macchina<\/em><\/strong>) with the relevant direct object pronoun, in this case la<\/strong> (it)
\nQuestion: Dov’\u00e8 la macchina?<\/strong> = Where’s the car?
\nAnswer: L’abbiamo lasciata alla stazione<\/strong> = We left it at the station<\/p>\n

One more example then we’ll define the underlying principle behind this type of construction.<\/p>\n

Example 3: ‘I shut the cat in the house’<\/em> = ‘Ho chiuso il gatto in casa’<\/strong>.
\nHere, the direct object is il gatto<\/strong>. So let’s replace him (meow!) with his direct object pronoun lo<\/strong> (it):
\nQuestion: Dov’\u00e8 il gatto?<\/strong> (Where is the cat?)
\nAnswer: L’ho chiuso in casa<\/strong> (I’ve shut him in the house)<\/p>\n

\"\"

No, please don’t replace me with a direct object pronoun! I promise I won’t mess the garden up again. Photo of Smokie the cat by Geoff<\/em><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

If we study the above examples carefully we can see a pattern in the choice of direct object pronoun and past participle. Here’s how it works:
\nBoth the direct object pronoun<\/em> and the past participle<\/em> must agree in number and gender with the direct object<\/em> that they replace.<\/p>\n

Hence:
\nIn example 1. the masculine plural\u00a0direct object<\/em> i biscotti<\/strong> is replaced by the masculine plural direct object pronoun<\/em> li<\/strong> (them) and uses the masculine plural<\/em> past participle<\/em> mangiati<\/strong>
\nIn example 2. the\u00a0feminine singular direct object<\/em> la macchina<\/strong> is replaced by the\u00a0 feminine singular direct object pronoun<\/em> la<\/strong> (it) and uses the feminine singular past participle<\/em> lasciata
\n<\/strong>In example 3. the masculine singular direct object<\/em> il gatto <\/strong>is replaced by the masculine singular direct object pronoun<\/em> lo<\/strong> (it) and uses the masculine singular past participle<\/em> chiuso<\/strong><\/p>\n

N.B.<\/strong><\/em> Don’t be confused by the fact that in examples 2 and 3 the direct object pronouns la<\/strong> and lo<\/strong> are apostrophised. Hence la<\/strong> becomes l’<\/strong> (l’abbiamo lasciata<\/strong>) and lo<\/strong> becomes l’<\/strong> (l’ho chiuso<\/strong>)<\/p>\n

Now try a few for yourself:<\/span><\/p>\n

a. direct object: le ragazze<\/strong> (the girls)
\nQuestion: Cos’\u00e8 successo alle ragazze?<\/strong> (What’s happened to the girls?)
\nAnswer: _______ alla stazione<\/strong> (I took them to the station)<\/p>\n

b. direct object: la torre di Pisa<\/strong> (the tower of Pisa)
\nQuestion: Hai mai visto la torre di Pisa?<\/strong> (Have you ever seen the tower of Pisa?)
\nAnswer: No, non __ mai _______<\/strong> (Non, I’ve never seen it)<\/p>\n

c. direct object: le uova<\/strong> (the eggs)
\nQuestion: Che fine hanno fatto le uova?<\/strong> (What’s become of the eggs?)
\nAnswer: _______ in frigo<\/strong> (I put them in the fridge)<\/p>\n

d. direct object: il decespugliatore<\/strong> (the strimmer\/brush-cutter)
\nQuestion: Hai usato il nuovo decespugliatore?<\/strong> Have you used the new strimmer\/brush-cutter?)
\nAnswer: S\u00ec, _______ la settimana scorsa<\/strong> (Yes, I used it last week)<\/p>\n

If you’re feeling brave, leave you answers in the comments section so that we can help you out.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

In part 1 we looked at how to construct the passato prossimo (present perfect) in its simplest form. Today we’re going to find out what happens when a direct object is replaced by a direct object pronoun in the past tense. Read on and all will be explained. Let’s begin with an example and an…<\/p>\n

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