Decifriamo l'enigma.

Decifriamo is the first-person plural form of decifrare (to decipher / to decode).

So grammatically it means we decipher in the present tense.

It is built like this:

• decifrare = infinitive
• noi decifriamo = we decipher / we are deciphering

A useful pattern:

• io decifro = I decipher
• tu decifri = you decipher
• lui/lei decifra = he/she deciphers
• noi decifriamo = we decipher
• voi decifrate = you all decipher
• loro decifrano = they decipher

Yes. This is a very common question.

In Italian, the first-person plural imperative (let's ...) often looks exactly the same as the noi form of the present tense.

So decifriamo can mean either:

• we decipher
• let's decipher

How do you know which one it is? Usually from context, tone, and sometimes punctuation.

For example:

• Decifriamo l'enigma. = could be We decipher the riddle or Let's decipher the riddle
• Decifriamo l'enigma! more strongly suggests Let's decipher the riddle!

So if the sentence appears by itself, there can be some ambiguity.

Because in Italian, the singular definite articles lo and la usually become l' before a vowel.

Since enigma begins with e, you do not say il enigma.

You say:

• l'enigma

This is called elision.

Compare:

• il libro = the book
• l'enigma = the enigma / the riddle
• l'amica = the female friend

So l' is just the article shortened before a vowel.

Enigma is masculine: l'enigma.

That surprises many learners, because nouns ending in -a are often feminine. But some Italian nouns of Greek origin ending in -ma are masculine.

Other common examples:

• il problema
• il sistema
• il tema
• il programma
• il dilemma

So:

• l'enigma = singular masculine
• gli enigmi = plural masculine

Even though it ends in -a, you should learn it as a masculine noun.

Good question. The full masculine article here is historically lo, not la.

But before a vowel, lo becomes l':

• lo enigma → l'enigma

So l'enigma is still masculine.

Compare:

• lo studente = the student
• l'enigma = the enigma
• l'amico = the friend

The shortened form l' does not by itself tell you whether the noun is masculine or feminine. You have to know the noun's gender.

Because Italian often omits subject pronouns when the verb form already makes the subject clear.

Decifriamo already tells you the subject is noi (we), so noi is usually unnecessary.

You could say:

• Decifriamo l'enigma.

or

• Noi decifriamo l'enigma.

But the version without noi is more natural in many contexts.

Italian uses subject pronouns more often only for:

• emphasis
• contrast
• clarity

For example:

• Noi decifriamo l'enigma, voi no.
  We decipher the riddle, you don't.

It is pronounced approximately:

deh-chee-FRYAH-mo

A more careful breakdown:

• de
• ci = sounds like chee
• fria
• mo

The stress is on -a- in -iamo:

• decifriàmo

A rough English-friendly pronunciation is:

• deh-chee-FRYAH-mo

And l'enigma is roughly:

• leh-NEE-nyah? No — not quite.

A better approximation is:

• leh-NEEG-ma

with a hard g sound, as in go.

The infinitive is decifrare.

This is a regular -are verb, and in the noi form of the present tense, -are verbs end in -iamo:

• parlare → parliamo
• guardare → guardiamo
• decifrare → decifriamo

So:

• infinitive: decifrare
• stem: decifr-
• ending for noi present: -iamo
• result: decifriamo

This is a very common pattern and worth memorizing.

Because in Italian, nouns often need an article where English might sometimes omit one.

Here l'enigma means the enigma / the riddle, referring to a specific one.

So:

• Decifriamo l'enigma. = We decipher the riddle / Let's decipher the riddle.

Without the article, Decifriamo enigma would be ungrammatical in standard Italian.

Italian generally requires an article with a countable noun like this unless there is some other determiner or a special structure.

It is a real and perfectly correct word, but it can sound a bit more literary, dramatic, or formal than some other choices.

Depending on context, Italians might also use words like:

• indovinello = riddle
• mistero = mystery
• rompicapo = brain-teaser / puzzler

So l'enigma is absolutely fine, but it may give the sentence a slightly more dramatic or mysterious tone than a simpler everyday word would.