Controlliamo la validità dell'attestato di prestazione energetica.

Here controlliamo means we check, we verify, or let’s check, not we control in the English sense of to manage or to dominate.

This is a very common false friend:

• controllare = to check / inspect / verify
• English to control is often controllare only in some contexts, but very often Italian uses other verbs too, depending on the meaning

So in this sentence, Controlliamo... is best understood as:

• We are checking...
• Let’s check...

Italian often leaves out subject pronouns when they are not needed, because the verb ending already shows the subject.

• controllo = I check
• controlli = you check
• controlla = he/she checks
• controlliamo = we check
• controllate = you all check
• controllano = they check

So controlliamo already clearly means we check or let’s check. Adding noi is possible, but usually unnecessary unless you want emphasis:

• Noi controlliamo, loro no. = We check, they don’t.

Yes. The first person plural in Italian can mean either:

• we check / we are checking
• let’s check

Which meaning is intended depends on context.

So Controlliamo la validità... could mean:

• a statement: We check the validity...
• a suggestion/instruction: Let’s check the validity...

In practical or instructional contexts, the let’s check sense is very common.

La is the feminine singular definite article, meaning the.

• la validità = the validity

In Italian, articles are often used more regularly than in English, especially before nouns in general statements or technical phrases. Here, validità is a specific noun being referred to, so la is natural.

Also, validità is feminine:

• la validità
• not il validità

Because Italian normally combines a preposition + definite article into one word.

Here:

• di + l' becomes dell'

So:

• la validità dell'attestato = the validity of the certificate

This is called an articulated preposition.

Other examples:

• di + il = del
• di + lo = dello
• di + la = della
• di + i = dei
• di + gli = degli
• di + le = delle

Since attestato begins with a vowel and takes l', you get dell'attestato.

Because attestato is a masculine singular noun beginning with a vowel.

The definite article for masculine singular nouns is normally:

• il before many consonants
• lo before certain consonant clusters
• l' before vowels

So:

• il documento
• lo studente
• l'attestato

Then after di, this becomes:

• dell'attestato

Yes, attestato di prestazione energetica is a standard bureaucratic/technical expression in Italian. It refers to an energy performance certificate for a building or property.

It is often abbreviated as:

• APE

So in many real-life contexts, Italians might also say:

• Controlliamo la validità dell'APE.

That is more compact, but the full expression is more formal and explicit.

Because prestazione is a feminine singular noun, and the adjective must agree with it.

• prestazione = feminine singular
• energetica = feminine singular adjective

So:

• prestazione energetica = energy performance

If the noun were masculine singular, the adjective would change:

• rendimento energetico

Agreement is a basic rule in Italian: adjectives usually match the noun in gender and number.

Because di prestazione energetica is functioning as part of a fixed noun phrase: attestato di prestazione energetica.

This structure is common in Italian:

• certificato di nascita
• permesso di soggiorno
• carta di identità

In these cases, di + noun often works like of / for / relating to and does not necessarily require an article.

If you added an article, the meaning or feel could change, and it would sound less like the standard official name of the document.

Yes, validità means validity, but in practical contexts it often refers to whether something is still valid, in force, or not expired.

So in this sentence, la validità dell'attestato may mean things like:

• whether the certificate is still legally valid
• whether it has expired
• whether it is acceptable for official use

So although validity is the direct translation, the real-world meaning is often closer to current validity or whether it is still valid.

Because it is a word stressed on the final syllable, and in Italian such words usually take a written accent.

• validità

This is very common with nouns ending in -tà or -tù, such as:

• città
• università
• qualità
• necessità
• virtù

The accent shows both pronunciation and correct spelling.

It sounds fairly formal and bureaucratic/technical, mainly because of the phrase attestato di prestazione energetica.

This is exactly the kind of wording you might see in:

• official documents
• real estate contexts
• administrative websites
• professional communication

In more everyday speech, someone might simplify it:

• Controlliamo se l'APE è valido.
• Vediamo se il certificato è ancora valido.

These are less formal but express a similar idea.

No, the word order is very normal for Italian.

The structure is:

• Controlliamo = verb
• la validità = direct object
• dell'attestato di prestazione energetica = specification of what validity we are checking

So literally it is:

• We check the validity of the energy performance certificate

Italian often uses this kind of compact noun structure, especially in formal language. English sometimes prefers a slightly more verbal rephrasing, but the Italian order here is completely natural.

Yes:

• Controlliamo = We check / Let’s check
• la validità = the validity
• dell'attestato = of the certificate
• di prestazione energetica = of energy performance / energy performance

So the full structure is:

• Controlliamo
• la validità
• dell'attestato di prestazione energetica

A learner-friendly way to see it is:

• Let’s check
• the validity
• of the energy performance certificate

Not always. In many real situations, especially if the context is already clear, Italians often shorten it to APE.

So alongside the full sentence, you may also hear:

• Controlliamo la validità dell'APE.

This is very common in real estate and administrative contexts. The full version is still correct and often preferred when clarity or formality is important.