Un bambino ride in strada.

the street

Breakdown of Un bambino ride in strada.

• in: in
• il bambino: the child
• ridere: to laugh

Questions & Answers about Un bambino ride in strada.

Why does the sentence use un bambino instead of il bambino?

In Italian, un bambino means a child (an unspecified child), whereas il bambino means the child (a specific, known child). Here, using the indefinite article un suggests we’re talking about an unnamed or previously unmentioned child rather than a specific boy we’ve already identified.

Why is it ride instead of something like sta ridendo?

In Italian, the simple present tense (lui/lei ride) can describe an action happening right now or a habitual action. If we want to emphasize the ongoing nature (as in "is laughing"), we can use sta ridendo. But in everyday usage, ride can already mean "he is laughing" in context, without needing the continuous form.

Does ride translate directly to laughs, or can it have slightly different meanings?

The verb ridere usually means "to laugh." In Italian, ride is simply "he/she laughs." It doesn’t carry many other meanings by itself, so it’s straightforward here: the child is laughing.

How does in strada differ from something like per strada or sulla strada?

In strada emphasizes being physically out in the road or street, often with a nuance of being outside where people and traffic pass. Per strada can mean "along the way" or "on the street while going somewhere," and sulla strada suggests "on top of the road surface" (often used in contexts like "there’s something on the road"). The choice depends on the exact context and nuance you want.