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Questions & Answers about Il mio cugino preferisce guidare l’auto in città, ma io preferisco camminare.
Why do we say il mio cugino instead of just mio cugino?
In Italian, you typically use the definite article (il, la, i, le) before possessive adjectives when referring to family members, except in certain cases like singular unmodified family members (e.g., mio padre, mia madre). However, many speakers do still include the article, especially for emphasis or clarity. In this sentence, il mio cugino emphasizes “my cousin” more distinctly than just mio cugino.
What’s the function of guidare l’auto in this sentence?
Guidare l’auto literally means to drive the car. Including l’auto after guidare clarifies what is being driven. In casual Italian, one might just say guidare if the context is already clear, but specifying l’auto adds precision and can also sound more natural in certain contexts.
Why do we say in città and not something like alla città?
In Italian, the preposition in is typically used to indicate “inside” or “within” a place, especially for larger or less specific areas like in città, in Italia, or in Europa. A would be used for more precise locations, such as vado a Roma (I go to Rome). Here, in città focuses on being within the city’s environment.
What is the structure of preferire + infinitive?
Preferire is followed directly by an infinitive (without any preposition). So you say preferire fare qualcosa (“to prefer to do something”). In the sentence, we have preferisce guidare and preferisco camminare. In English, we often insert “to” (to drive, to walk), whereas in Italian the infinitive standalone is used.
Could I just say ma preferisco camminare instead of ma io preferisco camminare?
Yes, you could. In Italian, subject pronouns (like io, tu, lui, lei) are often omitted because the verb form indicates the subject. Using io can add emphasis or make a clearer contrast—here it highlights that I prefer walking, as opposed to my cousin who prefers driving.
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