La sfida più grande sarà completare l’escursione senza fermarsi.

The greatest challenge will be to complete the hike without stopping.

Breakdown of La sfida più grande sarà completare l’escursione senza fermarsi.

• essere: to be
• l'escursione: the hike
• la sfida: the challenge
• grande: great
• più: most
• completare: to complete
• senza: without
• fermarsi: to stop

Questions & Answers about La sfida più grande sarà completare l’escursione senza fermarsi.

Why is sarà used here instead of è?

In Italian, sarà (the future tense of essere) indicates a future event or situation (what will be). Using è would make it sound like a statement about the present. Since we’re talking about a challenge that will occur in the future, we use the future tense sarà.

Why do we use the infinitive completare instead of a conjugated form?

After certain verbs or phrases that express a plan, intention, or necessity (like sarà, meaning the situation “will be” something), Italian often pairs them with an infinitive. Here, completare remains in its infinitive form because it’s acting like the noun phrase “to complete” rather than as a finite verb in the sentence.

Could we say senza fermare instead of senza fermarsi?

No. Fermarsi is reflexive and means “to stop oneself.” In this context, the movement or action is being stopped by the person themself, not an external force. Fermare without the reflexive usually means “to stop something or someone else.”

What does senza mean in this context, and how does it affect the verb?

Senza translates to without. Whenever senza comes before a verb, that verb stays in the infinitive form. The phrase senza fermarsi literally means “without stopping” (oneself).

Why is più grande used instead of something like grande or grandissima?

Più grande is a comparative/superlative construction meaning biggest or greatest in this context. While grande just means big or great, più grande sets it apart as the biggest or most significant challenge. Grandissima is another valid form (meaning very big/great), but it doesn’t create exactly the same comparison or emphasis as più grande does.