Senza crema solare, mi bruciavo facilmente sulla spiaggia.

Without sunscreen, I used to get sunburned easily on the beach.

Breakdown of Senza crema solare, mi bruciavo facilmente sulla spiaggia.

• io: I
• su: on
• senza: without
• la spiaggia: the beach
• la crema solare: the sunscreen
• bruciarsi: to get sunburned
• facilmente: easily

Questions & Answers about Senza crema solare, mi bruciavo facilmente sulla spiaggia.

Why is mi bruciavo in the imperfect tense instead of the present or a different past tense?

In Italian, the imperfetto (imperfect tense) describes repeated or habitual actions in the past. By using mi bruciavo, the speaker indicates that getting sunburned used to happen frequently or regularly whenever they went to the beach without sun cream.

What does placing Senza crema solare at the beginning of the sentence emphasize?

Starting the sentence with Senza crema solare (literally “Without sun cream”) emphasizes the condition that leads to the repeated outcome (getting sunburned). It’s a way of highlighting the main reason for the action that follows.

Can I say Senza crema solare, mi sono bruciato facilmente sulla spiaggia instead of mi bruciavo?

While mi sono bruciato is correct for a single completed instance (the passato prossimo) of getting sunburned, it doesn’t convey a repeated or habitual action. Mi bruciavo communicates that this happened repeatedly over time whenever sun cream was not used.

Why is facilmente used in this sentence?

Facilmente means “easily” and describes how readily the sunburn would occur. It modifies mi bruciavo, clarifying that the sunburn happened without much effort or resistance whenever the speaker was unprotected in the sun.