Breakdown of Il tecnico aiuta il turista.
aiutare
to help
il turista
the tourist
il tecnico
the technician
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Questions & Answers about Il tecnico aiuta il turista.
What does each word in the sentence “Il tecnico aiuta il turista.” mean?
Il is the masculine definite article meaning “the.” Tecnico means “technician.” Aiuta is the third person singular present form of aiutare, which means “to help.” Il turista means “the tourist.” Together, the sentence translates as “The technician helps the tourist.”
How is the sentence structured in terms of subject, verb, and object?
The sentence follows a typical Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) order. Il tecnico is the subject (who performs the action), aiuta is the verb (the action of helping), and il turista is the object (who receives the help).
Why are the definite articles “il” used before both nouns, unlike in some English constructions?
In Italian, definite articles are generally required with singular countable nouns to specify a particular person or thing. Even when English might sometimes omit articles in generic statements, Italian uses them to indicate clarity and specificity. Hence, both il tecnico and il turista include the article “il” because they refer to specific individuals in this context.
How is the verb “aiuta” conjugated and how does it agree with its subject?
Aiuta is the third person singular form of the regular verb aiutare in the present indicative tense. The ending “-a” shows that the verb agrees with a singular subject—in this case, il tecnico. In Italian, the verb ending changes to reflect the subject’s person and number.
Why isn’t a subject pronoun (like “lui”) included before the verb?
Italian often omits subject pronouns because the verb conjugation already makes it clear who the subject is. Since aiuta clearly indicates a third person singular subject, and il tecnico is explicitly stated, adding a pronoun like “lui” would be redundant unless used for extra emphasis.
Are there any gender agreements in this sentence, and how do they work?
Yes, both nouns in the sentence are masculine. The article il is used with masculine singular nouns. If the noun were feminine, you would see a different article (such as la). This agreement between the article and the noun in gender (and number) is a fundamental rule in Italian grammar.
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