Faccio una telefonata veloce a mia madre prima di uscire.

I make a quick phone call to my mother before going out.

Breakdown of Faccio una telefonata veloce a mia madre prima di uscire.

• io: I
• veloce: quick
• prima di: before
• la mia: my
• la madre: the mother
• uscire: to go out
• fare: to make
• a: to
• la telefonata: the phone call

Questions & Answers about Faccio una telefonata veloce a mia madre prima di uscire.

What does Faccio mean in this sentence?

Faccio is the first-person singular present form of the verb fare, which means “to do” or “to make.” In this context, it indicates that the speaker is making a phone call.

Why is the adjective veloce placed after telefonata, and what does it imply?

In Italian, adjectives can appear either before or after the noun, depending on emphasis and style. Here, veloce (meaning “quick”) follows telefonata to describe the call as being brief. This placement is typical for adjectives that describe a characteristic of the noun.

Why do we use the preposition a before mia madre, and why is there no article with mia?

The preposition a is used to indicate the person to whom the action is directed—in this case, the recipient of the phone call. When referring to close family members in Italian, the possessive adjective (here, mia) is used without a definite article. This is a common construction when talking about immediate family.

How does the phrase prima di uscire function grammatically in the sentence?

The phrase prima di uscire means “before leaving.” It is a prepositional phrase constructed with prima di (“before”) followed by the infinitive uscire (“to leave”), establishing the time frame that the phone call happens prior to leaving.

Is using the simple present tense faccio appropriate for describing an action that seems to occur in the near future?

Yes, in Italian it is common to use the simple present to refer to near-future actions when the context makes the timing clear. Even though the call happens before leaving—a future point in time—the present tense is naturally used to express such sequences in everyday speech.

Could the noun telefonata be replaced with chiamata, and what would be the nuance between them?

Both telefonata and chiamata refer to a phone call, but there is a subtle difference. Telefonata emphasizes the act of making the call, while chiamata can refer more generally to calling or being called. In this sentence, telefonata clearly indicates that the speaker is initiating a quick call to his or her mother.