Breakdown of Svuota la pattumiera ogni sera, altrimenti la casa avrà un cattivo odore.
avere
to have
tu
you
ogni
every
la casa
the house
la sera
the evening
altrimenti
otherwise
svuotare
to empty
la pattumiera
the trash can
l'odore
the smell
cattivo
bad
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Italian grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Svuota la pattumiera ogni sera, altrimenti la casa avrà un cattivo odore.
What does svuota mean, and why is it in the imperative form?
svuota is the imperative (command) form of the verb svuotare, which means “to empty.” It is used here to give a direct instruction to someone (informally) to empty the trash can.
What does la pattumiera refer to in English?
la pattumiera translates to “the trash can” or “waste bin.” It identifies the item that needs to be emptied.
What does ogni sera indicate in this sentence?
ogni sera means “every evening.” It specifies how often the action of emptying the trash can should be performed.
What role does altrimenti play in this sentence?
altrimenti means “otherwise.” It introduces a consequence clause, indicating that if the command is not followed, there will be an undesirable outcome.
Why is the future tense avrà used in the phrase la casa avrà un cattivo odore?
avrà is the future form of the verb avere (“to have”). It is used to state the consequence that if you do not empty the trash can, the house will eventually have a bad smell. The future tense emphasizes that the result will occur later.
What does un cattivo odore mean, and is there any significance to its structure?
un cattivo odore translates to “a bad smell.” The adjective cattivo (bad) paired with odore (smell) clearly describes the unpleasant quality. In Italian, adjectives can be placed either before or after the noun; in this case, the structure effectively conveys the negative characteristic of the odor.
Why is there a comma before altrimenti in the sentence?
The comma is used to separate the two parts of the sentence—the command clause (Svuota la pattumiera ogni sera) and the consequence clause (altrimenti la casa avrà un cattivo odore). This punctuation clarifies the structure and shows the conditional relationship between the action and its outcome.