Breakdown of Domani mattina vado al supermercato con il mio amico.
io
I
la mattina
the morning
con
with
l'amico
the friend
andare
to go
il mio
my
domani
tomorrow
al
to
il supermercato
the supermarket
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Questions & Answers about Domani mattina vado al supermercato con il mio amico.
What do the words domani and mattina mean in this sentence?
Domani translates to "tomorrow" and mattina means "morning." Together, domani mattina specifies when the action is taking place, meaning "tomorrow morning."
Why is the present tense verb vado used even though the action is happening in the future?
Italian often uses the present tense to describe future events, especially when a clear time indicator like "domani mattina" is provided. The verb vado is the first person singular of andare (to go), so the sentence implies "I am going" (or simply "I go") tomorrow morning.
What does the contraction al in al supermercato represent, and why is it used here?
Al is a contraction that combines the preposition a (meaning "to") with the masculine singular definite article il (meaning "the"). Thus, al supermercato translates to "to the supermarket."
How is possession expressed in the phrase con il mio amico?
The phrase con il mio amico uses the possessive adjective il mio to mean "my." This construction, combined with amico (friend), translates as "with my friend."
Is it necessary to include an explicit subject pronoun in Italian sentences like this one?
No, it isn’t necessary because the verb conjugation already indicates the subject. In this case, vado clearly shows that the subject is the first person singular (I), so including io (I) would be redundant.