Breakdown of Il coraggio mi aiuta ad affrontare il giorno.
aiutare
to help
me
me
il giorno
the day
affrontare
to face
a
to
il coraggio
the courage
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Questions & Answers about Il coraggio mi aiuta ad affrontare il giorno.
What does mi mean, and why is it placed before aiuta in the sentence?
Mi is an indirect object pronoun meaning me in English. In Italian, clitic pronouns like mi are typically placed right before the conjugated verb—in this case, aiuta—to indicate who is benefiting from or affected by the action.
Why is the verb form aiuta in the third person singular?
Aiuta is the third person singular present tense form of aiutare (to help). Since the subject, Il coraggio (courage), is singular, the verb agrees with it in number. This subject–verb agreement is a standard grammatical requirement in Italian.
Why is the preposition ad used before affrontare instead of just a?
In Italian, the preposition a is used before the infinitive in constructions like aiutare qualcuno a fare qualcosa (to help someone do something). However, when the following word starts with a vowel—as affrontare does—the preposition often contracts to ad to ease pronunciation and maintain a smooth flow in speech.
How does the structure of the sentence illustrate the standard Italian construction for expressing help?
The sentence follows the pattern: Subject + indirect object pronoun + verb + preposition + infinitive phrase. Here, Il coraggio (subject) performs the action, mi (indirect object) receives the help, and aiuta ad affrontare il giorno tells us what action is being facilitated. This mirrors the common Italian construction aiutare qualcuno a fare qualcosa, which translates to “to help someone to do something.”
What is the role of the infinitive phrase ad affrontare il giorno in this sentence?
The infinitive phrase ad affrontare il giorno acts as the complement to the verb aiuta by specifying the action that is being helped. It explains that the help provided by Il coraggio is directed toward facing the day. This phrase structure is typical when expressing purpose or the outcome of an action in Italian.