Learn Hardcore Italian: Il lampadario illumina bene la stanza, anche se è lontano dal tavolo. - The chandelier lights the room well, even though it is far from the table.

In Italian, the definite article (il, la, i, le) is used when you’re referring to something specific or already known to both speaker and listener. Here, il lampadario implies “the chandelier” you’re both aware of. If you wanted to introduce any chandelier in general, you would say un lampadario (“a chandelier”).

What type of verb is illumina, and why is it conjugated this way?

Illumina is the third-person singular present tense of the transitive verb illuminare (“to light, to illuminate”). Because the subject is il lampadario (he/it), we use illumina (he/it lights). If we had plural, it would be illuminano; for first person, illumino, and so on.

Why is the adverb bene placed after the verb illumina?

In Italian, simple adverbs of manner (like bene, male, velocemente) typically follow the verb they modify. So you say illumina bene (“lights well”) rather than bene illumina. This is the most neutral, common word order.

Why do we say la stanza with the article, instead of just stanza?

Italian almost always requires an article before a common noun unless it’s in certain headline-like contexts or after prepositions with names. Here, la stanza (“the room”) is a specific room already in focus. Dropping the article (stanza) would sound unnatural.

What is the role of anche se and why is the verb in the indicative (è lontano) rather than the subjunctive?

Anche se means “even if” or “although” and introduces a concession that is presented as a fact or a real condition. When you state a fact or something you believe to be true, you use the indicative (è). If you had used sebbene or nonostante, you could optionally switch to subjunctive (sia lontano), but with anche se it’s standard to stay in the indicative.

What does lontano da mean, and why is it dal tavolo?

Lontano da means “far from.” After da, if the next word is a masculine singular noun with il, they contract to dal (da + il → dal). So da il tavolo becomes dal tavolo (“from the table”). If it were feminine (la sedia), it would stay dalla sedia.

Could I switch the order of the clauses, and would it change the meaning?

Yes, you can say Anche se è lontano dal tavolo, il lampadario illumina bene la stanza. The meaning stays the same; you’re just placing the concessive clause first. In spoken Italian both orders are perfectly natural.