Breakdown of Ci sono sei libri sul tavolo.
essere
to be
su
on
il tavolo
the table
il libro
the book
ci
there
sei
six
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Questions & Answers about Ci sono sei libri sul tavolo.
What does ci sono mean in this sentence?
Ci sono is the impersonal Italian equivalent of English “there are.” It indicates the existence of multiple items in a place.
Why do we use ci sono instead of c’è here?
C’è (short for ci è) is used for singular nouns (“there is”), while ci sono is for plural nouns (“there are”). Since libri is plural, you need ci sono.
What is the role of ci in ci sono?
Here ci is an adverbial pronoun meaning “there.” Combined with sono (the third-person plural of essere, “to be”), it creates the fixed expression “there are.”
How can you tell that sei is the number six and not the verb “you are”?
Context. After sei you have the noun libri, so it must be the numeral “six.” If it were the verb “you are,” the sentence structure and meaning would break down.
Why is there no article before libri after sei?
In Italian, when a noun is quantified by a number, you omit the indefinite article. So you say sei libri (“six books”), not sei un libri.
Why do we say sul tavolo instead of su il tavolo or sulla tavola?
- Sul is the contraction of su
- il, required because tavolo is masculine singular.
- Tavolo is the common word for the piece of furniture “table.” Tavola usually refers to the tabletop used for meals or a flat board.
Can you rearrange the sentence to Sul tavolo ci sono sei libri?
Yes. Placing Sul tavolo first emphasizes the location. Both Ci sono sei libri sul tavolo and Sul tavolo ci sono sei libri mean “There are six books on the table.”
Could you use ci stanno instead of ci sono for a plural location?
Colloquially some speakers say ci stanno (from stare, “to stay”) to indicate where things are placed, but standard Italian uses ci sono for “there are.”