Io collego l’auricolare al telefono.

I connect the earphone to the phone.

Breakdown of Io collego l’auricolare al telefono.

• io: I
• a: to
• il telefono: the phone
• collegare: to connect
• l’auricolare: the earphone

Questions & Answers about Io collego l’auricolare al telefono.

Why is the subject pronoun io used when Italian often drops pronouns?

In Italian the verb ending usually tells you who the subject is, so pronouns can be omitted.
Including io here can:
• Emphasize I am the one doing the connecting (e.g. “Io collego…, tu rispondi…”).
• Clarify the subject in contexts where it might be ambiguous.

What does collego mean, and why does it end in -o?

• Collego is the first person singular present tense of collegare (“to connect”).
• Verbs ending in -are (first conjugation) form the io-form by replacing -are with -o.
• So collegare → collego means “I connect.”

Why is l’auricolare written with l’ instead of il?

When a masculine singular noun begins with a vowel, Italian uses the elision l’ instead of lo or il.
• Full article: il auricolare
• Elided form: l’ + auricolare → l’auricolare

What does al in al telefono stand for?

Al is the contraction of the preposition a (“to”) + definite article il (“the”).
So al telefono literally means “to the phone,” indicating the device you’re connecting to.

Can I replace l’auricolare with an object pronoun?

Yes. L’auricolare is a masculine singular direct object, so you use lo:
• Lo collego al telefono.
This means “I connect it to the phone.”

Can I change the word order to “Collego al telefono l’auricolare”?

Yes, Italian allows some flexibility.
• Collego l’auricolare al telefono is neutral word order.
• Collego al telefono l’auricolare shifts focus onto l’auricolare, perhaps to contrast with another object.

How does collegare differ from connettere?

Both mean “to connect,” but:
• Collegare often refers to physically plugging or wiring (e.g. plugging headphones into a jack).
• Connettere can also imply establishing a network or digital connection (e.g. connettere to the internet).
Example:
– Collego l’auricolare al jack.
– Mi connetto al Wi-Fi.