Breakdown of Porto il microfono per la lezione di musica.
io
I
di
of
per
for
portare
to bring
la musica
the music
la lezione
the lesson
il microfono
the microphone
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Questions & Answers about Porto il microfono per la lezione di musica.
What does porto mean, and why is it used here?
Porto is the first‐person singular present tense of portare, which means “to bring” or “to carry.” In Italian you say porto quando parli di ciò che io porto da un luogo a un altro. In English it corresponds to “I bring” or “I carry.”
Why don’t we say prendo instead of porto?
Prendere means “to take” in the sense of “pick up” or “grab.” If you say prendo il microfono, you’re implying “I pick up the microphone (from somewhere).” But if your focus is on bringing it with you to the music lesson, you use portare (porto).
What role does per play in per la lezione di musica? Could I use a?
- Per indicates purpose or “in order to” (just like English for). Here it means “for use in the music lesson.”
- If you use a (plus article, alla lezione), you shift to indicating motion or destination: “to the music lesson.”
Both are correct but with a subtle nuance:
• Porto il microfono per la lezione di musica. (I bring the mic for the lesson.)
• Porto il microfono alla lezione di musica. (I bring the mic to the lesson.)
Why are there definite articles il before microfono and la before lezione?
In Italian, you almost always use the definite article before a noun when you speak in general or about a known object:
• il microfono = “the microphone” (the one you or your teacher knows about)
• la lezione = “the lesson” (the scheduled music class)
In English we often drop “the” (“I bring microphone”), but in Italian you keep it.
Could I say un microfono instead of il microfono?
Yes. Un microfono is the indefinite form, “a microphone,” implying any mic. Use it if the specific identity of the mic isn’t important. Using il microfono implies “the microphone we already know about or have agreed on.”
Why do we say lezione di musica and not lezione della musica?
- Lezione di musica = “lesson of music,” where di introduces the subject or topic.
- Lezione della musica would literally read “lesson of the music,” implying a specific piece of music or mass topic, which is unnatural here.
So for school subjects or general topics you use lezione di + subject.
Can I drop the article and say porto microfono per lezione di musica?
No. Unless you use certain fixed expressions like andare a lezione, you need the article: il microfono and la lezione di musica. Without them, the sentence sounds ungrammatical.
How do you pronounce microfono, and what gender is it?
- Pronunciation: mi-cro-FO-no (stress on the penultimate syllable).
- Gender: masculine, so you use il (singular) and i (plural: i microfoni).