Abbiamo scelto l’arrosto anziché il pesce, perché era più fresco.

We chose the roast instead of the fish because it was fresher.

Breakdown of Abbiamo scelto l’arrosto anziché il pesce, perché era più fresco.

• essere: to be
• perché: because
• fresco: fresh
• noi: we

Questions & Answers about Abbiamo scelto l’arrosto anziché il pesce, perché era più fresco.

What does anziché mean and how is it different from invece di?

Anziché means “instead of” or “rather than,” introducing an alternative choice. It’s slightly more formal or literary than invece di, but both convey the same idea.

• anziché + noun/infinitive: Abbiamo scelto il vino anziché l’acqua.
• invece di + noun/infinitive: Abbiamo scelto il vino invece di (dell’)acqua.

Note: With invece di you often see the preposition + definite article (e.g. invece dell’acqua), whereas anziché can attach directly to the word that follows.

Why is there an apostrophe in l’arrosto?

In Italian, when the feminine singular definite article la or masculine singular article lo precedes a noun starting with a vowel, it elides to l’. Here arrosto starts with “a,” so lo arrosto becomes l’arrosto. Elision avoids a double vowel clash.

Why is pesce used without an article after anziché?

After prepositions (including anziché), the article is optional if you speak generally or refer to a category:

• anziché il pesce would specify “instead of the fish (we had in mind).”
• anziché pesce implies “instead of any fish, in general.”

In everyday speech you can omit the article when the meaning remains clear.