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Questions & Answers about Altri bevono vino.
What part of speech is altri in this sentence and what does it mean?
altri is an indefinite pronoun in the masculine plural. It stands in for others or some other people and here functions as the subject of the verb.
Why isn’t there an article before vino?
When you talk about food or drink in a general, uncountable sense in Italian, you typically drop the article. So vino here just means wine in general, not the wine or a wine.
How is bevono formed? Is bere an irregular verb?
Yes, bere (to drink) is irregular. bevono is the third-person plural present indicative form. The full present-tense conjugation is:
• io bevo
• tu bevi
• lui/lei beve
• noi beviamo
• voi bevete
• loro bevono
Could you literally translate Altri bevono vino as “Others drink wine”?
Exactly. The most direct English equivalent is Others drink wine, meaning some people (others) drink wine.
What’s the difference between altri and gli altri?
• altri (without the article) means others in an indefinite, general sense.
• gli altri (with the definite article) means the others, referring to a specific group already mentioned.
When would you use altre instead of altri?
Use altre (feminine plural) when the people you’re talking about are all women or a feminine group. E.g. Altre bevono vino = Other (female) people drink wine.
How do you pronounce Altri bevono vino?
/ˈaltri ˈbɛvoːno ˈviːno/. Note the open e in bevono, similar to the e in English “bet.”