Breakdown of La presa non funzionava, perché avevano interrotto l’elettricità.
non
not
perché
because
funzionare
to work
la presa
the socket
interrompere
to cut
l’elettricità
the electricity
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Questions & Answers about La presa non funzionava, perché avevano interrotto l’elettricità.
What does presa mean in this context, and why is it feminine?
In Italian, presa here means “electrical outlet” or “plug socket.” It’s feminine because it comes from the verb prendere (“to take”), originally meaning “a place where you ‘take’ or ‘draw’ electricity.” All nouns derived from -a endings in Italian are usually feminine, hence la presa.
Why is non funzionava in the imperfect tense instead of the present tense (non funziona)?
The imperfect (funzionava) describes an ongoing or habitual state in the past—“it wasn’t working” over a period of time. If you said non funziona, you’d be talking about its current state in the present.
Why use the imperfect funzionava rather than the passato prossimo ha funzionato?
Ha funzionato (“it worked,” a completed action) would imply you’re talking about a specific instance when the outlet worked. Here, the speaker describes a continuous past condition: the outlet was not functioning at that time. The imperfect is the correct choice for background information or ongoing states in the past.
What’s the role of perché, and why is there a comma before it?
Perché means “because” here, introducing the cause of the outlet’s failure. In Italian, subordinate clauses of cause often follow a comma. The comma signals that you’re moving from the main statement (La presa non funzionava) to the explanatory clause (perché avevano interrotto l’elettricità).
Why is perché written with an accent on the second e?
The accent distinguishes perché (“because” or “why”) from any other form. Without the accent, the word doesn’t exist in Italian. Always write perché with an accent on the final é.
Why is avevano interrotto in the trapassato prossimo (past perfect)?
The trapassato prossimo (avevano interrotto) indicates an action that was completed before another past action or state. Here, “they had cut the electricity” happened first, and as a result, “the outlet wasn’t working” (imperfect) happened afterward.
Why use interrotto (the past participle of interrompere) instead of some other form?
To form the trapassato prossimo, you need the imperfect of the auxiliary verb (avere or essere) plus the past participle. Interrompere takes avere, so you get avevano + interrotto.
Why is l’elettricità written with an apostrophe?
Italian elides the definite article la before a vowel: la elettricità becomes l’elettricità. The apostrophe marks that the a of la has been dropped.