Breakdown of Telefoniamo al giornalista adesso.
adesso
now
noi
we
il giornalista
the journalist
a
to
telefonare
to call
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Questions & Answers about Telefoniamo al giornalista adesso.
Is telefoniamo an imperative or a simple present tense?
In Italian the first-person plural form of the present indicative (“noi telefoniamo”) coincides with the imperative used for suggestions (“let’s call”). Here, context tells you it’s a proposal: “let’s call the journalist now.”
Why is the subject pronoun noi omitted before telefoniamo?
Italian is a pro-drop language: verb endings tell you the subject. Telefoniamo already indicates “we.” You can add Noi for emphasis (Noi telefoniamo), but it’s not needed.
Why do we say telefoniamo al giornalista instead of telefoniamo il giornalista?
Telefonare is an intransitive verb that requires the preposition a before a person. You always “telephone to someone” — telefonare a qualcuno. That gives telefoniamo a il giornalista, which contracts to al giornalista.
What is the contraction al, and why do we use it here?
Al is a contraction of a + il. Since giornalista is a masculine noun requiring the definite article il, a + il becomes al.
How would you refer to a female journalist?
The noun giornalista ends in -ista and stays the same for both genders. You change the article: il giornalista for a man, la giornalista for a woman. So “let’s call the female journalist now” is Telefoniamo alla giornalista adesso.
Can we replace adesso with another time adverb, and where can it appear?
Yes, you can use ora or adesso interchangeably. Adesso is a bit more colloquial. You can place it at the beginning (Adesso telefoniamo al giornalista), in the middle (Telefoniamo adesso al giornalista), or at the end (Telefoniamo al giornalista adesso), though beginning or end are most common.
What’s the difference between telefonare and chiamare when talking on the phone?
Both can mean “to call,” but telefonare focuses on the act of phoning and is followed by a + person. Chiamare means “to call” in a broader sense (to call someone by name, to summon) and takes a direct object: chiamare qualcuno. You could say Chiamiamo il giornalista (we call the journalist), but note there’s no preposition in that case.