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Questions & Answers about Un orologio rotto non funziona.
Why is the adjective rotto placed after orologio instead of before it?
In Italian, most adjectives normally follow the noun they modify (e.g., orologio rotto). Unlike English, where adjectives almost always come before nouns, Italian places descriptive adjectives after in neutral statements. Putting rotto before orologio is possible but adds emphasis or stylistic nuance.
Why do we say un orologio and not uno orologio?
Italian has two masculine singular indefinite articles: un and uno. Use uno before nouns starting with s+consonant (e.g., uno studente), z (e.g., uno zaino), gn, ps, etc. For all other masculine nouns—including those beginning with a vowel like orologio—you use un.
Why is there only one article in un orologio rotto instead of another before rotto?
The article un covers the entire noun phrase orologio rotto. You don’t repeat the article before the adjective. Rotto here is a past participle functioning as an adjective modifying orologio, so only one article is needed.
Why is the subject pronoun omitted before non funziona?
Italian is a “pro-drop” language, meaning subject pronouns (like lui, lei, or esso) are often omitted when the verb ending already indicates the subject. Funziona (third-person singular) clearly refers to “it” (the watch), so no pronoun is required.
Why is non placed before funziona instead of after it?
In standard Italian negation, non must precede the conjugated verb to negate it. Placing non after the verb would be ungrammatical in modern Italian.
Why is funzionare used here? Could I use lavorare or marciare instead?
Funzionare is the usual verb for “to work” when talking about machines, devices, or systems. Lavorare generally means “to work” in the sense of people working or operating something, and marciare (literally “to march”) is archaic or poetic for “to run/function.”
Why does rotto agree in gender and number? Would it ever change to rotta, rotti, or rotte?
As a past participle used adjectivally, rotto agrees with the noun it modifies. Here orologio is masculine singular, so rotto remains masculine singular. For multiple watches you’d say orologi rotti (masculine plural), and for a feminine noun you’d use rotta/rotte accordingly.
Could I say L’orologio rotto non funziona instead? What’s the difference?
Yes. L’orologio rotto non funziona means “The broken watch doesn’t work,” using the definite article l’ for a specific watch. Un orologio rotto non funziona means “A broken watch doesn’t work,” speaking about any broken watch in general.