Learn Hardcore Italian: Il falegname carteggia il graffio e poi ridipinge il corrimano. - The carpenter sands the scratch and then repaints the hand-rail.

falegname is a masculine noun meaning “carpenter.” In this sentence it refers to the person performing the work. In Italian, job titles usually take the definite article when you speak about a specific person or role—hence il falegname.

What does carteggia mean, and how is it conjugated?

carteggia is the third-person singular, present indicative of carteggiare, which means “to sand” (literally “to sandpaper”). Because carteggiare is an -are verb, its present indicative endings are: • io carteggio
• tu carteggi
• lui/lei carteggia

Why does ridipinge end with -e instead of -a?

ridipinge comes from ridipingere (“to repaint”), an -ere verb. In the present indicative third person singular, -ere verbs end in -e (e.g. lui prende, lei scrive), so we have lui/lei ridipinge.

What is the role of the prefix ri- in ridipingere?

The prefix ri- means “again.” Thus ridipingere literally means “to paint again” (repaint). Without the prefix, dipingere simply means “to paint.”