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Questions & Answers about La pioggia porta sfortuna.
Why is la used before pioggia?
Pioggia (“rain”) is a feminine singular noun, so it takes the feminine definite article la. Hence la pioggia = “the rain.”
Why is porta and not portano?
Porta is the third-person singular present indicative of portare (“to bring”). Our subject la pioggia is singular, so we use porta (“it brings”). Portano would be for a plural subject (“they bring”).
Why is there no article before sfortuna?
In the idiom portare sfortuna, sfortuna (“bad luck” or “misfortune”) is treated as an uncountable abstract noun. You generally omit the article in Italian when talking about abstract concepts in a general way.
What gender is sfortuna, and how would I say “the bad luck”?
Sfortuna is feminine. To say “the bad luck,” you would use la sfortuna.
Can I say porta molta sfortuna? What does molta do?
Yes. Molto (“much/a lot”) agrees in gender and number with the noun it qualifies. With feminine singular sfortuna, it becomes molta: porta molta sfortuna = “brings a lot of bad luck.” For “a bit of bad luck,” you’d say porta un po’ di sfortuna.
Is portare sfortuna a fixed expression? Could I say fare sfortuna?
Portare sfortuna is the standard collocation in Italian to mean “bring bad luck.” Fare sfortuna is not used idiomatically. Stick with portare sfortuna whenever you want to say something “brings bad luck.”
How do I make this sentence negative?
Place non before the verb:
La pioggia non porta sfortuna.
= “Rain does not bring bad luck.”
How would I turn it into a question like “Does rain bring bad luck?”
Simply use rising intonation or add a tag:
“La pioggia porta sfortuna?”
or
“La pioggia porta sfortuna, vero?”
Both mean “Does rain bring bad luck?” or “Rain brings bad luck, right?”
Why is sfortuna singular here? Could I say sfortune?
In the idiomatic phrase portare sfortuna, sfortuna remains singular because it refers to the general concept of bad luck. Using sfortune would imply individual unlucky events, but it’s not used with portare as a set expression.
How would I say “Rain will bring bad luck” in the future tense?
Use the future of portare:
La pioggia porterà sfortuna.
= “Rain will bring bad luck.”
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