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Questions & Answers about Una bambina stringe il peluche e lo consegna al controllore.
Why is una used before bambina and not la?
Una is the indefinite article for feminine singular nouns (a/an in English). It indicates “a girl” rather than “the girl.” If you knew exactly which girl (e.g. one mentioned before), you’d use la bambina (“the girl”).
What does stringe mean in this sentence?
Stringe is the third-person singular present tense of stringere, which here means “to hold tightly” or “to squeeze.” So una bambina stringe il peluche means “a little girl holds the stuffed toy tightly.”
Why is il peluche used instead of un peluche?
Using il (the definite article) suggests a specific stuffed toy known in the context (e.g. the one she’s carrying). If you wanted to introduce it for the first time with no prior reference, you could say una bambina stringe un peluche.
What is peluche and why is it masculine?
Peluche is a loanword from French meaning “stuffed toy” or “teddy bear.” In Italian it’s treated as a masculine noun (hence il peluche, un peluche).
Why do we see lo before consegna, and what does it refer to?
Lo is the direct-object pronoun for masculine singular nouns (“it” in English). Here it refers back to il peluche. In Italian, clitic object pronouns typically come before the finite verb: lo consegna means “she hands it over.”
Why is it al controllore instead of a il controllore?
Italian contracts the preposition a + definite article il into al (just like a + lo → allo, etc.). So al controllore means “to the inspector.”
What does consegnare mean, and is it always “to hand over”?
Consegnare can mean “to deliver,” “to hand over,” “to turn in,” or “to surrender” depending on context. Here it means “to hand something to someone” (the girl handing her toy to the ticket inspector).
Could the sentence be reordered to place the pronoun after the verb?
Not with a finite verb in standard Italian. Clitic pronouns precede finite verbs (lo consegna). However, with an infinitive, gerund, or imperative you can attach: deve consegnarlo (“she has to hand it over”), consegnandolo (“by handing it over”), consegnalo! (“hand it over!”).