Learn Hardcore Italian: Sebbene l’hula-hoop sembri pesante, lei è molto abile e non lo fa mai cadere. - Although the hula hoop looks heavy, she is very skilful and never lets it fall.

Sebbene is a subordinating conjunction meaning “although” or “even though.” It introduces a concessive clause and in Italian normally requires the subjunctive mood in the subordinate verb.

Why is the verb sembri in the present subjunctive rather than the indicative sembra?

Because sebbene triggers the subjunctive. The form sembri is the third-person singular present subjunctive of sembrare (“to seem”).

Why do we write l’hula-hoop with an apostrophe instead of il hula-hoop?

Foreign words starting with a silent h are treated like they begin with a vowel in Italian. Since hula-hoop is considered masculine (corresponding to il cerchio), il contracts to l’, giving l’hula-hoop.

Who does lei refer to in the sentence? The hoop or a person?

Here lei refers to a female person (the performer) who is skilled at using the hoop. It does not refer to l’hula-hoop—that object is instead referenced by the pronoun lo.

Why is lo used before fa and what does it refer to?

Lo is the masculine direct-object pronoun referring back to l’hula-hoop. In Italian, object pronouns generally precede the conjugated verb, hence non lo fa.

What does the construction far cadere mean, and why is it used here?

Far cadere is a causative construction formed with fare + infinitive, meaning “to make something fall” or more loosely “to drop.” The sentence says she never lets it drop (i.e. she keeps it up), so fa cadere highlights her action (or rather her ability to prevent it).

Why is mai placed between fa and cadere in non lo fa mai cadere?

In Italian, the negator non comes before the verb group, and frequency adverbs like mai usually follow the first verb (or any preceding object pronoun). Thus non lo fa mai cadere means “she never makes it fall.”

Could we replace sebbene with anche se, and what would change?

Yes, anche se also means “even if” or “although,” but it takes the indicative rather than the subjunctive (e.g. anche se l’hula-hoop sembra pesante). Sebbene is more formal and specifically calls for the subjunctive (sembri).