Breakdown of Dopo che le foto saranno state stampate, le conserveremo in un quaderno a spirale.
in
in
noi
we
la foto
the photo
le
them
il quaderno
the notebook
conservare
to keep
stampare
to print
dopo che
after
spirale
spiral
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Questions & Answers about Dopo che le foto saranno state stampate, le conserveremo in un quaderno a spirale.
What is the tense and structure of saranno state stampate?
It’s the future perfect passive. You form it with:
- the future tense of essere (saranno)
- the past participle of essere (state)
- the past participle of the main verb (stampate)
Literally it means “will have been printed.”
Why are there two past participles (state stampate) instead of just one?
In Italian the perfect passive is a “double compound.” First you use essere plus its participle to create the passive auxiliary (e.g. sono state = “have been”), then you add the past participle of the main verb (stampate). When you shift “sono” to the future (“saranno”), you keep both participles: saranno state stampate = “will have been printed.”
Why use dopo che + future perfect rather than quando + future?
Dopo che (after) indicates that one action must be fully completed before the next begins. Standard Italian requires dopo che + future perfect for a future event that will already be over. Quando can be used for “when” but isn’t typically used with the future perfect to express “after X has happened.”
Could we shorten “Dopo che le foto saranno state stampate” using an infinitive?
Yes. A very common alternative is:
“Dopo aver stampato le foto, le conserveremo…”
Here dopo aver stampato is an infinitival clause meaning “after having printed.”
What does in un quaderno a spirale literally mean, and why that preposition?
In un quaderno means “inside a notebook.” You place the photos between its pages. A spirale describes the binding (“spiral-bound”). You wouldn’t say su un quaderno (“on a notebook”) because you’re storing items inside it.
Why is the object pronoun le placed before conserveremo?
In Italian, direct-object pronouns (mi, ti, lo/la, ci, vi, li/le) come before a finite verb. Here le replaces le foto (feminine plural), so even in the future you say le conserveremo (“we will keep them”).
Could we say quaderno spiralato instead of quaderno a spirale?
No. Quaderno a spirale is the standard expression for “spiral notebook.” Spiralato is not used in this context. You might hear quaderno con spirale, but a spirale is more concise and idiomatic.