Mi piace giocare a scacchi in giardino la sera.

I like to play chess in the garden in the evening.

Breakdown of Mi piace giocare a scacchi in giardino la sera.

• io: I
• in: in
• il giardino: the garden
• la sera: the evening
• piacere: to like
• giocare a scacchi: to play chess

Questions & Answers about Mi piace giocare a scacchi in giardino la sera.

Why do we say giocare a scacchi instead of giocare scacchi or giocare gli scacchi?

In Italian, the verb giocare when referring to games or sports always takes the preposition a before the noun. The fixed pattern is giocare a + sport/game (without an article). So you get giocare a calcio, giocare a tennis, giocare a scacchi.
If you do include an article, it must contract: a + gli → agli, giving giocare agli scacchi, but the most idiomatic form simply drops it: giocare a scacchi.

Why is giocare in the infinitive after mi piace?

When you express liking an action, Italian uses mi piace + infinitive because the thing that pleases you is the action itself, treated as a singular concept. Grammatically, the infinitive functions like a noun subject of piacere.
Example: Mi piace correre, Mi piace leggere.

When do I use mi piace versus mi piacciono?

With piacere, the verb agrees with what is liked:

• Use mi piace for a singular noun or any infinitive:
  • Mi piace il gelato
  • Mi piace giocare
• Use mi piacciono for plural nouns:
  • Mi piacciono i gelati
  • Mi piacciono gli scacchi

In our sentence the liked element is the activity giocare, so we use mi piace giocare.

Why do we say in giardino without an article, instead of nel giardino or in un giardino?

With certain location nouns, Italian omits the article after in or a to express a general or habitual place:
• in giardino (in the garden)
• in casa (at home)
• a scuola (at school)
Using nel giardino would point to a specific, enclosed garden. In un giardino means “in a garden” (some garden, not necessarily yours).

What is the role of la sera here, and could I say di sera instead?

Time-of-day nouns like la mattina, il pomeriggio, la sera, la notte can function adverbially with the definite article and no preposition, meaning “in the morning/evening/etc.”

• In giardino la sera = “in the garden in the evening.”
  You can also use di sera to indicate a regular habit:
• Di sera gioco a scacchi in giardino.
  Both are correct; la sera is simply more neutral.

Can I change the word order for emphasis, for example La sera mi piace giocare a scacchi in giardino?

Yes. Italian word order is flexible. You may front time or place adverbials for emphasis or style:
• La sera mi piace giocare a scacchi in giardino.
• Di sera in giardino mi piace giocare a scacchi.
The neutral sequence is Mi piace giocare a scacchi in giardino la sera, but moving la sera or in giardino is perfectly acceptable.

Could I simply say Mi piacciono gli scacchi instead of Mi piace giocare a scacchi?

Yes, Mi piacciono gli scacchi means “I like chess” (I like the game). Here you’re liking a plural noun (gli scacchi), so you use mi piacciono. If you want to focus on the activity of playing, you say Mi piace giocare a scacchi.

Why do we say mi piace and not io piace or mi piaci?

In Italian piacere works like “to be pleasing.” The person who likes something is the indirect object.
• mi = “to me” (indirect object pronoun)
• piace agrees with the thing pleasing (“the activity” or noun).
You don’t say io piace (wrong subject) or mi piaci (that form means “you please me”). To emphasize, you can add a me piace, but you never use io as the subject of piacere.