Breakdown of Scoprire un talento può portare speranza.
portare
to bring
potere
can
la speranza
the hope
scoprire
to discover
il talento
the talent
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Questions & Answers about Scoprire un talento può portare speranza.
Why is Scoprire used at the beginning of the sentence instead of a gerund or a noun?
In Italian the bare infinitive can function as a verbal noun, naming the action itself (“discovering”). A gerund like Scoprendo un talento può portare speranza would imply “while discovering,” focusing on simultaneity rather than the action as a concept. Using Scoprire makes “discovering a talent” the subject of the sentence in a general statement.
Why do we say un talento and not just talento or il talento?
Talento is a countable noun, so it normally needs an article. Un talento means “a talent,” emphasizing any talent in general. Omitting the article (Scoprire talento) sounds unnatural. Using il talento (“the talent”) would refer to talent in a more generic or abstract sense (“talent in general”), but here the idea is discovering a particular talent.
Why is the verb può in the third person singular?
The subject of the sentence is the entire infinitive phrase Scoprire un talento, which is treated grammatically as a singular entity. Therefore, the modal verb potere must agree in the third person singular: può.
Why is speranza used without an article?
Here speranza is an abstract, uncountable noun standing for “hope” in general. In Italian, abstract concepts often appear without an article when used broadly. If you wanted to speak of a specific hope, you could say la speranza, but in this general sense no article is needed.
Can we use dare instead of portare? Is there any nuance?
Yes. You can say Scoprire un talento può dare speranza. Both dare (“to give”) and portare (“to bring”/“to carry”) work here with almost the same effect. Portare slightly emphasizes leading or carrying hope into a situation, while dare is more directly “to give.”
Could we use the gerund Scoprendo instead of Scoprire?
Technically you could say Scoprendo un talento può portare speranza, but that construction implies “by discovering a talent, one brings hope” (focusing on the manner). For a general statement about the action itself, the infinitive (Scoprire) is preferred.
How would you say “Discovering a talent can bring hope to others” in Italian?
You add the indirect object phrase with a + article:
Scoprire un talento può portare speranza agli altri.
Here agli is the contraction of a + gli (“to the others”).