Breakdown of L’allarme suona se apro la finestra di notte.
Questions & Answers about L’allarme suona se apro la finestra di notte.
Italian uses the zero-conditional structure for general truths or automatic consequences. Both verbs stay in the present to express “If X happens, Y happens.” Even if the result is future-oriented, you still use the present:
• suona = “it rings/ sounds”
• apro = “I open”
Di notte is an adverbial phrase meaning “during the night.” When expressing when something happens in Italian, you often use di + time period:
• di giorno = “by day,” “in daytime”
• di notte = “by night,” “at night”
You wouldn’t say la notte as a temporal adverb; la notte by itself is the noun “the night.”
Yes. Italian allows both orders:
• L’allarme suona se apro la finestra di notte.
• Se apro la finestra di notte, l’allarme suona.
Swapping just shifts the emphasis; both mean the same.
In Italian, verbs like aprire take a direct object without any preposition. You open something directly. So:
• Aprire la finestra = “to open the window.”
You only add a preposition if you open something to someone or with something, etc.
Because the subject of the verb is l’allarme, which is third person singular. You match the verb form to the subject:
• l’allarme (he/it) → suona