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Metto la scacchiera sul tavolo.

Metto la scacchiera sul tavolo.
I put the chessboard on the table.
FromLesson 53inHardcore Italian

Breakdown of Metto la scacchiera sul tavolo.

io
I
su
on
il tavolo
the table
mettere
to put
la scacchiera
the chessboard

Questions & Answers about Metto la scacchiera sul tavolo.

Why is there no io before metto?
In Italian, subject pronouns are usually omitted because the verb ending already tells you who the subject is. Here metto is the first-person singular present of mettere (“to put”), so io (“I”) is understood and not needed.
What is the infinitive form of metto, and what does it mean?
The infinitive is mettere, which means “to put” or “to place.” Metto is its “I put” form in the present tense.
Why do we say la scacchiera instead of just scacchiera?
Italian typically requires a definite article before common nouns. Scacchiera (“chessboard”) is feminine singular, so you use the article la.
What is the gender and number of scacchiera and tavolo?
Scacchiera ends in –a, so it’s feminine singular (hence la scacchiera). Tavolo ends in –o, so it’s masculine singular (hence il tavolo).
Why is it sul tavolo instead of su il tavolo?
Sul is a contraction of the preposition su (“on”) + the masculine singular article il (“the”). Instead of saying su il tavolo, you combine them into sul tavolo.
Could I use sopra instead of su?
Yes. Sopra also means “on” or “above.” You could say sopra il tavolo (or sopra il tavolo metto la scacchiera), but su + article (giving sul) is more common in everyday speech.
Can I replace la scacchiera with a pronoun?
Absolutely. You’d say La metto sul tavolo, where la stands for la scacchiera. In Italian, object pronouns come before the verb in most tenses.
Is the word order flexible here?
Yes. The neutral order is Subject-Verb-Object-Location: (Io) metto la scacchiera sul tavolo. If you want to emphasize the place, you can front it: Sul tavolo metto la scacchiera. Both are correct.
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