Question 1

Why is it fa riscrivere? What grammar is that?

Accepted Answer

It’s the causative construction with fare: fare + infinitive means “to make/have someone do something.” Here, La professoressa mi fa riscrivere = “The teacher makes/has me rewrite.” The subject (the teacher) causes someone else (me) to perform the action (rewrite).

Question 2

Why does mi come before fa and not after riscrivere?

Accepted Answer

Clitic pronouns like mi normally go before the conjugated verb (fa). In the causative, the pronoun referring to the person who performs the action (the “causee”) attaches to the conjugated fare, not to the infinitive:
- Correct: La professoressa mi fa riscrivere...
- Not for this meaning: La professoressa fa riscrivermi... (that would mean “makes someone rewrite it for me,” changing the meaning).

Question 3

Is mi here a direct or an indirect object?

Accepted Answer

Functionally, it’s the person who carries out the action (the “causee”). With the causative:
- If the infinitive has its own direct object expressed, the causee is usually indirect: Gli faccio leggere il libro (“I make him read the book”).
- If the infinitive has no direct object, the causee tends to be direct: Lo faccio lavorare (“I make him work”).
With mi, the form looks the same in both roles, but the underlying pattern still applies (here the infinitive has a direct object, la trama, so “a me” is the idea).

Question 4

Could I say fa di riscrivere?

Accepted Answer

No. The causative uses fare + infinitive with no preposition: fa riscrivere, not fa di riscrivere.

Question 5

Can I use a me instead of mi?

Accepted Answer

Yes, for emphasis or contrast: La professoressa fa riscrivere la trama a me (“…to me”). In neutral style, the clitic mi is preferred: …mi fa riscrivere…

Question 6

How do I replace la trama with a pronoun?

Accepted Answer

Use la. Two common options:
- La professoressa me la fa riscrivere.
- La professoressa mi fa riscriverla.
Both are acceptable; many find the first smoother when two clitics appear.

Question 7

How does this work in the past? Any tricky agreement?

Accepted Answer

- Neutral past: La professoressa mi ha fatto riscrivere la trama.
- With a clitic object: Me l’ha fatto riscrivere.
In careful usage with causative fare, the past participle fatto often stays invariable. In everyday speech, you’ll also hear agreement with a preceding direct object pronoun: Me l’ha fatta riscrivere. Both occur; keeping fatto invariable is the safest choice in formal writing.

Question 8

Can mi ever attach to the infinitive (riscrivermi) in this sentence?

Accepted Answer

Not to mean “makes me rewrite.” Riscrivermi would make mi the object of riscrivere (“rewrite for me/to me”), so fa riscrivermi la trama would mean “makes [someone] rewrite the plot for me,” which is a different meaning.

Question 9

Why con meno errori? Do I need di?

Accepted Answer

- Con meno errori = “with fewer errors.” Meno is invariable and works with count and mass nouns.
- You only add a comparator when you specify one: con meno errori di prima / rispetto a prima (“than before”).
- You can also say con il minor numero possibile di errori or the colloquial con meno errori possibile (“with as few errors as possible”).

Question 10

Is there a difference between errori and sbagli?

Accepted Answer

Both mean “mistakes,” but:
- Errori is a bit more formal/neutral and fits academic contexts well.
- Sbagli is more colloquial.
So con meno errori is perfect here.

Question 11

Does trama mean plot or summary?

Accepted Answer

Trama is the story’s plot. If you mean a “summary,” use riassunto:
- La professoressa mi fa riscrivere il riassunto = “The teacher makes me rewrite the summary.”

Question 12

Why la professoressa and not just professoressa?

Accepted Answer

Professions in Italian normally take the definite article in this kind of sentence. Alternatives:
- L’insegnante (gender-neutral noun; article shows gender: l’insegnante can be feminine or masculine depending on context).
- Il professore (male), la professoressa (female).
Colloquially, students often say la prof.

Question 13

Is riscrivere di nuovo redundant?

Accepted Answer

Yes—ri- already means “again.” Riscrivere di nuovo is common in speech for emphasis, but riscrivere alone is enough.

Question 14

Could I say meglio instead of con meno errori?

Accepted Answer

Yes, with a slightly different nuance:
- …mi fa riscrivere la trama meglio (“…makes me rewrite the plot better”) is broader.
- …con meno errori targets accuracy specifically.

Question 15

What if the teacher lets me rewrite it (not makes me)?

Accepted Answer

Use lasciare (to let/allow):
- La professoressa mi lascia riscrivere la trama.
Or for permission/request: La professoressa mi fa riscrivere la trama? would not mean “lets me”; it still means “makes/has me.”

Question 16

Can I move parts of the sentence around?

Accepted Answer

Within limits. These are natural:
- La professoressa mi fa riscrivere la trama con meno errori.
- Mi fa riscrivere la trama con meno errori (la professoressa). (Subject recoverable from context.)
Avoid splitting clitics incorrectly (e.g., not Mi la professoressa…). When pronominalizing both “me” and “it,” the order before the verb is me la: La professoressa me la fa riscrivere.

La professoressa mi fa riscrivere la trama con meno errori.

Breakdown of La professoressa mi fa riscrivere la trama con meno errori.

Questions & Answers about La professoressa mi fa riscrivere la trama con meno errori.

More from this lesson

Master Italian — from La professoressa mi fa riscrivere la trama con meno errori to fluency