Se Paolo finisse tardi, gli terrei da parte un po’ di zuppa di ceci.

Finisse is the imperfetto congiuntivo of finire.

It is used because this sentence expresses a hypothetical condition, not a straightforward real one. In Italian, a common pattern for this kind of situation is:

• se + imperfetto congiuntivo
• condizionale in the main clause

So:

• Se Paolo finisse tardi, gli terrei... = If Paolo were to finish late, I’d keep...

If you said Se Paolo finisce tardi, that would sound more like a real, open possibility: If Paolo finishes late...

Not every se clause takes the subjunctive, but this hypothetical pattern does.

Terrei is the condizionale semplice of tenere.

It matches the hypothetical if clause. In this structure, Italian pairs:

• Se Paolo finisse...
• gli terrei...

This is the standard way to say If X happened, I would do Y.

Compare:

• Se Paolo finisse tardi, gli terrei da parte...
  hypothetical / imagined

• Se Paolo finisce tardi, gli terrò da parte...
  more real / likely future situation

So terrei is there because the result is also presented as conditional: I would keep some aside for him.

Not necessarily. Even though it is called imperfetto and looks like a past form, here it does not mainly express past time.

In this sentence, finisse is part of a hypothetical structure referring to a present or future possibility.

So the sentence usually means something like:

• If Paolo were to finish late...
• If Paolo finished late... in the English hypothetical sense

This is similar to English, where If he finished late, I’d save him some soup is not really about the past either.

Here gli means to him or, more naturally in English, for him. It refers to Paolo.

So:

• gli terrei da parte = I’d keep aside for him / I’d save for him

Italian often uses an indirect object pronoun in places where English might prefer for him.

Because gli is a clitic pronoun, and clitic pronouns normally come before a conjugated verb in Italian.

So:

• gli terrei = correct

Not:

• terrei gli = incorrect here

This is the normal pattern with forms like:

• gli do
• ti scrivo
• le parlo
• gli terrei

A useful rule is: with a normal finite verb, short object pronouns usually go in front.

Tenere da parte is an expression meaning:

• to keep aside
• to set aside
• to save for later

So gli terrei da parte un po’ di zuppa di ceci means that the speaker would save some chickpea soup for Paolo.

The words da parte literally suggest to one side, but as an expression the whole phrase is idiomatic.

They do two different jobs.

• un po’ di = a little / some
• zuppa di ceci = chickpea soup or literally soup of chickpeas

So:

• first di introduces the quantity
• second di tells you what kind of soup it is

You can think of it as:

• some
  • soup of chickpeas

This is completely normal in Italian.

Because po’ is a shortened form of poco.

So the correct spelling is:

• un po’

not:

• un pò

The apostrophe shows that something has been dropped. This is a very common spelling point for learners.

You could also say:

• un poco di

but un po’ di is more common in everyday Italian.

It literally means to finish late.

That usually implies finishing something such as:

• work
• a meeting
• dinner
• a class
• an activity in general

So the idea is probably If Paolo finishes late...

If you wanted to say arrive late, you would usually use arrivare tardi instead. So finire tardi is specifically about something ending late, not simply about Paolo showing up late.

Because Italian often leaves out subject pronouns when they are already clear from the verb ending.

Terrei already tells you the subject is I.

So:

• gli terrei da parte... = I would keep some aside for him

Adding io is possible, but it usually adds emphasis or contrast:

• Io gli terrei da parte un po’ di zuppa di ceci
  = I would save him some chickpea soup

Without emphasis, leaving out io is the most natural choice.