Prima della verifica, la professoressa fa l’appello.

Before the test, the teacher calls the roll.

Breakdown of Prima della verifica, la professoressa fa l’appello.

• prima di: before
• la professoressa: the teacher
• la verifica: the test
• fare l'appello: to call the roll

Questions & Answers about Prima della verifica, la professoressa fa l’appello.

Why is it prima della verifica and not prima di verifica?

Because prima is followed by different structures depending on what comes next:

• prima di + infinitive
  
  • Prima di mangiare = before eating
• prima di + noun is also possible in some cases, but with a specific noun phrase introduced by an article, Italian normally uses the contracted form:
  • prima della verifica = before the test

Here, della = di + la.

So:

• la verifica = the test
• prima della verifica = before the test

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What exactly does verifica mean here?

In a school context, verifica usually means test, quiz, or assessment.

It is not exactly the same as every English word in every context, but here it refers to a school check of students’ knowledge.

A few related school words:

• verifica = test/quiz
• esame = exam
• interrogazione = oral test
• compito in classe = written in-class test

So in this sentence, verifica is best understood as a school test.

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Why does Italian use la professoressa instead of just ?