È da ieri che la tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista per il segretario.

È da ieri che ... is a very common Italian pattern used to emphasize the starting point of an action or situation.

Here, È da ieri che la tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista... means something like:

• It’s since yesterday that the tobacconist has been keeping the magazine aside...
• more naturally in English: The tobacconist has been keeping the magazine aside since yesterday...

So the structure:

• È da + time expression + che + clause

often corresponds to English have/has been ... since ... or for ..., depending on the time phrase.

It highlights since yesterday very strongly.

A less emphatic version would be:

• La tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista per il segretario da ieri.

That is grammatical, but È da ieri che ... puts more focus on the time.

Because in Italian, the present tense is often used for actions that:

• started in the past
• are still continuing now

So tiene da parte does not mean only a simple present like keeps. In this context it means:

• has been keeping aside
• has kept aside and is still keeping aside

This is one of the most important differences from English. English usually prefers the present perfect continuous here, while Italian often just uses the present.

Compare:

• Vivo qui da due anni. = I’ve been living here for two years.
• Studio italiano da gennaio. = I’ve been studying Italian since January.

So:

• È da ieri che la tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista... = The tobacconist has been keeping the magazine aside since yesterday.

Tenere da parte is an expression meaning:

• to put aside
• to keep aside
• to reserve
• to save depending on context

In this sentence, it means the tobacconist is holding the magazine for someone, not selling it to someone else.

Examples:

• Ti tengo da parte il pane. = I’ll keep the bread aside for you.
• Mi ha tenuto da parte una copia del giornale. = She kept a copy of the newspaper aside for me.
• Tengo da parte un po’ di soldi. = I’m saving a bit of money.

So here the idea is: the magazine is being reserved for the secretary.

La tabaccaia is the female tobacconist, meaning the woman who works in or owns a tabaccheria.

In Italy, a tabaccheria often sells more than tobacco products. Depending on the shop, it may also sell things like:

• magazines
• newspapers
• stamps
• lottery tickets
• phone top-ups
• transport tickets

So in real life, it makes sense that la tabaccaia could be keeping a magazine aside for someone.

The masculine form is:

• il tabaccaio = male tobacconist

The feminine form is:

• la tabaccaia = female tobacconist

Italian often uses the definite article much more than English does.

Here la tabaccaia means:

• the tobacconist
• or more naturally in context, the woman at the tobacconist’s

In English, we often omit the article in some roles or professions, but Italian usually keeps it.

So:

• la tabaccaia
• la rivista
• il segretario

are all normal noun phrases with definite articles.

It does not necessarily mean that the listener knows them personally in every situation. Sometimes it simply refers to the relevant person in the context.

Yes. Here per means for in the sense of intended for or reserved for.

So:

• la rivista per il segretario means
• the magazine for the secretary
• or the magazine being kept for the secretary

It does not mean because of the secretary here. The context with tenere da parte makes the meaning clear: the magazine is being held on the secretary’s behalf.

A similar example:

• Tengo questo libro per Maria. = I’m keeping this book for Maria.

No. In this sentence, il segretario is not the subject and is not doing the action.

The subject is:

• la tabaccaia

The verb is:

• tiene

The object is:

• la rivista

And per il segretario tells us for whom the magazine is being kept.

So the roles are:

• la tabaccaia = the person performing the action
• la rivista = the thing being kept aside
• il segretario = the person for whom it is being kept

Because the sentence is expressing purpose/destination rather than direct delivery.

• per il segretario = for the secretary
• al segretario = to the secretary

With tenere da parte, Italian normally uses per because the idea is keeping something reserved for someone.

Compare:

• Tengo da parte la rivista per il segretario.
  = I’m keeping the magazine aside for the secretary.

• Do la rivista al segretario.
  = I give the magazine to the secretary.

So per is the natural choice here.

Rivista means magazine.

Giornale usually means newspaper.

So this sentence specifically refers to a magazine, not a newspaper.

Examples:

• una rivista di moda = a fashion magazine
• un giornale sportivo = a sports newspaper

That distinction matters because English learners sometimes see both translated loosely as printed reading material, but in Italian they are different words.

Yes, absolutely. That is grammatical.

Compare these versions:

• È da ieri che la tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista per il segretario.
• Da ieri la tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista per il segretario.

Both are correct.

The difference is mainly emphasis:

• È da ieri che ... strongly highlights since yesterday
• Da ieri ... is a bit simpler and more straightforward

So the original sentence sounds slightly more marked or emphatic.

Yes, you can, although the emphasis changes.

For example:

• La tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista per il segretario da ieri.

This is understandable and grammatical. But it is usually less elegant than the original if you want to stress the time span clearly.

Italian often prefers:

• Da ieri la tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista... or
• È da ieri che la tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista...

So moving da ieri to the end is possible, but the original version sounds more natural if the duration is the main point.

They are often very close in meaning, but not always identical in tone.

• Da ieri... simply states the time frame.
• È da ieri che... gives more emphasis and often sounds a bit more like It’s been since yesterday that...

So the difference is mainly one of focus, not basic meaning.

Think of it this way:

• Da ieri studio. = I’ve been studying since yesterday.
• È da ieri che studio. = It’s since yesterday that I’ve been studying.

The second one draws more attention to the starting point.

In this structure, che introduces the clause that describes the ongoing action or situation.

Pattern:

• È da + time + che + clause

Examples:

• È da due ore che aspetto. = I’ve been waiting for two hours.
• È da lunedì che piove. = It’s been raining since Monday.
• È da ieri che la tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista...

You do not translate this che word-for-word in natural English. It is just part of the Italian construction.

Yes, but that would change the meaning.

• tiene suggests the action started yesterday and is still continuing now
• ha tenuto would sound more like a completed past action: she kept it aside, possibly no longer continuing

So:

• È da ieri che la tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista... = she started yesterday and is still keeping it aside now

But:

• La tabaccaia ha tenuto da parte la rivista per il segretario. would suggest a finished event, with no strong idea that it is still the current situation

So the present tense is important here.

Not always. Segretario / segretaria can mean different things depending on context, such as:

• secretary
• assistant
• clerk
• sometimes an official role like party secretary or general secretary

In this sentence, secretary is the most straightforward translation, but the exact real-world role depends on context.

A rough pronunciation is:

• ta-bak-KAI-a

A few helpful points:

• cc before a is a hard k sound, so tabaccaia has -bak-
• the stressed syllable is -cai-

So it sounds roughly like:

• ta-bak-KAI-a

Also notice that it has four syllables:

• ta / bac / cai / a

Because the sentence is referring to a specific, identifiable person in the context: the secretary.

• il segretario = the secretary
• un segretario = a secretary

If you said:

• ...per un segretario that would sound more indefinite, as if the speaker did not have a specific secretary in mind.

The original sentence suggests there is a known secretary that both speaker and listener can identify from the situation.

If we remove the emphasized time expression, the core sentence is:

• La tabaccaia tiene da parte la rivista per il segretario.

That breaks down as:

• La tabaccaia = subject
• tiene = verb
• da parte = part of the verbal expression
• la rivista = direct object
• per il segretario = prepositional phrase showing for whom

Then the original sentence adds the emphasized time frame:

• È da ieri che ...

So the whole sentence is basically:

• It is since yesterday that [the tobacconist is keeping the magazine aside for the secretary].

It is about the starting point, but it implies a duration up to the present.

• ieri = yesterday
• da ieri = since yesterday

So it tells you when the action began, and because the verb is in the present, it also implies that the action is still continuing now.

That is why the natural English translation often uses:

• has been keeping ... since yesterday

rather than a simple past.