Dobbiamo evitare questa azione.

Dobbiamo comes from the verb dovere, which usually means must, have to, or to be supposed to.

It is the 1st person plural form in the present tense, so dobbiamo means we must or we have to.

A quick mini-conjugation of dovere in the present:

• io devo = I must
• tu devi = you must
• lui/lei deve = he/she must
• noi dobbiamo = we must
• voi dovete = you all must
• loro devono = they must

So:

• Dobbiamo evitare questa azione. = We must avoid this action.

Because after a modal verb like dovere, Italian normally uses the infinitive of the main verb.

So the structure is:

• dovere + infinitive
• dobbiamo evitare = we must avoid

This works like:

• possiamo andare = we can go
• voglio mangiare = I want to eat
• devi studiare = you must study

So evitare stays in the infinitive because dobbiamo is already the conjugated verb.

Because Italian often leaves out subject pronouns when they are not needed.

The ending of the verb already tells you who the subject is:

• dobbiamo clearly means we must

So Italian usually says:

• Dobbiamo evitare questa azione.

Instead of:

• Noi dobbiamo evitare questa azione.

Adding noi is possible, but it usually adds emphasis, like:

• Noi dobbiamo evitare questa azione. = We must avoid this action.

Because azione is a feminine singular noun, and questa has to agree with it.

In Italian, demonstratives like this change form to match the noun’s gender and number.

Here are the basic forms:

• questo = this (masculine singular)
• questa = this (feminine singular)
• questi = these (masculine plural)
• queste = these (feminine plural)

Since azione is feminine singular, you use:

• questa azione

Examples:

• questo libro = this book
• questa casa = this house
• queste azioni = these actions

In this case, you mainly learn it together with the noun: azione is feminine, so you would say:

• l’azione
• questa azione
• un’azione importante

Many Italian nouns ending in -zione are feminine:

• informazione
• nazione
• situazione
• azione

So azione follows a very common pattern.

Because evitare is normally a direct transitive verb in Italian. It takes a direct object without a preposition.

So:

• evitare qualcosa = to avoid something
• evitare un problema = to avoid a problem
• evitare questa azione = to avoid this action

English learners sometimes expect a preposition because different languages structure verbs differently, but with evitare, Italian simply uses the object directly.

Yes, but the normal and most neutral order is:

• Dobbiamo evitare questa azione.

That is:

• verb phrase + object

Italian word order is somewhat flexible, but changing it usually adds emphasis or sounds more literary, formal, or marked.

For example:

• Questa azione dobbiamo evitare.

This is possible, but it sounds more emphatic, like:

• This action is what we must avoid.

For most learners, the original order is the safest and most natural choice.

Yes, that is grammatically correct.

Italian often omits the subject pronoun, so:

• Dobbiamo evitare questa azione.

is more neutral and natural in many contexts.

But:

• Noi dobbiamo evitare questa azione.

can be used if you want to stress we, for example to contrast with someone else:

• Loro possono farlo, ma noi dobbiamo evitare questa azione.
• They can do it, but we must avoid this action.

• questa = this
• quella = that

So:

• questa azione = this action
• quella azione = that action

The difference is the same basic idea as in English: questa usually refers to something closer, more immediate, or more present in the discussion; quella refers to something more distant or less immediate.

Yes, but its naturalness depends on context.

Azione is a real and common word, but it can sound a little formal or abstract depending on the situation. It is often used in contexts like:

• formal writing
• instructions
• politics
• law
• analysis
• business

In everyday conversation, Italians might sometimes choose a more specific word depending on what they mean, such as:

• gesto = gesture, act
• mossa = move
• intervento = intervention
• comportamento = behavior

But azione is perfectly correct and understandable.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

• dohb-BYAH-mo eh-vee-TAH-reh KWEH-sta at-TSYOH-neh

A few useful pronunciation notes:

• bb in dobbiamo is pronounced as a stronger double consonant.
• ci in dobbiamo is not present; the ia gives the -bya- sound.
• qu in questa sounds like kw.
• zione in azione sounds roughly like tsyoh-neh.

If you want to sound more natural, try stressing:

• dob-BIA-mo
• e-vi-TA-re
• QUE-sta
• a-ZIO-ne

Yes. In many contexts, dobbiamo can be translated as either we must or we have to.

Italian dovere covers both ideas very often:

• Dobbiamo partire. = We must leave. / We have to leave.
• Dobbiamo evitare questa azione. = We must avoid this action. / We have to avoid this action.

The exact nuance depends on context, tone, and situation more than on the verb form itself.