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I cani seguono spesso i bambini.

I cani seguono spesso i bambini.
The dogs often follow the children.
From Lesson 35:Regular -ire verbs·Italian

Breakdown of I cani seguono spesso i bambini.

il cane
the dog
il bambino
the child
seguire
to follow
spesso
often

Questions & Answers about I cani seguono spesso i bambini.

Why is the verb seguono and not seguiscono?
Seguono comes from the verb seguire (to follow). It is a regular -ire verb that does not use the -isc- pattern. To make the form for 'they', you simply drop the -ire ending and add -ono.
Why is spesso placed after the verb instead of before it?
In Italian, adverbs of frequency like spesso (often) are usually placed right after the verb. So instead of using the English word order 'The dogs often follow', the Italian order is 'The dogs follow often' (I cani seguono spesso).
Why do we use the article i for i cani instead of gli?
The singular word for dog is cane, which is a masculine noun. Its plural is cani. The plural word for 'the' for most masculine nouns is i, giving us i cani. The article gli is only used before masculine plural words that start with a vowel or certain tricky consonant sounds.
Do I need to add a preposition like a or di after seguono?
No, just like the English verb 'to follow', the Italian verb seguire connects directly to the person or thing being followed. You do not need any extra little words between the verb and the object, which is why it is simply seguono i bambini.

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