Learn Italian: Dove sono le sedie? Sono sul balcone. - Where are the chairs? They are on the balcony.

Dove sono le sedie? Sono sul balcone.

Where are the chairs? They are on the balcony.

Breakdown of Dove sono le sedie? Sono sul balcone.

Questions & Answers about Dove sono le sedie? Sono sul balcone.

Why do we use sul instead of just su or su il?

Sul is a combined word made from the preposition su (on) and the definite article il (the). In Italian, you must merge these together; you cannot say su il. Since balcone is a masculine singular noun starting with a consonant, it takes the article il, which merges with su to become sul.

How do we know sono means they are instead of I am here?

The verb essere (to be) uses the exact same word, sono, for both I am and they are. You can always tell which one it is from context. Since the first sentence asks where le sedie (the chairs) are, the answer naturally means they are. Italian usually drops the word loro (they) entirely.

Balcone ends in -e. How do I know it is masculine and needs sul?

Italian nouns ending in -e can be either masculine or feminine, so you just have to memorize their gender when you learn the word. Balcone is masculine, which is why it uses il (and therefore sul).

Why does the word for chair change to sedie?