Word
Sento una voce, ma non c'è nessuno.
Meaning
I hear a voice, but nobody is there.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Sento una voce, ma non c'è nessuno.
una
a / an (feminine)
ma
but
non
not
c'è
there is / there are
Questions & Answers about Sento una voce, ma non c'è nessuno.
Why does the sentence use both non and nessuno? Isn't that a double negative?
Yes, and Italian loves double negatives! When negative pronouns like nessuno (nobody) or niente (nothing) come after the verb, you must put non before the verb. If you started the sentence with the pronoun, you would drop the non (like Nessuno c'è), but non c'è nessuno is the most natural way to say this.
The English translation says 'nobody is there'. Where is the word for 'there' in the Italian sentence?
I learned that sentire means 'to feel'. Why does it mean 'to hear' here?
Could I say ascolto una voce instead of sento una voce?