Learn Italian: Marco sta spazzando il pavimento con la scopa nuova. - Marco is sweeping the floor with the new broom.

Marco sta spazzando il pavimento con la scopa nuova.

Marco is sweeping the floor with the new broom.

Breakdown of Marco sta spazzando il pavimento con la scopa nuova.

to stay, to feel, to be

Questions & Answers about Marco sta spazzando il pavimento con la scopa nuova.

How do we form the 'is sweeping' part in this sentence?

We use the present progressive tense. This is built using the present tense of the helper verb stare (here, sta for Marco) plus the gerund form of the main verb. Since spazzare (to sweep) is an -are verb, we drop the -are and add -ando to get spazzando.

Could I use sta spazzando to mean 'he sweeps the floor' as a daily habit?

No, the stare + gerund construction (sta spazzando) is strictly used for actions happening right at this exact moment (he is sweeping right now). If you want to talk about a daily habit, you must use the regular present tense: Marco spazza il pavimento tutti i giorni.

Why is it la scopa nuova instead of la nuova scopa?

In Italian, descriptive adjectives like nuova (new) usually come right after the noun they describe (la scopa). While you might occasionally see an adjective before a noun for poetic or emotional emphasis, placing it after the noun is the standard, everyday rule.

Is the verb spazzare related to the Italian word for garbage?

Yes! Spazzare means to sweep, and the common Italian word for garbage or trash is spazzatura (literally, the stuff you sweep up). Recognizing these root connections makes A2 vocabulary much easier to remember.