Breakdown of La torta è pronta. Posso spegnere il forno? Sì, può spegnerlo, grazie.
essere
to be
pronto
ready
grazie
thank you
potere
can, to be able to
la torta
the cake
lo
him/it (direct object)
sì
yes
il forno
the oven
spegnere
to turn off
Questions & Answers about La torta è pronta. Posso spegnere il forno? Sì, può spegnerlo, grazie.
How exactly is the word spegnerlo formed?
When you attach a direct object pronoun like lo (it) to an infinitive verb like spegnere (to turn off), you must drop the final -e of the verb. So, spegnere plus lo becomes the single word spegnerlo.
Could I put the pronoun lo somewhere else in the sentence?
Yes! When you have a modal verb like potere (can) followed by an infinitive, you have two choices. You can attach the pronoun to the end of the infinitive (può spegnerlo) or put it right before the conjugated modal verb (lo può spegnere). Both are perfectly correct and mean the exact same thing.
Why is the verb può used for "you can" instead of puoi?
How do I know whether to use lo, la, li, or le at the end of the verb?
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