Question 1

Why do we use a cui here instead of just che?

Accepted Answer

Cui is a relative pronoun (meaning "whom" or "which") that we use after prepositions like a, di, or in. The phrase here is fare un'intervista a (to do an interview to someone). Because of that preposition a, we must say a cui (literally, "to whom"). If the verb didn't require a preposition, we would just use che.

Question 2

Why does the Italian use faccio l'intervista instead of a single verb for "interviewing"?

Accepted Answer

You can absolutely use the single verb intervistare! But fare un'intervista (literally, "to make/do the interview") is a very natural and common way to express this in Italian. Notice how changing the verb changes the grammar: if you used intervistare, you wouldn't need a preposition, so the sentence would simply use che: Il politico che intervisto arriva domani.

Question 3

The English translation says "The politician I am interviewing". Why don't we translate the a cui?

Accepted Answer

In English, we often completely drop connecting words like "who," "whom," or "that" (e.g., "The politician [whom] I am interviewing"). Italian never allows you to drop these relative pronouns. You must always include them to link the sentence together, which is why a cui is strictly required here.

Question 4

Why is arriva in the present tense if he arrives domani (tomorrow)?

Accepted Answer

Just like in English ("He arrives tomorrow"), Italian frequently uses the present tense to talk about definite plans or scheduled events in the near future. You could use the future tense (arriverà), but the present tense is perfectly correct and often preferred in everyday conversation.

Il politico a cui faccio l'intervista arriva domani.

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