Learn Italian: Il limite di velocità è cinquanta, allora bisogna rallentare. - The speed limit is fifty, so one must slow down.

Il limite di velocità è cinquanta, allora bisogna rallentare.

The speed limit is fifty, so one must slow down.

Breakdown of Il limite di velocità è cinquanta, allora bisogna rallentare.

Questions & Answers about Il limite di velocità è cinquanta, allora bisogna rallentare.

Why is there no subject like "we" or "you" before bisogna?

Bisogna is an impersonal verb, meaning it expresses a general necessity rather than what a specific person must do. It translates to "it is necessary" or "one must". You just pair it directly with an infinitive verb, like rallentare (to slow down).

What is the difference between using bisogna and using the verb dovere (to have to) in this sentence?

Bisogna establishes a general rule for everyone: "one must slow down". If you use dovere, you must choose and conjugate for a specific subject. For example, dobbiamo rallentare means "we have to slow down", and devi rallentare means "you have to slow down".

Why do we say limite di velocità instead of just putting the words together like in English?

English often stacks nouns to make a new concept (like "speed limit"). Italian rarely does this. Instead, it connects the nouns with di (of). Literally, it translates to "limit of speed".

I usually translate allora as "then". Does it mean something different here?

Allora is a very flexible word. While it often means "then" (at that time), here it means "so" or "therefore" to show the logical result of the speed limit being fifty.