Learn Italian: Hai preso le pinne prima di fare l'immersione? - Did you take the fins before doing the dive?

Hai preso le pinne prima di fare l'immersione?

Did you take the fins before doing the dive?

Breakdown of Hai preso le pinne prima di fare l'immersione?

before (doing something) / before (a noun / point in time)

Questions & Answers about Hai preso le pinne prima di fare l'immersione?

Why does the sentence use the infinitive fare (to do) instead of an "-ing" word like in English?

In Italian, the phrase prima di (before) must be followed by an infinitive verb. While English often uses the "-ing" form after before ("before doing"), Italian simply uses the base form of the verb.

Why do we use fare with l'immersione?

In Italian, many sports and activities use the verb fare (to do/make). So, to express "to scuba dive" or "to go diving," Italians say fare l'immersione (literally, "to do the dive").

Why is the past tense word preso instead of "prenduto"?

Preso is the irregular past participle of the verb prendere (to take). To form the past tense here, we combine the helper verb hai (you have) with preso to mean "you took" or "did you take".

Why is there an apostrophe in l'immersione?

Immersione is a feminine noun meaning "dive". Because it starts with a vowel, the singular feminine word for "the" (la) drops its "a" and attaches directly to the word with an apostrophe, giving us l'immersione.