Learn Italian: La sostanza è fredda, perciò la scaldiamo lentamente. - The substance is cold, therefore we heat it slowly.

La sostanza è fredda, perciò la scaldiamo lentamente.

The substance is cold, therefore we heat it slowly.

Breakdown of La sostanza è fredda, perciò la scaldiamo lentamente.

her/it (direct object)

lentamente

slowly

Questions & Answers about La sostanza è fredda, perciò la scaldiamo lentamente.

Could I use quindi instead of perciò in this sentence?

Yes! Both perciò and quindi mean "therefore" or "so." They are used to show the result of an action or situation. You could absolutely say La sostanza è fredda, quindi la scaldiamo lentamente and the meaning would be exactly the same. The word dunque also works perfectly here.

What does the la do in la scaldiamo?

The word la here is a direct object pronoun meaning "it." It replaces la sostanza (the substance) so we do not have to repeat the noun. Remember that in Italian, these object pronouns usually go right before the conjugated verb, which is why the sentence says la scaldiamo (literally "it we heat").

How is the adverb lentamente (slowly) formed?

Many Italian adverbs are made by taking the feminine singular form of an adjective and adding -mente to the end. The adjective for "slow" is lento, so we take its feminine form lenta and add -mente to get lentamente (slowly).

Why does perciò have an accent mark on the final letter?