Breakdown of Mentre stavo sfogliando il testo prezioso, non ho rovinato niente.
non
not
avere
to have
stare
to stay, to feel, to be
niente
nothing
Questions & Answers about Mentre stavo sfogliando il testo prezioso, non ho rovinato niente.
Why do we need both non and niente here? Doesn't that mean "I didn't ruin nothing"?
Since the lesson is about pre-verbal vs. post-verbal syntax, could I put niente before the verb instead?
What tense is stavo sfogliando?
This is the past continuous tense, used for ongoing actions in the past, translating to "was leafing". It is made by using the imperfect tense of stare (here, stavo) plus the gerund form of the main verb (sfogliando).