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Non si rovina niente se si sfoglia il testo lentamente.

Non si rovina niente se si sfoglia il testo lentamente.
Nothing is ruined if one leafs through the text slowly.
From Lesson 165:Position of negative indefinites (nessuno, niente)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Non si rovina niente se si sfoglia il testo lentamente.

Why is there a non at the beginning if niente already means 'nothing'?
In Italian, when a negative word like niente (nothing) comes after the verb, you must put non before the verb. This creates a required double negative: non si rovina niente (literally: 'not one ruins nothing').
How would the sentence change if we put niente at the very beginning?
If you move niente before the verb, you must drop the non. The first part of the sentence would simply become Niente si rovina.... Both versions mean exactly the same thing and are equally common.
What is the word si doing in si rovina and si sfoglia?
This is the impersonal si, which is used to talk about actions in a general sense without a specific subject. It usually translates to 'one', 'you', or 'people'. Si sfoglia means 'one leafs through'. In si rovina niente, it translates smoothly into the passive voice in English: 'nothing is ruined'.
How is the adverb lentamente (slowly) formed?
Just like adding '-ly' to an adjective in English, Italian forms adverbs by taking the feminine singular form of an adjective and adding -mente. Here, the adjective lento (slow) becomes feminine lenta, and then we add -mente to get lentamente.
What is the root of the verb sfogliare?
Sfogliare means 'to leaf through' or 'to skim'. It comes from the noun foglio, which means a 'sheet of paper' or a 'leaf' of a book.

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