Question 1

Why is it Io e mio fratello instead of putting "I" last like we do in English?

Accepted Answer

In English, we are taught to say "My brother and I" to be polite. In Italian, there is no such rule! It is perfectly normal, polite, and very common to put io (I) first in a list of people.

Question 2

Why isn't there an article before mio fratello? I thought possessives usually needed one, like la mia macchina.

Accepted Answer

This is a great time for a quick refresher! In Italian, singular family members (like fratello, madre, marito) are exceptions to the possessive rule. You drop the definite article (il, la, etc.) when referring to just one close relative.

Question 3

We are learning about così... come and tanto... quanto. Could I use them here to say we have the "same" car?

Accepted Answer

No, you wouldn't use them here. The structures così... come and tanto... quanto (as... as) are used to compare qualities (like "as fast as") or quantities ("as many cars as"). When you want to express that two people share or have the exact same item, you simply use the adjective stesso (same).

Question 4

Why does stessa come before macchina? Don't adjectives usually go after the noun?

Accepted Answer

Most descriptive adjectives do go after the noun in Italian (like una macchina bella). However, a few specific adjectives, including stesso (same), are exceptions and almost always go before the noun they modify. Because macchina is feminine and singular, it becomes la stessa macchina.

Io e mio fratello abbiamo la stessa macchina.

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