Breakdown of Prima di iniziare la conferenza, i dipendenti hanno parlato con noi.
noi
we
avere
to have
con
with
parlare
to speak / to talk
iniziare
to start
prima di
before (doing something) / before (a noun / point in time)
la conferenza
the conference
il dipendente
the employee
Questions & Answers about Prima di iniziare la conferenza, i dipendenti hanno parlato con noi.
Since this lesson is about relative pronouns, how would I use them to say 'The employees with whom we spoke'?
You would combine the preposition con with the masculine plural relative pronoun i quali to match i dipendenti. It becomes: I dipendenti con i quali abbiamo parlato... You could also use the invariable pronoun cui, as in con cui.
Why is the infinitive iniziare used here instead of a gerund for 'starting'?
In English, we often use '-ing' words after prepositions (like 'before starting'). In Italian, prepositions are followed directly by the infinitive form of the verb. Because prima (before) requires the preposition di, it becomes prima di iniziare.
Why do we use con noi instead of an object pronoun like ci?
Is conferenza a false friend? Does it mean 'conference' or 'lecture'?
It can be both! Conferenza translates to 'conference' (a formal meeting or convention), but it is also very commonly used to mean a 'lecture' or a 'talk' given to an audience.
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