Learn Italian: Esageri sempre quando ne parli! - You always exaggerate when you talk about it!

Esageri sempre quando ne parli!

You always exaggerate when you talk about it!

Breakdown of Esageri sempre quando ne parli!

of it / of them / some (pronoun)

Questions & Answers about Esageri sempre quando ne parli!

Why does ne mean "about it" in this sentence?

The verb parlare (to talk) requires the preposition di when you talk about something (parlare di). The pronoun ne is specifically used to replace di plus whatever noun or idea you are talking about. So, ne parli neatly packages "you talk about it" into two words.

Could I just say parli di lo or parli di esso instead of ne parli?

No, Italians do not say parli di lo (that is grammatically incorrect) and they rarely say parli di esso for inanimate objects or concepts in everyday speech. When you want to replace di + an object or idea, the clitic pronoun ne is the standard, natural choice.

Why does ne come before the verb here?

Like most clitic pronouns (such as mi, ti, or lo), ne must go directly before the conjugated verb. This is why it is ne parli and never parli ne.

Both verbs end in -i (esageri, parli). Does this tell us who the subject is?