Word
Supponiamo che l'assassino abbia un alibi.
Meaning
We suppose that the murderer has an alibi.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Supponiamo che l'assassino abbia un alibi.
un
a / an (masculine)
avere
to have
l'alibi
the alibi
che
that (conjunction introducing a clause)
Questions & Answers about Supponiamo che l'assassino abbia un alibi.
Why is abbia used here instead of the normal present tense ha?
The verb supporre (to suppose) expresses an assumption or belief rather than a confirmed fact. Because of this, using supporre che to introduce a new clause triggers the subjunctive mood. Therefore, the standard present tense ha becomes the subjunctive abbia.
How does the rest of the present subjunctive for avere go?
The verb avere is irregular. In the present subjunctive, the singular forms (io, tu, lui/lei) are always identical, so they are all abbia. The plural forms are abbiamo (which conveniently looks exactly like the normal present tense), abbiate for voi, and abbiano for loro.
What is the infinitive of supponiamo, and is it a regular verb?
The infinitive is supporre. It is not a regular verb because it conjugates like its root verb porre (to put). Its present tense forms are suppongo, supponi, suppone, supponiamo, supponete, and suppongono.
Could supponiamo che also be translated as 'Let's suppose that'?
Absolutely! In Italian, the 'noi' (we) form of the standard present tense is completely identical to the 'noi' imperative (the 'let us' command form). Depending on the context, this sentence can either be a statement of fact ('We suppose...') or a hypothetical suggestion ('Let's suppose...').