Breakdown of È fondamentale che tu abbia una scorta d'acqua.
essere
to be
tu
you (singular)
una
a / an (feminine)
l'acqua
the water (f)
avere
to have
di
of, from
che
that (conjunction introducing a clause)
fondamentale
fundamental / essential
la scorta
the supply / the stock
Questions & Answers about È fondamentale che tu abbia una scorta d'acqua.
Why is abbia used here instead of hai?
The phrase È fondamentale che (It is essential that) is an impersonal expression stating a necessity. In Italian, when an impersonal expression is followed by che, it triggers the subjunctive mood. Therefore, we must use abbia (the present subjunctive of avere) rather than the normal present tense hai.
Why do we include the pronoun tu when Italian usually drops it?
In the present subjunctive, the conjugations for io, tu, and lui/lei are often completely identical. For avere, all three forms are abbia. Including tu avoids confusion so we know exactly who is supposed to have the supply of water.
Could I translate this without che, just like we sometimes drop 'that' in English?
No, you cannot. In English, we can say 'It is essential you have a supply', dropping the word 'that'. In Italian, the connecting word che is absolutely mandatory to link the impersonal expression to the subjunctive verb.
Why is it written as d'acqua instead of di acqua?
D'acqua is made up of di (of) and acqua (water). Italian drops the i in di and adds an apostrophe before most words starting with a vowel. This contraction is very common and makes the phrase flow more smoothly when spoken.
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