Breakdown of Perché è necessario che l'allarme funzioni?
essere
to be
perché
because, why
che
that (conjunction introducing a clause)
funzionare
to work / to function (machines, devices)
necessario
necessary
l'allarme
the alarm (m)
Questions & Answers about Perché è necessario che l'allarme funzioni?
Why do we use funzioni instead of funziona here?
È necessario che (it is necessary that) is an impersonal expression. In Italian, impersonal expressions that show necessity, opinion, or emotion require the subjunctive mood in the following clause. Therefore, we use the subjunctive funzioni rather than the normal indicative funziona.
How is the subjunctive form funzioni made?
Funzionare is a regular -are verb. In the present subjunctive, the endings for the singular subjects (I, you, he, she, it) all change to -i. Even though l'allarme is a third-person subject, it takes the -i ending, making it funzioni. This can be tricky because in the regular present tense, -i usually indicates the 'tu' (you) form!
Could I say è necessario funzionare l'allarme instead?
No, because there is a specific subject performing the action: the alarm. If you were making a broad statement without a specific subject, you would drop che and use the infinitive, like è necessario funzionare bene (it is necessary to work well). Because you are specifying exactly what needs to work (l'allarme), you must use che plus the conjugated subjunctive verb.
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