Breakdown of Firmiamo il contratto, affinché l'accordo sia valido.
essere
to be
l'accordo
the agreement (m)
firmare
to sign
il contratto
the contract
valido
valid
affinché
so that / in order that
Questions & Answers about Firmiamo il contratto, affinché l'accordo sia valido.
Why is the verb sia used instead of è?
Sia is the present subjunctive of essere. We have to use the subjunctive here because of affinché (so that). Conjunctions of purpose like affinché always require the subjunctive mood because they express a goal or intention, not a stated fact.
Can I use perché instead of affinché here?
Yes! In everyday spoken Italian, people usually use perché to mean 'so that.' Affinché means the exact same thing but is a bit more formal. Just remember that when perché means 'so that' (rather than 'because'), it also requires the subjunctive: ...perché l'accordo sia valido.
What happens if the subjects of both halves of the sentence are the same?
That is an important distinction! We use affinché plus the subjunctive when the subjects of the two actions are different, like in this sentence where 'we' sign and 'the agreement' is valid. If the subjects are the same (for example, 'We sign the contract so that we are safe'), you would drop the conjunction and just use per plus the infinitive: Firmiamo il contratto per essere al sicuro.
How would this sentence change if we signed the contract in the past?
If the main verb is in the past, like Abbiamo firmato (We signed), the tense of the subjunctive must also shift to the past to agree with it. You would use the imperfect subjunctive instead of the present subjunctive: Abbiamo firmato il contratto, affinché l'accordo fosse valido.
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