Learn Italian: Abbiamo avuto un contrattempo, altrimenti saremmo arrivati prima. - We had an unexpected problem, otherwise we would have arrived earlier.

While this lesson focuses on using the past conditional for the 'future in the past' in reported speech, here it shows its other main job: expressing what would have happened in the past if things had been different. The word altrimenti (otherwise) acts as a hidden 'if' condition.

Why is the helping verb saremmo instead of avremmo?

Because the main verb is arrivare (to arrive). Just like in the passato prossimo, verbs of movement and state of being take essere as their auxiliary verb in all compound tenses, including the past conditional. And since it uses essere, the past participle must agree with the 'we' subject, ending in -i to become arrivati.

What does contrattempo literally mean?

It is a combination of contro (against) and tempo (time). It is the perfect everyday noun for a setback, a hitch, or an unexpected delay. Saying abbiamo avuto un contrattempo is the standard, polite way to explain you are late without having to give specific details.

Can I use più presto instead of prima for 'earlier'?

Yes, più presto (literally 'more early') is grammatically correct. However, Italians frequently use prima (which normally just means 'before') to mean 'earlier' in everyday speech, as it is shorter and sounds very natural.