Breakdown of Vorrei che Lei mi dicesse tutto sulle obbligazioni.
Lei
you (formal)
tutto
everything
su
on, about
volere
to want
mi
to me
dire
to say, to tell
che
that (conjunction introducing a clause)
l'obbligazione
the bond (financial) (f)
Questions & Answers about Vorrei che Lei mi dicesse tutto sulle obbligazioni.
Why is dicesse in the imperfect subjunctive here rather than the present subjunctive?
The main verb Vorrei (I would like) is in the conditional tense. In Italian, when a main clause uses the conditional to express a wish or request, the following dependent clause (after che) must use the imperfect subjunctive, even if we are talking about a desire in the present.
How is the form dicesse built if the verb dire is irregular?
To form the imperfect subjunctive of dire, you have to use its old Latin root, dicere. You take the stem dic- and add the regular imperfect subjunctive endings. Since Lei (the formal you) uses the third-person singular ending -esse, it becomes dicesse.
Why is Lei capitalized in the middle of the sentence?
Capitalizing Lei is a polite convention to show that it represents the formal you rather than the pronoun for she. While you might see it lowercase in casual texts, capitalizing it avoids any confusion about who is being addressed.
Doesn't the preposition su normally mean on? Why does sulle mean about the here?
Why does mi go before dicesse instead of attaching to it?
mi is an indirect object pronoun meaning to me. In Italian, object pronouns go immediately before the conjugated verb. This rule applies in subjunctive clauses just like in normal indicative sentences, so it must be mi dicesse.
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