Breakdown of Faccio cambiare il tubo all'idraulico.
fare
to do / to make
a
to / at
cambiare
to change
il tubo
the pipe
l'idraulico
the plumber
Questions & Answers about Faccio cambiare il tubo all'idraulico.
Why is the plumber introduced by all' instead of just saying l'idraulico?
This is the core rule of the fare + infinitive structure! When the action being done has a direct object (here, il tubo), the person performing the action must be treated as an indirect object, introduced by the preposition a. Literally, you are saying 'I make change the pipe to the plumber.'
Would I still use all' if there wasn't a direct object in the sentence?
No. If there is no direct object, the person doing the action becomes the direct object. For example, if you just wanted to say 'I make the plumber work,' it would be Faccio lavorare l'idraulico without the preposition a.
Why are faccio and cambiare right next to each other?
In English, we separate the verbs ('I have the plumber change...'), but in Italian, the conjugated form of fare and the infinitive verb stick tightly together. You keep them as an unbroken pair and put the objects afterwards.
How would I replace the nouns with pronouns to say 'I am having him change it'?
You need an indirect object pronoun for the plumber (gli for 'to him') and a direct object pronoun for the pipe (lo for 'it'). They combine into glielo and go right before the conjugated verb: Glielo faccio cambiare.
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