Breakdown of Mio fratello non se l'è sentita di finire il torneo.
essere
to be
non
not
il fratello
the brother
mio
my
finire
to finish
di
to (linking a verb to a following infinitive)
sentirsela
to feel up to
il torneo
the tournament
Questions & Answers about Mio fratello non se l'è sentita di finire il torneo.
What is the base verb for se l'è sentita and how does it break down here?
The base verb is the pronominal verb sentirsela (to feel up to it). It combines sentirsi (to feel) with the fixed pronoun la (it). Because it has a reflexive pronoun (si), it uses the helping verb essere in the past tense. Here, si changes to se because it comes before la, and la + è combines into l'è.
My brother is male, so why does the verb end in feminine -a (sentita)?
In the expression sentirsela, the pronoun la acts as a fixed direct object representing "it" (the challenge or situation). In Italian past tenses, the past participle must agree with a direct object pronoun that comes before the verb. Since la is feminine singular, the participle will always be sentita in this expression, regardless of whether the person feeling it is male or female!
Why is the preposition di used before finire?
When sentirsela is followed by an action to say what someone doesn't feel up to doing, you must connect the two verbs with the preposition di. The second verb is always in its dictionary form, or infinitive (here, finire).
As a quick refresher, why isn't there an article before mio fratello (like il mio fratello)?
In Italian, you drop the definite article (il, la, etc.) before possessive adjectives when you are talking about a singular, unmodified family member. So it is just mio fratello. If you were talking about multiple brothers, you would bring the article back: i miei fratelli.
Learn Mio fratello non se l'è sentita di finire il torneo and more in Italian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free