Breakdown of Ho dovuto rifiutare la proposta, anche se mi volevi convincere.
anche
also, too
avere
to have
volere
to want
dovere
must
se
if
mi
me (direct object)
rifiutare
to refuse
la proposta
the proposal
convincere
to convince
Questions & Answers about Ho dovuto rifiutare la proposta, anche se mi volevi convincere.
Why do we use the passato prossimo for dovere (ho dovuto) but the imperfetto for volere (volevi)?
This highlights the main difference between these two past tenses! We use the passato prossimo (ho dovuto rifiutare) because the obligation resulted in a completed action—I had to refuse, and I actually did it. We use the imperfetto (volevi convincere) to describe a state of mind or an ongoing intention in the background—you 'wanted' to convince me, but this was just your intention, not a completed event.
Why does dovere take avere here (ho dovuto) instead of essere?
When a modal verb like dovere, potere, or volere is used in the passato prossimo, it usually borrows the auxiliary verb of the infinitive that follows it. Since you would say ho rifiutato (using avere), the modal also takes avere, making it ho dovuto rifiutare.
Could I say volevi convincermi instead of mi volevi convincere?
Yes, absolutely! When you have a conjugated modal verb followed by an infinitive, you have two choices for where to put the object pronoun (mi). You can place it right before the conjugated verb (mi volevi convincere) or attach it to the end of the infinitive after dropping its final 'e' (volevi convincermi). Both are perfectly natural and mean the exact same thing.
Does anche se always take the indicative mood like it does here?
Anche se ('even though' or 'even if') takes the normal indicative mood when it states a fact or reality. Since 'you wanted to convince me' was a real, actual situation in the past, we use the indicative volevi. You only need the subjunctive with anche se if you are talking about unlikely or impossible hypothetical situations (like 'even if you were to convince me').
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