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Prima di fumare, mi serve un accendino. Ce l'hai?

Prima di fumare, mi serve un accendino. Ce l'hai?
Before smoking, I need a lighter. Do you have it on you?
From Lesson 225:Emphatic possession (averci)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Prima di fumare, mi serve un accendino. Ce l'hai?

What exactly does the ce do in Ce l'hai?
It is part of the verb averci, which is heavily used in spoken Italian to emphasize possession. It often translates to having something "on you" or "right here." The ce itself doesn't translate to a specific English word; it just teams up with the direct object pronoun to make the statement of possession stronger.
Why is it l'hai instead of lo hai?
When the direct object pronoun lo (meaning "it", referring to the masculine noun accendino) comes before a form of the verb avere that starts with an h, the o is dropped and replaced with an apostrophe. So, ce lo hai naturally shortens to ce l'hai.
Why is it mi serve instead of ho bisogno di?
You can absolutely say ho bisogno di un accendino, but servire is another very common way to express needing a thing. It works backward, exactly like piacere. The literal translation of mi serve un accendino is "a lighter is necessary to me."
Why is the verb fumare in the infinitive rather than conjugated?
In Italian, when you use prima di (before) and the person doing the action is the same in both parts of the sentence, the following verb must be in its infinitive (dictionary) form. You cannot conjugate it, so "before I smoke" or "before smoking" is simply prima di fumare.

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