I nostri colleghi non credono a questa percentuale di crescita.

Questions & Answers about I nostri colleghi non credono a questa percentuale di crescita.

Why is it i colleghi (masculine plural) when the singular word is collega (which ends in -a)?
The singular word collega (colleague) is used for both men and women: il collega (male) and la collega (female). In the plural, the masculine becomes i colleghi (adding an 'h' to keep the hard 'g' sound) and the feminine becomes le colleghe. Because we see the masculine plural article i and possessive nostri, we know this refers to male colleagues or a mixed-gender group.
Why do we use credere a here instead of just translating "believe this percentage" directly?
Unlike English, the Italian verb credere (to believe) usually needs a preposition. When you believe a piece of information, a fact, or what someone tells you, you use credere a (literally "to believe to"). If you are talking about believing in a concept, a religion, or having faith in someone's potential, you would use credere in.
Why is questa used with percentuale? Doesn't percentuale end in -e?
Nouns ending in -e can be either masculine or feminine in Italian, and their gender just has to be memorized. Percentuale happens to be feminine (la percentuale). Because it is a feminine singular noun, "this percentage" must take the feminine singular demonstrative adjective questa.
How does percentuale di crescita translate to "growth percentage"?
In English, you can easily stack nouns together to create a new concept (like "growth" + "percentage"). Italian doesn't allow this kind of noun-stacking. Instead, you have to connect the two nouns with the preposition di (of). So, it literally translates as "percentage of growth".

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