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Il mio istruttore ci ha messo un'ora per spiegare l'esame pratico.

Il mio istruttore ci ha messo un'ora per spiegare l'esame pratico.
My instructor took an hour to explain the practical exam.
From Lesson 239:Past tense of volerci and metterci (ci sono volute, ci ho messo)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Il mio istruttore ci ha messo un'ora per spiegare l'esame pratico.

Why do we use ha messo here instead of è voluta?
We are using the verb metterci because we are talking about a specific person (the instructor) spending time. Metterci takes the auxiliary verb avere (ha), and its past participle messo does not change. If we used volerci, the subject would be the time itself (un'ora), and it would require the auxiliary essere: ci è voluta un'ora (an hour was needed).
What does the ci in ci ha messo do?
It is a fixed part of the verb metterci, which literally means "to put into it." The ci stands for "into it" or "for it," changing the base verb mettere (to put) into metterci (to take time or spend time).
Why use per before spiegare? Can I just use the infinitive directly?
You need per because it expresses purpose, meaning "in order to." When you talk about taking time to complete an action, Italian uses per + the infinitive verb. So per spiegare means "in order to explain."
Why does un'ora have an apostrophe but un esame doesn't?
Ora is a feminine noun, so its article is una. When una comes before a vowel, it drops the "a" and gets an apostrophe (un'ora). Esame is masculine, and the masculine article un never takes an apostrophe, even before a vowel.

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