Learn Italian: Vedo il giocoliere sorridere e sento i passanti applaudire. - I see the juggler smiling and I hear the passers-by applauding.

Vedo il giocoliere sorridere e sento i passanti applaudire.

I see the juggler smiling and I hear the passers-by applauding.

Breakdown of Vedo il giocoliere sorridere e sento i passanti applaudire.

Questions & Answers about Vedo il giocoliere sorridere e sento i passanti applaudire.

Why does the Italian sentence use the infinitives sorridere and applaudire when the English translation uses the -ing words smiling and applauding?

In Italian, when you use a verb of perception like vedere (to see) or sentire (to hear), the action being witnessed is expressed with the infinitive. Even though English naturally says I see him smiling, Italian structures it like I see him to smile (Vedo il giocoliere sorridere).

Is the word order strictly fixed here? Could I say Vedo sorridere il giocoliere instead?

You absolutely can! With verbs of perception, Italian allows you to put the infinitive either after the object (Vedo il giocoliere sorridere) or right before it (Vedo sorridere il giocoliere). Both are completely natural and mean the exact same thing.

I originally learned that sentire means to feel. Why is it translated as I hear here?

Sentire is a versatile verb used for perceiving things through your senses. Depending on the context, it can mean to hear, to feel, or even to smell or taste. Since you cannot physically feel or smell people applauding from a distance, to hear is the natural translation for this sentence.

What kind of word is passanti? It looks like a verb form but it has an article (i) and acts like a noun.