Breakdown of Anziché mangiare qualcosa di fritto, scelgo qualcosa di sano.
mangiare
to eat
scegliere
to choose
qualcosa
something
sano
healthy
di
(linking an indefinite pronoun to an adjective)
anziché
instead of / rather than
fritto
fried
Questions & Answers about Anziché mangiare qualcosa di fritto, scelgo qualcosa di sano.
Why is the infinitive mangiare used here instead of a conjugated verb like mangio?
When you use expressions for "instead of" and the subject of both actions is the same person (here, "I" am the one not eating and "I" am the one choosing), the verb directly following the expression stays in the infinitive.
Does anziché need to be followed by the preposition di, just like invece?
No, it stands alone! While you must say invece di mangiare, you simply say anziché mangiare. The word anziché already contains the full meaning of "instead of" without needing an extra preposition.
Why is there a di in the phrases qualcosa di fritto and qualcosa di sano?
In Italian, whenever you describe an indefinite pronoun like qualcosa (something) or niente (nothing) with an adjective, you must connect them with the preposition di. So, "something healthy" becomes qualcosa di sano.
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