Breakdown of L'ancora tiene, nonostante la corrente sia forte.
essere
to be
forte
strong
tenere
to keep / to hold
la corrente
the current
nonostante
despite / although (in spite of)
l'ancora
the anchor (f)
Questions & Answers about L'ancora tiene, nonostante la corrente sia forte.
Why is the verb sia in the subjunctive instead of the normal present tense è?
The word nonostante (although/despite) is a concessive conjunction. Just like 'a meno che non', it introduces a condition that opposes the main action but doesn't stop it. In Italian, these types of conjunctions trigger the subjunctive mood, so we must use sia instead of è.
I thought ancora meant 'still' or 'again'. Why does it mean 'anchor' here?
It is a tricky pair of twin words! The word for 'anchor' is stressed on the first syllable (àncora), while the word for 'still' or 'again' is stressed on the second syllable (ancóra). Since they are usually written without accent marks, you have to rely on context. Here, the article L' is a big clue that it is a noun.
Could I express this without using the subjunctive verb at all?
Yes, you can! Nonostante can also act as a preposition placed directly before a noun. You could simply say nonostante la corrente forte (despite the strong current). When you drop the verb and just use a noun phrase, you avoid needing the subjunctive entirely.
Why use tiene for 'holds' here?
Tiene comes from tenere. While you might have learned it first as 'to keep', it is also the standard verb for 'to hold' when talking about physical grip, support, or resistance. An anchor physically holding its ground against the water perfectly fits tenere.
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