Learn Italian: Oggi fa caldo, apro la finestra. - It is hot today, I open the window.

Oggi fa caldo, apro la finestra.

It is hot today, I open the window.

Breakdown of Oggi fa caldo, apro la finestra.

Questions & Answers about Oggi fa caldo, apro la finestra.

Why does the sentence use fa (makes/does) instead of the verb to be for "is"?

In Italian, weather expressions usually use the irregular verb fare (to do/to make) instead of the verb to be. To say "it is hot", Italians literally say "it makes hot" (fa caldo). Fa is the third-person singular (he/she/it) form of this verb.

Can I use è caldo to mean "it is hot" today?

Not for the weather! You must use fa caldo for weather. You only use the verb to be (è caldo) when talking about a specific physical object being hot to the touch, like a cup of tea or a radiator.

Where are the words for "it" and "I" in this sentence?

Italian often drops subject pronouns because the verb itself tells you who is doing the action. The -o ending on apro already means "I open". Similarly, for weather, Italian doesn't use a pronoun for "it", so you just start directly with the verb fa.

What verb does apro come from?

It comes from aprire (to open). It is a regular -ire verb, so to say "I open", you remove the -ire dictionary ending and add -o, giving you apro.