Learn Italian: Pur piovendo, la carreggiata sta venendo asfaltata. - Even though it is raining, the roadway is being paved.

Pur piovendo, la carreggiata sta venendo asfaltata.

Even though it is raining, the roadway is being paved.

Breakdown of Pur piovendo, la carreggiata sta venendo asfaltata.

stare

to stay, to feel, to be

Questions & Answers about Pur piovendo, la carreggiata sta venendo asfaltata.

How is the passive progressive formed in sta venendo asfaltata?

It combines the verb stare conjugated for the subject (sta), the gerund of venire (venendo), and the past participle of the main verb (asfaltata). Notice that the past participle must agree in gender and number with the feminine singular subject, la carreggiata.

Why do we use venendo here instead of essendo to mean 'being'?

In Italian, the standard passive voice is formed with essere, but when making a continuous or progressive passive (an action that 'is being done' right now), Italian strictly uses venire as the helper verb. Saying sta essendo sounds very unnatural, so you must always use sta venendo.

What does adding Pur before the gerund piovendo do?

Placing pur (or pure) directly in front of a verb in the gerund form creates a concessive meaning, translating to 'even though' or 'despite'. Therefore, pur piovendo translates smoothly to 'even though it is raining'.

Normally, a gerund clause must share the same subject as the main clause. Why is it okay that piovendo and la carreggiata have different subjects?