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Ci mette troppo a rimarginarsi questa ferita!

Ci mette troppo a rimarginarsi questa ferita!
This wound takes too long to heal!
From Lesson 325:Gradual actions (andare + gerundio)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Ci mette troppo a rimarginarsi questa ferita!

Why is the verb mette used here instead of vuole for 'it takes'?
To express 'it takes time', Italian uses either volerci or metterci. Volerci is impersonal (e.g., Ci vuole un'ora - It takes an hour). However, metterci takes a specific subject that 'spends' the time. In this sentence, the subject is questa ferita (this wound); the wound is the entity 'putting' too much time into healing.
Why is the subject questa ferita at the very end of the sentence?
Placing the subject at the end is a very common feature of spoken Italian, often used to emphasize the action or the emotion. Starting with Ci mette troppo immediately highlights the frustration about the time, while questa ferita is tacked on at the end to clarify what is taking so long.
Why is the preposition a used before rimarginarsi?
When you use metterci followed by an action, you must connect them with the preposition a. The structure is always metterci [tempo] a fare qualcosa, which translates to 'taking [time] to do something'.
Why does rimarginarsi have the reflexive pronoun si attached to it?
Here, rimarginarsi functions as an intransitive pronominal verb for a spontaneous action. Because the wound is healing on its own, it is grammatically healing 'itself'. If a doctor were actively closing the wound, you would use the active verb rimarginare without the si.

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