Breakdown of Il bicchiere si è frantumato in pezzi così piccoli che non li trovo.
piccolo
small
non
not
il bicchiere
the glass
in
in / made of (material)
trovare
to find
così
so, like this
li
them (masculine direct object)
il pezzo
the piece
che
that (conjunction introducing a clause)
frantumarsi
to shatter
Questions & Answers about Il bicchiere si è frantumato in pezzi così piccoli che non li trovo.
Can I use talmente instead of così in this sentence?
Why do we use the reflexive si è frantumato instead of just ha frantumato?
Frantumare is a transitive verb meaning "to shatter" or "to smash" something else. Because the glass is breaking on its own rather than breaking another object, we use the reflexive or intransitive form frantumarsi. Like all reflexive verbs in the past tense (passato prossimo), it takes essere, which is why we see si è frantumato.
Why does the sentence use in pezzi instead of a pezzi?
When describing a physical transformation or something breaking into smaller parts, Italian often uses the preposition in (like frantumarsi in mille pezzi or dividere in due). While a pezzi is also common, it is usually for states of being (like essere a pezzi, meaning to be exhausted or broken) or certain actions (like tagliare a pezzi, to cut to pieces).
There is a che in this sentence, so why is the verb trovo in the indicative mood rather than the subjunctive?
Consecutive clauses (showing a result) with così ... che or talmente ... che use the indicative mood when they describe a real, factual outcome. Since not finding the pieces is an actual fact, you just use the regular present tense trovo. You would only use the subjunctive if the result was a hypothetical situation.
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