Breakdown of Volevo un'informazione: il relitto antico è andato distrutto?
essere
to be
un
a / an (masculine)
volere
to want
l'informazione
the information (f)
Questions & Answers about Volevo un'informazione: il relitto antico è andato distrutto?
Why is it è andato distrutto instead of è stato distrutto?
Using andare as the auxiliary verb instead of essere (or venire) creates a specific type of passive voice used for loss and destruction. It highlights the negative, irreversible result of the action. You will often see this with verbs like distruggere (to destroy), perdere (to lose), and smarrire (to misplace).
Why use the imperfect volevo instead of the present voglio if the person wants the information right now?
This is the imperfect of politeness (imperfetto di cortesia). Using the imperfect tense softens the request, making it sound much more polite and less demanding than saying voglio (I want).
The translation says "some information", but the Italian uses un'informazione. Why?
In English, "information" is an uncountable noun, so we say "some information" or "a piece of information". In Italian, informazione is countable. When you want one specific fact or answer, you just use the singular un'informazione (with an apostrophe because it is a feminine noun starting with a vowel).
How would the second half of the sentence change if the subject was feminine plural, like le rovine (the ruins)?