Breakdown of Il tuo patrigno non avrebbe nascosto il segreto.
non
not
avere
to have
tuo
your
il segreto
the secret
nascondere
to hide
il patrigno
the stepfather
Questions & Answers about Il tuo patrigno non avrebbe nascosto il segreto.
Why do we use the article il for il tuo patrigno? Doesn't the rule say to drop it for singular family members?
You normally drop the definite article for singular, unmodified family members (like tuo padre). However, family terms that contain suffixes like -igno (as in patrigno) or -astro (as in fratellastro) are exceptions to this rule. Because they are altered nouns, they always keep the definite article.
If I wanted to say 'your father' instead of 'your stepfather', would I still use the article?
What tense is avrebbe nascosto and why is it used here?
This is the past conditional (condizionale passato). It is built using the conditional form of the helper verb avere (which is avrebbe for he/she/it) followed by the past participle of the main verb. It is used here to express a hypothetical or unrealized action in the past, translating to 'would have hidden'.
Is nascosto an irregular verb form?
Yes, nascosto is the irregular past participle of nascondere (to hide). Regular Italian verbs ending in -ere usually have past participles ending in -uto, but this is a common exception you will need to memorize.
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