Breakdown of Coloro che cercano un prodotto sostenibile controllano sempre l'etichetta.
un
a / an (masculine)
sempre
always
cercare
to look for
il prodotto
the product
controllare
to check
che
who, that (relative pronoun)
l'etichetta
the label (f)
coloro
those / they (used with 'che')
sostenibile
sustainable
Questions & Answers about Coloro che cercano un prodotto sostenibile controllano sempre l'etichetta.
What is the difference between coloro che and quelli che, and can I use them interchangeably here?
Both mean "those who" and can act as the generalized subject of the sentence. Coloro che is more formal, often used in written Italian, journalism, or formal speech (which fits this sentence's slightly formal tone regarding sustainability). Quelli che is standard and much more common in everyday conversation. You could absolutely say Quelli che cercano... here without changing the meaning.
Does coloro change its ending to match the gender of the people it refers to?
Why is cercano in the indicative mood? Doesn't "those who" imply an unspecified, hypothetical group of people?
It uses the indicative because the sentence is stating a concrete, general fact about people's habits: the people who look for these products really do check the labels. If you wanted to frame it as a strict condition ("If anyone happens to look for..."), you could use the subjunctive (Coloro che cerchino...), but the indicative is standard for factual generalizations.
Learn Coloro che cercano un prodotto sostenibile controllano sempre l'etichetta and more in Italian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free