Breakdown of Credo che non abbiano ancora spedito il permesso.
non
not
avere
to have
spedire
to send
ancora
yet / still
credere
to believe
il permesso
the permit
che
that (conjunction introducing a clause)
Questions & Answers about Credo che non abbiano ancora spedito il permesso.
The verb credere usually takes the preposition a. Why is there no a before che in this sentence?
When verbs that normally require the preposition a (like credere a qualcosa, meaning to believe something) are followed by the conjunction che (that) to introduce a new clause, the preposition must be dropped. You cannot say credo a che; it simply becomes credo che.
Why is the verb abbiano in the subjunctive mood here?
The verb credere expresses an opinion or personal belief. In Italian, verbs of thinking and believing trigger the subjunctive mood in the subordinate clause because they introduce a level of subjectivity. Here, abbiano spedito is the past subjunctive.
Why is ancora placed exactly where it is in this sentence?
How do we know who hasn't sent the permit since there is no subject pronoun?
The verb form abbiano is unique to loro (they) in the subjunctive. While the singular present subjunctive forms for I, you, and he/she/it are completely identical to each other (abbia), the loro form stands out, so the subject pronoun is smoothly dropped unless you need to specifically emphasize it.
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