Breakdown of Appena il notaio avrà finito la lettura del testamento, parleremo.
avere
to have
di
of, from
parlare
to speak / to talk
finire
to finish
appena
as soon as
il testamento
the will (legal)
il notaio
the notary
la lettura
the reading
Questions & Answers about Appena il notaio avrà finito la lettura del testamento, parleremo.
Why does Italian use avrà finito (will have finished) instead of a present perfect tense like English does here?
In English, we often use the present or present perfect after time expressions like "as soon as" for future events. Italian is strictly logical: since finishing the reading happens in the future, it requires a future tense. Because the finishing must happen before the talking (parleremo), Italian uses the future perfect (avrà finito).
This lesson focuses on moving the subject after the verb for natural focus. Could we do that in this appena clause?
Yes! Just like in the relative clauses you are currently studying, Italian often shifts the subject to the end of a clause to place the "spotlight" on it. You could absolutely say, Appena avrà finito la lettura del testamento il notaio, parleremo. This inversion places slight emphasis on the notary, highlighting that we are specifically waiting on him.
Why use the noun phrase la lettura del testamento instead of a verb phrase like di leggere il testamento?
If I did want to use a verb instead of the noun la lettura, how would I connect it to finito?
You would need the preposition di. The verb finire (to finish) requires di before a following infinitive verb, so the phrase would become avrà finito di leggere il testamento.
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