Breakdown of Volevo un abbonamento mensile, ma quello annuale costa meno.
un
a / an (masculine)
ma
but
quello
that
costare
to cost
meno
to / less (time) / less
volere
to want
l'abbonamento
the membership (m)
mensile
monthly
annuale
annual / yearly
Questions & Answers about Volevo un abbonamento mensile, ma quello annuale costa meno.
Why is quello used here instead of a word for "one" like in the English translation "the annual one"?
In Italian, you don't translate the pronoun "one" using a number or a direct equivalent. Instead, you use the demonstrative pronoun quello (that/that one) to refer back to the previously mentioned noun (abbonamento). So, quello annuale essentially means "that annual [subscription]".
This lesson covers rispetto a (compared to). How could we add that to this sentence?
The second clause has an implied comparison because of the phrase costa meno (costs less). You can make it explicit by bringing in rispetto a followed by what you are comparing it to: ...ma quello annuale costa meno rispetto a quello mensile (...but the annual one costs less compared to the monthly one).
Why use the imperfect volevo (I wanted) instead of the polite conditional vorrei (I would like)?
While vorrei is the standard way to politely ask for something in the present, this sentence describes a past intention or state of mind that has now changed. The imperfect tense (volevo) perfectly sets the scene for what the speaker originally intended to do before they noticed the price difference.
Both mensile and annuale end in -e. Does this mean they don't change based on gender?
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