Learn Italian: Non rimontiamo i sedili oggi, perché li iniziamo a pulire. - We are not reassembling the seats today, because we are starting to clean them.

Non rimontiamo i sedili oggi, perché li iniziamo a pulire.

We are not reassembling the seats today, because we are starting to clean them.

Breakdown of Non rimontiamo i sedili oggi, perché li iniziamo a pulire.

Questions & Answers about Non rimontiamo i sedili oggi, perché li iniziamo a pulire.

Why is the pronoun li placed before iniziamo instead of attaching to the end of pulire?

This is a feature called clitic climbing. With aspectual verbs—verbs that express the start, continuation, or end of an action, like iniziare a—you have a choice. You can attach the object pronoun to the infinitive (iniziamo a pulirli) or pull it in front of the conjugated verb (li iniziamo a pulire). Both are correct and widely used.

Is there any difference in meaning or emphasis between li iniziamo a pulire and iniziamo a pulirli?

No, they mean exactly the same thing. Pulling the pronoun to the front is very common in everyday spoken Italian, but it does not change the tone or emphasis. It is entirely up to your personal preference.

Why do we need the preposition a in iniziamo a pulire?

The verb iniziare always requires the preposition a when it links to another verb in the infinitive. Verbs that mark the start or continuation of an action (like cominciare a or continuare a) usually take a, while verbs marking the end (like finire di) take di.

Does the prefix ri- in rimontiamo work just like 're-' in English?