Breakdown of Ero sul punto di ordinare della mortadella, ma ho scelto del tacchino.
essere
to be
ma
but
ordinare
to order
scegliere
to choose
sul
on the; about the (su + il)
di
to (linking a verb to a following infinitive)
il punto
the point
dello
some (partitive article; also dell', dei, degli, delle)
la mortadella
the mortadella
il tacchino
the turkey
Questions & Answers about Ero sul punto di ordinare della mortadella, ma ho scelto del tacchino.
Why do we use della and del here instead of just saying mortadella and tacchino?
In Italian, to express an indefinite quantity of an uncountable noun (like "some" meat), we use the partitive article. It is formed by combining the preposition di with the definite article. Since mortadella is feminine singular, we use di + la = della. For the masculine singular tacchino, we use di + il = del.
Can I say ho scelto un tacchino instead of del tacchino?
If you say un tacchino, you are referring to a whole bird or an entire roasted turkey. By using the partitive article del, you clarify that you mean an uncountable portion or slices of the meat ("some turkey").
How does the phrase Ero sul punto di work?
Essere sul punto di is a common idiom that translates to "to be about to" or "to be on the verge of" doing something. Because the phrase ends with the preposition di, the action verb that follows must always be in the infinitive form, which is why we see ordinare here.
Why does the first verb use the imperfect (Ero) while the second uses the passato prossimo (ho scelto)?
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