Breakdown of Non credo che tu possa poltrire per tutta la vita.
tu
you (singular)
non
not
la vita
the life
per
for / in order to / because of
tutto
all the / whole
potere
can, to be able to
credere
to believe
che
that (conjunction introducing a clause)
poltrire
to laze about
Questions & Answers about Non credo che tu possa poltrire per tutta la vita.
Why is possa used here instead of puoi?
The phrase non credo che expresses an opinion or doubt, which triggers the subjunctive mood in Italian. Therefore, the present indicative puoi becomes the present subjunctive possa.
Why is the subject pronoun tu explicitly used here?
In the present subjunctive, the forms for I, you (singular), and he/she/it are identical (all are possa for the verb potere). Including tu removes the ambiguity so we know exactly who is lazing around.
How could I use this lesson's structure, non fare altro che, to say "you do nothing but laze around"?
Is the verb poltrire related to the word for armchair (poltrona)?
Can I drop the word per and just say tutta la vita?
Yes, you can. When expressing a continuous duration of time in Italian, the preposition per is often optional. Both per tutta la vita and tutta la vita are grammatically correct and natural.
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