Question 1

Why do we use si tratta di to say 'it is about'?

Accepted Answer

Trattarsi di is a fixed impersonal expression meaning 'to be about,' 'to be a matter of,' or 'to involve.' Whenever you want to express 'it's about [a topic or issue]' in Italian, you can't translate it literally with the verb essere. Instead, you must use si tratta di.

Question 2

Could I just say Non è sui soldi to mean 'it's not about money'?

Accepted Answer

Not naturally. While su can mean 'about' when talking about the subject of a book or movie (for example, un libro su Roma), using essere su to describe the core issue of a situation sounds translated and strange. Si tratta di is the standard, natural way to phrase this.

Question 3

Why is it just di soldi and di rispetto instead of dei soldi and del rispetto?

Accepted Answer

While Italian usually requires definite articles, there is an exception after the preposition di. When talking about general, abstract concepts or uncountable categories, the article is often dropped. Since 'money' and 'respect' are broad concepts here, di soldi and di rispetto are perfectly natural without the article.

Question 4

This lesson teaches that impersonal si sentences use plural adjectives. Why doesn't that happen here?

Accepted Answer

That specific rule only applies when you combine the impersonal si with the verb essere and an adjective (like quando si è stanchi, 'when one is tired'). This sentence uses the impersonal si with the verb trattare, and there are no adjectives describing a person, so the plural adjective rule doesn't come into play.

Non si tratta di soldi, si tratta di rispetto.

Breakdown of Non si tratta di soldi, si tratta di rispetto.

Questions & Answers about Non si tratta di soldi, si tratta di rispetto.

Learn Non si tratta di soldi, si tratta di rispetto and more in Italian