Log inSign up

Non tutti gli studenti erano presenti oggi.

Non tutti gli studenti erano presenti oggi.
Not all the students were present today.
From Lesson 404:The word tutto with pronouns (tutti noi)·Italian

Breakdown of Non tutti gli studenti erano presenti oggi.

lo studente
the student
presente
present (there, in attendance)

Questions & Answers about Non tutti gli studenti erano presenti oggi.

Why is there an article (gli) after tutti when in English we can just say 'not all students'?
In Italian, the quantifier tutto must always be followed by a definite article when it modifies a noun. You must literally say 'all the students' (tutti gli studenti), even if English allows you to drop the word 'the'.
How does the position of non change the meaning here compared to putting it before the verb?
Placing non right before tutti negates the quantifier itself, giving us 'not all'. If you placed it before the verb instead, saying tutti gli studenti non erano presenti, it would mean 'all the students were not present' (meaning none of them were there).
If I wanted to say 'not all of them were present' using a pronoun instead of the noun, how would the syntax change?
When pairing tutto with a tonic personal pronoun like loro (them) or noi (us), you drop the definite article completely. It simply becomes non tutti loro erano presenti.
Why is the imperfect tense (erano) used here for an event that happened today (oggi)?
The imperfect (erano) is used because being present is an ongoing state or condition, rather than a completed, singular action. Even though it happened today (oggi), you are describing the background situation as it was during a specific timeframe.

Learn Non tutti gli studenti erano presenti oggi and more in Italian

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
  • ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free
Start learning Italian →