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Preface
I Verbs—Forms and Uses
1 The Present Tense of Regular Verbs
An Introduction to Conjugation
First-Conjugation Verbs
Second-Conjugation Verbs
Third-Conjugation Verbs: Group I
Third-Conjugation Verbs: Group II
Uses of the Present Tense
2 The Present Tense of Irregular Verbs
Essere and avere
Andare and fare
Dovere, potere, and volere
Venire and tenere
Uscire and morire
Dare and stare
Bere, condurre, and dire
Rimanere, salire, spegnere, and valere
Sapere
Expressions with Irregular Verbs
Two Obsolete Verbs
3 The Passato Prossimo
Formation of the Past Participle
Auxiliaries with the Passato Prossimo
Uses of the Passato Prossimo
4 The Imperfect Tense; The Imperfect Tense vs. the Passato Prossimo
Formation of the Imperfect Tense
Basic Uses of the Imperfect Tense
The Imperfect Contrasted with the Passato Prossimo
Special Uses of the Imperfect Tense
5 The Future and Conditional Tenses
Formation of the Future Tense
Basic Uses of the Future Tense
The Future of Conjecture and Probability
Other Uses of the Future Tense
Formation of the Conditional Tense
Uses of the Conditional Tense
6 The Imperative
The Informal Imperative
The Formal Imperative
The noi Imperative
Irregular Imperatives
7 Reflexive Verbs
The Conjugation of Reflexive Verbs
Transitive Verbs vs. Reflexive Verbs
The Infinitive of Reflexive Verbs
The Passato Prossimo of Reflexive Verbs
The Passato Prossimo with dovere, potere, and volere and Reflexive Verbs
Reciprocal Reflexive Verbs
The Imperative of Reflexive Verbs
Reflexive Verbs: Special Cases
8 Other Compound Tenses
The Pluperfect (Past Perfect) Tense
The Future Perfect Tense
The Conditional Perfect Tense
Sequence of Tenses in Indirect Discourse
9 The Passato Remoto and Trapassato Remoto
Formation of the Passato Remoto
Use of the Passato Remoto
Formation of the Trapassato Remoto
Use of the Trapassato Remoto
10 Participles
The Past Participle
The Gerund
11 The Passive Voice
Formation of the Passive Voice
Other Constructions with Passive Meaning
12 The Infinitive
The Functions of the Infinitive
II Nouns and Their Modifiers; Pronouns
13 Nouns and Articles
Nouns and Definite and Indefinite Articles
The Plural of Nouns
The Partitive Article
The Gender of Nouns
Uses of the Articles
Prepositions Combined with the Definite Article
14 Adjectives
Agreement of Adjectives
Position of Adjectives
Irregular Adjectives
Comparison of Adjectives, Adverbs, Nouns, and Verbs
Intensifying Adjectives and Absolute Superlatives
Expressions with Comparative Structures
Adjective + Preposition + Infinitive
15 Object Pronouns
Direct Object Pronouns
Indirect Object Pronouns
The Pronouns ci and vi
The Pronoun ne
Double Object Pronouns
Summary of the Placement of Object Pronouns
Stressed Pronouns
16 Possessive and Demonstrative Adjectives and Pronouns
Possession
Possessive Adjectives
Possessive Pronouns
Demonstrative Adjectives
Demonstrative Pronouns
III Other Elements of the Sentence
17 Numbers; Time; Dates
Cardinal Numbers
Ordinal Numbers
Idioms and Expressions with Numbers
Expressing Centuries
Telling Time
Days of the Week and Months of the Year
The Date
18 Adverbs
Adverbs of Manner
Adverbs Not Derived from Adjectives
Position of Adverbs
Adverbs of Time
Adverbs of Place
Adverbial Expressions
Adverbs in -oni
19 Interrogative Sentences
Question Formation
More on Question Words
Exclamations
20 Negative and Indefinite Words
Negative Words and Sentences
Indefinite Words and Sentences
Idiomatic Uses of Negative and Indefinite Words
21 Prepositions
The Preposition a
The Preposition di
The Preposition da
The Preposition in
The Preposition con
The Preposition su
The Preposition sotto
The Prepositions fra and tra
The Preposition per
Other Prepositions
IV The Complex Sentence and Other Aspects of Usage
22 Relative Pronouns and Relative Clauses
The Relative Pronoun che
The Relative Pronoun cui
The Relative Pronouns il quale, la quale, i quali, le quali
Relative Pronouns Expressing “Whose,” “Where,” and “When”
Relative Pronouns Without Antecedents
23 The Present Subjunctive
Coordinating and Subordinating Conjunctions
The Subjunctive
Uses of the Present Subjunctive in Noun Clauses
24 The Subjunctive in Adjective and Adverb Clauses
Adjective Clauses
Adverb Clauses
25 The Imperfect Subjunctive
Formation of the Imperfect Subjunctive
Uses of the Imperfect Subjunctive in Subordinate Clauses
Conditional Sentences: Part 1
26 Compound Subjunctive Tenses
Formation of the Present Perfect Subjunctive
Uses of the Present Perfect Subjunctive
Formation of the Past Perfect Subjunctive
Uses of the Past Perfect Subjunctive
Conditional Sentences: Part 2
27 Word Formation
Prefixes
Suffixes
Example Prefixes and Suffixes: Regola as a Root
Compound Words
28 Potential Pitfalls
How to Say “to Know”: sapere and conoscere
How to Say “to Leave”: partire, lasciare, uscire, and andarsene
How to Say “to Be”: essere and stare
How to Say “to Like” and “to Miss”: piacere and mancare
Answer Key
Index
About the Authors
