B1 · Joining sentences
Conjunctions + subjunctive
benché, affinché, purché take the congiuntivo; perché (because), poiché and finché do not.
At a glance
- Remember
- benché, affinché, purché: congiuntivo. perché (because) and poiché: indicative.
- Form
- perché piovebecause it is raining
- Signal words
- perché
- benché
- affinché
- prima che
- appena
- Trap
- Wrong:Prima che io esca, chiudo la finestra.Right:Prima di uscire, chiudo la finestra.
Your turn
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The form
How the forms are built
Each row gives the meaning first, then the form in Italian. The colours show what changes from one form to the next.
stem (regular) stem (irregular) tense marker person ending ending for tense and person
| because it is raining | perché piove |
| although it is raining | benché piova |
| so that you know | affinché tu lo sappia |
| before he goes out | prima che esca |
| before I go out | prima di uscire |
| as soon as he arrives | appena arriva |
| I know | (io) so |
| you know | (tu) sai |
| he / she knows | (lui, lei) sa |
| we know | (noi) sappiamo |
| you know (plural) | (voi) sapete |
| they know | (loro) sanno |
| that I know | che io sappia |
| that you know | che tu sappia |
| that he / she knows | che lui, lei sappia |
| that we know | che noi sappiamo |
| that you know (plural) | che voi sappiate |
| that they know | che loro sappiano |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
perche with the indicative means because.
Sono rimasto a casa perché pioveva.I stayed at home because it was raining.
benche and affinche take the congiuntivo.
Benché sia stanco, esco lo stesso.Although I am tired, I am going out anyway.
perche with the congiuntivo means so that.
Te lo dico perché tu lo sappia.I am telling you so that you know.
Same subject means an infinitive.
Siamo usciti prima di cenare.We left before having dinner.
Example sentences
Porto l’ombrello, nel caso piova.I am taking the umbrella, in case it rains.
Ti chiamo appena arrivo a casa.I will call you as soon as I get home.
È uscito senza che nessuno lo vedesse.He left without anybody seeing him.
Nonostante il freddo, siamo rimasti fuori.Despite the cold, we stayed outside.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
With the same subject, prima che is wrong. « Before I go out » is prima di uscire and not prima che io esca: that form requires two different subjects. English allows both — « before I go out » and « before going out » — and treats the choice as a matter of style, which is exactly why the rule slips.
The full explanation
Read it all · about 1 min
The commonest ones take the indicative: perché(because)quando(when)mentre(while)appena(as soon as)siccome(since)anche se(even if)
A second group calls for the congiuntivo, and the shape of the word gives it away only in part: many words ending in -ché, but not perché (because), poiché or finché — benché (although), affinché (so that), sebbene, purché(provided that)a meno che(unless)prima che(before)senza che(without)
Perché does both: with the indicative it means « because », with the congiuntivo « so that ». Te lo dico perché lo sai against te lo dico perché tu lo sappia. English uses two different phrases and never has to think about it; here the mood carries the meaning on its own.
And where both halves have the same subject, the infinitive takes over: prima di uscire instead of prima che io esca, senza dire niente instead of senza che io dica niente.
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The verbs on this page, in every form: essere · uscire · piovere · arrivare · dire · vedere · sapere · chiamare