Si in sentences with a passive meaning
3 Si is also used as an impersonal subject in sentences which have a passive
meaning, like this one: ‘In Nuova Zelanda si parla inglese.’ The correspond-
ing sentence in English would have either a passive verb (‘English is spoken in
New Zealand’) or an impersonal one (‘One speaks/They speak English in
New Zealand’).
In this type of sentence, the verb can be in either the third person singular
or the third person plural. The singular is used if the noun that accompanies
the verb is singular:
The plural is used when the noun that accompanies the verb is plural:
Quando si è studenti si è poveri.
Se si mangia troppo si diventa
grassi.
Quando si è malati si rimane a
casa.
Quando si è giovani si è ottimisti.
Se si veste in nero si sembra magri.When one is a student, one is poor.
If you eat too much you get fat.When you are ill you stay at home.When one is young one is an optimist.
If you dress in black you look slim.Il biglietto [sing.] si prende
all’ingresso.
Il sale [sing.] si compra in
tabaccheria.
Al mercato si vende la frutta [sing.]
migliore.
Si deve lavare l’insalata [sing.]
prima di mangiarla.In biblioteca si può leggere il
giornale [sing.].The ticket is obtained/You get your
ticket at the door.
Salt is bought/You buy salt at the
tobacconist’s.
The best fruit is sold at the market.Lettuce should be washed before you
eat it/You should wash lettuce
before eating it.
In the library you can read the paper/
The paper can be read in the library.Anche le cartoline [pl.] si comprano
in tabaccheria.
I lamponi [pl.] si mangiano in
estate.
In vacanza si fanno molte fotografie
[pl.].Si devono comprare i biglietti [pl.]
in anticipo.
In quel Cine Club si possono vedere
molti film [pl.].Postcards are also bought/You also
buy postcards at the tobacconist’s.
Raspberries are eaten in summer.A lot of pictures are taken on holiday/
On holiday you take a lot of
pictures.
Tickets should be purchased in
advance.
A lot of films can be seen/You can see
a lot of films at that cine club.