Expert: Maria Date: 7/3/2008 Subject: definite article
Question QUESTION: Dear Maria,
Would you please help me to understand the use and meaning of the definite article "il" in the following sentence"
Lei dove beve il caffe?
Is the definite article "il" included to indicate a "specific" coffee? Would this sentence then be translated as: "Where do you drink the coffee?"
-or-
Is it possible that the definite article is included before "caffe" to indicate "possession"? Would this sentence then be translated as: "Where do you drink your coffee?"
-or-
Is it possible that the definite article should not be included before the word "caffe"? Should this sentence be written as: "Lei dove beve caffe?" meaning "Where do you drink coffee?" I am thinking that maybe the definite article should not be included because "caffe" is "generic" in the sense that it means coffee in general, not a specific cup of coffee.
-or-
Is it possible that this sentence could be correct either way - with or without the definite article - depending on what the speaker wants to imply.
Thank you for your help.
Sincerely,
Rich
ANSWER: Dear Rich,
“Lei dove beve il caffè?”, just meaning either “Where do you drink the coffee? “ or "Where do you drink your coffee?”, is correct, while we do not say "Lei dove beve caffè?" as this phrase is absolutely wrong.
We use in fact the definite article "il" to indicate not a "specific" coffee, but “the” coffee, which is not the milk, the tea, the cappuccino, (i.e. the frothy white coffee), the caffellatte, (i.e. the white coffee), etc.
For example we say : “Lei dove beve il tè?”; “Lei dove beve il cappuccino?”, “Lei dove beve il caffellatte?”.
In short, in the direct question clause “Lei dove beve il caffè?” the word “caffè” with the definite article means ‘coffee’ in general, not a specific cup of coffee, as you say, but however it indicates a ‘specific’ kind of beverage.
Best regards,
Maria
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Dear Maria,
Is the definite article always included with words for beverages and then translated as either "the" or used to indicate a possessive adjective?
For example, should I always say "Io bevo il caffe" to mean either "I drink coffee" or "I drink my coffee"
This is confusing to me because we (in English) don't always include the definite article. For example, I would usually say "I drink coffee" instead of "I drink the coffee"
Would it therefore be appropriate for me to translate "Io bevo il caffe" as "I drink coffee" or should this be translated as "I drink the coffee"
Thank you very much for your help.
Sincerely,
Rich
Answer Dear Rich,
Generally speaking, we can say “Io bevo il caffè” to mean either "I drink coffee" or "I drink my coffee".
For example:
-“Bevo il caffè e ti raggiungo subito” as well as “Bevo il mio caffè e ti raggiungo subito” (I drink coffee / my coffee and I'll soon join you).
-“Bevve il caffè e se ne andò” as well as “Bevve il suo caffè e se ne andò” (He drank coffee / his coffee and went away).
But in “Di solito bevo il caffè, non il tè”, we cannot say “il mio caffè”, since in this sentence we want to point out that I usually drink coffee, not tea.
It is therefore appropriate for you to translate "Io bevo il caffe" as "I drink coffee” instead of "I drink the coffee".
See also the following examples where we use the indefinite article:
-“Vuoi un caffè?” (Do you want some coffee?) ; “Gradisci un caffè?” (Do you like some coffee?)
-“Bevve un caffè ed uscì di casa” (He drank a coffee and went out)
In short, the Italian word “caffè” needs the definite/ indefinite article/possessive adjective, according to its context, while we use it without a definite/ indefinite article/ possessive adjective when we want to indicate beverages in general as in “Bevo caffè, non tè”; “A tavola bevo vino, non acqua o coca-cola o succo d’arancia”.
Finally with regard to your first question “Is the definite article always included with words for beverages and then translated as either "the" or used to indicate a possessive adjective?”, note that there is no fixed rule as it depends on the context.
