Nonostante + subjunctive: Italian grammar lesson 221

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Summary

This article provides a brief overview of the Italian subjunctive, a verb form used to express hopes, hypotheses, desires, fears, possibilities, uncertain situations, and doubts. The article focuses on the use of "nonostante" followed by the subjunctive. "Nonostante" can be translated as "in spite of the fact that," "despite the fact that," or "even though," and is used to express a contrast between two things. When "nonostante" is followed by the subjunctive, it triggers the use of the subjunctive because it is used to talk about something hypothetical.

There are four types of subjunctive in Italian: present subjunctive, past subjunctive, imperfect subjunctive, and past perfect subjunctive. The article provides examples of how to use "nonostante" with each type of subjunctive. The article also notes that there are many other words that require the use of the subjunctive, such as "sembra che," "in caso," "non sapevo che," "magari," "prima che," and "qualunque, chiunque, ovunque."

Overall, the article provides a useful introduction to the use of "nonostante" with the subjunctive in Italian grammar, and provides examples to help learners understand how to use this verb form correctly.

The Italian subjunctive

We use the Italian verb form congiuntivo, the subjunctive, to talk about hopes, hypotheses, desires, fears, possibilities, uncertain situations, and doubts.

And you will find it a lot in Italian after the word che and after other specific words.

There are four types of subjunctive in Italian:

But in today’s lesson, we’re going to focus on the following structure: nonostante + subjunctive.

Nonostante with the congiuntivo

What is the meaning of nonostante?

When nonostante is followed by the subjunctive, it could be translated in the following ways:

We basically use nonostante to express a contrast between two things because nonostante is a conjunction which means it’s used to connect two clauses or sentences.

More specifically, we use it to say that something happens even though something else could have prevented it but it didn’t.

Let’s have a look at some examples:

Continuano a studiare nonostante siano stanchi.

They carry on studying despite the fact that they’re tired.

Nonostante fossi stanco, sono rimasto sveglio!

Even though I was tired, I stayed awake.

How to use nonostante with the subjunctive

How to use nonostante + subjunctive?

There are many words that need the subjunctive such as sembra che, in caso, non sapevo che, magari, prima che, and qualunque, chiunque, ovunque.

As we already mentioned, we use nonostante to talk about something hypothetical. And since we use the subjunctive to talk about hypotheses, this word triggers the use of the subjunctive.

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Just so you know, nonostante can be followed by any of the four subjunctives, depending on what you want to say.

How to use nonostante with the congiuntivo

Nonostante + subjunctive: examples

Let’s have a look at some more examples.

Pay attention to the type of subjunctive nonostante is followed by in each sentence:

Stasera non esco nonostante abbia voglia.

I’m not going out tonight even though I want to.

Non abbiamo mangiato niente nonostante avessimo fame.

We didn’t eat anything in spite of the fact that we were hungry.

Nonostante piovesse, non ho preso l’ombrello.

Even though it was raining, I didn’t get the umbrella.

Non ci sono riuscito nonostante ci abbia provato.

I didn’t make it despite the fact that I tried.

Non lo ha riconosciuto, nonostante lo avesse incontrato molte volte.

He didn’t recognize him even though he had met him many times.

How to use nonostante with the Italian subjunctive

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FAQs on Nonostante + subjunctive: Italian grammar lesson 221

What is the meaning of "nonostante"?

When followed by the subjunctive, it could be translated as: In spite of the fact that, despite the fact that, and even though.

How to use nonostante + subjunctive?

We use "nonostante" to talk about something hypothetical and it can be followed by any of the four verbal moods of the subjunctives.

Stefano

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