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Home » Italian grammar lesson 171: Stare per + l’infinito / Stare per + the infinitive.

Italian grammar lesson 171: Stare per + l’infinito / Stare per + the infinitive.

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The form stare per + infinitive indicates an action that has not yet begun but is imminent.

  • Sbrighiamoci a tornare a casa, sta per piovere!
  • Let’s hurry back home, it’s about to rain!
  • Stavo per fermarmi al semaforo, quando un’auto mi ha tamponato.
  • I was about to stop at the traffic light when a car hit me.

This form is used almost exclusively with the present and the imperfect, rarely with the simple future, but never with compound tenses.

  • Il bambino stava per uscire, quando sua mamma lo ha chiamato.
  • The boy was about to leave when his mother called him.
  • Mia sorella sta per tornare dalla Gran Bretagna.
  • My sister is returning from Great Britain.