# essi sono a letto



## Saritdiisraele

*essi sono a letto = I am in bed?*
It this correct?

I understood that "Essi" it's means "They're" right? so how come they say it's I'm?

Thanks



> Please always put the full question inside the body of the text (we often edit titles) and make it clear which language you are translating from and what the sources of the sentences are - who is "they"?.


----------



## Panpan

io sono
tu sei
lei e
noi siamo
voi siete
loro sono

Hope it helps

Panpan


----------



## Saritdiisraele

Thanks Panpan!

So it's not right "Essi"? I should use Loro?


----------



## Grtngs

Panpan said:


> io sono
> tu sei
> lei e egli è
> noi siamo
> voi siete
> loro essi sono
> 
> Hope it helps
> 
> Panpan


----------



## Fredlex

Because one is subject (essi) the other is object (loro).


----------



## baldpate

"essi" is a pronoun, used less often nowadays than "loro"; both mean "they"/"them".


----------



## Saritdiisraele

Cuz one is subject (essi) the other is object (loro)

I am sorry I didn't understand..

*"Essi sono a letto" = I am in bed?

*It's refer to "I'm" , so I don't understand now why they used Essi and no Io.


----------



## Grtngs

Saritdiisraele said:


> Cuz one is subject (essi) the other is object (loro)
> 
> I am sorry I didn't understand..
> 
> *"Essi sono a letto" = *I am They are* in bed
> 
> *It's refer to "I'm" , so I don't understand now why they used Essi and no Io.


----------



## Alxmrphi

Fredlex said:


> Cuz one is subject (essi) the other is object (loro)



But loro is also a subject -> Loro hanno detto..... ecc


----------



## Fredlex

ESSI is THEY

LORO is THEM

It's so easy...


----------



## Saritdiisraele

Grazie Amici!

So I hope I got it hehe, thanks a lot!


----------



## Grtngs

Alex_Murphy said:


> But loro is also a subject -> Loro hanno detto..... ecc



Essi is the grammatically correct choice, but no one says it in spoken Italian anymore. We all say "loro". 
With an ultra-literal translation, "loro hanno detto..." means "Them said...".

G


----------



## Alxmrphi

Fredlex said:


> ESSI is THEY
> 
> LORO is THEM
> 
> It's so easy...



Loro is "them" when used as an object, but I'm sure it's also used as a subject as well, I feel weird saying this to an Italian but it's something I think I am so sure of, even in every conjugator of verbs it's always layed out in the same way, "loro" is the subject "they" on all those lists as well.

Someone else please come and clarify.


----------



## Fredlex

I use LORO every day when I speak...but when I WRITE I HAVE TO USE ESSI...because LORO is only for speaking...


----------



## Grtngs

Alex_Murphy said:


> Loro is "them" when used as an object, but I'm sure it's also used as a subject as well, I feel weird saying this to an Italian but it's something I think I am so sure of, even in every conjugator of verbs it's always layed out in the same way, "loro" is the subject "they" on all those lists as well.
> 
> Someone else please come and clarify.



  In the past, using loro instead of essi was wrong; now it's correct, because after years (and years) of use, loro is accepted as a pronoun.


----------



## Alxmrphi

Ok, it's just more than anything I read grammar books that try to teach proper Italian, and I have only come across essi and esse etc a tiny fraction of the time, and if some books don't even bother to mention that it's new because it's so well accepted, for someone to say it's wrong on a place like WR (sometimes miles away from trying to be like a book) it just took me by surprise.


----------



## housecameron

Alex_Murphy said:


> Loro is "them" when used as an object, but I'm sure it's also used as a subject as well, I feel weird saying this to an Italian but it's something I think I am so sure of, even in every conjugator of verbs it's always layed out in the same way, "loro" is the subject "they" on all those lists as well.
> 
> Someone else please come and clarify.


 
Alex is definitely right.
Loro is _*they*_, too, that is "Pronome personale soggetto".


----------



## Grtngs

If you went to school in Italy you'd know essi/esse very well, I promise.

G


----------



## Fredlex

The "Pronome personale soggetto" is ESSI...only in the spoken language you could use LORO instead of ESSI...in the same way EGLI & LUI and ESSA & LEI...


----------



## Alxmrphi

Well I've used Loro here on the forums loads of times and have never been corrected and told it should be "essi".


----------



## Fredlex

Because nowadays we use both expression...but in an Italian test at school, if you use LORO as a subject is a terrible mistake...


----------



## Jana337

> The "Pronome personale soggetto" is ESSI*...*only in the spoken language you could use LORO instead of ESSI*...*in the same way EGLI & LUI and ESSA & LEI*...*


Fine but learners like Alex need to learn spoken Italian first. Grab any textbook of Italian for foreigners (or grammar websites from our resources sticky for that matter) - nowhere will you see essi/esse/egli/ella mentioned in the early and intermediate stages. Only much later are students told that they need to use them in formal written texts. 

I am not disputing your claim (well, I've met Italians that were less conservative about the status of "loro") but you should understand the purpose of this forum and to adjust your recommendations accordingly. 


> Because nowadays we use both expression...but in an Italian test at school, if you use LORO as a subject is a terrible mistake...


As an Italian pupil maybe. As a foreign learner definitely not!


----------



## Zuzy

I think that "essi" is just "archaic", we no more use it, or it's very difficult to find "essi" in a sentence, unless you're reading some text of 50 years ago! And, well, if you're making an exercise in a book, maybe your teacher would prefer the use of "essi" instead of "loro", because it's grammatically correct the first one.


----------



## gabrigabri

In the school you learn "egli, ella, esso, ecc". But I often had problems in the school writing them, because it really sounds strange (in same cases).
But I think foreing people only learn "lui, lei, loro". Here in Austria nobody knows the "correct" version!

Though I wouldn't say it so that "archaic" or never used.


----------



## Fredlex

But IT IS correct

I often use ESSI when I write in prose or in verses

I only wanted to underline the REAL difference between Essi and Loro, that they are not the same word


----------



## Zuzy

It's like when we say "_Li_ ho visti" instead of "Ho visto _loro_".
When I was at school, if we used "li", it's was considerated an error...but when we speak, we rarely say "ho visto loro"!


----------



## Fredlex

Zuzy said:


> It's like when we say "_Li_ ho visti" instead of "Ho visto _loro_".
> When I was at school, if we used "li", it's was considerated an error...but when we speak, we rarely say "ho visto loro"!



This is another perfect example...


----------



## housecameron

Fredlex said:


> The "Pronome personale soggetto" is ESSI...only in the spoken language you could use LORO instead of ESSI...in the same way EGLI & LUI and ESSA & LEI...


 
Non è più così, temo che dovrai fartene una ragione.
Essi/esse/loro


----------



## BlueWolf

Zuzy said:


> It's like when we say "_Li_ ho visti" instead of "Ho visto _loro_".
> When I was at school, if we used "li", it's was considerated an error...but when we speak, we rarely say "ho visto loro"!



Non capisco quest'esempio. _Li ho visti_ è grammaticalmente perfetto, tanto quanto _l'ho visto_. Per caso a scuola volevano anche che scrivessi _Ho visto lui_?


----------



## gabrigabri

Forse si riferiva a:
Gli ho detto---> ho detto loro. (?)


----------



## federicoft

Probabilmente l'esempio che si voleva fare era _gli_ ho parlato (pl.) / ho parlato _loro_.


----------



## Grtngs

I think it doesn't hurt to let a beginner/intermediate student of the Italian language know that essi/esse exist.
My grammar textbook (1982, not two centuries ago) says that essi/esse and egli/ella are the correct form, loro lei/lui _can_ be used.
That said, everybody (myself included) use loro/lei/lui.


G


----------



## federicoft

Alex_Murphy said:


> Loro is "them" when used as an object, but I'm sure it's also used as a subject as well, I feel weird saying this to an Italian but it's something I think I am so sure of, even in every conjugator of verbs it's always layed out in the same way, "loro" is the subject "they" on all those lists as well.



Actually I think a conjugator is the last place where you read egli/essi instead of lui/loro.

BTW, it is not true you can use lui/loro only in spoken language. It is perfectly correct Italian in all circumstances. Just remember that in literary language or very formal settings you could occasionally still hear egli/essi. But it would be laughable to use them in a normal conversation IMO.

Just a little reminder:

You will use _egli_ (masculine) and _ella_ (feminine) with persons. _Esso_ and _essa_ with objects and animals.
_
Essi_ and _esse_ with both of them.


----------



## Alxmrphi

Well the most used conjugator on the net uses loro (verbix).


----------

