Causal clauses (proposizioni causali) express the reason or cause for the main action. They answer the question 'why?'. Italian has several connectives for causal clauses, each with different positions in the sentence and registers.
| Connective | Position | Verb Mood | Register |
|---|---|---|---|
| perché | after main clause | indicativo | neutral / very common |
| siccome | BEFORE main clause | indicativo | neutral / spoken |
| poiché | before or after | indicativo | formal |
| dato che | before or after | indicativo | neutral |
| visto che | before or after | indicativo | neutral / spoken |
| a causa di | before or after | noun (no verb) | neutral |
| per | after main clause | past infinitive | neutral (same subj.) |
| giacché | before or after | indicativo | literary / very formal |
The most common causal connective. It always follows the main clause and is followed by the indicativo. Remember: 'perché + indicativo' = cause; 'perché + congiuntivo' = purpose. Example: Non vengo perché sono stanco. (I'm not coming because I'm tired.)
'Siccome' is unique: it MUST come at the beginning of the sentence (before the main clause). It means 'since / because' and is very common in spoken and written Italian. It always takes the indicativo. Example: Siccome piove, non esco. (Since it's raining, I'm not going out.) You cannot say 'Non esco siccome piove.' — this is incorrect.
| Connective | Example | English |
|---|---|---|
| poiché | Poiché il tempo era brutto, abbiamo rimandato. | Since the weather was bad, we postponed. |
| dato che | Dato che non c'è più cibo, devo fare la spesa. | Since there's no more food, I need to shop. |
| visto che | Visto che sei qui, puoi aiutarmi. | Since you're here, you can help me. |
| giacché | Giacché ci siamo, facciamo anche questo. | Since we're here anyway, let's do this too. |
With the same subject, you can use 'per + past infinitive' to express cause. The past infinitive is formed with: avere/essere + past participle. Example: È stato punito per aver mentito. (He was punished for having lied.) L'hanno premiata per essere arrivata prima. (They awarded her for having arrived first.) This is used especially to describe a past action that caused a consequence.
'A causa di' is followed by a noun (not a verb). It means 'because of' and is used when expressing a cause via a noun phrase. Example: Non siamo usciti a causa del maltempo. (We didn't go out because of the bad weather.) It can be used for negative causes (problems, obstacles).
1. 'Siccome' ALWAYS starts the sentence — never after the main clause. 2. 'Perché' always comes AFTER the main clause. 3. 'Poiché/dato che/visto che' can come before or after. 4. All causal connectives (except 'per + infinitive') take the INDICATIVO. 5. 'A causa di' takes a NOUN, not a verb. 6. Formal vs. informal: 'perché/siccome' (neutral), 'poiché/giacché' (formal/literary).
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Proposizioni Causali — perché + indicativo (1)
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Proposizioni Causali — perché + indicativo (2)
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Proposizioni Causali — perché cause vs purpose (3)
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Proposizioni Causali — perché + indicativo (4)
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Proposizioni Causali — perché + indicativo (5)
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Proposizioni Causali — perché + indicativo (6)
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Proposizioni Causali — perché review and position (7)
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Proposizioni Causali — perché practice (8)
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Proposizioni Causali — perché advanced (9)
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Proposizioni Causali — perché group review (10)
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Proposizioni Causali — siccome (1)
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Proposizioni Causali — siccome verb forms (2)
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Proposizioni Causali — siccome position and usage (3)
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Proposizioni Causali — siccome transformations (4)
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Proposizioni Causali — perché vs siccome position (5)
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Proposizioni Causali — siccome in real contexts (6)
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Proposizioni Causali — siccome review and errors (7)
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Proposizioni Causali — siccome mixed practice (8)
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Proposizioni Causali — siccome in sentences (9)
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Proposizioni Causali — siccome group review (10)
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Proposizioni Causali — dato che / visto che (1)
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Proposizioni Causali — poiché (2)
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Proposizioni Causali — dato che/visto che/poiché forms (3)
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Proposizioni Causali — register comparison (4)
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Proposizioni Causali — formal connectives mixed (5)
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Proposizioni Causali — synonyms and transformations (6)
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Proposizioni Causali — all connectives comparison (7)
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Proposizioni Causali — formal connectives practice (8)
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Proposizioni Causali — formal causal review (9)
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Proposizioni Causali — formal connectives mastery (10)
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Proposizioni Causali — per + past infinitive (1)
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Proposizioni Causali — per + past infinitive: avere vs essere (2)
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Proposizioni Causali — per + past infinitive vs present (3)
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Proposizioni Causali — per + past infinitive agreement (4)
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Proposizioni Causali — per + past infinitive in real contexts (5)
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Proposizioni Causali — a causa di + noun (6)
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Proposizioni Causali — a causa di practice (7)
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Proposizioni Causali — noun vs verb cause (8)
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Proposizioni Causali — per + past infinitive review (9)
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Proposizioni Causali — group 4 comprehensive (10)
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Proposizioni Causali — choosing the right connective (1)
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Proposizioni Causali — complex sentences (2)
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Proposizioni Causali — error identification (3)
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Proposizioni Causali — texts and reading comprehension (4)
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Proposizioni Causali — all structures review (5)
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Proposizioni Causali — advanced mixed (6)
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Proposizioni Causali — translations (7)
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Proposizioni Causali — complex texts (8)
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Proposizioni Causali — error identification (9)
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Proposizioni Causali — mastery test (10)
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