in what contexts is ‘volesse’ used? i understand it has something to do with volere but i dont understand it fully
It’s the imperfect subjunctive.
Ma, se volesse, potrebbe dirmelo. = but if you wanted to, you could tell me.
To construct an " if " sentence you have to use it. Se + imperfect subjunctive + conditional infinitive.
Alcuni esempi:
Se avessi molti soldi, sarei molto felice. = If I had a lot of money, I would be very happy.
Se leggesse un dizionario, saprebbe molte parole = if you read a dictionary, you would know many words.
If I described the story, I would say ,“Lei ha voluto che lui dissele la locazione di suo fratello”.
(Note: Se descrivessi la storia, direi = If I described the story I would say… .) This phrase uses the imperfect subjunctive due to the change in person.
My Italian isn’t perfect but that’s the gist of it. Don’t worry if you don’t understand it at this stage.
Edit:
If you don’t want to use the imperfect subjunctive, just use the present tense.
“Ma, se vuole, può dirmelo” = But if you want to, you can tell me.
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grazie tanti!