controllando

Controllando is the present participle, or gerundio presente, of the Italian verb controllare. It is formed by adding the suffix -ando to the stem controll-, and it denotes an action that is ongoing or simultaneous with another action.

In Italian, the gerund is commonly used with auxiliary verbs to express aspect. The most frequent construction is the present progressive, formed with stare plus the gerund: sto controllando means I am checking. It can also appear with other tenses to indicate an ongoing action, such as stavo controllando (I was checking) or staremò controllando (I will be checking, in forms).

Beyond its progressive use, controllando can function as an adverbial gerund, describing the manner or method of an action, or linking actions in a subordinate clause. For example: Controllando i dati, abbiamo trovato un’anomalia (“While checking the data, we found an anomaly”). In such uses, the gerund does not agree with a subject and remains invariable.

Style and usage notes: while the gerund is a productive feature in Italian, it can lead to ambiguity or a choppy rhythm in formal writing if overused. In formal or precise prose, speakers sometimes prefer finite clauses or explicit connectors like mentre or mentre si controllano to convey the same idea more clearly.

Etymology: controllando is derived from the verb controllare, with the standard Italian gerund suffix -ando, reflecting its role as the non-finite form that expresses ongoing action. See also controllare and gerundio (grammar).