Italian Phrase
Il mio computer non si accende.
Meaning
Literally, ‘My computer does not turn itself on.’ It is the standard way to say that a computer won’t start up. The reflexive form ‘si accende’ is idiomatic for electronic devices that are supposed to power on by themselves.
When to use
Use this sentence when you’re describing a technical problem to a friend, a colleague, or a support technician. It works in both informal and semi‑formal contexts, as long as you’re talking about a personal computer.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Ilmiocomputernonsiaccende.
Definite article (Il)
Used before masculine singular nouns that start with a consonant.
Possessive adjective (mio)
Agrees in gender and number with the noun it modifies; here masculine singular.
Negation (non)
Placed directly before the verb (or verb phrase) to make the statement negative.
Reflexive pronoun (si)
In this construction, ‘accendere’ is used reflexively to mean ‘to turn on (itself)’.
Verb (accende)
Third‑person singular present of ‘accendere’; with ‘si’ it means ‘turns on’.
🗨In Conversation
Il mio computer non si accende.
My computer won’t turn on.
Hai provato a collegare il cavo di alimentazione?
Did you try plugging in the power cable?
✕Common Mistakes
Il mio computer non è acceso.
‘Essere acceso’ describes a state (is on), not the action of turning on; use ‘non si accende’ for a device that won’t start.
Il mio computer non accende il computer.
The verb should agree with the subject; ‘accende’ needs a subject, so you’d say ‘Il computer non si accende’ or ‘Il computer non lo accende’ (which is unidiomatic).
↔Alternatives
Il mio PC non si avvia.
My PC won’t start up.
Il mio computer è spento.
My computer is off.
Il mio computer non funziona.
My computer isn’t working.
Cultural Tip
In Italy, it’s common to refer to a laptop as ‘il portatile’ and a desktop as ‘il computer fisso’. When asking for help, Italians often start with a quick check of the power cable or the wall socket before moving to more technical troubleshooting. Using the reflexive ‘si accende’ sounds natural and avoids the more literal ‘non accende il computer’, which can sound a bit clunky.