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Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice: Planning Your Italian Vacation

Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice: Planning Your Italian Vacation 

Best Kathy Twitter Pic edited for blog               Planning your Italian vacation?

Use our Italian subjunctive mood practice tips to write your own Italian email!
Revisit the Italian subjunctive mood!

Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice: Planning Your Italian Vacation

Can you speak Italian? By now, many of you have passed the beginning stages of learning how to speak Italian and can read and comprehend quite a bit of the language. Meraviglioso!

But have you tried to take the next step to communicate in Italian fluently? Are you comfortable using email to make plans with your family and friends? Can you use the Italian subjunctive mood and Italian reflexive verbs correctly when making plans?

For our second Italian practice email, we will continue with the story of Caterina and Francesca,  two Italian cousins who are living in different cities and trying to reconnect. First, we will present a review of how to describe visiting someone using the verb trovare. Then we will present information about Italian reflexive verbs of emotion and of self-action, and the different meanings of verbs with reflexive and non-reflexive forms. We will also discuss use of Italian prepositions regarding the different places we go in our daily lives and regarding time. Finally, we will describe how to use Italian verbs as nouns.

                                                           ***************************

Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice: Planning Your Italian Vacation 

A note about the Italian subjunctive mood: to express complex feelings in Italian correctly, it is important to use the Italian subjunctive mood. Using the subjunctive mood  is difficult for English speakers, because we only rarely use this tense in English, and it’s something that I am always working on! This is the second blog post in the “Italian Practice” series that focuses on how to use the Italian subjunctive mood, or “il congiuntivo,” when writing an email to your family.

To review how to express one’s feelings using the subjunctive mood and how to conjugate the subjunctive mood in the present tense, see our Speak Italian Subjunctive series.

Enjoy the second blog post in this series, “Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice: Planning Your Italian Family Vacation.”
—Kathryn Occhipinti

Some of this material is adapted from our textbook, Conversational Italian for Travelers © 2012 by Stella Lucente, LLC, found on www.learntravelitalian.com. Special thanks to Italian instructor Simona Giuggioli.


Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice Email: Planning Your Italian Vacation 

How many phrases that use the subjunctive mood can you pick out of the following emails? Hint: these phrases usually include the word “che.” Look for the underlined phrases for help! Notice that the future tense does NOT have a subjunctive mood! Also, look for reflexive verbs of emotion and self-action and special phrases of visiting that have been italicized for easier comprehension.

Remember these examples as “anchors” in your knowledge for when you try to speak Italian and try out the subjunctive mood in your next Italian conversation!

Italian  Subjunctive Mood Practice Email:
Planning Your Italian Vacation
An Email to Francesca

Cara cugina Francesca,
Dear Cousin Frances,

Leggere la tua ultima email mi rende* molto contenta!
Reading your last email makes me very happy!

Sono molto contenta che tu e i tuoi figli possiate venire a trovarmi in Abruzzo.
I am very happy that you and your children can come to visit me in Abruzzo.

Mi dispiace che tuo marito non possa venire con voi.
I am sorry that your husband cannot come with you all.

Di solito, ti prendi cura di lui molto bene ogni giorno!
Usually, you take care of him very well every day!

Ed ora, dobbiamo fare il programma!
And now, we must make up the itinerary!

Spero che tu possa arrivare la domenica prima di Ferragosto.
I hope that you can arrive the Sunday before the Ferragosto holiday.

Per prima cosa, io vorrei portarti a trovare i nostri zii.
First, I want to take you to visit our aunt and uncle.

Sono anziani e io dovrei andare a trovarli ogni domenica.
They are elderly and I should go to visit them every Sunday.

Dopo che andiamo in chiesa di mattina, dobbiamo andare a casa loro.
After we go to church in the morning, we should go to their house.

Sono sicura che nostra zia preparerà una buona cena per noi.
I am sure that our aunt will make a wonderful dinner for us.

Lunedì, vorrei andare in montagna a fare un picnic.
On Monday, I would like to go to the mountains to have a picnic.

Per me, restare in montagne dovrebbe essere molto bello con l’aria fresca e gli alberi verdi.
For me, a stay in the mountains would be very beautiful with the fresh air and the green trees.

Dovremmo avere una buona giornata, no?
We should have a good day, no?

Possiamo prendere un buon apertivo come un Aperol Spritz e chiacchierare un po.’
We can have a nice apertif like an Aperol Spritz and chat a bit.

I ragazzi saranno anche molto contenti di giocare insieme fuori.
The kids will also be very happy to play together outdoors.

Mi piacerebbe molto restare in montagna due or tre giorni.
I would really like to stay in the mountains for two or three days.

Possiamo restare all’Albergo Grande vicino a Capistrello per due o tre giorni.
We could stay at the Albergo Grande Hotel near Capistrello for two or three days.

Tu ricordi che il padrone è anche mio cugino.
You remember that the owner is also my cousin.

Prima che tu ritorni, dobbiamo fare la spesa.
Before you return, we could go grocery shopping.

Puoi comprare il cibo tipico del nostro paese.
You can buy food typical of our town.

Puoi dirmi la verità—il pane a Roma non è buono come il nostro in Abruzzo!
You can tell me the truth—the bread in Rome is not good like ours in Abruzzo!

Pensaci.  Fammi sapere che pensi di questo programma!
Let me know what you think of this itinerary!

Non vedo l’ora di vederti!
I can’t wait to see you! (idiomatic expression)

Abbracci e baci,
Hugs and kisses,

Caterina
Kathy

*From the verb rendere,  which can mean “to render,” or “to make,” as in “to become.”


 

Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice Email:
Planning Your Italian Vacation
A Reply Email to Caterina

Cara cugina Caterina,
Dear Cousin Kathy,

Mi sembra che il tuo programma sarà meraviglioso!
It seems (to me) that your schedule will be marvelous!

Sarei molto contenta di restare in montagna con te!
I would be very happy to stay in the mountains with you!

Dopo avere letto la tua email mi sono resa conto che mi mancano molto le montagne dell’Abruzzo.
After having read your email, I realized that I really miss the Abruzzo mountains.

Dopo, andiamo a fare la spesa insieme a Capistrello e così posso portare del buon pane a Roma quando torno!
Afterward, let’s go grocery shopping together in Capistrello, so I can bring some good bread to Rome when I return!

Ho anche una buona idea—
I also have a great idea—

Forse tu puoi venire a trovarmi a Roma e possiamo fare shopping di vestiti.
Perhaps you can come to visit me in Rome, and we can go shopping for clothes.

Lo sai ci sono molti bei negozi di moda a Roma!
You know there are many wonderful, fashionable shops in Rome!

Qualche volta mi annoio di vivere a Roma senza te.
Sometimes I get bored living in Rome without you.

Ma, non mi sono arrabiata con mio marito due anni fa quando ci siamo trasferiti a Roma.
But I didn’t get mad with my husband two years ago when we moved to Rome.

Mi piacerebbe molto andare a trovare i nostri zii in Abruzzo.
I would really like to go to see our aunt and uncle in Abruzzo.

Mi ricordo di avere cenato molto bene a casa di zia Rosa!
I remember having eaten very well at Aunt Rose’s house!

Sarà molto divertente!
It will be very entertaining!

Ci vediamo presto!
See you soon! (Literally “We will see each other soon!”)

Francesca
Frances

 


Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice Email: What You Will Need to Know…

Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice:
Planning Your Italian Vacation

You Will Need to Know…
Phrases That Describe Visiting People

Let’s quickly review how to use the verbs trovare and venire to describe visiting someone, which we covered in detail in our last Italian practice blog post, “Emailing Italian Families.” We will also describe how to use the verb portare when bringing someone to visit others. Examples will come from the emails in this blog post. Did you notice these italicized phrases as you were reading?

 Trovare means “to find” something.

  • When trovare is combined with the verb andare in the phrase “andare a trovare,” the meaning changes into “to go to visit” someone.

Sono anziani e io dovrei andare a trovarli ogni domenica.

Mi piacerebbe molto andare a trovare i nostri zii in Abruzzo.

  • Similarly, when trovare is combined with the verb venire  in the phrase “venire a trovare,” the meaning changes into “to come to visit” someone.

Vorrei che tu venga a trovarmi in Abruzzo quest’estate.

Sono molto contenta che tu e i tuoi figli possiate venire a trovarmi in Abruzzo.

Forse tu puoi venire a trovarmi a Roma e possiamo fare shopping di vestiti.

  • Also, when trovare is combined with the verb portare in the phrase, “portare a trovare,” the meaning changes into “to bring (someone) to visit” someone.

Per prima cosa, io vorrei portarti a trovare i nostri zii.


Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice:
Planning Your Italian Vacation

You Will Need to Know…
Reflexive Verbs of Emotion

Italian reflexive verbs can be tricky for the English speaker because in many situations, reflexive verbs are used in Italian but not in English. In these cases, we must learn to think in Italian! If we think in Italian, using reflexive verbs to refer to changing emotions that one is feeling at the moment does makes sense.

We have already talked about the most common reflexive verbs in the second blog post in the Speak Italian! series, Speak Italian: All About… What I Am Doing! This blog post describes activities of daily living, which are the most common activities that use the Italian reflexive verbs.

Other activities that involve the changing of one’s emotions during the course of daily life are also reflexive, as in the current blog post, when one cousin talks to the other about her feelings about Rome and taking care of her children. Remember that verbs that translate as “to get” in English are reflexive in Italian!

So, if I “get”/ “am getting” angry, bored, embarrassed, offended, or worried, the verbs used to describe this happening within myself will be reflexive in Italian: arrabbiarsi, annoiarsi, imbarrazzarsi, offendersi, and preoccuparsi. 

Verbs of  “forgetting” and “remembering” that use the word “about” after the infinitive form in English are also reflexive in Italian.  These verbs are followed by the preposition di: dimenticarsi di, scordarsi di (colloquial expression), ricordarsi di.  

The following list includes the above verbs, and “a few” more!

 

accorgersi di/che to notice or realize (about self/someone or something else)
annoiarsi to get bored
arrabiarsi to get angry/mad
aspettarsi to expect/ to anticipate
confondersi to get confused
concentrarsi to concentrate (on something)
dimenticarsi di to forget about (something)
distrarsi to be distracted
focalizzarsi to focus (on something)
imbarrazzarsi to get embarrassed
interessarsi a to take an interest in/ to show an interest in
interessarsi di to take care of/ to be in charge of
offendersi to get offended
preoccuparsi to get worried/worry
rendersi conto di/che to realize (about self/someone or something else)
ricordarsi di to remember to do
sbronzarsi to get drunk
scordarsi di to forget about (something)(colloquial expression)
scusarsi to excuse oneself
seccarsi to get annoyed
sentirsi to feel
sorprendersi to get surprised
spaventarsi to get scared
ubriacarsi to get drunk
vergognarsi to be ashamed

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Notice that the Italian verb that describes getting bored, annoiarsi, sounds very much like the English word “annoyed.” However, don’t get confused (confondersi)! The Italian verb that means “to get annoyed” is seccarsi. And of course, the verb for to feel in Italian is reflexive—sentirsi, not to be confused with the non-reflexive verb that means to hearsentire.

Here is how this works. When I want to talk about these emotions as they are happening to me, I must use the reflexive pronoun mi for myself. If I want to talk about emotions that I know are happening to someone else, then I must use the correct corresponding reflexive pronoun/verb conjugation (ti, si, ci, vi, si). Remember to leave out the subject pronoun (io, tu, Lei/lei/lui, noi, voi, loro) unless it is necessary for clarification.

All this is easier than it sounds once you give it a try!

Mi arrabio.
I am/am getting angry.

Ti annoi?*
Are you getting bored?

Lei si imbarrazza!
She is getting embarrassed!

Lui si imbarrazza!
He is getting embarrassed!

Ci offendiamo!
We are getting offended!

Vi confondete!
You all are getting confused!

Loro si seccano.
They are getting annoyed.

*The tu and noi forms of arrabiarsi and annoiarsi are irregular and have only one “i” at the ending: tu arrabi e tu annoi.

*************************

You Will Need to Know…
How to Use the Past Tense with Reflexive Verbs 

Distrarsi is often used in the past tense, as below. In this case, remember to change the “o” ending of the masculine past participle distratto to an “a” ending to make the feminine past participle distratta if needed.

Mi sono distratto(a).
I got distracted.

Non ho ascoltato il professore perché mi sono distratto(a).
I didn’t hear the professor because I got distracted.

 

Two other reflexive verbs in our list that are commonly used in the past tense are those of forgetting and remembering: dimenticarsi di and scordarsi di (to forget about something)* and ricordarsi/ricordarsi di (to remember something/to remember to do something).

Mi sono dimenticato(a) di andare alla posta centrale stamattina.
I forgot to go to the post office this morning.

Non mi sono mai scordato(a) di te.
I have never forgotten you.

Mi sono ricordato(a) il nostro aniversario di matrimonio quest’anno!
I remembered our anniversary this year!

Mi sono ricordato(a) di portare il vino per cena stasera.
I remembered to bring the wine for dinner stastera.

*The verb scordare means to make an instrument go out of tune. There is some controversy about the use of scordarsi with the meaning of “to forget,” and in effect giving it the same meaning as dimenticarsi; some linguists consider only dimenticarsi correct Italian. That said, to some Italians scordarsi means to forget something in your heart and dimenticarsi to forget something in your mind (i.e. without involving emotion).  In actual, everyday use, most Italians probably consider the two interchangeable.


Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice:
Planning Your Italian Vacation

You Will Need to Know…
How to Say, I realized… or I noticed”*

Lastly, we present examples that use the phrases “rendersi conto di/che,” which means “to realize” and “accorgersi di/che,” which can mean both “to realize” and “to notice.” Accorgersi di/che is most often used when something is recognized, but not necessarily understood.

To realize is rendered in Italian with the reflexive verb phrase  rendersi conto.  In order to say, “I realize,” we must conjugate the verb rendersi, which has a regular -ere conjugation in the present tense, and then add the word conto to finish the phrase.  So, “I realize…” is  “Io mi rendo conto…” But, of course, we always leave out the Italian subject pronoun, so the phrase that Italians use is conversation is just, “Mi rendo conto…”  

To complete the sentence, just add what you realize in the phrase that follows! The following phrase will most commonly be in the present or past tense, but of course, there are times when we may need to use the conditional or future tenses, depending on our realization.

  • Link what you realize about yourself with the Italian conjugation “di” before adding an infinitive verb.  Note: you don’t always have to use “di” in this case if you are talking about yourself.  But if you do chose to use “di,” the verb in the next phrase must be in the infinitive form.

—-or—-

  • Link what you realize about yourself, someone or something else with the Italian conjugation“che”before adding a verb conjugated in the appropriate tense. Remember, if the subject is different in the original phrase and the phrase that follows, you MUST use “che” to link the two phrases.

In English, both “di” and “che” are translated as “that.”

Below are example sentences to show how this all works.  These example sentences are true for me.  To think of more examples, and try to describe what you realize about yourself!

Mi rendo conto di avere un’ora per preparare la cena.
I realize that I have an hour to make dinner.

Mi rendo conto che ho un’ora per preparare la cena.
I realize that I have an hour to prepare dinner.

Mi rendo conto che hai un’ora per preparare la cena.
I realize that you have an hour to prepare dinner.

 

Mi rendo conto che desidero sempre imparare di più sulla lingua italiana.
I realize that I will always want to learn more about the Italian language.

 

********************

Now, let’s say that we recognize something without really understanding what it is about, or what is going on – that is, we notice something.  In this case, we can use the reflexive verb accorgersi.  This verb also has a regular -ere conjugation and will be followed by either di or che,  for the same reasons as we have just described above.  To say, “I notice that,” then, use the phrase, “Mi accorgo di/che…” 

Again, an example from my life, taking from a time when I was when talking a good friend of mine about a certain movie.  Try to think of some examples from your own life!

Mi accorgo che ti piace molto questo film.  Vuoi andare a vederlo con me?
I notice that you really like this film. Do you want to go to see it with me?

 

********************

How to say, “I realize,” or “I notice,” seems simple enough!  But wait… we most commonly use the past tense to talk about something that we have realized or have noticed.  This, of course, involves conjugating our two verbs in the past tense!

We will use the passato prossimo forms of these verbs for the one time events of realizing or noticing something, which you will remember is formed for reflexive verbs with essere + the past participle. (If you need a general refresher on how to form the passato prossimo, please refer to our book Conversational Italian for Travelers Just the Verbs ).

  • The past participle for rendersi is the irregular verb reso, and the ending will need to change to reflect the speaker when using the passato prossimo.
  • The past participle for accorgersi is the irregular verb accorto, and the ending will need to change to reflect the speaker when using the passato prossimo.

 

  • So, when I want to talk about what I have realized, I can say, “Mi sono resa conto di/che…” Similarly, a male would say, “Mi sono reso conto di/che…”
  • And, when I want to mention what I have noticed, I can say, “Mi sono accorta di/che…” Similarly, a male would say, “Mi sono accorto di/che…”

To complete the sentence, just add what you have realized in the phrase that follows!  The following phrase will most commonly be in the present or past tense, but of course, there are times when we may need to use the conditional or future tenses, depending on our realization.

Below is a table to summarize these phrases of realizing and noticing. I’ve made the verbs in the phrase green to differentiate them from the other words in the phrase.  Most Italians use these verb  phrases so frequently, though, that they say them quickly, and the words usually run together in real-time conversation.   Listen carefully for these phrases and then try to use them yourself!

Mi rendo conto di/che… I realize that…
Mi sono reso conto di/che… I realized that… (male speaker)
Mi sono resa conto di/che… I realized that… (female speaker)
Mi accorgo di/che… I notice that…
Mi sono accorto di/che… I noticed that… (male speaker)
Mi sono accorta di/che… I noticed that… (female speaker)

 

We  had fun in our Conversational Italian! group  “discussing” what we all realized  during the year 2017 for our talking point this January.  Below are some example sentences that I’ve made up thinking back to New Year’s Eve of 2018.  (Notice that as a female I have to use resa and accorta.)  How many more examples can you think of?

Ieri sera, a Capodanno, mi sono resa conto di essere molto fortunata.
Last night, on New Year’s Eve, I realized that I am very lucky.

Ieri sera, a Capodanno, mi sono resa conto che sono molto fortunata.
Last night, on New Year’s Eve, I realized that I am very lucky.

Mi sono resa conto di avere amici molto cari.
I realized that I have many dear friends.

Mi sono resa conto che ho molti cari amici.
I realized that I have many dear friends.

Mi sono resa conto di avere imparato tante cose importanti dalla mia famiglia.
I realized that I have learned so many important things from my family.

Mi sono resa conto che ho imparato tante cose importanti dalla mia famiglia.
I realized that I have learned so many important things from my family.

Mi sono accorta che era molto freddo a Capodanno.
I noticed that it was very cold on New Year’s Eve.

*The past section is a reprint from the blog: Italian Phrases We Use EVERY Day! What I realized… from ConversationalItalian.wordpress.org, to be published on February 7, 2018.

 


 

Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice:
Planning Your Italian Vacation

You Will Need to Know…
Reflexive Verbs of Self-Action

Italian reflexive verbs can be tricky for the English speaker because in many situations, reflexive verbs are used in Italian but not in English. In these cases, we must learn to think in Italian! If we think in Italian, using reflexive verbs to refer to the things we are doing at the moment makes sense.

We have already talked about the most common reflexive verbs in the second blog post in the Speak Italian! series, Speak Italian: All About… What I Am Doing! This blog post describes activities of daily living, which are the most common activities that use the Italian reflexive verbs.

Other activities that involve actions relating to the self are reflexive in Italian. They refer to what a person (oneself) is doing. Here is a short list:

divertirsi to  enjoy oneself/to have fun
divertirsi a to enjoy… / to play with
incontrarsi to meet (planned)
informarsi di/su to ask/inquire about something
nascondersi to hide
occuparsi di to work at a job or a task
perdersi to get/be lost
prepararsi (a) to get ready (to)
provarsi to try on clothes
rilassarsi to relax
riposarsi to rest
sbrigarsi to hurry up
sedersi* to sit down
smarrirsi to get/be lost

*Sedersi has an irregular conjugation.  

*************************

You Will Need to Know…
How to Say You are Having Fun
“Divertirsi, Divertente,  Divertimento”

One of the most important verbs listed in the last section is divertirsi, which is the verb that Italians use to say that they are enjoying themselves or having fun. There is a lot of fun to be had in Italy, so it is worthwhile to learn how to use this verb, as well as the adverb divertente and the noun divertimento.

To tell someone, “Have a good time!”  use the phrase, “Buon divertimento!” To use the verb divertirsi and the adverb divertente see below:

Mi diverto! I am enjoying myself/having fun!
Mi diverto a guardare la TV (televisione). I enjoy watching TV.
Mi sono divertito(a)! I had fun!/I had a good time!
Mi sono proprio divertito(a)! I really had fun/a good time!
   
È divertente! It is fun/entertaining/enjoyable.
È divertente parlare italiano. It is fun to speak Italian.
Era divertente! It was fun/entertaining/enjoyable/a good time.
Era proprio divertente!  It was really a lot of fun/entertaining/enjoyable/a good time!

 


 

Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice:
Planning Your Italian Vacation 

You Will Need to Know…
“Prendersi Cura di…” and “Occuparsi di…”
Reflexive Phrase of Taking Care

When one person is taking care of another person (or living thing), the reflexive phrase “prendersi cura di…” is used in Italian. The reason that this concept is reflexive in Italian may be that the caring originates within an individual person (myself, for instance), although the action of caring/taking care of is directed at another person. The easiest way to remember this concept is by examples (see below).

The preposition “di” at the end of this phrase must be combined with the definite article (il,la,lo, l’, i, gli, le) if one is not referring to a family member.  Also, remember that the subject pronoun is usually left out of the sentence, except for clarification.

Mi prendo cura di mio figlio.
I take care of my son.

Ti prendi cura di tuo nipote?
Do you take care of your nephew?

Lei si prende cura della classe quando l’insegnante non c’è.
She takes care of the class when the teacher is away.

Lui si prende cura della sua famiglia.
He takes care of his family.

Ci prendiamo cura degli ospiti.
We take care of the guests.

Vi prendete cura degli animali nella fattoria.
You all take care of the animals on the farm.

Loro si prendono cura dei loro nipoti.
They take care of their grandchildren.

********************

When a person is taking care of something, the reflexive phrase “occuparsi di…” is used in Italian. The reason that this concept is reflexive in Italian may be that the caring originates within an individual person (myself, for instance), although the action of caring/taking care of something is directed at something. Often this involves someone’s occupation, but it could also involve just one task.

Me ne occupo io.
I will take care of this.

Te ne occupi tu.
You will take care of this

Ti vuoi occupare di questo?/ Te ne vuoi occupare?
Do you want to take care of this?

Lui si occupa del ristorante della sua famiglia.
He takes care of his family’s restaurant.

Da decembre mi occuperò di trovare un nuovo impiegato.
From December I will take care/have the task of finding a new worker.

 

 


 

Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice:
Planning Your Italian Vacation 

You Will Need to Know…
Different Meanings of Verbs
with Regular and Reflexive Forms


Many Italian verbs have regular and reflexive forms. If the action is directed back toward the speaker, use the reflexive form. For the verbs ricordare and ricordarsi, in most situations, either form may be used. When speaking of something one needs to remember to do, use ricordare di, as we learned in the last chapter, or ricordarsi di.

Note also that the meaning of a verb may change with use of its reflexive form. Chiamare, for instance, means to call someone, as in to make a call on the telephone or to call out to someone. But chiamarsi means to call oneself by nameSentire refers to the senses, and can mean to hear, to feel (as in to touch something) and also to smell.  But the reflexive verb sentirsi has the very different meaning of to feel an emotion.

aspettare to wait/wait for aspettarsi to expect/anticipate
chiamare to call chiamarsi to call onself/to name
fermare to stop an object fermarsi to stop oneself
incontrare to meet by chance incontrarsi planned meeting
informare to inform/to educate informarsi di/su to ask/to inquire
lavare to wash lavarsi to wash oneself
mettere to put/place mettersi to put on clothing
occupare to be occupied occuparsi di to work at a job or a task
essere occupato con… to be busy with (something)
preparare to get something ready prepararsi to get oneself ready
provare to try/practice/rehearse provarsi to try on clothes
ricordare* to remember ricordarsi to remember something
ricordare di to remember to do… ricordarsi di to remember to do…
sentire to hear/to feel (sense of touch)
to smell
sentirsi to feel (emotions)
spostare to move spostarsi to move oneself


*
Incidentally, Romagnol dialect (from the Emiliano-Romangnolo region) for “I remember,” is “amarcord,” which is also the name of a famous Italian comedic film from the 1970s by the director Federico Fellini.  

 


Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice:
Planning Your Italian Vacation

You Will Need to Know…
Italian Prepositions “a” and “in” for Places

In English, we go “to” a place or we are “in or “at” a place.  In Italian, two prepositions are used to express both where we are going and where we are“A” and “in” both can mean “to, in, and at.”

Note that in English, the preposition “to” is used to describe the motion of going somewhere, but once a person has arrived where they are going, the prepositions “in” or “at” are used.* So the English preposition changes based on whether one is going to or is in a place.

In Italian, the motion of going to or being in a place does not change preposition use.  The preposition is selected depending on the noun that the preposition modifies.

The Italian prepositions are then often (but not always) linked with the Italian definite article (il, la, l’, lo, i, le, gli).

Try as I may, I cannot find a reason for the difference in Italian preposition use for each individual place, although in some cases the Italian use of prepositions seems to mirror British English, rather than American English (the British go “in hospital,” as do the Italians).  I guess we have simplified things here in America, across the ocean from the land of our mother tongue!

So therefore, these Italian preposition/noun combinations just need to be memorized. Just link them to the actual place one is going to or one is in and this combination will not change!

See the table below:*

Do you want to go… Are you… Vuoi andare…

Sei…

home? at home? a casa?
to a restaurant? at/in the restaurant? al ristorante?
to a (coffee) bar? at/in the (coffee) bar? al bar?
to a cafe? at/in the cafe? al café?
to the museum? at the museum? al museo?
to the movies? at the movies? al cinema?
to the concert? at the concert? al concerto?
to the show (performance)? at the show? allo spettacolo?
to the show (exhibit)? at the exhibit? alla mostra?
 
to a hospital? at the hospital? in ospidale?
to a pizzeria? at/in the pizzeria? in pizzeria?
to the piazza? at/in the piazza? in piazza?
to church? at/in church? in chiesa?
to the beach? at the beach? in spiaggia?
to the sea? at the seaside? al mare?
to the mountains? in the mountains? in montagna?
to the country? in the country? in campagna?

 

*You will notice from this list that the use of the English prepositions “in” and “at” is also a bit idiomatic.  To my mind, and I am sure this can be debated, when someone is surrounded by 4 walls or are in some way completely surrounded, they are “in” a place. 

An English speaker is always “at home.” If a person has just arrived, or is standing outside the door of a new place, they are “at” this place.  If one then wants to emphasize that they have settled down into this new place, i.e. have a table at a restaurant, the preposition “in” then comes into play. 

Also, if  a person is  involved in what is happening at a particular place, they are “in” it; a viewer is “at” a show, but a performer is “in” the show.  And, of course, we all stand “in”‘ line before the show or another event begins!

These explanations may be a bit more complicated than needed, though, and I am sure these prepositions are thought of as interchangeable in many situations by English speakers.


Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice:
Planning Your Italian Vacation

You Will Need to Know…
Italian Preposition “di” for Time of Day

Sometimes it is necessary to emphasize the time of day in Italian, as in morning, afternoon, evening, or night. This is simple in Italian! Just combine the preposition “di” with the time of day: di mattina, di pomeriggio, di sera, or di notte.

Dopo che andiamo in chiesa di mattina, dobbiamo andare a casa loro.
After we go to church in the morning, we should go to their house.

Here are some examples where the time of day is added after stating the numerical time for clarity or for emphasis. (Notice that the Italian language uses a comma rather than a colon to separate the hours from the minutes.) 

1,00 (AM)                    È l’una di mattina.              

1,00 (PM)                    È l’una di pomeriggio.                

 6,00 (PM)                 Sono le sei di sera.          

10,00 (PM)               Sono le dieci di notte.             


 

Italian Subjunctive Mood Practice:
Planning Your Italian Vacation

You Will Need to Know…
How to Use the Italian Infinitive Verb
as a Noun

Every now and then, one needs to use a verb as a noun. In this situation, for the English language, we use the gerund, or “-ing” form, of our verb. For instance, take the sentence, “Reading is fun.” The very first word is the “-ing” form of the verb “to read,” but in this case, the verb is actually the subject of the sentence and is doing the work of a noun!

In the Italian language, the infinitive form of the verb is used when a verb takes the place of a noun. For the present tense, only the infinitive form of the verb is needed. For the past tense, the helping verb will be in the infinitive form before the past participle.

In the email example in this blog post, this occurs in three sentences, which are reprinted below.

Leggere la tua ultima email mi rende molto contenta!
Reading your last email makes me very happy!

Dopo avere letto la tua email mi sono resa conto che mi mancano molto le montagne dell’Abruzzo.
After having read your email, I realized that I really miss the Abruzzo mountains.

Mi ricordo di avere cenato molto bene a casa di zia Rosa!
I remember having eaten very well at Aunt Rose’s house!

-Some of this material is adapted from Conversational Italian for Travelers,  © 2012 by Stella Lucente, LLC.                 


Best Kathy Twitter Pic edited for blog

Kathryn Occhipinti, MD, is the author of the
Conversational Italian for Travelers
 series of books and a teacher of Italian for travelers to Italy in the Peoria and Chicago area.
“Everything you need to know to enjoy your visit to Italy!”

Join my Conversational Italian! Facebook group and follow me on Twitter at StellaLucente@travelitalian1  and start to learn Italian today for FREE!
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More information on and photographs of Italy can be found on Facebook Stella Lucente Italian and Pinterest Stella Lucente Italian.
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Visit learntravelitalian.com/download.html to purchase/download Conversational Italian for Travelers and find more interesting facts and helpful hints about getting around Italy! Learn how to buy train tickets online, how to make international and local telephone calls, and how to decipher Italian coffee names and restaurant menus, all while gaining the basic understanding of Italian that you will need to know to communicate easily and effectively while in Italy. —From the staff at Stella Lucente, LLC

 Italian Subjunctive Practice: Planning Your Italian Vacation

Conversational Italian for Travelers Speak Italian!

Speak Italian: All About… What I Am Doing!

Speak Italian: All About… What I Am Doing!

Kathryn for learntravelitalian.com Speak Italian: Everything

you need to know … 

to describe your day in Italian!

Can you speak Italian? By now, many of you have passed the beginning stages of learning how to speak Italian and can read and comprehend quite a bit of the language. Meraviglioso!

But have you tried to take the next step to speak Italian fluently? Can you describe your daily routine and talk about yourself in Italian? Can you speak Italian the way you would speak in your native language, with complex and varied sentences? This is more difficult than it may seem at first, and it’s something that I am always working on!

This series will focus on the situations that have come up most frequently in my everyday conversations with Italian instructors and friends. The “Speak Italian” blog series will focus on the type of sentence structure and vocabulary we all need to remember to be more fluent when we speak Italian!

To take that giant step from simple beginning sentences to more complex and fluid sentences in Italian, we must know many things; in this segment, we will discuss how to use reflexive verbs, how to use irregular verbs to say what we like, and how to describe the passage of time.

Speak Italian: All About… What I Am Doing!

In the “Speak Italian” blog series, a short essay or dialogue in Italian will be presented about a commonly used topic of conversation. Then, we will review the Italian grammar that is necessary to talk about the particular topic in detail. And finally, the same material will be presented in Italian and English, with blanks for the reader to fill in with descriptions from his or her own life!

Remember these examples about yourself as “anchors” in your knowledge for when you must speak Italian in your next conversation!

Enjoy the second topic in this series, “Speak Italian: All About… What I Am Doing!”
—Kathryn Occhipinti

This material is adapted from our textbook, Conversational Italian for Travelers © 2012 by Stella Lucente, LLC, found on www.learntravelitalian.com. Special thanks to Italian language instructor Simona Giuggioli.

 


Speak Italian: All About… What I Am Doing!

Here is a short description of what I do every day. The reflexive verbs used in Italian for daily activities (many of which often translate as “to get” in English) have been underlined.

Also underlined are the verbs for “to like” (“to be pleasing to”) and “it takes time,” because they follow a different pattern of conjugation than regular Italian verbs.

Do you have a schedule that you follow every day? What do you like to eat for breakfast? Where do you go? After reading my daily routine, use the blank spaces in the form that follows to fill in the Italian for your daily routine!

 

Speak Italian: All About… What I Am Doing!

On the days that I have to work, I get up at 7 in the morning.
I giorni che devo lavorare, mi alzo alle sette di mattina. 

My cell phone rings at 6:15 and I wake up, but I do not get up until 7!
Il mio telefonino suona alle sei e quindici e mi sveglio ma non mi alzo fino alle sette!

The first thing I do is take a shower.
Per prima cosa, mi faccio la doccia.

Then, I like to eat something for breakfast, so I make a cup of coffee and also have some bread or an Italian cookie.
Allora, mi piace mangiare qualcosa per la prima colazione, cosi faccio un caffè ed anche mangio del pane o un biscotto.

If I am not in a hurry, sometimes I will have a fried egg, toast, and orange juice instead.
Se non ho fretta, qualche volta,  invece, mangio un uovo fritto, il pane tostato e bevo un bicchiere di succo di arancio.

My morning routine to get ready for work includes the usual things: I brush my teeth, wash my face, get dressed, and brush my hair.
La mia routine di mattina per prepararmi per il lavoro include le solite cose: mi lavo i denti, mi lavo la faccia, mi vesto, e mi pettino.

I always wear makeup (for men: shave) when I go out of the house and especially to work.
Mi trucco sempre (per gli uomini: mi faccio la barba) quando esco di casa e specialmente quando vado a lavorare. 

But it is not easy and it takes time, usually about 20 minutes.
Ma non è facile e ci vuole tempo, normalmente quasi venti minuti. 

On some days, I can put on makeup (for men: shave) quickly.
Qualche giorno, però, mi posso truccare (per gli uomini: mi faccio la barba) rapidamente.

All of this usually takes me until 8:00 and then I must take the children to school.
Per fare tutto, mi ci vuole fino alle otto e poi devo portare i miei figli a scuola.

After I have dropped off the children at school, I take the train into the city to work.
Dopo avere portato i miei figli a scuola, prendo il treno per la città per andare a lavorare.

The train is very reliable, and it takes only 30 minutes to reach the city.
Il treno è molto affidabile e ci vogliono solamente trenta minuti per arrivare in città. 

On the way, I read the newspaper.
Durante il viaggio, leggo il giornale.

By 3 PM, I take the train back home.
Per le quindici, prendo il treno e torno a casa.

At 4 PM, I pick up the children from school and take them home.
Alle quattro di pomeriggio, io vado a prendere i miei figli dalla scuola e li porto a casa.

When I come home in the evening, I take off my coat and shoes and get changed into jeans or athletic wear to be more comfortable.
Quando torno a casa di sera, mi tolgo il cappotto e le scarpe e mi metto i jeans o la tuta (indumento da ginnastica) per stare più comoda.

I make dinner for my children during the workweek, but on the weekend, we usually go out to eat for dinner.
Preparo la cena per i miei figli durante la settimana lavorativa, ma il fine settimana di solito ceniamo fuori.

Later, I try to relax.
Più tardi, provo a riposarmi.

I get undressed and put on my pajamas.
Mi svesto e mi metto il pigiama.

I watch the news on the television and fall asleep at 11:30 at night.
Guardo le notizie alla televisione e mi addormento alle undici e mezzo di notte.

I start this same routine all over again the next morning!
Comincio di nuovo questa routine la mattina dopo!

 


Speak Italian: Grammar You Will Need to Know…

Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

Use of Prepositions: “Da,” “Di,” and “A”

Many Italian verbs are followed by prepositions, those “little words” that link one phrase to another for descriptive purposes; improper use of prepositions is a common issue for all non-native speakers, because one must tap into the “way of thinking” of each language to use prepositions correctly. It is often the prepositions that give away the fact that one has had to study to learn a language—no matter how well one speaks otherwise.

Learning when to use which preposition in Italian can be challenging, and often, the “rules” of preposition use do not make sense and just need to be memorized.

Da and di are two common Italian prepositions. “Da” usually means “from,” and “di” usually means “of,” although “di” is often used in situations where in English we would use “from.”

The Italian verb “uscire,” which means “to go out,” or “to leave” is usually followed by da + definite article (il, lo, la, etc.), but when referring to the act of leaving one’s house (casa), uscire takes the preposition di without the definite article. You might want to remember this detail by thinking of the alternate meaning of the word “casa,” which is the very personal “home,” and that when speaking in Italian about one’s family and home in other situations, a definite article is not necessary. Also, notice from the last example below that the verb andare (to go) is always followed by the preposition “a,” for “to,” without the definite article.

 

1. Prepositions for Uscire

da + definite article
di (with reference to casa)

2. Preposition for Andare a

 

Examples of use:

Io esco dal ristorante. I go out to the restaurant to eat.
Io esco di casa. I go out of the house./I leave the house.
Io vado a casa mia. I go to my house.
   
Mi trucco sempre quando esco di casa e specialmente quando vado a lavorare
I always wear makeup when I leave the house and especially when I go to work.

 

Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

Use of Preposition: “Per”

The preposition “per” is used in Italian to express intent and purpose and will be used to start phrases that will then describe what you are going to do. The English translation will usually be “for” but can also be “to.” When referring to time, “per” takes the place of “by” in English. The combination “stare per” means “to be about to.”

Per prima cosa, mi faccio la doccia.
The first thing I do is take a shower.

 

Per fare tutto
To do all this

 

Per le quidici…
By 3 PM…

 

La mia routine di mattina per prepararmi per il lavoro include…
My morning routine to get ready for work includes…

 

Io sto per studiare l’italiano stasera.
I am about to study Italian tonight.

 

Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

How to Tell Time

On any given day, the time we need to do things frequently comes up. We often have to ask specifically what time our transportation will be leaving or what time an event will be starting. Here are some examples of questions you may need to ask. Remember, there is no insertion of the word “does” in Italian when asking a question, the way we do in English.

A che ora…? (At) what time (does)…?
   
A che ora arriva l’aeroplano? At what time (does) the airplane arrive?
  (lit. At what hour arrives the airplane?)
A che ora parte il treno? At what time (does) the train leave?
A che ora comincia* il viaggio? At what time (does) the trip start?
A che ora inizia* il film? At what time (does) the film begin?
A che ora finisce il film? At what time (does) the movie end?
A che ora apre il museo? At what time (does) the museum open?
A che ora chiude il museo? At what time (does) the museum close?

*Cominciare and iniziare are interchangeable in Italian.

The answers to the above questions will also use the word “at,” which is the word “a” in Italian. We can mention our special times of day if they apply, such as “a mezzogiorno” or “a mezzanotte.” Otherwise, the word a will be combined with the definite article (the) (l’ or le). The Italian definite article l’ is combined with a to make all’ before the word una for the phrase “all’una,” which means “at one.” For all numbers greater than one, use a with the definite article le to make “alle” (alle due – ventiquattro) (at two through 24).

A mezzogiorno. At noon.
A mezzanotte. At midnight.
All’una.         At one o’clock.
Alle sette. At seven o’clock.
All’una e cinque. At 1:05 AM.
Alle sette e mezzo. At 7:30 AM.

If desired, to emphasize the time of day, as in morning, afternoon, evening, or night, you can add the following expressions after stating the numerical time: “di mattina, di pomeriggio, di sera, or di notte.”

 


 

 

Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

Common Reflexive Verbs

Here is a list of regular direct reflexive verbs that includes all three conjugations. Reflexive forms are extremely important for conversation because they often involve activities and emotions that we encounter every day. Note that many of these verbs are not reflexive in English.

accomodarsi to make oneself comfortable preoccuparsi to worry/get worried
accorgersi to realize reprendersi to get better/to recover
addormentarsi to fall asleep rilassarsi to relax oneself
alzarsi to get up riposarsi to rest
annoiarsi to be/become bored sbagliarsi to be wrong
arrabbiarsi to become angry sbrigarsi to hurry up
asciugarsi to dry oneself scusarsi to excuse oneself
bagnarsi to get wet/to take a bath spogliarsi to get undressed
dirigersi to go over to/head over sposarsi to get married
divertirsi (a) to enjoy oneself/play with svegliarsi to wake up
fermarsi to stop oneself svestirsi to get undressed
innamorarsi to fall in love togliersi to take off
mettersi to put on (clothes) truccarsi to put on make-up
laurearsi to get a university degree vergognarsi to be ashamed
muoversi to move oneself vestirsi to get dressed/to wear
pettinarsi to comb one’s hair

 Also, many of the verbs that describe what we do every day, which are translated as “to get…” in English are reflexive in Italian. Let’s take these commonly used verbs that mean “to get” out of the list above:

alzarsi to get up
annoiarsi to get bored
arrabbiarsi to get angry
bagnarsi to get wet / take a bath
laurearsi to get a university degree / to graduate
mettersi to put on clothing / to get (oneself) in trouble
preoccuparsi to get worried / to worry
reprendersi to get better / to recover
spogliarsi to get undressed
sposarsi to get married
vestirsi/svestirsi to get dressed/to get undressed
Ho deciso di sposarmi. I have decided to get married.
   
Non ti metti nei guai. Don’t get (put) yourself in trouble.
Mi sono messo nei guai. I got (put) myself in trouble.


Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

How to Conjugate Reflexive Verbs

Reflexive verbs take a reflexive pronoun before the verb. They are conjugated in the usual way, by dropping the –are, –ere, and –ire verb endings and adding the regular endings for each type of verb to the stem that remains.

Infinitive
Present
Reflexive

Pronouns

–are –ere –ire ire (isco)
io mi o o o isco
tu ti i i i isci
Lei/lei/lui si a e e isce
           
noi ci iamo iamo iamo iamo
voi vi ate ete ite ite
loro si ano ono ono iscono

When we use an infinitive reflexive verb in a sentence, the reflexive pronoun must come after the verb; the –si is dropped from the infinitive ending, and the reflexive pronoun is then added directly onto the stem at the end of the verb.

This is the same word order that we routinely use in English! This situation usually occurs in Italian when one of the helping verbs (dovere, potere, or volere) (to have to, to be able to, or to want) precedes a reflexive verb.

Voglio divertirmi. (I) want to enjoy myself.
   
Volgio riposarmi. (I) want to rest (myself).
   
Devo alzarmi. (I) must get (myself) up.

 

Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

How to Make Sentences with Reflexive Verbs

Here are some example sentences that use the regular verbs listed on the previous page. The Italian subject pronoun “io,” meaning “I” is included in the Italian examples, although, unlike the I in English, io is almost always omitted with reflexive verbs (as in most general conversation). Parentheses have been used in the Italian sentences as a reminder of this fact. In the same way, parentheses are used in the English translation to indicate Italian reflexive pronouns that are not necessary in English.

Getting up in the morning:

(Io) Mi sveglio. I wake up. (lit. I wake myself up.)
(Io) Mi alzo. I get up. (lit. I get myself up.)
(Io) Mi alzo presto. I get (myself) up early.
(Io) Mi alzo alle sei. I get (myself) up at 6 AM.
(Io) Mi alzo tardi domani. I (am going to) get (myself) up late tomorrow.

 

Getting ready to go out for the day:

(Io) Mi faccio il bagno. I take a bath. (lit. I make myself the bath.)
(Io) Mi lavo. I wash myself.
(Io) Mi asciugo. I dry myself off.
(Io) Mi pettino. I comb (myself) my hair.
(Io) Mi preparo per il lavoro. I get (myself) ready for (the) work.
(Io) Mi vesto. I get (myself) dressed.
(Io) Mi metto i vestiti. I put on (myself) the clothes.
(Io) Mi trucco. I put on my makeup.
(Io) Mi metto la giacca e le scarpe. I put on (myself) the jacket and the shoes.
(Io) Mi sento molto bene! I feel very well!
Vado al lavoro./Vado a lavorare. I go to work.

 

At the end of the day:

Torno a casa. I return home.
(Io) Mi tolgo la giacca. I take off (myself) the jacket.
Preparo la cena per la famiglia. I make the dinner for the family.
Alle nove (io) mi svesto. At nine (I) get (myself) undressed.
(Io) Mi tolgo le scarpe. (I) take off my shoes.
(Io) Mi metto il piajama e le ciabatte. I put on (myself) the pajamas and slippers.
(Io) Mi rilasso. I relax (myself).
(Io) Mi riposo. I rest (myself).
(Io) Mi addormento. I fall (myself) asleep.

 

Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

How to Describe Getting Dressed
 with the Reflexive Verbs Vestirsi and Mettersi

The Italian verb “vestirsi” carries the general meaning of “to get dressed.” To use this verb, just conjugate it as you would any other reflexive verb to make a simple sentence. Remember that in Italian, the subject pronoun is always left out of the sentence, so it is given in parentheses below.

(Io) Mi vesto. I get dressed.
(Tu) Ti vesti. You get dressed.
(Lei/Lui) Si veste. She/He gets dressed.

When talking about putting on an article of clothing, such as a dress or suit (vestito),* for instance, Italian uses the reflexive verb “mettersi” (to put on oneself). 

*A note: Don’t confuse the verb vestire with the noun vestito, which means dress and also suit (pants and jacket or skirt and jacket).  These words are similar but have different meanings!  Also,  it should be mentioned that the plural noun, vestiti, means clothing.(Other words for suit that can be used for both sexes are abito and completo.)

Here is how it works:

“Mettersi” can be used to convey the ideas of, “I put on the dress,” “I put on my dress,” and “I put my dress on.” The reflexive pronoun mi (myself) is placed before the conjugated form of mettersi, as usual, and the article of clothing to be put on is then placed after the verb. The subject pronoun is omitted. So the final sentence for “I put on the/my dress,” is, “Mi metto il vestito.” 

Just remember the simple phrase “mi metto” and replace il vestito with the article of clothing of your choice to describe your own action! To describe action in the tu (you) form, just conjugate mettersi normally and then add the article of clothing, as in “ti metti,” or in the lei/lui (she/he) form, use “si mette,” and so on.

(Io) Mi metto il vestito. I put on the dress./I put the dress on./I put on my dress.
(Tu) Ti metti l’anello. You put on the ring.
(Lei/lui) Si mette le scarpe. She/he puts on shoes.

 

Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

How to Describe Wearing Clothes
 with the Verbs Portare, Mettersi, and Vestire

In order to say I am wearing…”  or I take the size…”  the verb portare, which is not reflexive, is usually used in the present tense. You no doubt remember that portare is also commonly used to mean to bring”  or to carry.” 

Porto il mio vestito preferito. I am wearing my favorite dress.
Porto la (taglia) quarantotto. I take size 48.

Portare can also be used to say I wore”  in the past tense. But perhaps because portare is used so commonly with its other meaning of to bring”  in the present tense, in order to describe what they have worn, most Italians prefer to revert to mettersi and use its (irregular) past participle messo.  Remember to use the helping verb essere for the passato prossimo past tense form with the reflexive verb mettersi.  Here is how it works:

(Io) Mi sono messo un completo.
(Io) Mi sono messa una gonna.
I wore a suit.
I wore a skirt.
Ho portato una gonna. I wore a skirt.

Another way to describe how someone was dressed is to use the imperfetto past tense of essere  with the descriptive past participle vestito(a,i,e).   This type of phrase can be used to make generalizations, as well as to refer to a specific article of clothing.  When being specific, the preposition “con” is used in these phrases, as in the examples below.

Era vestito con un abito grigio. He was dressed in a suit.
Era vestita con una gonna blu. She was dressed in a blue skirt.
Eravamo vestiti tutto in rosso per la festa. We were dressed all in red for the party.

 

Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

How to Describe Wearing Clothes
 with the Verb Indossare

The verb indossare also means “to wear” and “to put on.”  This verb can is used in exactly the same way as portare or mettersi.  To the Italian ear, the verb indossare is said to have a more elegant sound than portare or mettersi, and perhaps this is why indossare is more common in written Italian than in conversation.

Just like the other two verbs that have the same meaning, indossare must always be followed by the article of clothing that the person is wearing.

Caterina indossa un abito rosso. Kathryn is wearing a red dress.
La signora indossava un cappotto molto elegante. The lady was wearing a very elegant coat.

******************************

Finally, when something fits perfectly on you or another, to really fit into Italian society, use the idiomatic expression calzare a pennello.”  Calzature refers to shoes, or “footwear,” so this Italian saying is the equivalent of  the English saying, It fits you like a glove” or It fits you to a T.”

Mi calza a pennello! It fits me perfectly!
Ti calza a pennello! It fits you perfectly!
Lo/la calza a pennello! It fits him/her perfectly!

 

Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

How to Conjugate the Irregular Verb Piacere

The irregular verb piacere literally means to like, as in “to be pleasing to.” It is the verb that Italians use when they want to express the idea that they like something. In English, when we say we like something, we mention two things: what thing is being liked and by whom. So in English, we would say, I like the car,” and fulfill these two requirements with the subject pronoun “I” and the direct object “car.”

But in Italian, the indirect object is used instead of the direct object, to describe to whom the thing is liked or pleasing to. If we wanted to change up this same English phrase into the Italian way of thinking, we could say, “The car is pleasing to me.” You will hopefully find the mixed Italianized-English phrase “is pleasing to” to be very helpful to understand how piacere really works!

The tricky thing about this type of phrase in Italian is that the conjugation of piacere will have to agree with the number of things that are being liked.

So, if one thing is liked, or an infinitive verb follows, piace is used.

If many things are liked, piacciono is used.

Italians then put the indirect object pronoun (mi, ti, Le, le, gli, ci, vi, or gli) before the verb, at the beginning of the sentence, to denote to whom the thing is pleasing to.

Piace—to be pleasing to: if one thing is liked/before infinitive verbs

 

Mi piace il vestito. The dress is pleasing to me. I like the dress.
Ti piace il vestito. The dress is pleasing to you. (fam.) You like the dress.
Le piace il vestito.

Gli/le piace il vestito.

The dress is pleasing to you. (pol.)

The dress is pleasing to him/her.

You like the dress.

He/she likes the dress.

     
Ci piace il vestito. The dress is pleasing to us. We like the dress.
Vi piace il vestito. The dress is pleasing to you all. You all like the dress.
Gli piace il vestito. The dress is pleasing to them. They like the dress.

 

Piacciono—to be pleasing to: if more than one thing is liked

 

Mi piacciono i vestiti. The dresses are pleasing to me. I like the dresses.
Ti piacciono i vestiti. The dresses are pleasing to you. (fam.) You like the dresses.
Le piacciono i vestiti.

Gli/le piacciono i vestiti.

The dresses are pleasing to you. (pol.)

The dresses are pleasing to him/her.

You like the dresses.

He/she likes the dresses.

     
Ci piacciono i vestiti. The dresses are pleasing to us. We like the dresses.
Vi piacciono i vestiti. The dresses are pleasing to you all. You all like the dresses.
Gli piacciono i vestiti. The dresses are pleasing to them. They like the dresses.

 

Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

How to Conjugate Volerci for Phrases Describing Time

To describe the general passage of time that it takes to do something, an English speaker will often say, “It takes time.”  Volerci is used to express this idea in Italian.  Volerci is called a pronominal verb because the impersonal adverb “ci” is an integral part o this verb. Volerci takes on a different meaning from volere and is used to describe the time, effort or tools needed to accomplish something. For now, now we will only discuss its meaning regarding the time it takes to do something.

To follow is the method to translate the phrase “it takes time” into Italian using the verb volerci.  First, it should be noted that the impersonal adverb “ci” is always used to begin the phrase.  “Volere” is then conjugated to reflect the amount of time taken, in either the third person singular or plural. This is the similar to the way we conjugate the verb piacere, except with piacere the reference is to what we like, rather than to how much time something takes.

 

So when saying, “It takes time,” the word “time” is considered one segment of time, and the third person singular form of volere, which is “vuole,” is used.

If the time “it” takes is one minute, one hour, one month, or one year—that is, if the reference is to one time segment, use “vuole.”

 

If the time “it” takes is more than one of each time segment (plural), the third person plural form of volere, which is “vogliono,” is used.

Ci vuole tempo. It takes time.
     
Ci vuole un minuto. Ci vogliono due minuti. It takes one minute/two minutes.
Ci vuole un’ora. Ci vogliono due ore. It takes one hour/two hours.
Ci vuole un giorno. Ci vogliono due giorni. It takes one day/two days.
Ci vuole un mese. Ci vogliono due mesi. It takes one month/two months.
Ci vuole un anno. Ci vogliono due anni. It takes one year/two years.

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Commonly used questions that refer to time begin with “how much,” such as, “How much time does it take?” These phrases always begin with “Quanto.”  We remember that “quanto” always changes to match the gender and number of the noun it is placed before and modifies.  Answer using the phrases in the table given in this section!

Quanto tempo ci vuole per arrivare a Roma da Milano?
How much time does it take to get to Rome from Milan?

Quante ore ci vogliono per finire il tour?
How many hours will it take to finish the tour?

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Other verbs that act like piacere, but will not be discussed here, include the following:

Dispiacere to displease/to upset
Mancare to be lacking/to miss
Occorrere to require/to need
Servire to need

Speak Italian: You Will Need to Know…

How to Use Volerci for Phrases Describing Time
with Reference to People

If we want to speak in a little more complicated manner (and why not?) we can use the verb volerci* to describe how much time it will take someone to do something.  Remember to place the indirect object pronouns (mi, ti, le, gli, vi, gli) before  ci vuole  to refer to the “someone” we are talking about.

Looking at the table below, you will notice that “a noi”  is used to mean to us” before ci vuole.”  In this case, the indirect object pronoun ci” for to us,” is not used.  The word “ci” is already a part of volerci, and is always placed before the conjugated verb form.  To avoid the repetition that would occur in the phrase ci ci vuole tempo, Italians revert to a noi.”

Of course, we can always replace the word tempo in the examples below with a unit of time. Remember the rules we just learned:  If one unit of time is referred to, use the verb vuole, as in the examples.  If more than one unit of time is referred to, we need to use vogliono.

Mi ci vuole molto tempo. It takes me time.
Ti ci vuole molto tempo. It takes you time.
Le ci vuole molto tempo. It takes her time.
Gli ci vuole molto tempo. It takes him time.
   
A noi ci vuole molto tempo. It takes us time.
Vi ci vuole molto tempo. I takes you all time.
Gli ci vuole molto tempo. It takes them time.

*Volerci is a pronomial verb and takes on a different meaning from volere, as described in the previous section.

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Commonly used questions that refer to time begin with “how much,” such as, “How much time does it take?” These phrases always begin with “Quanto.”  We remember that “quanto” always changes to match the gender and number of the noun it is placed before and modifies.  Answer using the phrases in the table given in the section above, but change the word time to the number of minutes or hours!

Quanto tempo ti ci vuole per arrivare a casa mia?
How much time does it take you to get to my house?

Quante ore ti ci vogliono per arrivare a casa mia?
How many hours will it take you to get to my house?

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If we want to use the past tense with volerci in a phrase regarding time, we need to use the past participle voluto, with essere as the helping verb to form the passato prossimo. 

For a general statement about time in the past tense, as in the examples below, use the passato prossimo verb è voluto. 

Of course, we can always replace the word tempo in the examples below with a unit of time. Remember the rules we just learned:  If one unit of time is referred to in the past, use the verb  è voluto, as in the examples.  If more than one unit of time is referred to in the past, we need to use sono voluti(e).

To make these statements negative, just put “non” at the beginning of the sentence (with the exception of the “a noi”).

Below are some commonly used phrases that use volerci to refer to time in the past tense:

Non mi … ci è voluto molto tempo. It did not take me much time.
Non ti… ci è voluto molto tempo. It did not take you much time.
Non le … ci è voluto molto tempo. It did not take her much time.
Non gli… ci è voluto molto tempo. It did not take him much time.
A noi non… ci è voluto molto tempo. It did not take us much time.
Non vi… ci è voluto molto tempo. It did not take you all much time.
Non gli ci è voluto molto tempo. It did not take them much time.

 


Speak Italian: All About… What YOU Are Doing!

Do you have a schedule that you follow every day? What do you like to eat for breakfast? Where do you go?

Fill in the blanks in the Italian sentence that follows each English sentence, using
the examples given previously, or instead describing what you actually do.

Watch out for those reflexive verbs—the verbs that often mean “I get,” and the phrases
that translate as “I like” and “it takes time.”

On the days that I am working, I get up at ___________________________________.
I giorni che devo lavorare, ______________________________________________.

My cell phone rings at _________________ and I wake up, but I do not get up until 7!
Il mio telefonino suona _________________e ___________________________,ma

_____________________________________fino_____________________________!

The first thing I do is take a shower.
Per prima cosa, _______________________________________________________.

Then, I like to eat something for breakfast, so I make a cup of coffee and
have some bread or an Italian cookie.
Allora, ____________________________________qualcosa per la prima colazione,


cosi faccio_______________________________________________ed anche mangio

_____________________________________________________________________.

If I am not in a hurry, sometimes I will have a fried egg, toast, and orange juice instead.
Se non ho fretta, qualche volta, mangio ___________________________________ 

e bevo _________________________________________________________________.

My morning routine to get ready for work includes the usual things:
I brush my teeth, wash my face, get dressed, and brush my hair.
La mia routine di mattina ______________________________include le solite cose:

_________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________.

I always wear makeup (for men: shave) when I go out of the house and especially to work. ________________________________ quando esco di casa e specialmente quando vado a lavorare.

But it is not easy and takes time, usually about 20 minutes.
Ma non è facile e ______________________, normalmente

_________________________________________________________________________.

On some days, I can put on makeup (or shave) quickly.
Qualche giorno, però, __________________________________________ rapidamente.

All of this usually takes me until 8:00 and then I must take the children to school.
Per fare tutto, ___________________ fino ___________________ed poi devo portare i miei figli a scuola.

After I have dropped off the children at school, I take the train into the city to work.
Dopo aver portato i miei figli a scuola, ________________________________________
per andare a lavorare.

The train is very reliable, and it takes only 30 minutes to reach the city.
Il treno è molto affidabile e _____________________ solamente ___________________ per arrivare in città.

On the way, I read the newspaper.
Durante il viaggio, leggo il giornale.

By 3 PM, I take the train back home.
_______________________________________________, prendo il treno e torno a casa.

At 4 PM, I pick up the children from school and take them home.
_______________________, io vado a prendere i miei figli dalla scuola e li porto a casa.

When I come home in the evening, I take off my coat and shoes and get changed into jeans or athletic wear to be more comfortable.
Quando torno a casa di sera, __________________________________________________________________________

e ________________________________________________________________________

per stare più comoda.

I make dinner for my children during the workweek, but on the weekend, we usually go out to eat for dinner.
Preparo la cena per i miei figli durante la settimana lavorativa, ma il fine settimana di solito ceniamo fuori.

Then I try to relax.
Più tardi, _________________________________________________________________.

I get undressed and put on my pajamas.
__________________________________________________________________________

e ________________________________________________________________il pigiama.

I watch the news on the television and fall asleep at 11:30 at night.
Guardo le notizie alla televisione e _________________________________________________________________________.

I start this same routine all over again the next morning!
Comincio di nuovo questa routine____________________________________________ !

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Conversational Italian for Travelers Just the Important Phrases
Conversational Italian for Travelers Just the Important Phrases (with Restaurant Vocabulary and Idiomatic Expressions) is YOUR traveling companion in Italy! All the Italian phrases you need to know to enjoy your trip to Italy are right here and fit right into your pocket or purse.

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Kathryn Occhipinti, MD, is the author of the
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“Everything you need to know to enjoy your visit to Italy!”

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Speak Italian: All About… What I Am Doing!