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Basic Italian Course for the Virtual Student

Lesson 2

SHORT ACHIEVABLE GOALS

  1. The Personal Pronoun (as a subject)
  2. The Verb "to be" (present simple)
  3. The Words Molto, Troppo
  4. Question Words
  5. The Verb "Avere"
  6. Vocabulary

I need to organize the question words better, and figure out that last mixed section.

Note: This was written by an Italian, and quickly edited by an American English speaker. There is still some strange English in places. Much of it is noted. If you find anything else strange, please tell me, so that we can make this better for everyone!
Thanks!

The personal pronoun (as a subject)

In Italian, it is clear by the ending of the verb which pronoun is implied. Therefore, in spoken Italian, these pronouns are usually left out. In spoken language, a pronoun for "it" as a subject is not used at all.

The verb "to be" (present simple) - Il verbo essere (presente indicativa)

Molto

"molto" means "very"

Sono molto stanco.
I'm very tired.
Com'e' la pasta?
How is the pasta?
E' molto buona.
It's very good.
Sei molto bella.
You are very beautiful.
E' molto intelligente.
He/She/It is very bright.

But "molto" can mean also "much" or "many". In this case it behaves like an adjective.

molti alberi
many trees
molte case
many houses
molta acqua
much water
molto vino
much wine
molto vento
much wind
molto sole
much sun
molte nuvole
many clouds

Troppo

"troppo" behaves like "molto" (in all the cases above). It means "too much" or "too many". ("I'm too tired" and so on.)

Question Words

chi
who (not in relative sentences)
che cosa
what
che
what (preferably just in some few questions)
what does that mean???????????
cosa
what
quando
when
dove
where
come
how
quale
"which one" or "which + noun" (in questions)
quanto
how much

When third person singular "to be" is added to a word that ends in "e", the final e is dropped, and an apostrophe replaces it.

Che cos'e'? / Cos'e'?
What is it?
Dov'e'?
Where is it?
Quand'e'?
When is it?
Dove sei? / Dove siete?
Where are you?
Dov'e' la casa?
Where is the house?
Quand'e' San Francesco?
When is St. Francis?
St. Francis Day??????
Chi e' Machiavelli?
Who is Machiavelli?

Why do some of these have apostrophes on the ends? Is that a typo?

ci

"ci" means "there" when you want to say "there are" or "there is", not in the sense of "li", or "la"

ci sono
there are
c'e'
there is
C'e' posto?
Is there room?
C'e' un posto?
Is there a seat/place?
In puglia ci sono pochi fiumi.
In Puglia there are few rivers.
puclia doesn't exist, right? it's puglia?????????????????????????????????
In lombardia ci sono molti laghi.
In Lombardy there are many lakes.
Should regions be capitalized?????????????????????????????????
In veneto c'e' un solo laco.
In Venice there is only one lake.
laco doesn't exist, right? it's lago?????????????????????????????????
In Italia c'e' una sola grande pianura.
In Italy, there is only one big plain
C'e' soltanto (solo) una grande pianura.
There is only one big plain.
A Roma ci sono tante chiese
In Rome there are many churches.
A Venezia ci sono tante barche
In Venice there are many boats.
A Napoli ci sono tanti ladri
In Naples there are many thieves.
A Firenze c'e' tanta cultura
In Florence there is a lot of culture.

When "c'e'" or "ci sono" are in a sentence with an unstated subject, they become "ce ne"

che cosa / cosa

You can use these two words to ask questions about the meaning of an Italian word:

Che cos'e' "insalata"?
What is "insalata"? (salad)
Cos'e' "pollo"?
What is "pollo"? (chicken)

Remember: "cosa" also means "thing". "cose" means "things". Italians often say "a thing" (una cosa) instead of "something", in expressions like "I want to tell you something." or "I have to do something."

che

Che cos'e'?
What's this?
Che cos'e'?
What (is this)? (also "Cos'e'?" or "Che e'")
Che cosa?
What?

quando

Quando e' Pasqua?
When is Easter Sunday?
Quando viene Natale, facciamo l'albero.
When Christmas comes, we make the tree.
We'll get a tree or We'll decorate a tree??????????

dove

Dove siete?
Where are you?
Dov'e'?
Where is he/she/it?
Dov'e' Maria?
Where is Mary?

come

Com'e' la carne?
How is the meat?
Com'e' il pesce?
How is the fish?
Come sono i fagioli?
How are the beans?
Com'e' il tempo?
How is the weather?
Com'e' il cibo?
How is the food?
Com'e' la pizza?
How is the pizza?
Com'e' il tempo?
How is the weather?

Remember: "tempo" is both time and weather

You can also use "come" in questions and sentences like asking "How do you do ___?" or "This is how you ___."

"come" also means "like"

Io sono come...
I am like... "
Com'e' la bistecca?
How is the beef steak?
E' come una pietra.
It's like a stone.

quale

Quale casa?
Which house?
Qual'e' la casa?
Which one is the house?
Qual'e'?
Which one is it?
Quali sono?
Which ones are they?
Quali sono i buoni?
Which are the good ones?
Quale animale...?
Which animal...?
Quali alberi...?
Which trees...?

quanto

Quant'e'?
How much is it?
Quant'e' grande la casa?
How large is the house?
Quant'e' grande l'albero?
How big is the tree?
Quant'e' grande?
How large(big) is it?
Quanto sono grandi ?
How large(big) are they?
Quant'e' lungo il fiume?
How long is the river?
Quant'e' lunga la strada?
How long is the road?
Quant'e' alto il monte?
How high is the mountain?

If "quanto" is in relation to a noun, it behaves like an adjective (it can become "quanti", "quanta", "quante").

Quanto e' lunga la strada?
How long is the road?
Quanti chilometri sono?
How many kilometers is it?
Quanto e' alto il monte? (la montagna)
How high is the mountain?
Quanto e' da qui?
How long is it from here?
Quant'e'?
How much is it/that? (How much does it cost?)
Quanto e' grande la casa?
How large is the house?
Quante volte?
How many times?
Quanto tempo?
How much time? (How long?)

Remember:

[one section removed - repeated from chapter 2?] ????????????????????????????

The verb "to have" - Il verbo avere

The "h" is silent. The "h" only distinguishes the words "ha", "ho", "hai" and "hanno" from the words "a", "o", "ai" and "anno".

This verb is used to construct many common Italian expressions that are different from the ways used in English: pay attention to the following examples to find out how to say that you are hungry, sleepy, thirsty, you need something, how old you are, and so on.

Quanti anni hai?
How old are you?
Ho fame
I'm hungry (literally: I have hunger)
Ho sete
I'm thirsty
Ho sonno
I'm sleepy
Hai fame?
Are you hungry? (addressing only one person)
Hai sete?
Are you thirsty? (addressing only one person)
Avete sonno?
Are you sleepy? (addressing more than one person)
Quanto denaro hai qui?
How much money do you have here? (quanti soldi?)
Abbiamo bisogno di un' auto.
We need a car.
Ho un'idea.
I have an idea.
Lui non ha molte idee.
He doesn't have many ideas.
Avete bisogno di nulla (niente)?
Do you need anything? (literally: nothing)

Sometimes the English expression "have got" can be rendered with "ci", but only in spoken Italian, and only when "have" has the meaning of owning or wielding something.

Ci ho la chiave.
I've got the key.
Ci ho una moglie e tre bambini.
I've got a wife and three kids.
Lei ci ha una casa grande.
She's got a big house.

Vocabulary

in cucina - in the kitchen

la forchetta
the fork
il coltello
the knife
il cucchiaio
the spoon
il bicchiere
the glass
il piatto
the dish
il tavolo
the table
la sedia
the chair
il cibo
the food
la carne
the meat
il pesce
the fish
la verdura
the vegetable (leafy)
l'ortaccio
the vegetable (non-leafy)
il pane
the bread
il panino
the small loaf
l'olio
the oil
il burro
the butter
il sale
the salt
il pepe
the pepper
il sugo
the (tomato) sauce
il formaggio
the cheese
il prosciutto
the ham
il pomodoro
the tomato
la patata
the potato
la costata
the chop
la bistecca
the beef steak
la cuoca
the cook/chef (if a woman)
il cuoco
the cook/chef (if a man)

In biblioteca - in the library

il libro
the book
la pagina
the page
lo scrittore
the writer
l'autore
the author
la penna
the pen
la matita
the pencil
il foglio
the sheet
la carta
the paper
il giornale
the newspaper
la rivista
the magazine
la lettura
the reading
is this right????????

In una stanza - in a room

il muro
the wall
la finestra
the window
la porta
the door
il soffitto
the ceiling
il pavimento
the floor
l'appartamento
the apartment
la villa
the villa
il balcone
the balcony

Sentences for Vocabulary

Io sono a casa.
I'm at home. (also "in casa")
Sono a casa.
I'm at home / They're at home.
Sono stanco.
I'm tired.
E' importante.
He/She/It is important.
E' assurdo!
It's absurd!
E' una bella giornata.
It's a beautiful day.
E' una brutta cosa.
It's a bad thing.
E' una brutta faccenda.
It's a bad story.
E' una storia triste.
It's a sad story.
E' un caso interessante.
It's an interesting case.
Sono davvero annoiato.
I'm really bored.
Sono molto arrabbiato.
I'm very angry.
E' molto strano.
He/It is very strange.
E' molto strana.
She/It is very strange.
Siamo molti.
We are many.
Perche' sei nervoso?
Why are you nervous?
Sei pazzo?
Are you crazy?
E' qui la festa?
Is the party here?
Sei qui!
Here you are!
Quanto e' bella la primavera!
How beautiful springtime is!
Quanto / Come sei bella!
How beautiful you are! (either word works)
Com'e' bella! / Che bella!
How beautiful she/it is! (either one works)
L'inverno non e' bello, perche' fa freddo.
Winter is not beautiful, because it is cold.
I vehemently disagree with the last sentence!
L'autunno e' triste.
Autumn is sad.
L'estate e' bella, ma fa molto caldo.
Summer is beautiful, but it will be very hot.
Is this translation right?
Sei li'?
Are you there? (singular)
Why is there an apostrophe on the end????
Siete li'?
Are you there? (plural)
Why is there an apostrophe on the end????
Chi sei tu?
Who are you?
Chi e' veramente tua moglie?
Who is really your wife?
La mia casa e' li'.
My house is there.
Why is there an apostrophe on the end????
Chi sono i tuoi vicini?
Who are your neighbours?
Quand'e' il tuo compleanno?
When is your birthday?

 

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