Heather Broster
I’m sure the vast majority of us have arranged to go out with someone, either on a date or just as friends, only to be left staring impatiently at our watch, waiting for that person to show up. In English, we might say that we’ve been “stood up” whereas in Italian, you can expect to …
I’ve chosen Che cosa vuoi che faccia? as our phrase of the week because many English speakers, when speaking Italian, find it difficult to express the idea of one person wanting another to perform an action. Che cosa vuoi che faccia? What do you want me to do? Consider, for example, any of the following …
Is there someone in your hometown who always seems to turn up wherever you go? You’re at the supermarket picking up bananas, and there’s Mr. Jones in the next aisle, comparing breakfast cereals. Later, you head out to a restaurant, and who walks in just as you’re eyeing the pasta menu? Mr. Jones, of course, …
The day before the first group attending our Montepulciano immersion trip in October was about to head home, I had a lovely conversation at breakfast with one of the participants. He was very curious to know how to express the following phrases in Italian: Upon returning home and reflecting on the conversation, I realised just …
While it usually translates to “case,” the meaning of caso in Italian changes depending on the context. It can mean situation, fate, coincidence, or even pop up in grammar jargon. Let’s explore how we use this word in everyday life, from court cases to chance encounters! caso Caso is a masculine noun that takes the …
The Italian word scarpa means shoe in English, and it is one of the most common nouns you will encounter when talking about clothing or fashion in Italian. scarpa shoe According to the Devoto-Oli dictionary, scarpa most likely derived from scarpettina (meaning “little shoe”), which itself comes from the Greek karpatínē, a variant of karbatínē, …