My Italian Circle
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to choose At random one tense or the other,Or to take arms against a sea of grammarAnd by mastering it, conquer fluency. Let’s face it, Italian verb tenses can be utterly bewildering for English speakers, especially when it comes to deciding between imperfetto and passato prossimo. Mangiavo or ho mangiato? …
Welcome to our third encounter with the subjunctive: if you have read our previous articles, you should have a clear idea of how to use this important verb mood; if you have not read them yet, you can find them here and here. Today we will conclude our journey by talking about the subjunctive ‘in …
Mi sembra che la pasta sia cotta! Imagine an evening at the house of Italian friends, let’s call them Elena and Marco: a few laughs, an appetiser, maybe a Prosecco or a Spritz while you wait to take your place at the table with your friends. The atmosphere is warm and friendly, and you walk …
Once upon a time, tourists used to ask for directions in order to find their way through a foreign city, and the guidance and suggestions of locals were invaluable when looking for a museum or trying to figure out how to get to the train station on time. But even today, despite GPS technology and …
Chi ha paura del congiuntivo? Who is afraid of the subjunctive mood? Many, it seems, judging by the rivers of ink spilt on the subject. The debate ‘subjunctive or no subjunctive’ also found its way into television programmes, and for years now the refrain ‘the subjunctive is dead’ has been heard at conferences and in …
Some say that British people are obsessed with the weather, but this is a favourite topic of discussion in many other parts of the world, too, and Italy is no exception. Most Italian regions are blessed with warm, sunny weather for several months a year, and Italians are particularly worried about getting caught in a …