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Migliore and Meglio: The Difference
Migliore vs. Meglio "Migliore" and "meglio" are two words that students frequently mix up. The reason for this is that meglio means "better", and migliore means both "best” and “better” and this causes a little confusion when translating from English. ...
Direct Object Pronouns in Italian: An Easy Guide
What's a pronoun? Pronouns are an essential part of speech that allow us to replace something that has already been said and avoid repeating ourselves. Pronouns are widely used in conversation as they help us to be more concise and speak faster. Italian, just...
Anch’io vs. Anche a me (Neanch’io vs. Neanche a me) – The Difference
Anch'io vs. anche a me: the difference "Anche" means "too." "Anch’io" means "me too." So, what does 'anche a me' mean? It means "also me too." Nonetheless, "anch’io" and "anche a me" can't be used interchangeably. Why? "Anche a me" is used only with verbs that...
How to Use the Verb Servire in Italian
What does 'servire' mean? First, let's delve into the meaning and usage of "servire" and explore how it differs from other verbs expressing necessity, such as "dovere" or "avere bisogno di." Servire means to need something. It should be employed with a noun (referring...
Italian Past Conditional: A Simple Guide
Italian Past Conditional In Italian, there are two types of conditionals: the present conditional (condizionale presente) and the past conditional (condizionale passato or composto). The key difference between the two lies in their structure: the present...
Riuscire and Potere. The Difference.
In my experience as an Italian language teacher, students often struggle with the verb riuscire because of its widespread use in informal Italian. The reason is that the Italian verbs potere and riuscire are both frequently used in English with “can” and so,...
Italian Noun Gender. Determining Masculine vs. Feminine
Nouns ending in '-o' or '-a' In Italian language, nouns, pronouns, and adjectives can be assigned one of two grammatical genders: masculine or feminine. The gender of a word is arbitrary and does not always have a logical connection to the gender of the person...
Italian Prepositions: How To Use “In”and “A”
In or A? One of the most common mistakes in Italian for foreign learners is the use of the prepositions a and in. And that's completely normal. In some cases, there are specific rules that tell you when to use the preposition in and when to...
Italian Impersonal Form
The impersonal form with "si" In Italian, we have a simple way to make a generalization or to make a sentence where the subject is not specified: the impersonal form. The impersonal form is made up by: si + any verb conjugated in the 3rd person singular. Example: In...
Common expressions using ESSERE and AVERE
In Italian, the verbs essere and avere are certainly amongst the most popular ones. This is why they are widely used in many common Italian idiomatic expressions like the one following. Bear in mind that a certain number of recurring expressions use the...