Conoscere vs Sapere : how to use them
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN “SAPERE” AND “CONOSCERE”? If you came across this page, it’s because you have been confused by using the Italian verbs sapere and conoscere. Fair enough! English (and other languages) use only one verb, the verb to know, to cover knowledge’s meaning in all possible forms. Italian uses two different verbs: […]
24 francesismi di uso quotidiano nell’italiano
Sarà che gli italiani sono un po’ esterofili ma non si può negare che la lingua italiana sia costellata da parole, locuzioni e frasi provenienti da altre lingue, soprattutto dall’inglese, dal francese e dal latino. La così ricca cultura francese ha rivestito senz’altro un ruolo importante nello sviluppo di tutta la cultura europea negli ultimi secoli. […]
The 3 ways of saying TIME in Italian – ORA/TEMPO/VOLTA
The 3 ways of saying TIME in Italian – ORA/TEMPO/VOLTA Translating the word time into Italian sometimes causes a lot of confusion. The reason is that Italian has three different ways to say time, which are ora, tempo and volta. When time means ORA Ora (or ore, in the plural form ) is used to ask the time Che ora […]
Ciò and cioè explained
The difference between ciò and cioè explained The question I want to reply to today regards the meaning of the word ciò. I will also dig into the difference between ciò and cioè, another common and peculiar Italian word. HOW TO USE CIO’ IN ITALIAN Ciò appears to have multiple meanings. Ciò is a demonstrative […]
How to use in Italia ECCO e CIOÈ
How to use ECCO and CIOÈ in Italian Ecco and cioè are Italian filler words that Italians use all the time. Both ecco and cioè are considered Italian filler words. A filler word is a word with no specific meaning that people use in sentences when they speak informally, for mainly two reasons: buying time or giving additional information about what they are saying […]
How to make a phone call in Italian
How to make a phone call in Italian Making a phone in Italian call can be daunting , even as a fluent learner. The lack of in-person contact and visual cues make it way more difficult than one on one conversation. On top of that, phone calls tend to be more impersonal and use a […]
Best Italian short stories for Italian intermediate learners
BEST ITALIAN SHORT STORIES FOR INTERMEDIATE LEARNERS There are countless ways to learn new vocabulary and grammar at an intermediate level of Italian, but the most important thing you need to keep in mind is this fundamental principle: reading the right content and at your level. Don’t worry. You won’t need to have an outstanding […]
Fermare and smettere: what’s the difference?
The difference between FERMARE and SMETTERE Misusing or swapping the verbs fermare and smettere is one of the most frequent errors students of Italian as a second language do, and I understand why. The confusion is drove by the fact that both verbs, in English, have only one translation: stopping. Instead, Italian has two different verbs to indicate the action […]
