Eccovi ragazzi, more useful Italian idioms. C4N!
alla buona
simply, unpretentiously
guardare al centesimo
to pinch pennies
a conti fatti
everything considered
Fa proprio per me.
It's just my cup of tea.
di buon mattino
bright and early
Here you go guys, another flashcard set featuring handy Italian idioms, this time based on clothing terms. C4N!
Avere un asso nella manica.
To have an ace up one's sleeve.
Sbottonarsi.
To open up.
Nascere con la camicia.
To be born with a silver spoon in one's mouth.
Attaccare il cappello al chiodo.
To settle down (especially in a wealthy marriage).
Essere in manica larga.
To be lenient, to be generous.
Sudare sette camicie.
To work really hard, make a big effort.
Here you go ragazzi, better late than never - another flashcard set devoted to the many idioms with fare. C4N!
Fare un buco nell'acqua.
To fail in an attempt.
Fare castelli in aria.
To build castles in the air (dream idly and vainly).
Fare baldoria.
To make merry, have a ball.
Fare venire la barba.
To bore to death.
Fare a scaricabarile.
To pass the buck.
Fare una brutta figura.
To make a fool of oneself, look bad.
Ciao amici! For this week's Italian vocab update I decided to try something different - words that are easily confused. Either because they're false cognates (i.e. words that have different meanings from the English words they look like), or because they look too similar to other Italian words with different menaings. You'll see what I mean! Buono studio.
l'educazione
upbringing, good manners
maleducato
rude, ill-mannered
l'istruzione
education (as in schooling)
sciogliere
to untie, undo, release, dissolve, melt, loosen up
scegliere
to choose
la scogliera
cliff
sono
I am / they are
sogno
I dream, or il sogno = the dream (noun)
il sonno
sleep (noun)
suono
I play (an instrument) / sound (noun)
spingere
to push
spegnere
to turn off (e.g. lights)
spendere
to spend
squagliare
to melt
Here's another mix of really useful Italian vocab flashcards. Tell your friends! C4N (Ciao for now!)
riprendersi
to recover
legarsi a qualcuno
to become attached to somebody
tenerci a
to be fond of, keen on
lo spavento
fright
abbagliare
to dazzle
accorgersi di
to notice, realize
raggiungere
to reach, achieve
accogliere
to receive (guests), welcome
giungere (a)
to arrive, to succeed, to join
cogliere
to pick, catch, seize
raccogliere
to pick, harvest, collect, gather
sfruttare
to exploit
fregare
to cheat (a person)
lo spasso
fun
andare a spasso
to go for a walk
le scartoffie
papers (e.g. junk mail)
incavolato
angry, irritated
un sorriso a trenta denti
a big grin
Di che si tratta?
What's it about?
Si tratta di...
It's about...
aggiungere
to add (e.g. ingredients to a mix)
Ciao guys, here's another mixed bag of random words I come across while reading Italian novels, words that seem like they'd be useful, or seem distinctively Italian (as opposed to obviously latinate to English speakers). Enjoy and share!
il fazzoletto
handkerchief, headscarf
trascinare
to drag
stracciare
to tear
sciagurato
unfortunate
brontolare
to grumble
prendere qualcuno in giro
to pull someone's leg
disposto
ready, disposed
aggiungere
to add (e.g. an ingredient to a mix)
affrettarsi
to hurry
stordito
stunned
lo starnuto
sneeze
il chiacchierone
someone who talks a lot (or too much)
sfogarsi
to give vent to one's feelings
la scorciatoia
shortcut
Here you go amici, some explanations of the names for various types of Italian eating establishments. Buon appetito!
bar
A bit like what we might call a cafe here. Coffees, pastries, but also wine, grappa and snacks. One on every corner, not all with tables. A good example in Toronto is Bar Novecento on St.Clair.
paninoteca
"Sandwich bar." (Mr. Sub Italian-style!)
osteria
Low priced inn-style place where you get hearty, flavourful food.
trattoria
Medium priced. Like the osteria and taverna, it too is authentic and favoured by locals. Try Seven Numbers on the Danforth.
taverna
Food quality below trattoria level. Serves drinks too.
ristorante
These can get pricy, though prices vary. Check the menu outside.
pizzeria
Pizza joint also serving pasta and salads. The closest thing in Toronto is Terroni.
tavola calda
Literally "hot table." More of a fast food or take out joint.
Salve ragazzi. There's no theme to this week's Italian vocab flashcards, just an assortment of words and phrases, many of which however I consider to be uniquely Italian, in that they often lack an obvious easy English translation.
le mutande
underwear
la cannuccia
drinking straw
sputare
to spit
l'imbroglione
con artist
piagnucolare
to whimper
Su, dai!
an expression used to exhort, incite, insist or encourage
dare retta a
to take somebody's advice
fare fine (as in "Che fine ha fatto?")
to end up
farsi strada
to make one's way in the world
sistemarsi
to settle down, find a job, home, spouse
il rimbambito
a person in his dotage
sbrigarsi
to be quick
scivolare
to slide or slip
lo schiaffo
slap
esagerare
to exaggerate, overstate
i quattrini
money
il brivido
shiver
sentirsi a disagio
to feel uncomfortable, self-conscious, uneasy, embarrassed
trovarsi bene
to feel at home, feel well, comfortable
fare il solletico a
to tickle
sentirsi al proprio agio (as in "Mi sento a mio agio") (can also be used with essere or trovarsi)
to feel at ease, comfortable, well, at home, in one's element
Ciao guys, a bit of a mix this week - some colourful idioms for describing the weather, plus a list of coffee types in Italian. Click the link for online flashcards or hit the printer icon below for a hard copy. Ciao for now!
Fa un caldo terribile!
It's terribly hot!
Il sole spacca le pietre!
The sun is splitting the rocks!
Fa un freddo cane!
It's terribly cold!
Fa un freddo/un caldo da morire!
It's deadly cold/warm!
Piove sul bagnato.
It rains on the wet. (Used when something good happens to someone who doesn't need it, e.g. a millionaire wins the lottery.)
Piove a cielo aperto.
It's pouring.
ristretto
very strong, concentrated espresso
doppio
double espresso
lungo
espresso diluted with water so it's weaker
corretto
espresso with cognac, sambuca or grappa
cappuccino
espresso with frothy milk
caffelatte
espresso with lots of milk
macchiato
espresso with a drop of milk
latte macchiato
milk with a touch of espresso
caffè americano
American coffee but stronger
decaffeinato
decaf
caffè
espresso
Italians love their cell phones (you'll hear their cheerful "squilli" everywhere), and whether to call home or book a room you'll need to make a "telefonata" at some point while in Italy. This week's tutorino Italian vocabulary flashcards will help. Don't forget to "give us a ring" for live Italian lessons in Toronto. Ciao for now!
Dove si comprano le schede telefoniche?
Where can I buy a phone card?
Posso usare il telefono?
Can I use your phone?
Ha il telefonino?
Do you have a cell phone?
Qual è il prefisso di Venezia?
What is the code for Venice?
Vorrei fare una telefonata…
I'd like to make a phone call…
…a carico del destinatario.
…collect.
È occupato.
It's busy.
Non risponde nessuno.
There's no answer.
Pronto, sono Bill.
Hi, it's Bill.
C'è Gino per favore?
Is Gino there please?
Chi parla?
Who's calling?
Ha sbagliato numero.
You've got the wrong number.
Un attimo, prego.
Just a moment please.
Vuole attendere in linea?
Would you like to hold?
Gli/le dica che ho chiamato per favore.
Please tell him/her I called.
Vorrei lasciare un messaggio.
I'd like to leave a message.
Riproverò più tardi.
I'll try again later.
Gli/le dica che ha chiamato Bill.
Please tell him/her Bill called.
Mi può richiamare?
Can he/she phone me back?
Il mio numero è…
My home number is…
Il mio numero al lavoro è…
My work number is…
È caduta la linea.
We were cut off.
riattaccare
to hang up
Today's Italian vocab flashcards - brought to you by tutorino, the most popular way to learn Italian in Toronto - will help your Italian sound more local. You won't find these terms in writing much, but listen for them on Italian TV, which you can find plenty of clips of on Youtube. Ciao for now!
Ciao guys! This set of flashcards on Italian idioms - brought to you by tutorino, where Toronto learns Italian - will help you sound like a local. Ciao for now!
Hi guys. This week's Italian vocab flashcards will give you phrases and terms you can use to express opinions. Terms like however, therefore, that is to say, according to me, etc. Check them out and you'll see what I mean. Ciao for now!
Hi guys, this set of flashes will help you internalize some common Italian verbs with irregular stems in the future. Ciao for now!
This week's tutorino Italian vocab flashcards will teach you some of the many Italian idioms that use the verb "fare". Happy studies!
Ciao guys! This week's Italian vocab flashcards will help you describe things with reference to their basic geometrical shapes. Enjoy and share!
There are seven of them in Italian, just like in English - here are the days of the week. The only main difference is that they're not capitalized in Italian. And all Italian days of the week are masculine except Sunday. Ciao for now!
Ciao cari! Here's a flashcard set on the Italian terms for approximate numbers. For instance, if you're not sure how old someone is, but you think he's "roughly 30", the term is "una trentina di" - Avra' una trentina di anni. This set will teach you the rest of these terms. Ciao for now!
From gennaio to dicembre, this week's Italian vocabulary flashcards will help you learn the months in Italian.
Ciao cari! Here's an Italian vocabulary flashcard set on the ordinal numbers (1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.). These are considered adjectives, so they agree in gender and number with the nouns they describe. If you don't master them the first time, try a second and third. Ciao for now!
francesco