Tips, tricks, and deep dives into how Italian works for English speakers.
The Particle NE Lesson 1 of 4 The particle NE is a complicated beast. In the next 4 episodes of Ask Manu Italiano we’ll try and demystify it and make some sense of it! Watch the PART 2 of the Lesson 1 HERE You need to get good at this one! Generally speaking NE works […]
What is the difference between ESSERE and STARE? Sam asks: “When do I say SONO and when STO?“ What’s the difference between ESSERE (to stay) and STARE (to be) ? ESSERE (to be) – STARE (to stay) Confusion:DialectsSimilar Meanings STANDARD ITALIAN = ENGLISHI am..I stay..*exceptions apply! ▷ EXAMPLES Sono Manu “I am Manu” Sono Italiano […]
COSA / CHE / QUALE? Joee asks: “How do I say WHAT in Italian? OR… when do I use CHE and when CHE COSA?“ What is the difference between CHE and CHE COSA ? In which cases are they used in Italian? ▷ WHAT + VERB (no noun) CHE / COSA / CHE COSA– when […]
How can I stop making mistakes by speaking Italian? Alan asks: How do I avoid freezing & panicking when Italians approach me to speak? In this episode of Ask Manu Italiano I will give you 4 recommendations and 5 practical tips to avoid the fear of speaking italian. RECOMMENDATIONS PREPARE FOR SITUATION – (collect ideas/expressions/topics […]
How to choose between PRESENTE, FUTURO, PASSATO PROSSIMO and IMPERFETTO Phil asks: ” How do I know which italian tense to use?“ The Present Tense: IL PRESENTE The Italian Present Tense is used to render the following scenarios: Generic statement: I speak Continuous action in the present: I am speaking Future action: I will speak […]
Gender and Number in Passato Prossimo Ellie asks: ” When does the PAST PARTICIPLE agree with the direct object in the PASSATO PROSSIMO?“ First things first… The Italian Passato Prossimo looks just like the English Present Perfect (I have worked, I have seen, I have gone), but it translates both the English Simple Past (I […]
What is the difference between IMPERFETTO and PASSATO PROSSIMO? Sherrie asks: When do I use the IMPERFETTO over the PASSATO PROSSIMO or… what’s the difference between these two past tenses? Understanding when to use one over the other tense is tough and most students struggle with this. So you are not alone! The main reason […]
Is it possible to speak italian more naturally? Marie asks: “I heard this in Italian and I was a bit confused…or… shouldn’t they have been saying SONO OCCUPATA?“ Every native speaker has their own way of speaking. Some native speaker have strong accent, may use a lot of slang, or maybe combine words a lot. […]
How to Say TO LOVE in Italian Jim asks: ” How do we express LOVE in Italian? OR… How do I choose between AMARE and VOLERE BENE? “ For loving PEOPLE Here’s how we express love in Italian: AMARE is between lovers only VOLERE BENE is between family and friends ▷ SOME EXAMPLES SARA TI […]
How to say PLASE in Italian Jim asks: “What’s the best way to say PLEASE in Italian? OR… Should I use PER FAVORE or PER PIACERE?“ CASE 1 – When making a request The 3 most common expressions to say “PLEASE” are: PER FAVORE PER PIACERE PER CORTESIA They are all interchangeable. PER CORTESIA tends […]
How to translate A SLICE OF David asks: “How do I say A SLICE OF in Italian?“ We can translate “A SLICE OF” with three words: FETTA PEZZO TRANCIO The most common word is FETTA FETTA is a feminine word, this means it comes in these variations: LA FETTA (the slice)LE FETTE (the slices) The […]
When to use CITTÀ, PAESE and VILLAGGIO David asks: “What’s the difference between CITTÀ, PAESE, VILLAGGIO?“ Let’s start with CITTÀ CITTÀ simply means CITY and we are going to use this word ANY time we are talking about a city.In Italy, the definition of a city is any location with more than 50,000 inhabitants, but […]
