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7
votes
2 answers
Italian word for "receptionist"
Is there a purely Italian word for "receptionist"?
I looked into online dictionaries and only found: "addetto alla reception".
Emanuele Paolini
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7
votes
2 answers
When and how did the letters E and I "swap", compared to other Romance languages?
I'm trying to understand how some words / word stems / prefixes and suffixes have a "swapped" E and I compared to other Romance languages, or (Vulgar) Latin.
First, but not the only, is the accusative and dative personal pronouns.
For example, the…
iBug
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7
votes
3 answers
Why do the numbers change format at 17-19?
A learner still, I'm looking at numbers. I can relatively easily learn stuff when there's a rule or a pattern, but I'm curious why the numbers in Italian change from :
undici
dodici
xx-dici
..
to dici-xx
diciotto
diciannove
at 17?
This is the body…
Mark Mayo
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7
votes
2 answers
What's the difference between grande and grosso?
I understand that both words mean big but when should one be used vs the other?
Beka
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7
votes
3 answers
Can "si passivante" be constructed with null subject in certain contexts?
Consider the following exchange in which si passivante appears:
A scuola, si leggono i libri?
Surely a grammatical answer would be
Sì, si leggono i libri.
If I wanted to not mention "i libri" again,
which of the following answers would also be…
JMC
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7
votes
2 answers
Using the Simple Future to express a possibility
Can I use the future tense to express a possibility, or predict the future, rather than saying something I will surely do?
For example, if I say andrò a casa di mio cugino (literally, "I will go to my cousin's house"), does that mean I am surely…
apaderno
- 3,856
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7
votes
1 answer
Cosa significa "fianata"?
In un post su Facebook (ora cancellato, ma riportato da molti giornali, tra cui il Corriere e Repubblica), Vittorio Di Battista, padre del politico del Movimento 5 Stelle Alessandro, ha usato la parola "fianate":
I DOLORI DI MISTER ALLEGRIA
È il…
Fabio says Reinstate Monica
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7
votes
1 answer
Usage of "Non avere né arte né parte"
I know that this phrase describes someone who has not got any skills and is poor but I would like to understand when it is used for example: just to say one is penniless, poor or in a more particular way. I am asking this because I want to find the…
Vic
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7
votes
1 answer
Translation of a plague warning
The other day, I came across a poster from the 1700s warning people of Italy of the plague. I've copied down the first paragraph of the message, taking the liberty of replacing long-s's with normal s's:
Accertati gl’illustrissimi Signori…
Nico A
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7
votes
2 answers
"Non avere che da + infinito" è un'espressione comune?
Stavo passando una serata gradevole leggendo un dizionario italiano-inglese e mi sono imbattuto nell'espressione "non avere che da + infinito". Il dizionario dà l'impressione che sia un'espressione comune e di conseguenza ero un po' sorpreso (anche…
Gallego
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7
votes
1 answer
Dare atto: che cosa regge?
Buonasera a tutti.
Leggendo delibere e determine dell'amministrazione pubblica mi sono imbattuto nel costrutto "dare atto come". Ad esempio:
DATO ATTO come la legge 190 ha costituito l’impianto di una successiva emanazione di norme, regolamenti e…
Miagu
- 73
- 4
7
votes
4 answers
Does "alquanto" express a greater quantity than "parecchio"?
Si tratta di oggetti alquanto strani.
Si tratta di oggetti parecchio strani.
Does alquanto refer to a less, equal or greater quantity in comparison to parecchio?
Are the objects in the first sentence less, equal or more strange than the objects…
Kyriakos Kyritsis
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7
votes
2 answers
When is a sentence like "mi sono mangiato una pizza ai quattro formaggi" used?
I was trying to explain to a friend of mine (who is not Italian) the differences between these sentences, but I discovered I may not.
Mi sono mangiato una pizza ai quattro formaggi.
Ho mangiato una pizza ai quattro formaggi.
I was thinking the…
apaderno
- 3,856
- 14
- 38
7
votes
1 answer
"Divertente": when does it mean 'fun' or 'funny' in Italian?
In the Collins online Italian dictionary, 'divertente' translates as both 'fun' and 'funny'. So if I say: "era/è stato divertente" do I mean "it was fun" or "it was funny"?
Does it depend entirely on context, i.e. should I use the reflexive verb…
santos
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- 7
7
votes
3 answers
"Andare" + present gerund in ~1740's Italian?
Italian newbie here, so forgive me if this is a simple question. I've got an Italian book review of something by Voltaire, written about 1740. Here's a brief part of it:
Egli in 25 capitoli va stendendo la filosofia del famoso Newton
According to…
twoblackboxes
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