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14
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2 answers
Why are 'di' and 'dal' interchangeable in some cases, while they aren't in others?
sono quasi morto di freddo
sono quasi morto dal freddo
Can anyone explain what preposition I should prefer in the above sentence?
And, always in reference to above sentences, supposing they are interchangeable there, can anyone explain why they…
Kyriakos Kyritsis
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14
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Does Italian always use the infinitive where English uses the gerund?
A phrase like "asking questions is a sign of a curious mind" is translated in Italian as fare domande è segno di una mente curiosa; the difference is clearly that English uses the gerund where Italian uses the infinitive.
Does Italian always use the…
apaderno
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Quando (e come) nacque l’espressione “garantito al limone”?
Tutte (o quasi, vedi quella citata nella risposta di @abarisone) le fonti d’informazione che sono riuscito a trovare spiegano che l’espressione “garantito al limone” trarrebbe origine da uno sketch pubblicitario di un detersivo per piatti (Last al…
GuM
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Volevo chiederle se + congiuntivo o condizionale?
Quale delle seguenti frasi è corretta?
1) Volevo chiederle se potesse farmi questo favore
2) Volevo chiederle se potrebbe farmi questo favore
Grazie
user4184
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Che ne è di lei?
I saw this sentence in a textbook, and I'm not sure how to read the meaning of the second question.
Come mai tua sorella non esce più con noi? Che ne è di lei?
What is the meaning of the ne è in the second question?
Is this an idiomatic…
gbutters
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13
votes
1 answer
The use of ci when specifying locations
The particle ci is often used when replacing a prepositional phrase introduced by a [+ location].
Sei andato a Parigi questo weekend? No, non ci sono andato.
But why does the following example need the particle ne?
Sei andato al supermercato?…
gbutters
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13
votes
3 answers
Difference between "insegnante" and "maestro"
What is the difference between insegnante and maestro? From what I know, they both mean “teacher”, right?
Tia27
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3 answers
Che significa piano?
Google translate says piano is "plan", "floor", etc. However, I've heard that "piano, piano" could translate to "little by little". Is that an accurate translation? Does "piano" mean other things than just "floor"?
random_forest_fanatic
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1 answer
What is the difference between «utènsile» and «utensìle»?
What is the difference between utènsile and utensìle? What is their proper usage?
haunted85
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Quando si usano "egli", "ella", "esso", "essa", "essi", "esse" invece di "lui", "lei" o "loro"?
Non riesco a capire in quali situazioni è necessario o conveniente usare i pronomi "egli", "ella", "esso", "essa", "essi", "esse" invece di "lui", "lei" o "loro". Potreste spiegarmelo?
Charo
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4 answers
Any Italians pronouncing pèsca and pésca differently?
I've always heard both of the words "pésca", fishing, and "pèsca", peach, both pronounced as "pésca". Obviously here the accent mark can used to distinguish between the two words although this is not usually needed. However, is there any other way…
John Sonderson
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How do Italians customarily insert uppercase Italian vowels with diacritics with an Italian keyboard on a PC?
How do Italians typically resolve the issue of entering uppercase vowels with diacritics on a PC (Windows or Linux) with an Italian keyboard, given that these are missing from the printed text appearing on the keys and by default cannot entered via…
John Sonderson
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3 answers
Why is it "casa mia", not "la mia casa"?
Most phrases like "il mio cane" for instance have "mio" before the noun. Why is it after it in "casa mia"?
rlms
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"Famigerato": quando ha assunto una valenza negativa?
Definizione del termine "famigerato":
famigerato agg. [dal lat. famigeratus, part. pass. di famigerare «render famoso», comp. di fama «fama» e tema di gerĕre «portare»].
L'etimologia non ha certo un valore negativo (portare fama). Eppure il termine…
Lorenzo Marcon
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Most recent non-first conjugation Italian verb
Within the context of another question an interesting question has emerged: which is the most recent Italian verb that doesn't belong to the first conjugation (i.e., not ending in -are)? In fact, all recent neologisms are in -are: formattare,…
DaG
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