1: Sessione preliminare

Le parole simili

Cognates - or le parole affini o simili- are words that have a similar spelling, pronunciation, and meaning across two languages. Italian and English share many cognates because they have a shared history in an indirect way. After the Norman Invasion in 1066, French became the language of law, religion, government, and administration in England. By the end of the middle ages, around 45% of English was of French origin. Many of these French words are of Italian or Latin origin.

Modern Italian language has also adopted an enormous amount of English words in usage. This long tradition of borrowing vocabulary from each other is alive and kicking. Take for example, the word mail which was acquired from the English word email.

Cognates are particularly helpful for students who speak Latin-based languages like Spanish. Recognizing cognates can help English and Spanish speakers understand common Italian and French words that are also common in English, like differenza, classe, montagna, attore and risultato. At the same time, Italian (as well as French) becomes a resource for understanding many English words, especially in the music context.

Similarities and Differences between English and Italian Words

	Italiano	Inglese
Abbondanza		Abundance
Cerchio		Circle
Furioso		Furious
Esatto		Exactly
Attività		Activities
Differente		Different
Avventura		Adventure
Comune		Common
Animale		Animal
Bicicletta		Bicycle
Guida		Guide
Ospedale		Hospital
Correttamente		Correctly
Musica		Music
Umano		Human
Osservatorio		Observatory
Negoziare		Negotiate
Piatto		Plate
Università		University
Solidificare		Solidify

Attenzione ai falsi amici (false friends)!

Here some

FALSI AMICI

FALSI AMICI

 

The Importance of Context

There are many words and expressions that have no direct translation to English. In this course you will see common expressions like avere sete. A word-by-word translation of this would be "I have thirst", but the correct translation is "I am thirsty". An even more difficult phrase to translate is avere voglia di (to feel like... doing something). Each of these three words (avere, voglia, & di) have many different English equivalents depending on the context and situation in which they appear, but their combination in this particular order creates a very specific meaning (to feel like...) for which there is no single word.

We can see the same translation problem going from English to Italian. For example, how can we translate the expression "It's raining cats and dogs to Italian?" Would an Italian speaker think cats and dogs are falling from the sky? Instead, we need to learn the expressions that an Italian person might say, for example, piove a catinelle (It's raining basins). Because we can't always rely on a word by word translation, we need to learn formulaic clusters of words, also known as "idiomatic expressions".

The most important thing to remember is that context is the key to understanding and speaking Italian. Context means the words, phrases and texts that come before and after a word. Words don't have any inherent meaning in and of themselves. Rather their meanings depend on the contexts in which they occur. For example, the clause l’amo could mean "I love him", "I love her" or "I love it", depending on who or what we are talking about. If we change with volere bene, we change the meaning in a socially important way:

L'amo (I love her [as a romantic partner])

Le voglio bene. (I like her [as a friend])

Of course, additional context will allow for more nuanced meaning.

So remember: It is always the combination of words that determines what each word actually means. One look at a dictionary in any language will prove this point. The word love, for example, will have a long list of possible meanings in English as well as a myriad of translations into Italian.

In addition to the linguistic context, we must always be aware of the social situation or practice in which we are engaged. For example, in English, we are more likely to say "yeah" in a casual situation (like with friends) and yes in a more formal situation (like a job interview). But this is not a strict rule. These are "social norms". Knowing how to speak Italian appropriately in a given situation is another key to success.

Using a dictionary

A dictionary is primarily a written collection of words in a given language, yet language is not made out of words. Rather it is made of texts, of conversations, of readings, and so on. On the one hand, we know that we cannot translate everything word by word. For every English word, there are many possible translations, and vice versa. On the other hand, Italian and English are always changing. Words and expressions are created, acquired from other languages, and lost everyday. A dictionary is our way of keeping a record of it. It is not record of how things are supposed to be, but rather how things are at a given moment in history.

With this in mind, here are some suggestions for using dictionaries efficiently:

1. Don't just rely on one dictionary, whether online or in print. Consult different ones regularly.
2. Always look at examples of how the word is used in context to make sure it's the right meaning you are looking for. Most dictionaries will provide examples of how words are used in sentences. Be sure to read them.
3. Read the dictionary in both directions. In addition to looking for examples of how to use them in context, you should also look up each of those words individually to see how they are translated back into English. This will help you zero in on the meaning you wish to convey.

Here are some useful online dictionaries:

Word Reference
You can also search for the translation of entire phrases and sentences with sites like these:

Reverso

Practice, practice, practice

In order to become fluent in Italian you need to practice it as much as possible. Here are some important things to remember:

1. Repetition is key. You need to hear a word or expression many times before you actually remember it. You should try to listen to as much Italian as possible by talking to people, watching videos and films, and listening to music. Try reading out loud often and repeating after native French speakers in online tutorials.
2. Language is inseparable from our social life and therefore requires an understanding of social and cultural norms. We have all learned our native language because we were immersed in it from the day we were born. We can't learn a second language in a vacuum, so you need to immerse yourself in the Italian language as much as possible in order to learn how to speak French appropriately from one situation to the next. Remember that what we say always depends on the person we address, the time and place, and the social activity in which we are participating.

How to type accent marks I use this websites for French, but for accents can be used also for Italian

(How to type French accent marks on any device How to type French accent marks (PC & Mac) French Accent Marks