1 2 WEEK 1
1 Warm up
Say the Italian for as many members of the family as you can. (pp.10–11)
Say “I have two sons.” (pp.10–11)
La mia famiglia
My family
There are two ways of saying “you” in Italian: formally and informally. Lei is the formal version and tu is for family, friends, and young people. This means there are also different words for “your”(see below). It’s a good idea to use the formal version until you are addressed by the other person as tu.
2 Words to remember
There are different words for “my” and “your” in Italian, depending on whether they precede a masculine, feminine, or plural word.
mio/mia |
my (masculine/ |
|
mee-oh/me-eah |
feminine singular) |
|
miei/mie |
my (masculine/ |
|
mee-ayee/mee-ay |
feminine plural) |
|
tuo/tua |
your (informal |
|
too-oh/too-ah |
masculine/feminine |
|
|
singular) |
|
tuoi/tue |
your (informal |
|
too-oh-ee/too-ay |
masculine/feminine |
|
|
plural) |
|
suo/sua |
your (formal |
|
soo-oh/soo-ah |
masculine/feminine |
|
|
singular) |
|
suoi/sue |
your (formal |
Questi sono i miei |
soo-oh-ee/soo-ay |
masculine/feminine |
|
|
plural) |
genitori. |
|
|
kwaystee sonoh ee |
|
|
mee-ayee jeneetoree |
|
|
These are my parents. |
|
|
|
3 In conversation
Lei ha figli? |
Sì, ho due figlie. |
Queste sono le mie |
lay ah fillyee |
see, oh dooay feellyay |
figlie. E Lei? |
Do you have any |
Yes, I have two |
kwestay sonoh lay mee- |
ay feellyay. ay lay |
||
children? |
daughters. |
|
These are my daughters. And you?
INTRODUCTIONS 1 3
Conversational tip The Italians
generally ask a question by simply raising the pitch of the voice at the end of the statement:
“Vuole un po’ di vino?” (Do you want a little wine?). Some questions are introduced by a
question word (what, where, how, and so on): “Quant’è?” (How much
is it?), “Dove va?” (Where are you going?).
4 Useful phrases
Read these phrases aloud several times and try to memorize them. Conceal the Italian with the cover flap and test yourself.
Do you have any |
Hai fratelli? |
brothers? (informal) |
ahee fratellee |
Do you have any |
Ha fratelli? |
brothers? (formal) |
ah fratellee |
This is my husband. |
Questo è mio marito. |
|
kwestoh ay mee-oh |
|
mareetoh |
This is my wife. |
Questa è mia moglie. |
|
kwestah ay mee-ah |
|
molyay |
Is that your sister? |
Quella è tua sorella? |
(informal) |
kwellah ay too-ah |
|
sorellah |
Is that your sister? |
Quella è sua sorella? |
(formal) |
kwellah ay soo-ah |
|
sorellah |
|
|
5 Say it
Do you have any brothers (formal)
Do you have any children? (informal)
I have two sisters.
This is my wife.
No, ma ho un nipote.
noh, mah oh oon neepotay
No, but I have a nephew.
1 4 WEEK 1
1 Warm up
Say “See you soon.” (pp.8–9)
Say “I am married” (pp.10–11) and “This is my wife.” (pp.12–13)
2 Essere: to be
Essere e avere
To be and to have
There are some essential verbs that you can use to make a range of useful expressions. The first of these are essere (to be) and avere (to have). In Italian the verb form varies according to the pronoun (I, you, he, she, and so on). The pronoun itself is often omitted, as it is implied by the verb.
Familiarize yourself with the different forms of essere (to be) and, when you are confident, practice the sentences below. Note that descriptive words can have different endings depending on what is being described.
(io) sono |
I am |
|
(ee-oh) sonoh |
|
|
(tu) sei |
you are |
|
(too) say |
(informal singular) |
|
(Lei) è |
you are |
|
(lay) ay |
(formal singular) |
|
(lui/lei) è |
he/she/it is |
|
(loo-ee/lay) ay |
|
|
(noi) siamo |
we are |
|
(noy) see-ahmoh |
|
|
(voi) siete |
you are |
Sono inglese. |
(voy) see-aytay |
(plural) |
sonoh eenglesay |
(loro) sono |
they are |
I’m English. |
|
||
(loroh) sonoh |
|
|
|
|
|
Di dov’è?/Di dove sei? |
Where are you from? |
|
dee dovay/dee dovay |
(formal/informal) |
|
say |
|
|
Siete in orario. |
You’re on time. |
|
see-aytay een orareeoh |
|
|
È contenta? |
Is she happy? |
|
ay kontayntah |
|
|
Siamo italiani. |
We’re Italian. |
|
see-ahmoh eetahleeahnee
INTRODUCTIONS 1 5
3 Avere: to have
Practice avere (to have) and the sample sentences, then test yourself.
|
I have |
(io) ho |
|
|
|
(eeoh) oh |
|
|
you have |
(tu) hai |
|
|
(informal singular) |
(too) ahee |
|
|
you have |
(Lei) ha |
|
|
(formal singular) |
(lay) ah |
|
|
he/she/it has |
(lui/lei) ha |
|
|
|
(loo-ee/lay) ah |
|
|
we have |
(noi) abbiamo |
|
|
|
(noy) abbeeahmoh |
|
|
you have (plural) |
(voi) avete |
|
Ha dei broccoli? |
|
(voy) avetay |
|
they have |
(loro) hanno |
||
ah day brokkolee |
|||
Do you have |
|
(loroh) annoh |
|
any broccoli? |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Marco has a meeting. |
Marco ha una |
|
|
|
riunione. |
|
|
|
markoh ah oonah |
|
|
|
reeooneeonay |
|
|
Do you have a |
Ha un cellulare? |
|
|
|||
|
celll phone? |
ah oon chaylloolaray |
|
|
How many brothers |
Quanti fratelli ha? |
|
|
|||
|
and sisters do you |
kwantee fratellee ah |
|
|
have? |
|
|
|
|
|
4 Negatives
It is easy to make sentences negative in Italian. Just put non in front of the verb: non siamo inglesi (we’re not English), non ho fratelli
(I don’t have any brothers).
la bicicletta |
He’s not married. |
Non è sposato. |
lah beechee- |
|
non ay spozatoh |
klettah |
|
|
bicycle |
I’m not sure. |
Non sono sicuro/a. |
|
||
|
|
non sonoh |
|
|
seekooroh/ah |
|
We don’t have |
Non abbiamo figli. |
|
any children. |
non abbeeamoh |
Non ho l’auto. |
|
feelyee |
|
|
|
non oh la-ootoh |
|
|
I don’t have a car.