The five senses - sensi - in Italian are:
La vista: Sight
L’udito: Hearing
Il gusto: Taste
L’olfatto: Smell
Il tatto: Touch
The verb sentire can be used to for nearly all of these sensi:
- to hear / listen to, non ti sento (I can’t hear you)
- to taste, sento uno strano sapore (I can taste something strange)
- to smell, sento un cattivo odore (I can smell something horrible)
- to feel (touch), senti che morbido (feel how soft it is)
- to feel, sento freddo (I feel cold) / sento una strana sensazione (I have got a strange feeling)
- to have a sense, sento che qualcosa di brutto sta per succedere (I have a feeling something bad is about to happen)
- to find out, ho sentito che.. (I found out / heard that..)
There are also idiomatic uses of sentire such as:
- sentire la mancanza: to miss someone or something, sento la tua mancanza (I miss you)
- stare a sentire: to listen / pay attention to someone or something, stammi a sentire (listen to me)
- non c’è peggior sordo di chi non vuol sentire: there is none so deaf as he who will not hear
Sentirsi also means - to feel - but it is used differently:
- to feel + adjective e.g. mi sento stanco (I feel tired)
- to feel + noun e.g. mi sento uno stupido (I feel like a stupid person)
- to feel + adverb e.g. mi sento male (I don’t feel well)
Idiomatic uses of sentirsi include:
- sentirsi di + inf: to feel like, non mi sento di dirglielo (I don’t feel like telling him)
- farsi sentire: to get in touch / make one’s voice heard, fatti sentire (you get / keep in touch)
- sentirsela: to feel like it, non me la sento di venire (I don't feel like coming)
Alesha Allen is an Oxford graduate of Italian who is now back in London after years spent living and working in Rome as a language teacher and PR consultant. Alesha is CEO and Italian teacher at Alesha’s Italian Masterclass, which runs group Italian immersion courses at Italian restaurants and cafes such as Nonna Rosa’s in Coulsdon, and private lessons throughout London. You can contact her at italianmasterclass@hotmail.com or through Facebook or Twitter. Her website is www.italianmasterclass.co.uk.
