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As promised our series on Italian, continues. This time Fabrizio Ulivieri guides us through those most essential of verbs "fare" and "essere". As ever, if you have any questions or comments just fill in the comment box.
Fare | to do, to make |
| Fare i compiti | to do one's homework |
| Fare la spesa | to go shopping |
| Fare una domanda | to ask a question |
Fare una fotografia | to take a picture |
Fare colazione | to have breakfast |
| Fare un viaggio | to take a trip |
Fare finta | to pretend |
Esempi: | Examples: |
| faccio colazione alle 8 | (I have breakfast at 8 oclock) |
| posso farti una domanda? | (may I ask you a question?) |
| Fa finta di cercare un libro | (He pretends to be looking for a book) |
Fare (from Latin facere) is an irregular second conjugation verb.
One conjugates it as follows:
| (io) faccio | I do | (tu) fai | you do |
| (lui-lei) fa | he-she-it does | (noi) facciamo | we do |
| (voi) fate | you do | (loro) fanno | they do |
The subject pronouns io, tu, lui-lei, noi, voi, loro are not normally used in Italian.
The pronouns can, however, be used in the case of emphasis:
| 1) Lei è italiana ma lui è inglese | (she is Italian but he is english) |
| 2) Chi è?, Sono io! | (Who is it?, Its me!) |
Essere | to be |
Essere is also an irregular verb: | |
| (Io) sono | I am |
| ( Tu ) sei | you are |
| ( lui -lei) è | (He- she- it) is |
( noi ) siamo | We are |
( voi ) siete | you are |
| (Loro) sono | They are |
Esempi: | Examples: |
| (Io) sono Italian – o | I am Italian |
| (Lei) è italian - a | She is Italian |
| ( Noi ) siamo italian - i | We (men) are Italian |
| ( Loro ) sono Italian – e | They (women) are Italian |
Adjectives:
There are two main types of adjectives in Italian.
A)Those ending in – e (same for masculine or feminine) whose plural ends in – i :
| Charlie è ingles- e | Charlie is English |
| Sara è ingles- e | Sara is English |
| Charlie e Sara sono ingles -i | Charlie and Sara are English |
B) Those ending in –o (masculine) and –a (feminine) whose plural is –I (masculine) and –e ( feminine ):
| Carlo è Italian- o | Carlo is Italian |
| Carla è Italian- a | Carla is Italian |
| Carlo e Piero sono italian- i | Carlo and Piero are Italian ( men ) |
| Carla e Maria sono italian- e | Carla and Maria are Italian ( women ) |
| Carlo e Maria sono italian-i* | Carlo and Maria are Italian * |
*If there is one male and one female subject, the adjective becomes masculine for both of them
Chiamarsi
| mi chiamo | my name is |
| ti chiami | your name is |
| si chiama | his/her name is |
| ci chiamiamo vi chiamate si chiamano | etc |
Esempio:
Come ti chiami (direct form)/ Come si chiama (polite form)? What is your name?
Italian lessons prepared by Fabrizio Ulivieri.
For further questions you may have, please leave a question in the comment box below or
Or write to:
Fabrizio Ulivieri,
Via Valgardena 6, 50053 Empoli (Fi), Italy
