(Coming soon!)
Ever since the days of the early Roman Republic, Italians have been using currency to pay for things. No trading or bartering for goods and services here. So in Italy you’ll have to ask “how much” at every shop, cafe, street stall and public toilet that you come to. “How much” might very well be the Italian phrase that you use the most!
In today’s lesson we’ll be learning how to ask the cost of things. We’ll also be reviewing the conjugation of ~are verbs. Don’t forget the PDF, audio, the other ten newbie lessons, and online review questions, all of which can be found at the website: ItalianPod101.com
Dialogue - Formal | Play | Popup Review Track | Play | Popup
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This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008 at 6:30 pm and is filed under Newbie Lessons. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
5 Responses to “Newbie Lesson #11 - How much does this t-shirt cost?”
ItalianPod101.com says:
April 22nd, 2008 at 6:30 pm
Have you ever gone shopping in Italy?
What was your experience like?
Peter says:
April 23rd, 2008 at 8:44 am
After “lo e” we now have “li compro”
Where did that come from or have I already forgotten
an earlier lesson?
Peter says:
April 24th, 2008 at 8:33 am
I suppose I had better add “La ringrazio”
I assume but do not know that it is “lei in direct form but I am not sure if it is a good idea to use unexplained grammatical structures.
“Thank you Madam” by a customer to a sales person is not current English usage.
Marco says:
April 24th, 2008 at 10:45 am
Dear Peter,
we covered “La ringrazio” in the first Survival Phrases lesson, but shall see it again soon.
I understand that “Thank you Madam” is not current English usage, but don’t you agree it is the best match for the Italian expression? It should help you better understand the way we Italians thank people, even if we are a customer.
I believe learning a language must not be like learning math as it is not always set in strict rules (even though rules are there to protect the heart of the language). So our approach is to make students develop a mind set that will allow them to overcome difficult situations (in language) even if we are not there to assist them.
So “li compro entrambi” in the English dialog was translated as “I’ll buy them both”, therefore “li” would be the English “them” in this context.
Peter says:
April 25th, 2008 at 3:12 am
Daer Marco,
I don’t think that a phrase used in a Survival lesson provides sufficient explanation for the use of a grammatical structure which appears in a beginners course which in any event should stand alone.
La is a form of lei I guess but introduced without the merest of explanations.
I don’t think that the use of madam is helpful because in English it implies condescension whereas I think that you are seeking to convey formality.
BTW my remarks are not written in personal fashion. I am simply giving feedback on learning problems I am experiencing along the way which you can either use to better the lessons for those who follow if helpful or disregard as you see fit.
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Category: Newbie Lessons |
Grammar: comprare | Function: using verbs in are | Topic: verbs in are | Politeness Level: formal
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