Welcome to Can-Do Italian by ItalianPod101.com. |
In this lesson, you’ll learn how to talk about the weather in Italian. |
For example, "How hot!" is |
Emily Erba : Che caldo! |
Emily Erba sees her neighbor, Anna Mancini , and starts a conversation about the weather. |
Before you hear their conversation, let's preview some of its key components. |
caldo |
"hot" |
caldo |
caldo |
oggi |
"today" |
oggi |
oggi |
Listen to the conversation, and focus on Emily 's comment. |
Ready? |
Che caldo! |
Sì, oggi fa caldo. |
Listen again, with the English translation. |
Che caldo! |
"How hot!" |
Sì, oggi fa caldo. |
"Yes, it’s hot today." |
Let's break down the conversation. |
Do you remember how Emily says, |
"How hot!" |
Che caldo! |
First is che, "what." Che. Che. |
After this is caldo, meaning “heat,” in this context. Caldo. Caldo. |
Together, it’s Che caldo! Literally, "What heat," but translates as "How hot!" Che caldo! |
This forms an exclamation, and it’s meant to elicit a response from the listener. |
Emily is expecting her neighbor to respond after she says, "Che caldo!" "How hot!" |
Che caldo! |
Let’s take a closer look at the response. |
Do you remember how the neighbor says, |
"Yes, it’s hot today." |
Sì, oggi fa caldo. |
First is Sì, meaning "yes." Sì. Sì. |
Next is oggi. "Today." Oggi. Oggi. |
After this, fa caldo, translating as "It's hot." Fa caldo. |
Caldo means "heat." Caldo. Caldo. |
Fa is from the verb fare, meaning "to make." Fare. |
Here, fa doesn't have this meaning. Instead, it is expressing an ongoing weather condition — in this case, caldo, "heat." |
Together, Fa caldo, “It's hot." Fa caldo. |
All together, Sì, oggi fa caldo. "Yes, it's hot today." |
Sì, oggi fa caldo. |
The pattern is |
Che WEATHER CONDITION. |
"How" WEATHER CONDITION. |
Che WEATHER CONDITION. |
To use this pattern, simply replace the WEATHER CONDITION placeholder with the current weather condition. |
Note: This pattern requires a noun. |
Imagine it’s cold. Freddo. "Cold." Freddo. Freddo. |
Say |
"How cold!" |
Ready? |
Che freddo. |
"How cold!" |
Che freddo. |
Using this verbal exclamation to talk about the weather is meant to elicit a response from the listener or listeners. It’s a way to start a conversation with an Italian speaker. Finding and creating speaking opportunities is an important skill, and probably more important than sharing practical observations about the weather. |
Again, the key pattern is |
Che WEATHER CONDITION. |
"How" WEATHER CONDITION. |
Che WEATHER CONDITION. |
Let’s look at some more examples. |
Listen and repeat or speak along with the native speakers. |
Che caldo! |
"How hot!" |
Che caldo! |
Che freddo! |
"How cold!" |
Che freddo! |
Che afa! |
"How muggy!" |
Che afa! |
Che brutto tempo! |
"What bad weather!" |
Che brutto tempo! |
Che bel tempo! |
"What beautiful weather! |
Che bel tempo! |
Did you notice how the last two speakers used slightly longer phrases? |
Che brutto tempo! |
"What bad weather." |
Che brutto tempo! |
Che bel tempo! |
"What beautiful weather." |
Che bel tempo! |
Note here che translates as "what." |
The pattern is: |
Che WEATHER CONDITION. |
What WEATHER CONDITION. |
Che WEATHER CONDITION. |
To use this pattern, simply follow Che with a WEATHER CONDITION. |
Note: This pattern requires a noun phrase, in which an adjective is followed by a noun. |
In the first example, Che brutto tempo! "What bad weather." Che brutto tempo! |
Che plus brutto tempo. |
Brutto. "Bad." Brutto. Brutto. |
Tempo. "Weather." Tempo. Tempo. |
Together, brutto tempo is "bad weather." Brutto tempo. |
All together, Che brutto tempo! "What bad weather!" Che brutto tempo! |
Che bel tempo! "What beautiful weather." Che bel tempo! |
Bel, beautiful. Bel.. Bel. |
Let's review the key vocabulary. |
Freddo. |
"Cold." |
Freddo. Freddo. |
Afa. |
"Humidity." |
Afa. Afa. |
Brutto tempo. |
"Bad weather." |
Brutto tempo. Brutto tempo. |
Bel tempo. |
"Beautiful weather." |
Bel tempo. Bel tempo. |
Let's review. |
Respond to the prompts by speaking aloud. Then repeat after the native speakers, focusing on pronunciation. |
Ready? |
Do you remember how to say "heat?" |
Caldo. |
Caldo. |
And do you remember how Emily Erba says, |
"How hot." |
Che caldo. |
Che caldo. |
Do you remember how to say "yes?" |
Sì. |
Sì. |
And how to say "today?" |
Oggi. |
Oggi. |
Do you remember how to say |
"It’s hot." |
Fa caldo. |
Fa caldo. |
Do you remember how Anna Mancini says, |
"Yes, it’s hot today." |
Sì, oggi fa caldo. |
Sì, oggi fa caldo. |
Do you remember how to say "cold?" |
Freddo. |
Freddo. |
And how to say "beautiful weather?" |
Bel tempo. |
Bel tempo. |
Do you remember how to say "bad weather?" |
Brutto tempo. |
Brutto tempo. |
Let's practice. |
Imagine you're Anna , Emily 's neighbor. Comment to Emily on how cold it is. "Cold" in Italian is freddo. |
Ready? |
Che freddo! |
Sì, oggi fa freddo. |
Listen again and repeat. |
Che freddo! |
Che freddo! |
Let’s try another. |
Imagine you're Isabella Russo. Comment to your classmate on how bad the weather is. "Bad weather" in Italian is brutto tempo. |
Ready? |
Che brutto tempo! |
Sì, oggi fa brutto tempo. |
Listen again and repeat. |
Che brutto tempo! |
Che brutto tempo! |
Let’s try one more. |
Imagine you're Riccardo Russo. Comment to your neighbor on how beautiful the weather is. "Beautiful weather" in Italian is bel tempo. |
Ready? |
Che bel tempo! |
Sì, oggi fa bel tempo. |
Listen again and repeat. |
Che bel tempo! |
Che bel tempo! |
Well done! This is the end of this lesson. |
Remember, these Can Do lessons are about learning practical language skills. |
What's next? |
Show us what you can do. |
When you're ready, take your assessment. |
You can take it again and again, so try anytime you like. |
Our teachers will assess it, and give you your results. |
Keep practicing — and move on to the next lesson! |
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