Learn some more useful phrases and tips for shopping
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Ciao tutti! Benvenuti su ItalianPod101.com. |
| Ciao! Hello and welcome back to Italian Survival Phrases brought to you by ItalianPod101.com. This course is designed to equip you with the language skills and knowledge to enable you to get the most out of your visit to Italy. You'll be surprised at how far a little Italian will go. |
| Now, before we jump in, remember to stop by ItalianPod101.com, and there, you will find the accompanying PDF and additional info in the post. If you stop by, be sure to leave us a comment. |
| In Italy, haggling is very common, especially in the Bancarelle, which are little stands in little local markets or Mercatini. These little markets are temporary street markets where you can find everything, from food and clothes to antiquities. In these places, you will be able to use the survival phrases you will learn in this lesson. Don’t be afraid to use your Italian when speaking to the merchants because they are very funny and they can be very friendly and kind to potential customers. Are you ready to have fun at the Bancarelle? |
| Upon entering a Bancarella, you will be struck by the variety of colorful stalls and you will be immediately attracted by something that interests you. |
| GRAMMAR POINT |
| Normally, if you are interested in buying something you would say, "Excuse me, how much is this?" Scusi, quanto costa questo? Scusi, quanto costa questo? |
| As soon as you’re told the price, you can start the bargaining to lower the price. Please note that this is one of the most typical situations in Italy, especially in the South of Italy where there is plenty of Mercatini and Bancarelle. So, don’t be shy and try to say, È troppo caro, mi fai un pò di sconto? È troppo caro, mi fai un pò di sconto? “It’s too expensive, can you give me a discount?” |
| In the first sentence, you have è, which is the third person singular of the verb Essere, “to be,” followed by Troppo caro, which means “too expensive”. |
| Then, in the second sentence, you have Mi, which is a pronominal particle referred to “I”, the first singular person, and it means “me/to me.” Followed by Fai, second singular person of the verb fare “to do.” Then you have Un pò di, “a little of.” And finally, you have Sconto, or “discount.” Please note that in this specific case, we use Tu, that is the second singular person. Even if you don’t know the person you’re talking to, so it's correct. In the Mercatini, everyone is friendly and no one cares to use the polite and formal level of speech. |
| Let’s break down these words in these two sentences and hear them one more time. È troppo caro, mi fai un pò di sconto? È trop-po ca-ro, mi fa-i un po’ di scon-to? È troppo caro, mi fai un pò di sconto? |
| At this point, the merchant will start haggling and the final result is in your hands! |
| Another way to express the feeling that something is too expensive and you want to start haggling is, Costa troppo. Cos-ta trop-po, which literally means “It costs too much.” Costa is the third singular person of the verb Costare, “to cost.” And, Troppo, in this case, can be translated as “too much”. Let’s break down these words and hear them one more time. Costa troppo. Co-sta trop-po. Costa troppo. |
| Let’s imagine that you are at a Bancarella. You want to buy a bag and you want straight to suggest the merchant your price. And so, establish your own price which is the one you will bargain for. The merchant has just told you that the bag costs 15 Euros. You desperately want that bag, but it’s too expensive and you want to try and suggest 8 Euros. |
| After Costa troppo, you should say, Ti do otto euro. Ti do ot-to euro. “I’ll give you 8 euros”. Costa troppo. Ti do otto euro. |
| Ti is another pronominal particle that refers to the second person singular. And is followed by Do, which is the first singular person of the verb Dare, “to give.” And then, you add the numbers according to the prices you have. |
Outro |
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| Okay, to close out this lesson, we'd like you to practice what you've just learned. I'll provide you with the English equivalent of the phrase and you're responsible for shouting it aloud. You have a few seconds before I give you the answer. So, buona fortuna, which means “good luck” in Italian. |
| "Excuse me, how much is this?" - Scusi, quanto costa questo? |
| Scusi, quanto costa questo? |
| Scusi, quanto costa questo? |
| “It’s too expensive, can you give me a discount?” - È troppo caro, mi fai un pò di sconto? |
| È troppo caro, mi fai un pò di sconto? |
| È troppo caro, mi fai un pò di sconto? |
| “It costs too much.” - Costa troppo. |
| Costa troppo. |
| Costa troppo. |
| “I’ll give you 8 Euros.” - Ti do otto euro. |
| Ti do otto euro. |
| Ti do otto euro. |
| That’s going to do it for today. Remember to stop by ItalianPod101.com and pick up the accompanying PDF. If you stop by, be sure to leave us a comment. Ciao ciao! |
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