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Pronunciation Tip #1: “Practice Italian with a flawless speaker!”

Imagine learning lots of grammar and vocabulary only to discover that listeners find it hard to understand what you say…è terribile per la comunicazione!
Also, if you can’t pronounce a word correctly, then you may not be able to hear it when spoken by another person either… ancora più terribile per la comunicazione!

This is a very common problem so don’t fret (non ti allarmare). I put together 7 solutions to improve your pronunciation based on my experience teaching Italian and learning languages.

In this post I’ll share my 1st tip: “Practice Italian with a flawless speaker!”

“Learning proper Italian from the start saves you time and frustration later correcting what you’ve learned incorrectly.”

It can sometimes be very difficult to correct what you’ve learned incorrectly as it turned out for my friend who had a teacher in elementary school that was very passionate about English, but was hardly proficient enough to teach simple words, such as “apple”, which sounded more like “apele” (similar to the word “ape”, “scimmia” in Italian), although she knew all the grammar. Till this day, over 20 years later, my friend still struggles to pronounce “apple” properly.

His English teacher, also a relative of mine in my little town, wanted to share her passion and land a job, but teaching is a serious matter. When I started teaching English in Italy, although I had reached the advanced level C2, according to the “Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment”, I felt it would be fair to teach only levels A and B since I wasn’t speaking English on a daily basis and wouldn’t be able to teach successfully at a higher level.

Improvised language teachers are not a good deal!

So how do you know if a teacher speaks proper Italian?

Talk and listen to them a bit before jumping into it and, depending on whether the teacher is a native speaker or a non-native speaker, the pronunciation issues, if there are any, will differ.

I would ask both if they have any particular accents or regional intonation, hoping they’re aware and honest!

However, to be certain, I would go ahead and look out for more specific issues….

In the case of the native speaker pay attention to:

how they pronounce the grave or acute vowels such as in the words “verde” (the “e” is acute “vérde”), “cosa” (the “o” is grave “còsa”);
“verde” correct:

“cosa” correct:

whether they tend to pronounce single consonants as double consonants instead; an example is “amore” sometimes mistakenly pronounced with a double “m” (the“o” is acute);
“amore” correct:

whether they shorten the infinitives stressing the last vowel, like “mangià” instead of “mangiare”, “parlà”, instead of “parlare”, and so on;

While you’re at it, you can also check some grammar, which will give you a better idea of their speaking accuracy:

how they say: “I hope you are well.” (correct: “spero che tu stia bene”),
how they say: “Can you speak Italian?” (correct: “sai parlare l’italiano?” – not ‘puoi’ parlare l’italiano?”);

In the case of the non-native speaker, issues usually concern:

pronouncing the vowels,
stressing the words correctly,
pronouncing the “r”, the “t”, the “sch”, double consonants,
pronouncing the vowels at the end of the words and pronouncing them correctly (they are not all acute, only the ones with accents on them).

A way to verify that they are flawless speakers is to find a short audio snippet and ask them to repeat it. You can find excellent and reliable audio from Italian language manuals.

“Speaking properly is a form of respect for a language.”

Let me know in the comments below what your experience has been learning Italian.

Stay tuned for my next tip about my favourite language sharpener!

If you liked this post please share & like!

Grazie,
Mirella

La Festa del Papà

Chi lavora con le sue mani è un lavoratore.
Chi lavora con le sue mani e la sua testa è un artigiano.
Chi lavora con le sue mani e la sua testa ed il suo cuore è un artista.
~ San Francesco D’Assisi

He who works with his hands is a laborer.
He who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman.
He who works with his hands and his head and his heart is an artist.
~ St. Francis of Assisi

Buona festa del Papà to my father, a hard worker, a craftsman and an artist.

March 19 is St. Joseph (San Giuseppe) in Italy where it is celebrated as Father’s Day because San Giuseppe was un uomo e padre fantastico! A man that talked little and worked a lot, respected women, escaped oppression, followed his dreams, and provided for his childrens’ future.

In the painting Felice Giani humanizes the religious theme of the Holy Family where St. Joseph in his carpenting shop lovingly fills a jug of wine from a large barrel. In the background you can see his work table on which lay his working tools.

San Giuseppe is a role model. A man who interprets the messages of his dreams and puts them into action. He first marries his girlfriend who is pregnant of a child that is not his own, sheltering them from contempt and a merciless punishment. He then carries out his second dream. He emigrates to a foreign land to escape the rule of a tyrant, and thus saves the future of his child. At last, after having rasied and taught his son a job, he realizes that at twelve years of age he is capable of dealing with the alleged wise men of the country. At this point his tasks are complete and he retires to the sidelines without honors or rewards. With a father like that no wonder (non cè da meravigliarsi) Gesus became a hero!

It may also be that San Giuseppe taught him the importance of languages and communication which I’m sure came in very handy as the saviour (il salvatore).

When my father emigrated to Canada he actually learned how to speak English fairly well compared to his brothers, setting an example for his children about the importance of learning and improving.

And talking about hard work…I know that when it comes to languages lots of work is required including tongue-twisters (scioglilingua), a useful tool to improve pronunciation and fluency. So here’s a popular Italian tongue-twister…at two different speeds.

How fast can you say it without stumbling?

Sopra la panca la capra campa,
sotto la panca la capra crepa.

Speed 1

Speed 2

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La Grande Bellezza

“Io adoro i trenini”, I adore congas (in Italian “little trains”), Jep says. “My trenini are the most beautiful in all of Rome because they take you nowhere…” I’m blown away, puzzled, sad, and hopeful all at once as the final credits of the film transport me under and beyond i ponti romani, the Roman bridges.

It’s a trick….È un trucco. If you desire answers in life, you will find them hidden under the bla bla bla bla bla bla bla. They are all sedimented under the chatter and the noise, silence and feelings, emotions and fear.

“Il fatto che tu non abbia capito non vuol dire che nessuno possa capire.” Just because you didn’t understand, it doesn’t mean that nobody can understand.

“Diamo sempre il meglio con gli sconosciuti”, we always give our best with strangers.

There’s much competition in our society to appear different and at the same time a desperate need to belong to the same trenino, making you no different than anybody else. This is where human weaknesses are at their best: menzogne, vacuità, lies, emptiness. Nobility and clergy included, of course.

An illusion of movement as time passes, uno scatto fotografico alla volta, one photo click at a time, until we regretfully come to realize that nothing ever changes if there is no personal evolution. Precious opportunities are missed, unless we question ourselves, our direction, and our company.

“Roma mi ha deluso”, Rome has disappointed me. Disappointment comes from the choices we make as individuals and as a community when they are generated by a lack of responsibilty and by false ambitions that come from the ego and not from the heart, whether we are in Rome or Nepi or any other city. Roma, la città eterna, the eternal city, center of the world for centuries, is just a symbol of the decandence of our times. “Roma o morte”, Rome or death, was pronounced by Giuseppe Garibaldi whose intent was to tear Rome from the Pope. However, to conquer Rome, it was necessary to wait for the entire European geopolitical landscape to change. And the change eventually came.

“Perché non hai scritto più libri?” “Cercavo la grande bellezza, ma non l’ho trovata…”
“Why haven’t you written anymore books?” “I was looking for the great beauty, but I didn’t find it…

The night obscures, the morning clarifies, and at the age of 65, overwhelmed by regrets, sleeping on a sofa bed, un divano-letto, he finally chooses to see la grande bellezza of everything that surrounds him: youth, nature, love, and Rome. He’s ready to admit the answer to the question that troubled him all his life, “Perché Elisa mi lasciò?” Why did Elisa leave me? He lost the woman who loved him by choosing the easy way: deceiving himself and embracing fear over courage, indifference over love.

“Dunque, che questo romanzo abbia inizio”, may the novel begin…

This is a deleted scene of the film, una scena tagliata del film, with Giulio Brogi, that I really like.
Buona visione!

“Abbiate rispetto della vostra curiosità. Assecondatela. Molti la frenano.”
“Perché la frenano?”
“Perché….sono pigri, moralisti, indolenti. Sono scettici. Oddio, anche ignoranti.”
Translation:
“Have respect for your curiosity. Indulge in it. Many hold it back.”
”Why do they hold it back?”
“Because….they’re lazy, moralists, indolent. They’re skeptical. Gosh, even ignorant. “

How to use the verbs piacere and mancare in Italian

Come si usano i verbi piacere e mancare?

English follows

Allora, come si usa il verbo piacere? E’ una domanda che ricevo spesso. Credo che sia una buona idea rivedere come usare il verbo “piacere”, e verbi simili come “mancare” “servire”, “interessare”, ecc.

Per esempio, in italiano “mancare” può essere usato in diversi modi con vari significati. Vedremo il caso in cui significa “desiderare” indicando impazienza per qualcosa.

In questo caso segue una costruzione particolare che è comune anche ad altri verbi come “piacere” (vedi l’elenco sotto): ciò che ci piace è il soggetto mentre la persona che esprime apprezzamento diventa un pronome indiretto.

Mi (pronome indiretto) manca (verbo) l’Italia (soggetto).
Mi manca l’Italia.

È importante prendersi un momento per ripassare i pronomi indiretti e ricordare dove sono inseriti in una frase. Vedi la scheda in basso. Esistono 2 forme di pronomi indiretti: forma atona e forma tonica. La forma tonica è solitamente usata per enfatizzare.

So, how is the verb “piacere” used? It’s a question I get often. I think it’s a good idea to review how to use the verb “piacere”, and similar verbs like “mancare”, “servire”, “interessare”, etc.

In Italian “mancare” can be used in several ways with various meanings. We’ll learn how to use it when it means “to miss/to long for”, indicating impatience for something.

In this case it follows a particular construction that is also common to other verbs such as “piacere” (see list below): what we like is the subject while the person who expresses appreciation is expressed with an indirect object pronoun.

Mi (indirect object pronoun) manca (verb) l’Italia (subject).
I miss Italy.

It’s important to take a moment to review the indirect object pronouns and to remember where they are placed in a sentence. See the chart below. There are 2 forms of indirect object pronouns: forma atona and forma tonica. The forma tonica is usually used for emphasis.

SINGULAR forma atona	SINGULAR forma tonica
before the verb	before/after the verb
mi (to/for) me	a me (to/for) me
ti (to/for) you	a te (to/for) you
gli (to/for) him	a lui (to/for) him
Le/le (to/for) you (formal m. and f.)	a Lei/a lei (to/for) you (formal m. and f.)
PLURAL forma atona	PLURAL forma tonica
before the verb	before/after the verb
ci (to/for) us	a noi (to/for) us
vi (to/for) you	a voi (to/for) you
gli (to/for) them	a loro (to/for) them

Ricorda:

– Il verbo essere è l’ausiliare al passato prossimo: “Mi sono mancati i miei amici”. oppure “I miei amici sono mancati a me”.
– Il verbo mancare è singolare se seguito da un infinito: “Mi manca mangiare gli spaghetti”.
– A seconda della forma di pronome indiretto che stai utilizzando, la posizione dell’oggetto e del soggetto può essere invertita: “Mi manca l’Italia” o “L’Italia manca a me”.

Remember:
– The verb essere is used as the auxiliary in the passato prossimo tense: “Mi sono mancati i miei amici.” or “I miei amici sono mancati a me”.
– The verb mancare is singular when followed by an infinitive: “Mi manca mangiare gli spaghetti”.
– Depending on which form of indirect pronoun you are using, the position of the object and the subject can be inverted: “Mi manca l’Italia” or “L’Italia manca a me.”

Un elenco di altri verbi che seguono la stessa regola:

A list of other verbs that follow the same rule:

piacere – to like, to be pleasing
bastare – to be sufficient
attrarre – to attract
occorrere – to need
succedere – to happen
restare – to remain
servire – to serve
interessare – to interest
disgustare – to disgust
parere – to appear
sembrare – to seem
volerci – to take

Ecco un esercizio per fare fare pratica e non diemnticare di scrivere delle frasi nei commenti!

Here’s an exercise to help you practice and don’t forget to write some sentences in the comments!

📝 ESERCIZIO: COME USARE MANCARE (clicca qui) 📝

10 Ways to Laugh in Italian

What do you do when everything is going wrong? (quando tutto va storto) In Italy we laugh to keep from crying! (ridiamo per non piangere) Armed with a sense of humour, everything is easier even after the heavy storms that flooded many Italian cities this past week, among which the capital (la capitale), whose manholes (tombini) haven’t been cleaned since the Roman Times! (dai tempi dei Romani).

But with Carnevale approaching we are reminded that in Italy comedy and drama go hand in hand. An example of this is La Commedia dell’Arte, a colorful theatrical art form which began in the 16^th century. What made it so special was that there was no need for spoken language (la lingua parlata), therefore all social classes, regions, dialects came together and enjoyed the comic plots based on skillful mime, stereotyped stock characters, masks, physical gestures, improvised dialogues and clowning. Some of the characters that reigned La Commedia dell’Arte are: Arlecchino, Columbina, Pulcinella, il Dottore, il Capitano and Pantalone.

However, if you’re lucky to be in Italy in February/March, don’t miss (non ti perdere) some of the most famous carnivals which are held in Venice, Viareggio, Ivrea, Cento, Gabettola and Acireale.

And don’t forget to carry some Italian expressions of laughter with you!

What’s your favourite expression? Try making a sentence!

1) morire dal ridere – laugh to death

2) ridere a crepapelle – laugh out loud

3) sbellicarsi dal ridere – crack up laughing

4) ridere sotto i baffi – to snigger

5) schiantarsi dal ridere – to knock yourself out laughing

6) ridere di cuore – laugh wholeheartedly

7) ridere alle spalle – laugh at someone’s back

8) ridere con gusto – laugh with gusto

9) ridere da pazzi – laugh like crazy

10) ridere per non piangere – laugh to keep from crying

_______________________________

Michelangelo’s Visual Grocery List

How to communicate if you don’t speak or read a language? Draw it! (disegnalo) Michelangelo, of course, knew that well. It was actually a common practice in the old days to hand-draw (disegnare a mano) items for the illiterate, such as Michelangelo’s servant in this case.

I was still living in Florence when I embarked in an adventure to retrace Michelangelo’s steps while I was reading “The Agony and the Ecstasy” by Irving Stone. I learned much about il Grande Genio; that he was a humble and poor man (un uomo umile e povero), who only obtained wealth in his later years and that paper was a necessity but also a luxury (una necessità ma anche un lusso) for him; therefore, it would never go wasted. He would save and recycle scraps of paper to draw and write on. He would also destroy his sketches (i suoi schizzi) as he only wanted his polished works to be seen. I don’t think he would be happy to know that his grocery list has now gone viral on the internet! He had un caratteraccio, a temper, that’s for sure! But that is what made him great.

Casa Buonarroti in Florence, an important museum, often overlooked by tourists, is where this document is archived. It was my final emotional stop. It’s the house he built and died in after revolutionizing the world for 88 years!

Here are the 15 grocery items written in 16^th century Florentine:pani dua (two loaves of bread)
un bochal di vino (a bottle of wine)
una aringa (a herring;a line like that over a letter or word stands in for an unwritten “n” or “m”)
tortegli (tortelli)

una salama (a salame)
quattro pani (four loaves of bread)
un bochal di tondo (a bottle of tondo, or full ‘rotund’ wine)
e un quartuccio di bruscho (a quarter of rough wine)
un piattello di spinaci (a plate of spinach)
quattro alice (four anchovies)
tortelli (tortelli)

sei pani (six loaves of bread)
due minestre di finocchio (two fennel soups)
una aringa (a herring)
un bochal di tondo (a bottle of tondo).

I find illustrations or drawing the vocabulary myself very useful to be able to memorize it better.

Are you a visual learner like me?

New Year’s Resolution: more Italian!

Do you want to learn or improve your Italian in the New Year? Certo! That’s a bellissimo New Year’s resolution!

Do you want to learn or improve your Italian in the New Year? Certo! That’s a bellissimo New Year’s resolution! (buon proposito per l’anno nuovo)… Include into your life more of everything in Italian: language, cinema, music, books, and food of course! Perhaps even a trip to Italy. I don’t think it could get any better!

The easiest way for me to stick to my goals (i miei obiettivi) is to keep them simple and fun. And this way, by the end of the year I sometimes exceed my initial expectations (supero le mie aspettative iniziali).

Here are some tips (alcuni consigli) to incorporate more Italian into your year:

1) Language – Every single day do some Italian. Learning a language requires daily practice. Only 15 minutes can make a big difference. But make sure you alternate different activities that you enjoy.

2) Music – I can’t live without music. It’s usually in the background (sullo sfondo) almost all day long. I find it the best way to learn a language. Language is music! Any music will do. Pump up the volume (alza il volume) and sing along!

3) Cinema – I love old Italian movies and I watch one almost every month. Italian movies allow you to immerse yourself in the Italian culture. If you’re a beginner, subtitles are fine, if you’re not, challenge yourself! Great Italian directors of the past are Visconti, Germi, Olmi, Fellini, Pasolini, and some recent ones are Golino, Moretti, Benigni, Comencini, Tornatore.

4) Books – Reading is very effective to increase your vocabulary and to practice the grammar with almost no sweat (senza sudore). If you don’t feel ready for a novel just yet, try reading a short story (un racconto) every month. The classics are usually not written in standardized modern Italian and they could be harder to understand. Some of my favourite modern authors are Elsa Morante, Italo Calvino, Alda Merini, Dacia Maraini.

5) Food – Every Sunday, (or even everyday!), why not prepare an Italian recipe in Italian? Or perhaps you can go out to an Italian restaurant. Practice reading the menu in Italian and speaking to the Italian waiter. If he doesn’t speak Italian, there might be some chatty Italians nearby!

Let’s combine duty and pleasure (uniamo l’utile al dilettevole)

What are your Italian resolutions for the New Year? Let me know in the comments!

Buon Anno!

Mirella

p.s. Animals are always very wise (molto saggi) not only when it comes to languages!