Once your language skills clear the initial hurdles of basic grammar rules and a vocabulary large enough to navigate daily life, it鈥檚 time to start working on some of the subtleties and nuances that separate the beginners from those who are starting to edge towards mastering Italian in all its beauty and complexity.
One way to do that is to start 鈥渄oubling up鈥 on your vocabulary, or learning more than a single way to express an idea or thought. Sure, 鈥渂别濒濒辞鈥 works in a bunch of situations, but why not add some color to your speech with a smattering of synonyms to switch out for this all-purpose 鈥渘ice鈥?
鈥淧补谤别肠肠丑颈辞鈥, 鈥渁产产补蝉迟补苍锄补鈥, and 鈥减颈耻迟迟辞蝉迟辞鈥 fall into this category. You can definitely get by without these three quantifiers, but with them, your Italian will take on significantly more life. That said, they can be tricky to use correctly.
Here鈥檚 a quick guide:
How to use 鈥减补谤别肠肠丑颈辞鈥
Use 鈥减补谤别肠肠丑颈辞鈥 to indicate a large number or quantity instead of 鈥渕olto鈥 or 鈥渢anto鈥.
Depending on its use, 鈥减补谤别肠肠丑颈辞鈥 works as either a quantifying adverb or adjective and can substitute:
惭耻肠丑鈥
Very...
Quite a bit...
A lot of...
Lots of...
Plenty of...
A great deal of...
...and so on
鈥淧补谤别肠肠丑颈辞鈥 is used quite often in spoken Italian, and your mastery of it will lend your speech a more natural tone. It is usually placed before the noun and matches it in gender and number when used as an adjective; when used as an adverb, it is used in the singular masculine.
Examples:
Adjective:
Suono il pianoforte da parecchio tempo. - I have been playing the piano for quite a long time.
Questa settimana fa parecchio freddo. - It鈥檚 very cold this week.
Ho parecchie cose da fare prima di partire per le vacanze. - I have a lot to do before I leave on vacation.
Abbiamo portato dietro parecchia acqua per la camminata. - We brought plenty of water for the walk.
Adverb:
La macchina 猫 parecchio lenta. - The car is very slow.
Oggi sta parecchio meglio. - He feels much better today.
鈥淧补谤别肠肠丑颈辞鈥 can also be used as a pronoun when it鈥檚 easy to understand what it substitutes.
Examples:
Parecchi non finiscono il corso. - Many (students is assumed) don鈥檛 finish the course.
E鈥 da parecchio che aspetti il treno? - Have you been waiting long (time is assumed) for the train?
Ho speso parecchio per il biglietto. - I spent a lot (money is assumed) for the ticket.
How to use 鈥渁产产补蝉迟补苍锄补鈥
Use 鈥渁产产补蝉迟补苍锄补鈥 to indicate a sufficient number or quantity instead of 鈥减颈耻迟迟辞蝉迟辞鈥.
Depending on its use, 鈥渁产产补蝉迟补苍锄补鈥 works as a quantifying adverb or pronoun and can substitute:
Quite...
Rather...
Fairly...
Enough...
Relatively...
Some...
Pretty...
Somewhat...
...and so on
鈥淎产产补蝉迟补苍锄补鈥 is a mainstay of conversational Italian and its meaning can be nuanced depending upon the context and tone of the speaker. It is usually placed before the noun but does not match it in gender and number when used as an adverb, instead of remaining unchanged regardless of its use.
Examples:
Sei abbastanza grande per uscire da sola. - You are old enough to go out alone.
Canta abbastanza bene per la sua et脿. - He sings quite well for his age.
Il prezzo mi sembra abbastanza alta. - The price seems rather high to me.
鈥淎产产补蝉迟补苍锄补鈥 can also be used as a pronoun when it鈥檚 easy to understand what it substitutes.
Examples:
Ho mangiato abbastanza. - I鈥檝e eaten enough (food is assumed).
Ne ho avuto abbastanza! - I鈥檝e had enough! (frustration is assumed).
Note: 鈥渁产产补蝉迟补苍锄补鈥 is also sometimes used to denote a lack of enthusiasm or ambivalence, expressed via tone of voice:
Era buona la cena? Si, abbastanza. - Was dinner good? Yes, good enough.
Come va a scuola? Abbanstanza bene. - How is school going? Well enough.
How to use 鈥减颈耻迟迟辞蝉迟辞鈥
Use 鈥减颈耻迟迟辞蝉迟辞鈥 to indicate 鈥渕ore鈥 (to a greater extent, to a considerable extent). 鈥淧颈耻迟迟辞蝉迟辞鈥 is always used as an adverb preceding an adjective or adverb and can substitute rather (meaning both 鈥渁 bit鈥 and the indication of a preference).
鈥淧颈耻迟迟辞蝉迟辞鈥 is considered a rather refined form of speech and will give your conversation the tone of someone who has studied Italian grammar and syntax with diligence.
Examples:
Sono piuttosto stanca stasera. - I鈥檓 rather tired this evening.
Prendo piuttosto il treno. - I鈥檇 rather take the train.
Bevo il vino piuttosto che la birra. - I鈥檇 rather drink wine than beer.
Piuttosto la morte che mangiare la pizza con l鈥檃nanas. - I鈥檇 rather die than eat pizza with pineapple.
Mangiamo sempre fuori. Piuttosto, perch猫 non prepariamo qualcosa a casa stasera? - We always eat out. Rather, why don鈥檛 we make something at home tonight?
Let鈥檚 see how you add these three great Italian quantifiers into your next conversation!
