Someday this won't be as hard as it is today

Japanese + Italian Studyblr! Mainly just rebloging interesting stuff

[sayitaliano]

Fun fact: in my hometown's area, before starting something like any endeavour or work on something with focus, we generally say "Cià" (which sounds like "Cha") as to regain control of our mind, somehow... Yes, exactly: it has now turned into "Cha cha chachacha cha cha" in my mind.

Thank you ESC, thank you Finland.

[sayitaliano]

I want to discover more italian songs, so give me a song that needs to be played LOUD

Okay I'm not that good at choosing so... have a bunch of songs :)

-Cenere by Lazza -90min by Salmo -Dove si balla by Dargen D'Amico -Regina di cuori by Litfiba -Veleno by Subsonica -Magnolia by Negrita -Urlando contro il cielo by Ligabue -Siamo soli by Vasco Rossi (but anything by him tbh -raga ho menzionato tutti e due) -Ma il cielo è sempre più blu by Rino Gaetano (this is basically the "winning" song for Italy, we play itanytime any of our teams win something) -Mamma Maria by I Ricchi e Poveri -Un'estate italiana by Edoardo Bennato & Gianna Nannini (another "hymn") -Pensiero by I Pooh -Questo folle sentimento by Formula 3

[qualcunosono]

La particella "ci"

Ecco qualcosa di molto importante da imparare. L'avevo già imparato, ma poiché l'ho dimenticato, perché ho smesso di studiare l'italiano per un po', l'ho imparato di nuovo. I usi della particella CI sono:

1. Pronome personale diretto della terza persona

Ossia, l'accusativo del pronome "noi".

Frederico ci ha visto al mercato.

2. Sostituisce i pronomi personale indiretti

Con le preposizioni "a, con" ed i pronomi "noi, lui, lei, loro".

Ci ha raccontato tutto. Oppure Ha raccontato tutto a noi.

- Hai parlato con Laura e Franco? - No, ancora non ci ho parlato (con loro).

3. Particella avverbiale di luogo

Sostituisce "lì, là, in quel luogo, in questo luogo".

Un uso frequente è con il verbo "essere", con cui è coniugato "ci essere", che indica la posizione di qualcosa nello spazio.

C'è un gatto in casa.

Con altri verbi, come "andate, venite, state", CI sostituisce il nome che si riferisce al luogo.

- Andiamo al cinema? - Non mi va di andarci (lì, al cinema).

- Sei mai stato a Roma? - No, non ci sono mai stato (là, in quel posto, a Roma).

4. Come particella pronominale

In questo caso CI sostituisce "a qualcosa, con qualcosa, su qualcosa".

È stata una brutta esperienza, ma cerco di non pensarci più (alla brutta esperienza).

- A que cosa ti servono tutte queste foto? - Ci faccio un collage (con le foto).

- Hai riflettuto sulla mia proposta? - Sì, ci ho riflettuto (sulla proposta).

5. Il suo uso con verbi

Ci sono verbi che vengono con il CI, come "metterci volerci, tenerci", ecc., quindi non si può separarli e analizzarli singolarmente.

Forse parlerò di questi verbi in un altro post.

[sayitaliano]

Ok. I am *really* struggling with how to use the verbs “like” and “miss”. As in “I like her but she does not miss me”. I get that I need to use “al x piace” and “io non le manco” but getting the words grammatically in order has me stumped. Where do I put the subject and the object for each? (yes, I am learning via Duolingo. It’s free and easy for my spouse and I to use and encourage each other.)

Please, let me be the annyoing person I am deep inside for a few lines before answering you. I need it. :') You can avoid reading this first miniature paragraph ofc.

The more I hear people are learning via Duolingo, the more I find people who struggle in understanding grammar patterns and really getting how things work in a language. It's not a critic to you, I understand that you find Duolingo of help for all the reasons you have listed but imo, it needs to be taken only as a support in learning, if anything. Cause it rushes people. And explanations aren't always correct (if you can even find them) and, from my personal experience, it has mistakes (translation and grammar) too (and I refer to the Italian course as well). I personally decided it wasn't of help to me: it only gave me translations without explanations. And I later on found out that some grammar patterns I got to understand where completely wrong (it rushed me to learn them without having the basis of the language I was learning). Ofc, it's a personal decision and I am not telling you you're wrong for sticking with it, I mean, it could even work for you... but I still suggest everyone to maybe stop and trying to realize if you are really understanding what you are learning via Duo. And maybe think also about what do you want to do with the language you are learning: do you want to just use some random words/sentences if necessary/for pleasure or would you use it as you like, one day? Either are fine, it's your choice ofc. And btw there are also other apps that work even better than Duo imo (Memrise is the one that works better for me for example: you can also choose from different courses, and it has daily goals and it's free as well + you have audios from natives).

Now, to answer you. I get why you struggle with these two verbs: they both are "buildt" differently from the English sentence pattern. Let's see them one by one. I will use some colours to try to make things easier, I hope those who are colorblind don't mind (it's still understandable, I hope).

-Piacere: (links: verb | noun | synonyms | uses | per piacere -I added all the ways you can find this verb/word, but for now I suggest you to focus on understanding how it works as a verb)

"al x piace" isn't what I would use to explain the Italian translation of "to like" (we never or rarely use it when commonly speaking + beware: use the preposizione semplice "a" not the preposizione articolata "al", to start. You can change "a" into any articolata one when necessary, i.e. when the following noun requires it). Anyway, I understand this could be an easier translation made up by the app exactly cause of the reasons I listed above (rushing people). But it's also true that the grammar pattern of the verb is different from English to Italian. In English you have a simple "I like you" (Subject -verb - object) cause the verb in English is transitive. But the Italian verb "piacere" is intransitive, so you need to build the sentences as if it was a passive verb: (Tu) Mi piaci = Tu piaci a me (or, as you wrote, "A me piaci tu") = You "are of/provoke like" to me. You cause me to like you. The English object becomes the subject of the action in Italian. And us, well "I" in the sentence, the ENG subject, I undergo the action of liking you. I "suffer" the fact that I like you (=I suffer that your appearance/anything makes me feel better, if you want to make up something to remember the thing). So your sentence: "I like her", could be easily translated as: (Lei) Mi piace. Instead of the "Lei piace a me/A me piace lei" (the order is not that relevant here, but we generally put subject + verb + object + other complements in our sentences) that you have understood from Duo and ofc it is grammatically correct, but not that often/much used. (I suggest you to learn the verb "piacere" conjugation well before making up some sentences on a notebook; and to look at the personal pronouns, if you haven't).

-Mancare: (I have already mentioned somewhere but the explanation was kinda short, so I am gonna write it here anyway)

This verb too is buildt as if it was in a passive form. And you have used the right translation in your sentence. In English is "I miss you". I, the subject, make the action of missing you, the object. In Italian we say "(Tu) Mi manchi", which translates (in the same way as for piacere) "You miss from me": You become the subject and us, (in the example I, but I talk from an "italians" pov) "suffer" the fact that I miss you, that you are missing from me (that your absence makes me incomplete, if you want it to be more romantic: anything goes to remember how it works!). I don't need to add anything else as your sentence is already correct "(io) non le manco" = She doesn't miss me.

So, putting it all together, your sentence would be: "Mi piace ma io non le manco". "I like her but she does not miss me" = (lei) Mi piace ma (io) non le manco.

We often leave subjects implied, in particular when we are the subject or the subject is undefined or very clear from our speech (and the verbs used). This sentence looks more natural with only the second written subject, but it'd be okay also without it: let's say that putting the second subject stresses the change of the subject from the first part/verb (=lei mi piace, lei=she is the subject), makes it more clear to our listener that the focus is on us now (io non le manco, I=io). I suppose, from this sentence, these two people where already talking about "her": this makes it even more clear that she is the subject of the first part/verb.

I hope this is of help!

[sayitaliano]

Valentine's day/Love vocabulary

l'amore [n.] = love amore [n.] = love (as a nickname: *my* love, use no article in this occasion) innamorato/a = sb in love, lover la passione = passion un bacio = a kiss un abbraccio = a hug una carezza = a caress l’attrazione = the attraction la relazione = relationship la felicità = happiness la gioia = joy (also as nickname when without the article) la passione = passion la dichiarazione *d’amore* = *love* declaration

amare = to love innamorarsi = to fall in love uscire con qualcuno/frequentare qualcuno = to date someone tenersi per mano = holding hands sedurre/tentare = to seduce/ to tempt tradire/ingannare = to cheat/ betray someone scaricare qualcuno = to dump sb flirtare = to flirt (pronounced as in English + Italian "are" at the end) avere una cotta/un debole per qualcuno = to have a crush on sb (also: you like sb = ti piace qualcuno) adorare = to adore abbracciare = to hug essere fidanzati (ufficialmente) = to be engaged fare l’occhiolino/ammiccare = to wink chiedere di uscire/chiedere un appuntamento = to ask on a date baciare = to kiss someone/something baciarsi = to kiss each other sposare = to marry essere sposato/a = to be married sposarsi = to get married slang: limonare = to make out

il matrimonio = wedding  l'appuntamento = the date [noun] il cuore = heart i cioccolatini = praline, chocolate candy le rose = roses i fiori = flowers un mazzo (un bouquet) di fiori = a bouquet of flowers un regalo, un pensiero = a gift la fidanzata, la morosa = girlfriend     il fidanzato, il moroso = boyfriend il compagno/la compagna = girlfriend/boyfriend (mostly for adults) giorno di San Valentino = Valentine’s Day civetta = a girl who likes to flirt (not used very much anymore) cascamorto = a boy who likes to flirt cupido = cupid l'amante = lover (secret, cheater/3rd party in particular)

caro/a – dear, beloved (adj. as well as a nickname) bellezza, bello – cutie, handsome (to a male) bello/a – beautiful, handsome tesoro, dolcezza – darling, sweetheart (adj. and a nickname) dolce = sweet (also as noun: dessert) tenero/a = tender romantico/a = romantic

mi piaci = I like you ti amo, ti voglio bene = I love you mi manchi = I miss you ti amerò per sempre = I will love you forever. amore a prima vista / colpo di fulmine = Love at first sight. non posso vivere senza te = I can’t live without you Buon San Valentino = Happy Valentine’s Day festeggeremo con una cenetta romantica = We’ll celebrate with a romantic dinner un pensiero per te = A gift (thought) for you

More nicknames (no articles):

tesoro = *my* treasure cucciolo/cucciola, cucciolotto/cucciolotta = *my* pet, little pet topolino/topolina = little mouse (mio) caro/(mia) cara = (my) dear/darling piccola/piccolo, bimba/bimbo = little one, baby bambola = doll biscottino/biscottina = little biscuit micino/micina, gattino/gattina = kitty maialino/maialina = little pig tigrotto/tigrotta = little tiger momo/moma from “amoro” and “amora” (”amore” in a made up male/female version) = *my* love (in a cute way) ami/amo (or “amy”) = diminutive of “amore” (still cute) tato/tata (patato/patata, patatino/patatina) = dear (potato) orsacchiotto/orsacchiotta = teddy bear

… and I guess most of the cute animals’/cookies’/sweet stuff’s diminutives, as far as your imagination can take you! (The first 4/5 words work also in mother/son or grandma/nephew relationships, while probably the others are mostly used among partners)

[jwasontodd]

[mslockheart]

I always have to start the New Years with this picture.

[yellowsunnyskies-deactivated202]

[ID: white text on a black background, the text reads “Dawn of The First Day -364 Days Remain-” end ID.]

[greyteagraymatter]

palavras que aprendi hoje

12.30.22 | 180 Minute Lesson

to glue - colar

to waste - desperdiçar

to threaten - ameaçar

to take over - dominar

to print - imprimir

to intervene - intervir

to interfere - interferir

to lead - levar

to wade through - percorrer

to cope - lidar

to regret - se arrepende

to borrow/to loan - emprestar

to fuck up - fazer merda/fazer estraga

to donate - doar

to hint - insinuar

to enlarge - alargar, dilatar

to invite to go out - convidar pra sair

to sound like - parecer que

interrupted sleep - sono interrompido

the flowers - as flores

the handle - a descarga

Croatia - Croácia

in case - no caso

lazy - preguiçosa

friendly - amigável

advantages - vantagens

my spine - minha coluna

often - frequentemente

knowledge - conhecimentos

understandings - entendidos

misunderstandings - desentendidos

alcoholics - os alcoólatras

all of us - todo mundo

drugstores - farmácias/drogarias

fourth floor - quarto andar

third grade - terceira série

dumb mistakes - erros estúpidos

an essay - uma redação

elementary school - ensino fundamental

citations - citações

coding - codificação

computer science - ciência da computação

briefly - brevemente

master’s degree - um mestrado

at least - ao menos

was dropped/kicked out - foi expulsa

the same way - mesmo jeito/mesma maneira

hard-headed/opinionated - cabeça dura

stubborn - teimosa

how nice - que gentil

American Sign Language - língua de sinais americana

the deaf community - a comunidade surda

hearing people - ouvintes

is my window being open too noisy? - É a minha janela aberta tá sendo muito barulhenta?

I didn’t say anything - não está mais aqui quem falou

[dcdesmond]

I love the word Verão. Something so beautiful about it.

I literally see the word in my head like this (thank god for Figma so I can illustrate so clearly).

If you're not familiar, verão is the Portuguese word for summer. Already, it is a word imbued with warmth and brightness. But it also feels powerful.

Ver also means to see and ão is often used as a magnifier (as in, bundão), so in a way, verão is "a big seeing" as well. Not a real meaning of the word, but I like that it could be a hidden meaning of sorts that fits the sense of the word and evokes a feeling of light and observation, and even growth.

[angeliken]

There's so much funny things to being billingual and getting slangs on both of them

For example, tea, in English, means you have gossip to spread

I'm Portuguese, however, means really good, amazing, otherworldly sex.

So, "I will give you the tea" is a great sentence in both, but in very different ways

[factoidfactory]

Random Fact #6,385

The Portuguese word for jellyfish literally translates as “living-water” (água-viva). Or, even more literally, “water-alive.”

[jumiila]

Portuguese expression:

“no cu de Judas”

Today I bring to you one of the most relevant Portuguese expressions, used very often and which is very useful.

“no cu de Judas” literally means “in the butt of Judas”, but is used to mean “in the middle of nowhere”, or “veeeery far away from anywhere”.

“Ela vive numa aldeia no cu de Judas” — “She lives in a village in the middle of nowhere”

“Aquilo fica no cu de Judas” — “That (thing) is in the middle of nowhere”

Poor Judas has a hard time here in Portugal. We also have a festival in Braga where he is exploded.

[camundongodebabel]

One Portuguese word I really miss when speaking English is preguiça, the substantive form of preguiçoso/a (lazy).

Cause in Brazil, there's a big difference between saying "Eu sou preguiçoso" (I am lazy) and "Eu estou com preguiça" (I "have lazy"). The first always indicates a fixed personality trait and is usually taken to be a criticism on one's character, while the second would mean something like "I'm feeling lazy right now," indicating a temporary condition of a lack of motivation, usually implying an underlying cause for it. Also, the second phrase is so common, in fact, that you can answer someone just saying "Preguiça." and they'll assume that's what you mean.

So whenever I say "I'm lazy," I always feel the urge to add "right now" at the end, or change it to "I'm feeling lazy," because in my language "ser" is a judgement and a promise and "estar" is for the temporary, yet all English has to offer me is "be".

[brazilspill]

Traditional Brazilian Children's Songs #1

The carnation fought with the rose Underneath a balcony, The carnation ended up injured And the rose [ended up] in pieces

The carnation got sick [So] the rose went to visit [him] The carnation fainted/had a fainting spell And the rose cried

=-=-=

O cravo brigou com a rosa Debaixo de uma sacada, O cravo saiu ferido E a rosa despedaçada

O cravo ficou doente A rosa foi visitar O cravo teve um desmaio E a rosa pôs-se a chorar

[factoidfactory]

Random Fact #6,372

The Portuguese word for sloth (the animal) literally translates as “lazy-critter” (bicho-preguiça). Or, more literally, “critter-lazy.”

[ourworldspinsmadlyon]

Pronunciation of Northern Portugal

The dialect of Northern Portugal is considered to be the closest to that of original portuguese. The accent is quite different from the Lisbon accent and southern Portuguese accent, and there are also some differences in vocabulary and expressions.

Here are links to some YouTube videos that talk about o português do norte. Some are educational, and some are just a bit of fun. This might also help you find some Portuguese YouTubers, if you are looking for channels with people speaking European Portuguese.

Prúncias do Norte | Ciberdúvidas da Língua Portuguesa

A pronúncia do Norte | Donos Disto Tudo | RTP

Expressões do Porto e Algarve c/Môce dum Cabréste | Sofia Barbosa

As Expressões do Norte mais Engraçadas que Tens Mesmo de Conhecer | Cara Coroa

Diferentes Expressões / Palavras no Norte do Portugal | Lipa&Potter

Expressões do Norte de Portugal Part II | Lipa&Potter

Expressões à moda do Porto | Tony Dias

Diferenças linguísticas entre Porto e Lisboa - Parte 1 | A Miúda do Norte

Diferenças linguísticas entre Porto e Lisboa - Parte 2 | A Miúda do Norte

And, finally, a song called A Pronúncia do Norte GNR and Isabel Silvestre:

https://youtu.be/cqHsPqOylQs

[brazilspill]

It's interesting how the Portuguese word "filhote" translates as "offspring" but its connotation is wildly different from its English counterpart despite technically being a direct translation.

They're mostly used in the same circumstances but filhote has a tenderness attached to it, while offspring is almost clinical.

This is interesting, because filhote can also be used in a clinical setting like a biology study of an animal and its offspring, but it still doesn't have that clinical feel to it.

[factoidfactory]

Random Fact #6,370

Native English speakers have trouble remembering the difference between there, they’re, and their.

Native Portuguese speakers have a similar struggle of their own: porque, por que, por quê, and porquê.

=-=-=

Porque – Because

Por que – ‘Why’ when used in the start of a question (Why weren’t you at school?)

Por quê – ‘Why’ when used at the end of a sentence (e.g. Atrasaram por quê? [Why are you late?])

Porquê – Used as a noun and appears accompanied by a determiner (an article, for example). (e.g. “Queria saber o porquê de sua tristeza para poder ajudá-lo” => "I wanted to know the reason for his sadness so I could help him”)