Intermediate Italian For Dummies

Take your Italian skills to the next level the fun and easy way
with Intermediate Italian For Dummies! This practical,
easy-to-follow guide will help you to be more fluent and
comfortable in your Italian writing. You'll learn key
concepts, practice what you've learned, and check your
answers. With the exercises and lessons featured in this book, you
will be able master written communication in Italian.

You'll quickly understand the basics of Italian grammar
and pick up on the nuances of this romantic language. You'll
learn how to conjugate verbs, navigate tenses, and feel comfortable
with gendered words. Say and spell words correctly, and no one will
be able to tell that you're not a native Italian.
You'll discover the basics of ordering words, answering
questions, and forming complete sentences. You'll be able to
master parts of speech and apply articles as needed. Find out how
to:

• Navigate grammar, language nuances, and verb tenses

• Conjugate verbs and understand the basics of gender

• Say and spell words correctly

• Order words correctly

• Answer questions and form complete sentences

• Use articles where necessary

• Understand the various parts of speech

• Write and speak Italian like a native

Complete with lists of ten facts to remember about Italian
grammar and ten subtle terminology distinctions, Intermediate
Italian For Dummies is your one-stop guide to taking
your Italian skills to the next level and improving upon what you
already know about this widely spoken language.

Autorentext
Daniela Gobetti has taught political theory in undergraduate and graduate courses in Italy and the United States. She has written several books of instruction for learners of Italian, and taught private language courses and cultural training classes. She is the principal and managing director of PROXIMA-INTERCULTURAL, a consulting firm working on the internationalization of higher education.

Zusammenfassung
Take your Italian skills to the next level the fun and easy way with Intermediate Italian For Dummies! This practical, easy-to-follow guide will help you to be more fluent and comfortable in your Italian writing. You'll learn key concepts, practice what you've learned, and check your answers. With the exercises and lessons featured in this book, you will be able master written communication in Italian. You'll quickly understand the basics of Italian grammar and pick up on the nuances of this romantic language. You'll learn how to conjugate verbs, navigate tenses, and feel comfortable with gendered words. Say and spell words correctly, and no one will be able to tell that you're not a native Italian. You'll discover the basics of ordering words, answering questions, and forming complete sentences. You'll be able to master parts of speech and apply articles as needed. Find out how to:

• Navigate grammar, language nuances, and verb tenses
• Conjugate verbs and understand the basics of gender
• Say and spell words correctly
• Order words correctly
• Answer questions and form complete sentences
• Use articles where necessary
• Understand the various parts of speech
• Write and speak Italian like a native
  Complete with lists of ten facts to remember about Italian grammar and ten subtle terminology distinctions, Intermediate Italian For Dummies is your one-stop guide to taking your Italian skills to the next level and improving upon what you already know about this widely spoken language.

Inhalt

Introduction 1

About This Book 1

Conventions Used in This Book 2

Foolish Assumptions 2

How This Book Is Organized 3

Part I: Getting Your Bearings: Reviewing the Basics 3

Part II: A Close Look at Parts of Speech 3

Part III: What Would You Do without Verbs and Tenses? 3

Part IV: Adding Nuances to Moods and Tenses 4

Part V: The Part of Tens 4

Part VI: Appendixes 4

Icons Used in This Book 4

Where to Go from Here 5

Part I: Getting Your Bearings: Reviewing the Basics 7

Chapter 1: What Do You Know? Parts of Speech and Then Some 9

Getting a Grip on Italian Grammar Terms and Nuances 9

Phonology: Saying and spelling words correctly 10

Morphology: Word structure and variations in word forms 11

Syntax: Putting words in order 17

Getting the Most Out of Dictionaries 19

Navigating a monolingual Italian dictionary 20

Navigating a bilingual Italian-English/English-Italian dictionary 20

Answer Key 23

Chapter 2: Noun and Article Basics: Gender and Number 25

A Primer on Articles 25

Dealing with the definite article “the” 26

Saying “a” or “an” in Italian: Indefinite articles 27

Distinguishing between Masculine and Feminine Nouns 27

Recognizing common noun endings 28

Sorting nouns into three classes 29

Moving from Singular to Plural: Basic Rules 31

Exceptions to the Basic Rules on Number 32

Changing more than just the ending 32

Changing only the article 34

Using nouns only in the singular or the plural 34

Deciding When to Include an Article 35

When (and when not) to use a definite article 35

When (and when not) to use an indefinite article 36

Answer Key 38

Chapter 3: Numbers, Dates, and Time 41

Counting Items with Cardinal Numbers 41

Putting Items in Order with Ordinal Numbers 44

Managing Your Calendar and Your Time 45

Il calendario: The calendar 45

L’ora: The time 46

Answer Key 49

Part II: A Close Look at Parts of Speech 51

Chapter 4: All About Pronouns 53

Reader, Meet the Subject Pronouns 54

Knowing when to use them 55

Adapting subject pronouns for formal and informal usage 55

Stressed Pronouns 56

Direct Object Pronouns 57

Indirect Object Pronouns 60

Combining Direct and Indirect Object Pronouns to Form Double Pronouns 62

But Wait — There’s More! Special Italian Pronouns 64

The adverbial pronoun ci 64

The pronoun ne 66

When the Subject Is Also the Object: Reflexive Pronouns 67

Answer Key 69

Chapter 5: Adjectives, Adverbs, and Comparisons 73

Matching Adjectives to Nouns in Gender and Number 74

Regular adjectives 75

Irregular adjectives 75

Invariable adjectives 76

When You Need to Match One Adjective to More than One Noun 77

Putting Adjectives in Their Place 78

Recognizing the adjectives that come before nouns 78

Using placement to change an adjective’s meaning 78

Forming Adverbs the Italian Way 80

Original adverbs 80

Derived adverbs 81

Finding a Place for Adverbs in a Sentence 82

Making Comparisons 84

Designating the best and the worst: The superlatives 85

Migliore and peggiore, meglio and peggio: Better and worse 86

Answer Key 88

Chapter 6: Prepositions: The Big Challenge 91

Combining Prepositions with Articles 91

Forming Complements (Preposition + Noun, Name, or Pronoun) 92

Possession and specification 93 Qualities and functions 93</p&g...