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LANGUAGE AND CULTURE

Italian expression of the day: ‘Ti andrebbe’

How do you fancy learning a new way to ask a question in Italian?

Italian expression of the day: 'Ti andrebbe'
Photo: DepositPhotos

Italians aren't generally shy about telling you what they want. But if you get bored of asking people what they 'want' or 'would like', today's expression is a great way to mix it up.

Ti andrebbe might look like it should mean 'would it go to you', combining as it does the second-person pronoun with the third-person conditional of andare, 'to go'. 

But in fact the expression means something like 'how about…', 'do you fancy…' or 'do you feel like…'

Ti andrebbe di andare al cinema?
Do you fancy going to the cinema?

Ti andrebbe un caffè?
How about a coffee?

As you can see from the examples, you can use to it propose a thing, like coffee, or an activity, like going out. In the second case, add di + the second verb in the infinitive.

Ti andrebbe di mangiare qualcosa?
Do you feel like something to eat? 

You can also use the present tense of andare, making the expression ti va…? The two versions work in exactly the same way, but ti andrebbe is a touch more polite.

You'll also need to alter the phrase according to who you're addressing: while andrebbe will stay the same, the pronoun changes if you're referring to several people directly (vi), to 'us' (ci), to 'him' or 'them' for a group of guys (gli), to 'her' or 'them' for a group of women (le), or to one other person to whom you need to be especially polite (le). 

Vi andrebbe dell'acqua naturale o gassata?
Would you lot like still or sparkling water?

Signora Ricci, le andrebbe di entrare?
Would you like to come in, Mrs Ricci?

So how about it? Try asking someone what 'would go to them' today and see where you get.

Do you have an Italian word you'd like us to feature? If so, please email us with your suggestion.

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ITALIAN WORD OF THE DAY

Italian word of the day: ‘Bocciare’

Don't reject this word without at least giving it a try.

Italian word of the day: 'Bocciare'

If you open your Italian test paper to see the word bocciato sprawled across the front in big red lettering, you’d be right in assuming it’s not good news.

Bocciare in Italian means to flunk, fail or to hold back.

Se non supero questo esame mi bocceranno.
If I don’t pass this exam they’re going to fail me.

Se continua a saltare le lezioni, verrà bocciata.
If she continues skipping classes, she’s going to fail out.

And bocciatura is the practice of holding a student who’s failed their end-of-year exams back a year.

Marco è stato bocciato mentre Alessia è stata promossa.
Marco was held back while Alessia moved on to the next grade.

Bocciato Sono Stato Bocciato Esame Compito Piangere Triste Tristezza Mr Bean GIF - Failed I Failed Sadness GIFs

Bocciare has other applications, however, outside the classroom. It can also more broadly mean to reject: 

Era solo uno dei tanti candidati che sono stati bocciati.
He was just one of a large pool of candidates that were rejected.

And you’ll often see the word appear in headlines about politics, where it usually refers to vetoing a proposal or bill.

I sindacati hanno bocciato la proposta del governo.
Labour unions rejected the government’s proposal.

Il ddl è stato bocciato dalla Camera dei Deputati.
The bill was defeated in the lower house.

The verb has its origins in sport: bocciare originally meant to hit one ball with another in the popular Italian pastime of bocce, or boules.

There’s been some debate as to whether bocciare can be used in the active voice by the person who failed or was rejected, as in the English ‘I failed the exam’, or whether it’s only something that can happen to you (‘I was failed/they failed me’).

L’Accademia della Crusca, Italy’s preeminent linguistic authority, has weighed in on this and determined that it would amount to a semantic ‘absurdity’ in Italian for the victim of a failure to be the author of their own failing (to fail or reject themselves, so to speak).

So while you might hear someone use a phrase like Claudio ha bocciato l’esame in a colloquial context, it’s not technically considered good Italian – at least not for now.

Do you have an Italian word you’d like us to feature? If so, please email us with your suggestion.

Make sure you don’t miss any of our Italian words and expressions of the day by downloading our new app (available on Apple and Android) and then selecting the Italian Word of the Day in your Notification options via the User button.

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