Let's talk about adverbs we can use to add a qualifier to an adjective. We can say someone is gentile (nice). But we can qualify that with an adverb such as molto (very), poco (not very), abbastanza (rather, enough), and others.

Adjectives or adverbs

Molto (very) and poco (not very) go hand in hand. They can be either adjectives or adverbs. When they're adjectives, we change the ending according to what they modify.  But when they're used as adverbs, they are invariable.

Molto is perhaps the one we hear most often. In our first example, molto becomes molti to agree with negozi (the plural of negozio). This is because it is functioning as an adjective. For more on this topic, see Daniela's lessons.

A qui [sic], a Mondello ci sono molti negozi.

Here in Mondello there are many shops:

Caption 18, Adriano - a Mondello

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In the next example, however, molto is an adverb modifying forte (strong). As an adverb, the ending doesn't ever change. And in English, the meaning changes to "very."

In estate qui il sole è molto forte.

In summer, the sun here is very strong.

Caption 40, Adriano - Le stagioni dell'anno

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Poco works the same way as molto and can be used as an adjective or an adverb. Here, poche agrees with ore (the plural of ora).

Poche ore fa, non più di tre.

Just a few hours ago, no more than three.

Caption 43, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP2 - L'addio di Lara

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But here, it's an adverb modifying chiaro (clear).

C'è sicuramente qualcosa di poco chiaro là sotto.

There is for sure something not very clear underneath it all.

Caption 40, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone - EP1 I Bastardi - Part 15

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Molto and poco are opposites, more or less, but we have some "in-between" words, too. 

Abbastanza

Abbastanza is interesting because it comes from the verb bastare (to suffice). So the most logical translation for abbastanza might be "sufficiently" — to the degree of being sufficient, or "enough," which in English comes after the adjective it modifies. In everyday speech, however, we often equate abbastanza with "rather," "fairly," or in colloquial speech, "pretty." 

Era abbastanza timida, abbastanza riservata.

She was rather shy, rather reserved.

Caption 2, Illuminate - Rita Levi Montalcini

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Certo, Lojacono mi sembra uno abbastanza sveglio,

Of course, Lojacono seems quite smart to me,

ma per quanto riguarda il resto della squadra,

but regarding the rest of the team,

Lei è messo male, io lo so.

you are in bad shape, I know.

Captions 36-38, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone - EP1 I Bastardi - Part 9

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Piuttosto

A synonym for abbastanza is piuttosto, usually translated as "rather." It's on the positive end of the scale but not at the top. When you say abbastanza, you might be saying something is lacking, that something is just sufficient, especially when coupled with a positive adjective such as buono (good) bene, (good, well) or bello (beautiful, nice).

Come ti senti?

How do you feel?

Abbastanza bene. -Ce la fai?

Pretty good. -Can you manage?

Captions 72-73, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP11 - Uno strano incidente di caccia

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But with piuttosto, it's usually positive relative to what it's modifying and serves to reinforce the positive aspect of something without actually going to the point of saying molto (very). So it's generally (but not always) higher on the scale than abbastanza.

Anche se, su certi argomenti, se la cava piuttosto bene devo dire.

Even though, on some subjects, she manages rather well, I must say.

Caption 52, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP8 - Morte di un buttero

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So of course it can also modify a negative adjective, and reinforces its characteristic, as in this example:

La gestione all'interno della casa

The running of the household

è stata piuttosto complicata, i primi giorni,

was quite complicated, the first days,

Captions 2-3, COVID-19 - 3) La quarantena

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Nella memory card ce n'erano anche altre, piuttosto sfocate.

On the memory card there were others too, and rather blurry.

Caption 9, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP4 - Miss Maremma

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Assai

This adverb is similar to piuttosto, but is often another way of saying molto (much, very). But it can also be just a short step lower than molto, depending on the context and the region the speaker is from.

Ma in realtà, pensate, dopo praticamente sette secoli e più,

But actually, just think: After practically seven-plus centuries,

questi colori si sono leggermente sbiaditi. Sono assai meno brillanti.

these colors have faded somewhat. They are much less brilliant.

Captions 26-27, Meraviglie - EP. 4 - Part 4

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Another qualifying adverb is parecchio (a great deal). It's used a lot as an adjective, but works fine as an adverb, too. See this lesson.

Quindi, quando sarà finito, sicuramente mi riposerò,

So, when it's all done, I'll take a break, for sure,

perché sto parecchio stressata.

because I am totally stressed out.

Captions 50-51, Fuori era primavera - Viaggio nell'Italia del lockdown

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See this video for some explanations in Italian about qualifying adverbs, now that we've given you some pointers in English.

People have their personal favorites when it comes to adverb qualifiers. So keep your eyes and ears open. Listen for the variable endings when these qualifiers are adjectives, and the invariable ending when they're adverbs. This takes patience and experience. But little by little, you will put two and two together. 

This list isn't set in stone, as these adverbs can be used differently by different people, but it can help give you an idea. 

• •molto, parecchio
• •assai
• •piuttosto
• •abbastanza
• •poco
• •per niente (at all)  — We didn't discuss this here but you will find it mentioned in other lessons if you do a search of niente.

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Let's look at a word used in a recent episode of Volare that has both a verb and a noun form. It's an easy cognate, but you might not think of it, since "to deserve" is the verb we would use in English, and alas, it has no cognate in Italian.

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So meritare is a good verb to know. The noun form is il merito. In English, we would usually say "Thanks to [someone or something]."  Or we might say, "The credit is all yours/his/hers/theirs." So, you'll probably understand these words when you see them, especially when they are in a clear context, but you might not add them to your vocabulary if you are thinking in English. They are worth adopting, though. "Being worth it" is another way to translate meritare!

È merito della signora se sono qui, eh.

It's thanks to the lady if I am here, huh.

-No, Lei è qui perché se lo merita,

-No. You are here because you deserve to be.

non deve ringraziare nessuno.

You don't have to thank anyone.

Captions 22-24, Volare - La grande storia di Domenico Modugno - Ep. 1

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You might have noticed that the speaker uses the reflexive form of meritare, meritarsi. Both ways are OK, but when it's reflexive it feels a bit more personal (and it's a bit more complicated to use).

Il successo l'hai meritato.

Il succeso te lo sei meritato.

Let's look at some examples from Yabla videos:

Una come Teresa non si meritava di morire così.

Someone like Teresa didn't deserve to die like that.

Caption 62, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone S1EP3 Vicini - Part 4

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Se hai una pessima idea di me, me lo merito.

If you have a bad impression of me, I deserve it.

Caption 72, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP5 - Il Raggio Verde

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Se questa operazione è riuscita, il merito è tuo. Brava, Sardi.

If this operation succeeded, it's thanks to you. Very good, Sardi.

Caption 26, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP4 - Miss Maremma

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Eh, va be', però bisogna avvertirlo, perché il critico ha dato tutto il merito a te.

Well, all right, but you should let him know because the critic gave you all the credit.

Caption 24, La Ladra - Ep. 5 - Chi la fa l'aspetti

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Pensavo di meritare di più dalla vita.

I thought I deserved more from life.

Caption 19, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP10 -La verità nascosta

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Poi sicuramente Pisa merita una visita

Then, of course, Pisa is worth a visit

con la sua torre pendente che non casca mai.

with its leaning tower that never falls.

Captions 75-76, L'Italia a tavola - Interrogazione sulla Toscana

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As you can see in the final example, to deserve something and be worth something are very close. Sometimes they are interchangeable. They are in Italian too, so check out our lesson about valere (to be worth). 

Accordo is such a handy Italian word but the meaning can change considerably depending on the verb used with it. Let's look at 5 different ways we use accordo (agreement) in everyday life.

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1) If we take the noun un accordo by itself, it means "an agreement."

Abbiamo firmato un accordo (we signed an agreement).

Io so che Lei aveva un accordo per utilizzare il latte della sua azienda, è così?

I know that you had an agreement for using the milk from her company, is that right?

Caption 42, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP6 - Sotto tiro

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2) If we put the preposition di (of) before it, it means “in agreement”. If we are "in agreement" — or as we usually say in English, “we agree” — we need 3 words to make one. We use the verb essere (to be) + the preposition di (of) + the noun accordo (agreement) to obtain the verb "to agree": essere in accordo. We need to conjugate the verb essere (to be).

Non metto in dubbio le tue idee, ma non sono d'accordo.

I don’t doubt your ideas are good, but I don’t agree.

Caption 35, Marika spiega - Il Verbo Mettere

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Non sei d'accordo?

Don't you agree? (Don't you think so?)

Caption 30, Provaci Ancora Prof! - S1E1 - Il regalo di Babbo Natale

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Allora se la dottoressa è d'accordo, io consiglierei un sopralluogo al museo.

So if the doctor agrees, I'd advise an inspection of the museum.

Caption 55, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP5 - Il Raggio Verde

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Essere d'accordo can also mean "to be in cahoots." The context will reveal this nuance.

Quindi secondo te erano d'accordo per cercare di incastrarlo e poi ricattarlo?

So, in your opinion they were in cahoots to try to frame him and then blackmail him?

Caption 16, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP4 - Miss Maremma

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3) We also use accordo to say “to get along”: andare d’accordo. Here, we use the verb andare plus the preposition di + the noun accordo

Non va d'accordo con suo fratello (She doesn't get along with her brother).

Senti un po', ma io e te una volta andavamo d'accordo, giusto?

Listen up, but you and I got along at one time, right?

Caption 11, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP1 - Un delitto perfetto

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Il signor Spada e la moglie danese pare che non andassero per niente d'accordo.

Mister Spada and his Danish wife, it seems, weren't getting along at all.

Caption 20, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP11 - Beato tra le donne

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4) Another way to say “I agree” in English is “OK” or “all right.” We can certainly use “OK” or va bene to say this in Italian, but another common way is d’accordo. It’s a little more serious than just OK, which can also be filler, just something we say. So there is no verb here. We simply use the preposition di + the noun accordo. People who know French will recognise this way of saying "OK." "D’accord."

Ci vediamo domattina in ufficio, d’accordo?  (I’ll see you at the office tomorrow morning, OK?)
D’accordo (OK).

5) In an informal situation, primarily, in which we need or want to put off actually agreeing to something, there's another useful phrase with accordo. Let's say we need to decide on a time and place to meet, or make a friendly transaction. We can use the verb mettere (to put) in its reciprocal form mettersi (the reciprocal form works much the same as the reflexive form). For more on this read this lesson and.

E poi ci mettiamo d'accordo. La, la chiamo io.

We'll set it up later. I'll call you.

Caption 20, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP9 - Morte in paradiso

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This expression mettersi d'accordo is useful among friends who want to get together, but can't (or don't want to) set a date right then and there. To say something like "We'll get together at some point," we could say, Poi, ci mettiamo d'accordo (we'll decide [together] later). It's a friendly expression to say that you want to see this person, but can't decide on anything right then and there.

So we have:

un accordo: an agreement
essere d’accordo: to agree or to be in cahoots
andare d’accordo: to get along
d'accordo: OK! All right
mettersi d’accordo: to come to an agreement—to decide on something together

We think this might have been helpful. Sei d'accordo?