One of the hardest things to do in a new language is to construct a sentence. Understanding is one thing, but putting words together can be such a challenge.
The good news is that sometimes you don't have to say much to get your idea across. Let's look at some ways to comment on things without actually constructing a sentence. Using che, we can either complain about something: che caldo (how hot it is), or we can be making a compliment: che buono (this is so good).
The magic word is che (that, what, which). We then add the appropriate adjective.
Che bello! Ciao! -Che bello!
How nice! Bye! -How nice!
Captions 75-76, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP5 - Il Raggio Verde
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Ehm, guardate che carino.
Uh, look how pretty.
Caption 23, Professioni e mestieri - Belle Arti -Tecniche di decorazione
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The speaker could have just said, che carino!
Oddio che freddo!
Oh my God it's freezing!
Caption 59, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP2 - Vendemmia tardiva
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We could use the same formula to talk about the heat or the humidity. Actually some of these words can be used as nouns or adjectives.
Che caldo! (How hot it is!)
Che umido (How humid it is)
Sometimes we can add a noun instead of an adjective:
Che facciamo? Il telefono... Anche il mio. -Che sfiga!
What can we do? The telephone... Mine too. -What a bummer!
Captions 37-39, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP2 - Vendemmia tardiva
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E che cavolo!
Hey what the hell?
Caption 22, La Ladra - Ep. 6 - Nero di rabbia
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Che sole (what [bright] sun)!
Che tramonto (what a sunset)!
Che cena (what a [great] dinner)
Che umidità (what humidity)!
Che afa (how muggy it is)!
Che giornata (what a day)!
In some cases, we don't even need to use che.
Strano, perché Eva mi ha detto che è laureata.
Strange, because Eva told me she had a degree.
Caption 50, La Ladra - Ep. 5 - Chi la fa l'aspetti
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This sentence could have been:
Che strano. Eva mi ha detto che è laureato.
How strange. Eva told me she had a degree.
When we are at the extremes of the adjective spectrum, in other words, when using adjectives in their comparative or superlative form we don't use che, because we are already, in effect, making something superlative, with che. If we want to use the superlative, it's better to go for the adjective all by itself.
We wouldn't say che bellissimo. We would just say bellissimo (very beautiful)!
Che bello says pretty much the same thing.
There are lots of way to talk about things, but it's nice to have an easy, minimalist way, especially if we are beginners, or just having trouble finding the words. Che is a word that is also used with the subjunctive, and therefore might instill a bit of anxiety in learners, but it can also be our friend.
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The imperfetto, or “imperfect” past tense is just one of the several past tenses in Italian. As we can see from its name, it’s not perfect, meaning it doesn’t use an auxiliary verb like essere (to be) or avere (to have) plus a participle. It stands alone as a verb and is conjugated and so it is similar in structure to the simple past in English. Attenzione! Knowing when to use it is not always clear-cut, and usage differs from region to region. There may also be more than one possible English translation in a given case.
Perhaps the easiest way to get a feel for this tense is to use it when comparing the past to the present: the way it was then, and the way it is now.
Be aware that there are three basic ways to translate the imperfetto into English. One way is with the simple past tense.
Ma certo che lo conosco. Io venivo sempre qui in vacanza!
But of course I know him. I always came here on vacation!
Caption 79, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP5 - Il Raggio Verde
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In the above example, we’re talking about something in the past. The adverb sempre (always), indicating a repetitive action in the past, along with the fact that it is no longer true, helps us understand that we need the imperfetto.
It wasn’t a one-time, specific action in the past. If it had been, we might have used the passato prossimo:
Sono venuto qui l’anno scorso in vacanza.
I came here on vacation last year.
And if we mention the specific times in the past rather than a span of time, we also use the passato prossimo.
Sono venuto qui tante volte in vacanza.
I have come here many times on vacation.
Note that in the above examples, we use the passato prossimo in both cases, but the English translation changes!
Another way we translate the imperfetto in English is with “would” plus the infinitive, when describing the past as opposed to the present.
In the following example, Marika is explaining how people mopped the floor in the past.
Un tempo si usava un'asta di legno con uno strofinaccio...
In the past one would use a wooden pole with a floor cloth...
Si prendeva lo strofinaccio, si metteva in un secchio.
You would take the floor cloth, you would put it in a bucket.
Captions 20-23, Marika spiega - Le pulizie di primavera
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A third way the imperfetto can be translated is with the English past continuous tense.
E allora che cosa ci faceva nel nostro giardino?
And so what were you doing in our garden?
Cercavo un posto sicuro per passare la notte.
I was looking for a safe place to spend the night.
Captions 3-4, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP6 - Reazione a Catena
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The past continuous exists in Italian, too, as the passato progressivo. Much of the time, it’s interchangeable with the imperfetto, and perhaps a bit more specific in pinpointing the moment of speaking in the timeline.
In the above example, the Italian passato progressivo could have been used with same result in English:
Allora che cosa stava facendo nel nostro giardino?
Stavo cercando un posto sicuro per passare la notte.
So these three ways of translating are important for understanding Italian, and just as important when trying to think and speak in Italian.
Learning suggestions:
To get an overview of this tense in context, do a Yabla search of various verbs in their imperfetto conjugations and see all the examples.
See Marika and Anna talk about their childhoods using the imperfetto!
Can you compare your childhood or youth to the present using the imperfetto as opposed to the presente?
Here’s an example.
Quando ero più giovane avevo più capelli.
When I was younger, I had more hair.
Ora sono quasi senza capelli del tutto.
Now I have almost no hair at all.
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