Getting by with cavarsela

By Sigrid Lee

You may know that we can ask someone how things are going with come va (how's it going)? It's the simplest and least personal way to ask that. More personal is come stai (how are you, how are you feeling)?

"Ciao, come va?"

"Hi, how's it going?"

Si può anche dire "come stai?"

You can also say, "how are you?"

Come stai.

How are you?

Captions 5-7, Corso di italiano con Daniela - Chiedere "Come va?"
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Here's yet another way to talk about how things are going for someone. We use it in both questions and answers when the situation or outcome is new or uncertain, like, for example, a new job, a new home, an exam, and much more.

And the verb is.... cavarsela. It's a pronominal verb — a verb that has pronouns attached to it — so let's take it apart.

The main verb inside this pronominal verb is cavare (to remove, to extract). If you think of a cavity, something has been removed to create it.

As a matter of fact, Marika has made a video about 2 similar verbs: cavare and togliere, which can both mean to remove.

Cavare vuol dire estrarre,

"Cavare" means to extract,

tirare fuori qualcosa da qualche parte.

to pull something out from somewhere.

Captions 7-8, Marika spiega - I verbi cavare e togliere
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Here's a practical example of cavare.

Ma non è una seduta dal dentista, questa, che ti cavo fuori le cose con le pinze!

But this isn't, isn't a dentist appointment, this, where I pull things out of you with pliers!

Captions 55-56, JAMS EP6 - Part 2
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Cavare can also be reflexive, becoming cavarsi. Although it can be used like levarsi and togliersi (to remove), when talking about taking one's shoes off, for example, it's not all that common. Togliere and levare are much more common.

Mi tolgo le scarpe... indosso una vestaglia,

I take off my shoes... I put on a robe,

mi distendo sul divano,

I stretch out on the couch,

guardo un po' di televisione.

I watch a little TV.

Captions 40-42, Adriano - Giornata
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Instead of togliere, levare could have been used in the previous example about shoes. Mi levo le scarpe...

However, there is another, longer pronominal verb, cavarsela, which includes the reflexive cavarsi, and where we add la, which, in this case, means "it." "It" in turn, represents a situation, often a difficult one. So cavarsela can mean "to get oneself out of a situation." Cavarsela: cavare + si + la.

When using the verb in its infinitive form, we remove the "e" ending of the original verb in its infinitive, so cavare becomes cavar. Then, since we are going to have a direct object pronoun in there, too (in this case la = it), si (usually an indirect object pronoun meaning "to oneself") becomes se. And then we add, at the end, la, which is a direct object pronoun (meaning a generic "it") — and we get cavarsela.

A classic example of using cavarsela is when you take an exam you hadn't studied for, or some similar situation, but you got through it anyway.

Me la sono cavata, menomale (I got through it, thank goodness).

Cavarsela can have various, related meanings, such as "to get out of a dicey situation," "to get away with something," "to manage," "to get by," and more, depending on the context.

Insomma, neanche in sogno riesco a cavarmela da solo.

Anyway, not even in a dream can I get by on my own.

Caption 58, Psicovip - I Minivips - Ep 13
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Questions

Let's start with how we use cavarsela in a general question, perhaps because someone has a new job, a couple has a new baby or has moved into a new house, or someone has lost their job.

Come ve la state cavando?

How are you managing?

Caption 9, Sposami EP 1 - Part 8
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This isn't exactly a question, but the structure is the same. As a soloist, Matteo is good, but can he play with the others in the orchestra?

Adesso, però, vediamo come te la cavi con tutti gli altri.

Now, though, let's see how you manage with everyone else.

Caption 8, La compagnia del cigno S1 EP1 - Part 7
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A woman who owns horses is thinking of hiring some help. She asks:

Come te la cavi con i cavalli?

How do you manage with horses?

How good are you with horses?

Caption 6, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP8 - Morte di un buttero
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An answer to a question with cavarsela might be:

Me la cavo (I do all right).

Ce la caviamo (we're doing all right).

Ce la stiamo cavando (we're managing).

When we use the passato prossimo (which is structured like the present perfect), for example, it's a bit trickier to use cavarsela. The present participle has to agree with la (in other words, it should be in the singular, feminine). And we use essere (to be), not avere (to have), as an auxiliary verb.

Va be', dai, però se l'è cavata bene, su.

OK, come on, after all she managed all right, come on.

Caption 7, La Ladra EP. 9 - L'amico sconosciuto - Part 14
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Here are some more examples of cavarsela conjugated in the passato prossimo (present perfect).

Come te la sei cavata (how did you do, how did you manage, how did you hold up)?

Me la sono cavata bene (I managed fine).

If you are talking to two or more people:

Come ve la siete cavata? (how did you do, how did you manage, how did you hold up)?

Ce la siamo cavata così così (We did just OK).

Ce la caviamo bene (we'll manage), we're managing).

Me la sono cavata bene (I did all right).

Cavarsela can also be interpreted to mean "to get away with something." Tracking down all the pieces of this pronominal verb can be a challenge!

In qualche modo se l'è sempre cavata.

In some way he's always gotten away with it.

Caption 13, Il Commissario Manara S1EP5 - Il Raggio Verde - Part 11
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E tu? Come te la stai cavando con l'italiano (and you? How are you getting along in Italian)?

Thanks for reading. As always, you can write to us at [email protected].