Learning chunks instead of single words

By Sigrid Lee

When we learn a language by ear, we don't always know what each individual word means. And for speaking and making ourselves understood, it doesn't really matter much of the time. In fact, we often learn chunks* of words that mean something specific, without knowing the individual words that make up that chunk*. We just learn what to say in a given situation, by repeating what we hear.

But as we progress in a language, we sometimes like to know more. We wonder, "What does that really mean?" There is a time and a place for both strategies.

If we look at Yabla games, for instance, we can think about Parrot as just listening and repeating, and breaking up the captions into chunks to start speaking — not trying necessarily to repeat an entire caption, as sometimes they are just too long for that, and not necessarily understanding every word. We can just repeat a chunk and then go on to another chunk. Scribe is more about getting into the nitty-gritty of the language, looking at the structure of a sentence, figuring out how the language works.

We can break up a phrase or chunk* into its parts: the noun, the verb, the preposition, the adjective, the pronoun, etc. This can be very useful for understanding how the grammar works, especially after we have already been able to speak the phrase or chunk in a single breath. Because if we get caught up in the meaning of each word right away, in other words, overthinking things, it may inhibit us from speaking smoothly and sounding natural. Our brains will get the better of us.

*A chunk, or more accurately, a lexical chunk, is a pre-assembled, natural combination of words — rather than isolated words, which native speakers use as a single unit of meaning.

Here's an example of a chunk we use a lot. In fact, it's likely one of the first things we learn to say and understand in Italian.

Cosa vuoi fare adesso, Sara? -Non lo so.

What do you want to do now, Sara? -I don't know.

Captions 66-67, La compagnia del cigno EP 5 - Part 11
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If we think about each word, we realize that there is an object pronoun in the Italian phrase: non ([I] don't) lo (it) so (I know), but not in the English "I don't know." There are variations on this chunk in both Italian and English, but this is the most common version.

If we have studied a little grammar, we recognize or look up that so is the first person singular of the verb sapere. But when you learn the phrase for the first time, you might very well have no idea that the verb is sapere. And that's OK. You just know what it means in essence. You can start speaking Italian without really knowing how to conjugate verbs. Then, little by little, you put the pieces of the puzzle together.

As we progress, we get used to the idea that it's not necessary to include the personal pronoun io (I) before a verb unless we need it for clarity. The negating word is non. And what about the word order? Non comes first! We put the object before the verb? Crazy. That's a lot of stuff to keep track of for one simple phrase you'll likely say and hear numerous times a day.

So it's much easier and more natural to learn that non lo so simply means "I don't know." And the same goes for many other chunks of Italian we use every day.

Non lo so is a full sentence, but it can also be considered to be a "chunk" to become an element in a longer sentence. Learning lexical chunks can help you think in Italian, which is what you want to do to become more and more fluent.

In this example, even though there is an object, lo is still present.

Questo non lo so.

That I don't know.

Caption 80, Provaci ancora prof! S2E4 L'amica americana - Part 11
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Here, the pronoun is omitted. There is an object cosa (thing, what).

Non so cosa dirti.

I don't know what to tell you.

Caption 2, Com'è umano lui Film - Part 22
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Here, too, lo seems superfluous, but that is how people talk!

Non lo so se sono capace,

I don't know if I'm capable,

Caption 34, La compagnia del cigno S2 EP 2 - Part 7
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Here's an additional, longer chunk using the same basis.

Non lo so e non lo voglio sapere.

I don't know, and I don't want to know.

Caption 29, La Ladra EP. 4 - Una magica bionda - Part 14
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In our next lesson, we will look at some common lexical chunks that you can put in your toolbox to then build on them. Thanks for reading! As always, send your comments and questions to [email protected]