In a previous lesson we talked about what lexical chunks are, and how we can use them to become more fluent. In this lesson, we mention 10 common chunks you'll want in your Italian toolkit. 

1) Non fa niente (it doesn't matter). Literally it's "it doesn't make/do anything." It's better to know what the effect is, and when to say it, than knowing what each word means. Remember that Italian uses the double negative to form a negative, thus we have the negating word non (not) and then the negative word niente (nothing)

Ma se devi andare vai, non fa niente. -No,

But if you have to leave, it's OK/it doesn't matter. -No,

Caption 19, JAMS S1 EP4 - Part 5

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2) Di niente (you're welcome, don't mention it)

Grazie per l'assistenza. -Di niente.

Thanks for your help. -Think nothing of it/you're welcome/it was nothing.

Captions 53-54, La Ladra EP. 4 - Una magica bionda - Part 1

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3) Secondo me (in my opinion)

Però, secondo me, la ragazza ha mentito.

But, in my opinion/according to me, the girl lied.

Caption 6, Provaci ancora prof! S3EP2 Doppio imprevisto - Part 21

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For Yabla videos, we tend to translate secondo me as "in my opinion," to distinguish it from penso che (I think that), but a fluent translation of secondo me, is also "I think." If we take the word secondo by itself, it means "according to."

4) Va bene is an equivalent for all right or OK. But literally, it means, "it goes well."

Maura, appena arrivi prendi un tavolo. -Auguri. Va bene.

Maura, as soon as you arrive, get a table. -Congratulations. All right.

Captions 66-67, Com'è umano lui Film - Part 12

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And let's not forget that it can also be posed as a question: Va bene? Does it go/is it going well? You're really asking if something is OK.

5) D'accordo (agreed). Your tone of voice, as well as the context, will indicate whether you are asking if something is OK, or saying something is OK. It's another way to say "OK?"  or "OK." Literally, it's "of the agreement."

D'accordo?

All right?

Caption 29, Provaci ancora prof! S2E5 Vita da cani - Part 8

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D'accordo, arrivo.

All right, I'll be right there.

Caption 29, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone S1 EP6 Buio - Part 7

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6) But you can also say d'accordo to agree with someone. In this case, you add the verb essere (to be), in this case, sono (I am). Literally, it's "to be in agreement."

Sono d'accordo con te.

I agree with you.

Caption 9, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone S1EP5 Misericordia - Part 25

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7) Here's a chunk we use a lot: avere bisogno di (to have need of). In English, we just use the transitive verb "to need."

Ho bisogno di tempo.

I need time.

Caption 27, Provaci ancora prof! S2E5 Vita da cani - Part 3

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8) Sometimes you just want to say, "all the better" or "just as well." Meglio così (literally, "better like that)".

Meglio così.

All the better/just as well.

Caption 13, Provaci ancora prof! S3EP3 La terza vittima - Part 11

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9) Come dire (how to say, how can I say it)?

Come dire is something you hear often in conversation. It's tricky to translate, because Italians insert it smack in the middle of what they are saying. Literally, it's "how to say?" They're basically posing the question," How can I put this?" or "What's the best way to say this?" It might even be a filler, like "You know?"

Ma non è che io, come dire, invidiassi Valentina.

But it's not that I, you know, envied Valentina.

Captions 54-55, Guido Crepax Cercando Valentina - Part 13

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In this lesson, we've shown you a number of chunks you can learn as if they were single words. Once you get the hang of them, you can use them to build sentences. We'll look at building sentences with chunks in a future lesson. Where there was a choice, we've focused on the first-person singular, since it's the person you will use a lot in speech. 

Thanks for reading. As always, send your questions or doubts to [email protected].

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After someone says grazie (thank you) or grazie mille (many thanks/a thousand thanks), what do you say? There are various choices, so let's take a look.  Here is the most basic answer, and it's the one you might already have learned. 

Per festeggiare, ti offro un gelato. Grazie! -Prego.

To celebrate, I'll treat you to an ice cream. Thanks! -You're welcome.

Captions 36-37, Francesca alla guida - Part 3

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The only tricky thing about prego is that it can mean a host of things, such as "this way," "go ahead," "after you," "here you are." See this lesson about pregare, the verb from which prego (the first person singular of pregare) stems. 

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Another common way to say "You're welcome!" is di niente or di nulla. They both mean, literally, "of nothing." This response implies that granting whatever is being thanked for was not a burden or problem.  

Grazie per l'assistenza. Di niente.

Thanks for your help. Think nothing of it.

Captions 53-54, La Ladra EP. 4 - Una magica bionda - Part 1

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These days in English, some people say, "No problem." 

Yet another way of saying "You're welcome" is to question why someone would feel the need to thank you. The full version of the expression is di che cosa (for what [thing])?

È bellissimo! Grazie. -E di cosa?

It's beautiful! Thank you. -And for what? [it was nothing]

Captions 27-28, JAMS S1 EP8 - Part 6

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This can be shortened to e di che (for what)? In other words, what are you thanking me for or why are you thanking me?

Here is a variation, except it's not in the form of a question. 

Non c'è di che.

Don't mention it. (there's nothing to thank me for or "It was nothing."

Caption 74, Sposami EP 4 - Part 7

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When you want to be really clear that you were glad to do the favor, you can say, ci mancherebbe! or ci mancherebbe altro. 

Io gli dico: "Grazie mille!" "È stato gentilissimo". E questo signore mi risponde: "Ci mancherebbe altro".

And I say, “Many thanks!” “You've been very kind.” And this man responds to me with: “It's the least I could do.”

Captions 36-38, Marika spiega Il verbo mancare

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See also Marika's video where she talks about the verb mancare. It's a tricky verb in Italian and used in many situations. See also this lesson about ci mancherebbe.

Yet another response when someone says grazie is: figurati. This is the informal. In our example, before saying "thank you," Pietro's saxophone teacher says, "You shouldn't have." which stands in for "thank you."

Ciao. -Cinzia. [Ho] Portato una bottiglia. Ma non dovevi. Figurati. Grazie mille, eh.

Hi. -Cinzia. [I] brought a bottle. But you shouldn't have. It was nothing. Thanks, a lot, huh.

Captions 1-5, Imma Tataranni Sostituto procuratore S1 EP5 Rione Serra Venerdì - Part 29

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Here is an example of the same thing, using the polite form.  

Ecco. -Grazie. -Si figuri.

Here. -Thanks. -Don't mention it.

Captions 24-25, Il Commissario Manara S1EP2 - Vendemmia tardiva - Part 13

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Both ci mancherebbe and figurati/si figuri can also be appropriate responses when someone apologizes for something, using, for example, mi scusi (polite) or scusa (informal singular).

There are undoubtedly other ways to say "You're welcome" in Italian, but this list is a good start.  Feel free to let us know if you hear others. We'll add them to this lesson. Thanks for reading!

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In this lesson, we’ll talk about a curious use of the noun imbarazzo (embarrassment). But first let’s look at another word associated with embarrassment: the noun la vergogna and the verb vergognarsi (to be ashamed, to be embarrassed). Here, you need context to help decide if someone is ashamed or embarrassed because they're closely tied.

Valeria, eri disperata, non è colpa tua.

Valeria, you were desperate. It's not your fault.

Però mi vergogno molto.

But I'm very ashamed.

Captions 6-7, La Ladra - Ep. 1 - Le cose cambiano - Part 8

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In the following example, the meaning is more of embarrassment. Note that the speaker is using the subjunctive.

Suo padre alleva pecore. È normale che se ne vergogni un po', no?

Her father raises sheep. It's normal for her to be a bit embarrassed about it, right?

Captions 69-70, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP4 - Miss Maremma - Part 2

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Italian often uses the noun form imbarazzo (embarrassment) with the preposition in (in) when expressing embarrassment, as in the following example.

Te ne sei andata come se avessi visto il diavolo.

You took off as if you'd seen the devil.

Scusami, non so che cosa mi è preso, forse mi sono sentita in imbarazzo.

Sorry, I don't know what came over me, maybe I felt embarrassed.

Captions 27-28, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP5 - Il Raggio Verde - Part 12

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In this week’s segment of La Ladra, Dante and Eva’s son are looking at bicycles, to replace Eva’s old bike, which Dante inadvertently wrecked. The bike store proprietor says:

Ecco, non c'è che l'imbarazzo della scelta.

Here we are. Just an embarrassment of riches to choose from.

Caption 37, La Ladra - Ep. 4 - Una magica bionda - Part 1

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The above translation uses an English idiom, which comes from an 18th-century French play. “Embarras” in French means “embarrassment” or “confusion.”  We could also say that the choice is overwhelming or almost embarrassing, because every item is worthy of being chosen.

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L’imbarazzo della scelta is a great expression to be familiar with because it’s used quite often when someone is a presented with a vast choice of great things to choose from, for example: What Italian city would you like to visit? C'è solo l'imbarazzo della scelta. The problem is choosing one!