Quindi is a word you will hear thousands of times a day when listening to Italians talk. Just think how many times a day you use the word "so" in English. "So" is what quindi means, much of the time.
Siamo quattro persone, supponiamo, quindi useremo quattro uova.
We're four people, we're assuming, so we'll use four eggs.
Caption 11, Adriano Pasta alla carbonara - Part 2
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Italians often use quindi at the end of a sentence. It can turn into a question (just like "so"). In English, we might even end our question with "and...?" and mean the same thing.
Possiedo diverse aziende nel novarese. Sì, sappiamo che Lei è molto potente e quindi?
I own various businesses in the Novara area. Yes, we know that you are very powerful, and so?
Captions 57-58, Adriano Olivetti La forza di un sogno Ep. 1 - Part 8
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Quindi can also mean "therefore," or "in other words." Even though we don't use the word "therefore" in everyday English all that often, it might be helpful to think of quindi meaning "therefore," because as opposed to "so," which has its own position in a sentence or subordinate clause (usually at the beginning), we can insert "therefore" just about anywhere, often enclosed by commas. Quindi works much as "therefore" does, in practical terms. Therefore, we at Yabla often translate quindi with "therefore" when we want to retain the word order in the caption.
Eh, per quanto riguarda la nostra azienda, noi siamo in particolare localizzati nell'alto casertano, e quindi tutta la nostra produzione è incentrata in, in questa zona. In quali città, quindi?
Uh, regarding our company, we happen to be located in the upper Caserta area, and so our entire production is centered in, in this area. In which city therefore? / So, in which city?
Captions 55-57, Anna e Marika La mozzarella di bufala - La produzione e i tagli - Part 2
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La mozzarella, per noi campani, è solo quella di bufala. Quindi, prodotta con latte delle bufale.
Mozzarella for us Campanians, is solely the buffalo kind. Therefore, made with milk from buffaloes.
Mozzarella for us Campanians, is solely the buffalo kind. In other words, made with milk from buffaloes.
Captions 26-27, Anna e Marika La mozzarella di bufala - La produzione e i tagli - Part 1
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Lots of times, a sentence ends with quindi plus an ellipsis... as if the speaker wanted to go on but leaves the rest of the sentence to our imagination. Or, the speaker has no idea what to say next.
Guarda, ho letto sul menù che guarda caso fanno le fettuccine ai funghi porcini, quindi...
Look, I read on the menu that, as fate would have it, they make fettuccini with porcini mushrooms, so...
Captions 27-28, Anna e Marika Trattoria Al Biondo Tevere - Part 1
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If you watch Yabla videos, or have listened to Italian conversation, you will likely have noticed that people have pet words. They may not even realize they always use a particular word. So some people say quindi a whole lot. Others might pepper their conversation with perciò (for this reason). In Tuscany sicché (the informal version of cosìcché) is very popular. These are alternate ways to say "so."
Note that when "so" means "to such an extent," we can't use quindi. In that case, we'll use a word like talmente or così.
Quindi can also mean "then" when talking, for instance, about what to do next. Some GPS systems with a voice use quindi to say "then, turn right..." quindi girate a destra...
This can also happen in recipes or instructions, where there is a sequence of actions to be taken.
In current, everyday Italian, it's more common to use poi when we talk about the next in a series of actions.
Poi... quindi avvolgiamo l'alice con mezza fetta di prosciutto, poi mettiamo [sic: lo mettiamo] nel pangrattato, si tuffa così, ecco qui.
Then... then, we roll the anchovy in half a slice of prosciutto, then we'll put it in the breadcrumbs, we immerse it like so, here we are.
Captions 29-31, L'Italia a tavola Involtini di alici - Part 2
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You might be thinking of the word allora, which is also used to mean "so" as well as "then," but the interesting thing is that allora has more to do with the past and present than the future, whereas quindi can be about the future (the next thing).
For more about allora, see our lesson: The Underlying Meaning of Allora
We've looked at breath and breathing in Italian from different angles. Now let's talk about the absence of breathing. Here, too, we can look at it from a couple of different angles.
We recognize this word because it's used in English, too, often referring to sleep apnea. It refers to a temporary suspension of breathing. This can be intentional (as in diving with no oxygen tank):
Questa è la costa dei suoi grandi record di apnea, a meno quarantacinque metri nel sessanta,
This is the coast of his great free diving records, to minus forty-five meters in nineteen sixty,
Captions 10-11, Linea Blu Sicilia - Part 19
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Or it can be unintentional (as in sleep apnea or shortness of breath).
Il respiro corto, la difficoltà a respirare, a parlare, tipo apnea, era presente nel diciotto virgola sei per cento dei casi.
Shortness of breath, difficulty in breathing and speaking, as in apnea, are present in eighteen point six percent of the cases.
Captions 37-38, COVID-19 Domande frequenti - Part 2
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The noun affanno (breathlessness) is a great word with its double f and double n, especially if you know what it feels like to be out of breath. But it can also be used figuratively to describe that state of anxiety one has, also called "stress," like when you have to run around doing 10 things at once, and you're on a time crunch.
Stavo sempre a cercare lavoro, sempre di corsa, sempre in affanno
I was always hunting for work, always in a rush, always out of breath,
Captions 39-40, Volare - La grande storia di Domenico Modugno Ep. 1 - Part 10
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We have the adjective version, too: affannato
Let's just keep in mind that the word "stress" has become part of Italian colloquial vocabulary. lo stress, stressare, stressato.
We already talked about this adjective, but let's have a closer look.
e la vista mozzafiato della città
and the breathtaking view of the city
Caption 20, Villa Medici L'arca della bellezza - Part 7
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If we take apart this wonderful adjective, we get mozzare (to cut off) and fiato (breath). So if your breath is cut off, it's taken away. And let's not forget about another use of mozzare. It's part of one of our favorite Italian dairy products, la mozzarella.
There's a Yabla video in which Marika and Anna go to a place in Rome where they actually make mozzarella, to find out how it's made. Check it out!
la pasta filata viene appunto mozzata, o a mano o a macchina,
The spun paste is, just that, cut off, by hand or by machine,
Caption 6, Anna e Marika La mozzarella di bufala - La produzione e i tagli - Part 2
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Have we missed any words having to do with breath and breathing? Let us know at newsletter@yabla.com.
Let's have a look at the preposition su. Its most common meaning in English is "on." As Marika has been explaining in video lessons such as this one, the simple preposition su can be combined with a definite article — in Italian, there are several forms, based on gender and quantity — to become a preposizione articolata (a preposition combined with a definite article — ("the" in English).
So to say, "on the table," instead of saying su il tavolo, we say sul tavolo. The preposition and definite article combine into one word.
Aspettate, lascio il libro sul tavolo
Wait, I'll leave the book on the table
Caption 3, Corso di italiano con Daniela - Il futuro
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This process is similar for all the different forms of definite articles in Italian.
sul = su + il
sull' = su + l'
...nubi invece sull'Umbria e sulle zone interne della Toscana.
...clouds, instead, in Umbria and in the inland areas of Tuscany.
Caption 63, Anna e Marika - in TG Yabla Italia e Meteo - Part 2
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sulla = su + la
Allora, siamo qui con la nostra? -Chiara.
So, we're here with our... -Chiara.
Che ci risponderà a un po' di domande sulla mozzarella di bufala.
Who will answer a few of our questions about buffalo mozzarella.
Captions 1-2, Anna e Marika - La mozzarella di bufala - La produzione e i tagli - Part 2
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sullo = su + lo
Sullo sfondo potete vedere il Vesuvio
In the background, you can see Vesuvius
Caption 4, Escursioni Campane - Castello Normanno - Part 1
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sui = su + i
Allora, questa lista la scriviamo tutti insieme,
So, this list we'll all write together,
io alla lavagna e voi sui quaderni.
I on the blackboard and you in your notebooks.
Captions 10-11, Corso di italiano con Daniela - Il condizionale - Part 5
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sugli = su + gli
Just as in English, prepositions often have multiple meanings and su is no exception.
Su can mean "on," but also "in," sometimes:
L'ho letto sul giornale.
I read about it in the newspaper.
Caption 22, Adriano Olivetti - La forza di un sogno Ep.2 - Part 10
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Su often means "about."
E vi racconto qualche storia semplice sul gelato, ma molto interessante.
And I'll tell you a few simple stories about ice cream, but very interesting.
Caption 10, Andromeda - in - Storia del gelato - Part 1
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Note that sometimes definite articles are used in Italian but not in English, as in the example above.
Su can mean "out of," as in the following example:
Nove volte su dieci lo fa perché ha qualcosa da nascondere.
Nine times out of ten, he does it because he has something to hide.
Caption 25, Provaci Ancora Prof! - S1E2 - Un amore pericoloso - Part 19
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A good expression to know is sul serio (seriously)?
Sul serio?
Seriously?
Caption 4, Marika spiega - La formazione degli aggettivi
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It can also be interpreted as "for real."
Però voglio dirti una cosa, questa è importante sul serio.
But I want to tell you something. This is important for real.
Caption 45, Francesca - Cavalli - Part 1
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Another way we use the preposition su is to give an approximate time, weight, or age.
Arriverò sul presto (I'll get there on the early side).
Aveva sui cinquant'anni (he was around fifty years old).
Note that in this lesson, we talked about the preposition su, but su is also an adverb meaning up, upwards. We'll talk about that in a future lesson.
Maybe you have seen or heard other uses of su we didn't mention here. Let us know!
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