It's easy to get confused between two similar verbs, supportare and sopportare, especially since they both look similar to the English verb "to support." As a matter of fact, they also both come from the same Latin roots: the Latin prefix "sub-" (meaning "under" or "from below") combined with "portare" (meaning "to carry"). There are other Italian and Latin words with variant spellings, so that's not so unusual, but supportare and sopportare had different evolutions and now have different meanings.
Supportare is a cognate of the English "support," in both physical and figurative senses. It gives a sense of aid, and therefore, of something positive.
La Space Station è fornita di enormi pannelli solari, pannelli fotovoltaici che generano l'energia necessaria per supportare tutta l'infrastruttura e gli astronauti a bordo della stazione orbitale.
The Space Station is equipped with huge solar panels, photovoltaic panels, which generate the necessary energy to support the entire infrastructure and the astronauts aboard the orbital station.
Captions 67-71, Space to ground EP2 Energia dell'universo. Luce - Part 2
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Ma ci sono state anche tutte delle cose che sono nate per supportare le famiglie degli operai.
But there have also been all the things that were created to support the families of the workers.
Captions 76-78, Romanzo Italiano Campania - Part 3
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There is a noun form as well: il supporto
No, io volevo ri'... chiaramente ringraziare la dottoressa Piras per il supporto che ci ha dato durante tutto il nostro processo investigativo.
No, I wanted, of course, to thank Doctor Piras for the support she gave us during our entire investigative process.
Captions 7-9, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone S1EP1 I Bastardi - Part 26
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Here are some synonyms for supportare when it's physical or structural:
And here are synonyms when supportare has to do with people, ideas, projects, etc.
Although stemming from the same Latin root, sopportare has an entirely different meaning from supportare. The English word "to bear," with its different connotations, does provide some overlap, however.
Sopportare tends to express a sense of bearing something negative, enduring or tolerating an emotional burden, for example, but also a physical one.
Livietta è troppo piccola per sopportare il peso di un divorzio.
Livietta is too young to bear the burden of a divorce.
Caption 11, Provaci ancora prof! S1E3 - Una piccola bestia ferita - Part 19
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È quando torni dall'ufficio col muso lungo che proprio non ti sopporto.
It's when you come back from the office with a long face that I just can't stand you.
Captions 44-45, Com'è umano lui Film - Part 18
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Sopportare has some synonyms, some of which overlap with supportare. Read about one of them, reggere, in this lesson.
In everyday conversation, sopportare will likely be the verb we hear more often, especially in reference to relationships. But as English terminology gains standing in the Italian language, especially in the area of psychology and therapy, supporto is used more and more often, especially in contexts such as the following: support group = gruppo di supporto.
Insomma, il bastardo t'ha fatto un gruppo di supporto perché non suoni abbastanza bene.
So, basically, the bastard made a support group for you because you don't play well enough.
Captions 27-28, La compagnia del cigno S2 EP 2 - Part 3
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A common synonym for the noun il supporto is il sostegno.
Questo prodotto si caratterizza della fatica [sic: è caratterizzato dalla fatica] di molti uomini che hanno la capacità di trasformare scarti di produzione alimentare in un prodotto nobile, capace di dare sostegno al cammino dell'uomo.
This product is characterized by the efforts of many men who have the ability to transform food production waste products into a noble product, capable of giving support to man's stride.
Captions 13-16, L'Italia che piace Stile di vita - Part 4
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In English, we can talk about a support group, but we can also say someone is being supportive. In this case, too, we can use di supporto. Or we can say solidale.
Dobbiamo essere solidali.
Dobbiamo essere di supporto.
We have to be supportive.
Caption 56, Sposami EP 3 - Part 20
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Let's not overlook a very important adjective we use to describe a person or situation: insopportabile, used more often in its negative form. We have used "unbearable" as the English translation, but we can also use "obnoxious," "intolerable," "insufferable," and other similar adjectives.
Melissa è insopportabile,
Melissa is unbearable.
Caption 3, JAMS S1 EP1 - Part 4
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A positive form of the adjective exists as well. It's used a lot when referring to pain. Is it bearable? È sopportabile?
Ma vedi, il mondo è diviso in due categorie: quelli come te, che cercano di renderlo migliore, e quelli come me che cercano solo di renderlo sopportabile.
But you see, the world is divided into two categories: the ones like you, who try to make it better and the ones like me who just try to make it tolerable.
Captions 61-63, Il Commissario Manara S1EP6 - Reazione a Catena - Part 3
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We hope this lesson hasn't been too insopportabile. We just want to be di supporto, in other words, supportive.
Questions? Comments? Write to us at [email protected]. We love to hear from you!
In a previous lesson, we talked about how to say hello and goodbye in Italian: There are formal and informal ways of doing so. And the very first lesson Daniela teaches in her popular series of classroom lessons is about how to greet people: salutare.
Oggi impariamo le forme di saluto.
Today we're going to learn ways to greet people.
Caption 5, Corso di italiano con Daniela - Salutare
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Before looking at the everyday meanings of salutare, we should acknowledge that it does also mean "to salute," as one would salute in the military, or salute the flag. But that is a very small part of the picture!
In addition to knowing how to greet people — a very important thing in Italian — we also use the verb salutare itself, quite often, to talk about greetings and greeting someone, as well as within the greeting or leave-taking itself, but what exactly does it mean? In fact, it's a little tricky. Just as ciao can mean "hi" or "bye," salutare can mean "to say hello" or "to say goodbye." Let's look at the verb salutare in context to get a better idea of how it's used.
Saying goodbye can be tough.
È arrivato il momento di salutarci, mi pare, no?
The time has come to say goodbye (to each other), I think, right?
-Eh. -Sì.
-Yeah. -Yes.
Caption 1, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP12 - Le verità nascoste
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The previous example is just one instance of the verb within the segment of the Commissario Manara episode, an episode in which Luca Manara is about to leave his present job and go back to Milan.
Here's another little scene from the same episode and segment about saying goodbye. One thing to notice is that while in the previous example, salutarci means "to say goodbye to each other" (reciprocal reflexive), in the example below, salutarci means "to say goodbye to us." That pesky ci again!
Brigadiere, ma che sei venuto a salutarmi?
Brigadiere, what, did you come to say goodbye to me?
Caterina. -Povero cagnozzo, gli mancherai, eh.
Caterina. -Poor doggy, he'll miss you, yeah.
Io non posso credere che te ne saresti andato senza salutarci.
I can't believe that you would leave without even saying goodbye to us.
-No, veramente...
-No, actually...
sono passato davanti a casa Sua, -Eh. -ma Lei non c'era.
I came by your house, -Huh. -and you weren't there.
Comunque, io sono veramente contento che Lei sia venuta a salutarmi,
Anyway, I'm very happy that you came to say goodbye to me,
perché voglio dirLe grazie.
because I want to say thank you to you.
Captions 42-47, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP12 - Le verità nascoste
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When we want to take our leave, or end a phone call, we can say:
Ti devo salutare (I have to say goodbye, I have to hang up, I have to go).
Ti saluto, vado a casa. (I'll be going. I'm going home).
So salutare often means "to say goodbye." But it also means "to say hello," "to greet." In the following example, a grandpa is telling his grandchildren to say hello to their grandmother.
Quanto mi siete mancati. -Salutate la nonna.
How I've missed you! -Say hello to Grandma.
Caption 9, Un medico in famiglia Stagione 3 - S3EP1: Ciao famiglia
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In the following example, Olivetti is greeting an old, estranged friend (he says ciao) who pretends not to see him.
Mauro!
Mauro.
Ciao, Mauro.
Hello, Mauro.
Cos'è? Non mi saluti?
What's the matter? You're not saying hello to me?
Captions 12-14, Adriano Olivetti - La forza di un sogno Ep.2
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But in the next example, the people conversing are being formal with each other. The speaker calls the lady signora. And thus, he uses the formal, second-person imperative.
Arrivederci, signora.
Goodbye, ma'am.
E mi saluti suo marito, eh.
And greet your husband, huh?
Ci tengo tanto, ah. Me lo saluti tanto, eh?
It means a lot to me. Greet him warmly, huh?
Captions 74-77, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP6 - Reazione a Catena
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As we said, Manara is speaking formally. He says me lo saluti (greet him for me) using the imperative. He could also be saying "Give my regards to your husband." But if he were talking to a friend, he could put this all in one single word including two pronouns stuck to the verb. Saluta (greet) + me (for me) lo (him) / la (her).
Salutamelo.
Salutamela.
In some contexts, (and as we saw in the very first video example), we use the noun form il saluto or un saluto (a greeting, a salutation) instead of the verb salutare.
Parliamo ora dei saluti informali.
Let's now talk about informal greetings.
Caption 24, Marika spiega - Saluti verbali e a gesti
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In the following example, we see a typical way of saying, "I won't ever talk to you again." But Italians give it a different twist. They say they are going to "take away" "saying hello," as in, "I'm not even going to greet you!" The verb is togliere (to remove).
La chiamo e gli [sic: le] dico che non ci vado.
I'll call her and tell her I'm not going.
Ch'aggia fa' [napoletano: che devo fare]?
What can I do?
-Fallo e ti tolgo il saluto.
-You do that and I won't talk to you anymore.
Captions 36-38, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP11 - Uno strano incidente di caccia
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Un saluto or saluti is what you might write on a postcard while you're on vacation somewhere. It's often in the plural:
Ciao vecchio. Saluti da Rio, Max.
Hi, old timer. Greetings from Rio, Max.
Caption 40, La Ladra - Ep. 10 - Un ignobile ricatto
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Salutare can also be interpreted to mean "to give one's regards to" so we often see saluti at the end of a short business email.
It can appear by itself or be embellished as follows:
Distinti saluti ([best] regards)
Cordiali saluti (kind regards)
That's it for this lesson, and we'll see you soon. A presto.
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