language

Open Mouth, Insert Foot: Tales of Linguistic Missteps Learning Italian

1 year ago

by Michael in Culture, language

TweetAnyone that has learned a second language knows all about those embarrassing moments when they were trying to say one thing, but unknowingly said something completely different. In most cases, the thing they actually wound up saying is something that would never say on purpose. With [...]

My 5 Favorite Words in Italian

1 year ago

by Michael in Culture, language

TweetToday I received a tweet from Melanie (Twitter: @italofileblog) at Italofile Blog asking me if I would be part of a mass-effort of Italy-focused bloggers to each provide a list of their five favorite Italian words, along with a brief description citing why each was chosen. A bunch [...]

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“Boh!?”… And Other Perfect Italian Words & Phrases That Don’t Translate Well

1 year ago

by Michael in Culture, language, Personal, Things that make me scratch my head

TweetWhen you split your life between two cultures with two languages, it is quite easy to get trapped in the wrong language from time to time. I sometimes find myself speaking one language, then suddenly a word or phrase pops out from the other. I don’t realize it until the person I am [...]

english italian italy languages phrase phrases translation two cultures

Anglitaliano: English Words in Everyday Italian

1 year ago

by Michael in Culture, language, Things that make me scratch my head

TweetWe use a ton of Italian words in English. More than many might think. Just walk into a Starbucks, and you will probably walk out with something called a ‘LATTE‘ (Be careful asking for it in Italy, since all you will get is milk), and if it was a large, you will have asked for [...]