Italian Linking Words

My students often tell me that it is the small linking words that they find difficult to remember. So here are a few of them with some examples to help you. This article was written by thoughtco.com, more articles like this can be found at: https://www.thoughtco.com/search?q=italian

1.) E – And

• Mi piace andare in spiaggia e leggere. – I like to go to the beach and read.
• Vorrei andare quest’estate in Toscana e in Puglia. – I would like to go to Tuscany and Puglia this summer.
• Mi serve un po’ di zucchero, del pane e della frutta. – I need a bit of sugar, some bread, and some fruit.

• Vuoi guardare un film e poi prendere un caffè? – Do you want to watch a movie and then grab a coffee?

2.) Però/ma – But

• Vorrei venire in centro con voi, ma oggi ho troppe cose da fare. – I want to go downtown with you all, but I have too many things to do today.

• Mi piace andare in spiaggia, però non mi piace prendere il sole. – I like to go the beach, but I don’t like to suntan.
• Volevo venire a trovarti, ma ho perso il treno! – I wanted to come and visit you, but I missed the train.
• Ho provato a leggere questo libro, però è troppo noioso. – I tried to read this book, but it’s too boring.

3.) O/Oppure – Or

• Preferisci mangiare il pesce o la carne? – Do you prefer to eat fish or meat?
• Ti piace leggere romanzi oppure gialli? – Do you like to read romance novels or mystery novels?
• Vuoi andare a Roma o a Tivoli? – Do you want to go to Rome or Tivoli?

4.) Anche – Also

• Mi piace anche leggere. – I also like to read.

Note that the placement of “anche” can only be before the verb “leggere”.

• Ho comprato anche un libro di grammatica. – I also bought a grammar book.

Here you could place “anche” between “ho” and “comprato”, and its placement serves to highlight different parts of the sentence.

• Vorrei anche un contorno. – I would also like a side.
• Anche io. – Me too.

5.) Che – That

• Preferisco che andiamo al mare invece che in piscina. – I prefer that we go to the sea instead of the pool.
• Non pensi che faccia troppo caldo? – You don’t think it’s too hot?
• Silvia è un’insegnante che si aspetta molto dagli studenti. – Silvia is a teacher that expects a lot from her students.

6.) Quindi – So/Then

• Oggi ho molto da fare, quindi non posso uscire con voi. – Today I have a lot to do, so I can’t go out with you all.
• Non mi piace la neve, quindi mi trasferisco alle Hawaii. – I don’t like the snow, so I’m moving to Hawaii.
• Amo la cultura italiana, quindi imparo l’italiano. – I love Italian culture, so I’m learning Italian.

7.) Allora – So, Then, Well

• Allora, ti racconto cos’è successo. – So let me tell you what happened.
• Ci vediamo allora! – We’ll see each other then!
• Allora, che facciamo? – Well, what are we doing?

8.) Cioè – That is

• Faccio la scrittrice, cioè scrivo articoli su come s’imparano le lingue straniere. – I’m a writer, that is I write about how to learn foreign languages.
• La mia auto appartiene alla classe Euro 6, cioè quella delle auto meno inquinanti. – My car belongs to the Euro 6 class, that’s the one more environment friendly.

• Vado in Italia fra due mesi, cioè a giugno. – I’m going to Italy in two months, in June actually.

I hope you found this useful, if you would like to learn more Italian then why not join one of our courses at www.modernlanguageschool.co.uk