Problem
I've been learning Italian for several weeks but still cannot follow every word of the guide, although I get the general gist of most things. Sometimes I miss the vital part. I understand the words open and Sunday but I am not sure whether the place is open every day except Sunday or open every day including Sunday.
Answer/Solutions
The five solutions are:
1 Check the leaflets and brochures and signs in shop and museum windows - especially the ones in several languages.
2 Write down the sentences for the words you really need to know either in capital letters on the outside or inside cover of your diary or notebook - a post it is handy.
3 Ask a guide or any bystander. They will probably be delighted to help and you might make a new friend.
4 Write down any mystery phrases, checking the spelling with the guide or the poster which puzzles you. Use translate on your phone, iPad or laptop at the time or when you get back to the bedroom in the evening.
5 Add the new word to your daily word list and keep repeating it.
Story
My late father in the former (much missed) restaurant at Pinner Green, went into the Ladies toilet by mistake because the words for men and women look so similar. Check my memory aids below.
Italian - English
Al cortile - the courtyard
antico - ancient
aperto - open
approvati - approved
associazone - association
cacciatore - hunters
castello - castle
castelnuovo - new castle
citta - city
cortile - courtyard
cupola - dome
gastronomico - food
giardino - garden
municipi - town hall
museo - museum
parcheggio - parking
percorsi - paths
punto di ristoro - point of refreshment
rifugio - refuge
sacro - sacred
spettacoli - spectacle/show
stadio - stadium
stand - stand
teatrali - theatre (adjective)
teatro - theatre (noun)
tugurio - hovel
English - Italian
ancient - antico
approved - approvati
association -
castle - castello
city - citta
courtyard - cortile
dome - cupola
food - gastronomico
garden - giardino
gents toilet - signori toilette (memory aid I am not a tall man in a toilet)
hovel - tugurio
hunters - cacciatore
ladies toilet - signore toilette (memory aid e - we wee are wee ladies in the toilet)
museum - museo
open - aperto
parking - parcheggio
percorsi - paths
post box - casella postale
post office - ufficio postale
refuge - rifugio
sacred - sacro
show - spettacoli
stadium - stadio
suore - nuns, sisters
theatre - teatrali (Adjective - i.e. theatrical); teatro (noun)
theatre show - spettacoli teatro
toilet - gabinetto (sounds like cabinet)
town hall - municipal
NB Predictive text may occasionally change a word.
Pronunciation
The double c CC is pronounced CH .
For translation use
translate.google.com
Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, tutor and teacher of English and other languages.
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