Italian All-in-One For Dummies (41 page)
Read Italian All-in-One For Dummies Online
Authors: Consumer Dummies
Calling for business or pleasure
Whether you want to find out what time a show starts, make a dental appointment, or just chat with a friend, the easiest way to accomplish any of these tasks is usually to pick up the telephone. This section takes you through the nuts and bolts of talking on the telephone.
Talkin' the Talk
The following is a formal dialogue between two
signori
(see-
nyoh
-ree) (
gentlemen
) who have met only once.
Sig. Palladino:
Pronto?
prohn
-toh?
Hello?
Sig. Nieddu:
Pronto, il signor Palladino?
prohn
-toh, eel see-
nyohr
pahl-lah-
dee
-noh?
Hello, Mr. Palladino?
Sig. Palladino:
Sì. Con chi parlo?
see. kohn kee
pahr
-loh?
Yes. Who am I speaking to?
Sig. Nieddu:
Sono Carlo Nieddu.
soh
-noh
kahr
-loh
nyeh
-dooh.
This is Carlo Nieddu.
Si ricorda di me?
see ree-
kohr
-dah dee meh?
Do you remember me?
Sig. Palladino:
No, mi dispiace.
noh, mee dees-
pyah
-cheh.
I don't, I'm sorry.
Sig. Nieddu:
Il cugino di Enza.
eel kooh-
jee
-noh dee
ehn
-dzah.
Enza's cousin.
Sig. Palladino:
Ma certo! mi scusi tanto!
mah
chehr
-toh! mee
skooh
-zee
tahn
-toh!
Why, of course! Excuse me!
Â
Sometimes you call just
to chat on the phone
â
fare due chiacchiere al telefono
(
fah
-reh
dooh
-eh
kyahk
-kyeh-reh ahl teh-
leh
-foh-noh). But the person on the other end of the line may not be prepared for a lengthy chat.
When you're really busy and don't have even one second to speak, you may need the following phrases. The first is informal, and the second is one you may use at work.
Ti posso richiamare più tardi?
(tee
pohs
-soh ree-kyah-
mah
-reh
pyooh
tahr
-dee?) (
Can I call you back later?
)
La posso richiamare fra mezz'ora?
(lah
pohs
-soh ree-kyah-
mah
-reh frah mehd-
dzoh
-rah?) (
Can I call you back in half an hour?
)
Talkin' the Talk
On many occasions, your call may be quite welcome, as Monica's is this time:
Monica:
Ciao, mamma, ti disturbo?
chou,
mahm
-mah, tee dees-
toohr
-boh?
Hello, Mom. Am I disturbing you?
Lucia:
No, assolutamente.
noh, ahs-soh-looh-tah-
mehn
-teh
Not at all.
Monica:
Volevo sentire cosa fate per Pasqua.
voh-
leh
-voh sehn-
tee
-reh
koh
-sah
fah
-teh pehr
pahs
-qwah.
I wanted to hear what you were doing for Easter.
Lucia:
Andiamo tutti dalla nonna.
ahn-
dyah
-moh
tooht
-tee
dahl
-lah
nohn
-nah.
We're all going to Grandma's.
Monica:
Ottimo! Buon'idea!
oht
-tee-moh! bwohn-ee-
dee
-ah!
Great! Good idea!
Â
Making Arrangements over the Phone
Making an appointment, reserving a table at a restaurant, and ordering tickets for a concert are all activities you usually do by phone. This section introduces you to the Italian way to handle these matters.
Talkin' the Talk
Mrs. Elmi calls her doctor's office to make an appointment. She is speaking with the doctor's nurse. (Track 9)
Sig.ra Elmi:
Buongiorno, sono la signora Elmi. Vorrei prendere un appuntamento.
bwohn-
johr
-noh,
soh
-noh lah see-
nyoh
-rah
ehl
-mee. vohr-
rehy
prehn
-deh-reh oohn ahp-poohn-tah-
mehn
-toh.
Good morning, this is Ms. Elmi. I'd like to make an appointment.
Nurse:
à urgente?
eh oohr-
jehn
-teh?
Is it urgent?
Sig.ra Elmi:
Purtroppo sì.
poohr-
trohp
-poh see.
Unfortunately, it is.
Nurse:
Va bene oggi alle quattro e mezza?
vah
beh
-neh
ohj
-jee
ahl
-leh
kwaht
-troh eh
mehd
-dzah?
Today at four-thirty?
Sig.ra Elmi:
Va benissimo, grazie.
vah beh-
nees
-see-moh,
grah
-tsyeh.
That's great, thank you.
Nurse:
Prego. A più tardi.
preh
-goh. ah
pyooh
tahr-
dee.
You're welcome. See you later.
Â
 The Italian media
I mezzi di comunicazione di massa
(ee
meht
-tsee dee koh-mooh-nee-kah-
tsyoh
-neh dee
mahs
-sah) (
media
) played a major role in Italy's cultural transformations in the years following World War II, driving and accompanying the
modernizzazione
(moh-dehr-neet-tsah-
tsyoh
-neh) (
modernization
) of the country. RAI Radiotelevisione Italiana,
emittente televisiva e radiofonica nazionale
(eh-meet-
tehn
-teh teh-leh-vee-
see
-vah eh rah-dyoh-
foh
-nee-kah nah-tsyo-
nah
-leh) (
national radio and television broadcaster
), helped nationalize the country by bringing the Italian standard language into every household, where only regional dialects had been spoken until then. Only in the early '80s did RAI lose its
monopolio
(moh-noh-
poh
-lee-oh) (
monopoly
)
on Italian TV, with the advent of
the first Italian private television broadcasting companies.
Besides
programmi radiofonici e televisivi
(proh-
grahm
-mee rah-dyoh-
foh
-nee-chee eh teh-leh-vee-
see
-vee) (
radio and TV programs
), Italian media include a plethora of printed and online
quotidiani
(kwoh-tee-
dyah
-nee) (
daily newspapers
),
riviste
(ree-
vee
-steh) (
magazines
) and
periodici
(peh-
ryoh
-dee-chee) (
periodicals
), and
settimanali e mensili
(seht-tee-mah-
nah
-lee eh mehn-
see
-lee) (
weekly and monthly magazines
), which contain
notizie politiche, d'attualità , sportive, economiche, e di cronaca
(noh-
tee
-tsyeh poh-
lee
-tee-keh, daht-twah-lee-
tah
, spohr-
tee
-veh, eh-koh-
noh
-mee-keh, eh dee
kroh
-nah-kah) (
political news, current events, sports, economics, and city life events
). The most important daily newspapers are distributed across the Italian regions and abroad, in the major traffic areas, such as airports and train stations.
Il Corriere della Sera
(eel kohr-
ryeh
-reh
dehl
-lah
seh
-rah) was the first Italian national newspaper. Its first 1906 issue had a
tiratura
(tee-rah-
too
-rah) (circulation) of 106,000 copies! Today,
Corriere della Sera
(kohr-
ryeh
-reh
dehl
-lah
seh
-rah) and
Repubblica
(reh-
poohb
-blee-kah) are the most important Italian daily newspapers.
Gazzetta dello Sport
(gahds-
dseht
-tah
dehl
-loh sport) is a daily newspaper that has only sport news, mostly soccer news, and it sells hundreds of thousands of copies.
Some of these means of mass communication are politically oriented or influenced by economic lobbies. However, there's also independent media to guarantee
pluralità d'informazione
(ploo-rah-lee-
tah
deen-fohr-mah-
tsyoh
-neh) (
plurality of information
). Because facts can be cast in different light, well-informed Italians explore different
fonti
(
fohn
-tee) (
sources
).
The expression
a domani
(ah doh-
mah
-nee) (
see you tomorrow
) is a bit different in Italian, in that it doesn't have a verb. In English, the verb
see
indicates that you will see the other person tomorrow. Italian is more concise; you say
a domani
â literally,
until tomorrow.
Asking for People and Getting the Message
This section offers useful terminology about asking to speak to people and leaving messages. You know how often the person you want isn't available, so you need to be comfortable getting a message across.