The Iceberg Project Italian

The Iceberg Project was created from a desire to travel to Italy & speak the language with ease, comfort and confidence. Now, you'll find addictive language & culture lessons for students eager to become conversational in Italian.

  • New here?
  • Shop
  • Learn
    • Grammar
    • Vocabulary
    • Expressions
    • Culture
  • Podcast
  • Meet the Team
    • About Cher
    • Contact
    • Media
  • Free Lessons

Italian Word Speed Dates: Appena, Addirittura, Comunque and Quindi

June 26, 2014 By Cher 18 Comments

Click play on the player at the bottom to listen to this podcast or find it on Apple Podcasts.

Italian Word Speed Dates: Appena, Addirittura, Comunque and Quindi

There are so many small words that you can learn a little bit from that I thought it would be useful to take you on speed dates with them.

Round #1: Appena

In the dictionary, appena means just, only, or barely. As in “I just got from the store and you want me to go back again because you forgot toothpaste!?”

Gli esempi

— Con sua zia e un’amica che parlava appena un po’ d’italiano. – With her aunt and friend that barely spoke a little Italian. [source]

— Ho appena terminato l’ultimo libro di Fabio Volo. – I just finished Fabio Volo’s last book. [source]

— Io l’ho appena iniziato. – I just started it. [source]

It’s normally an adverb, but it can be a conjunction – appena – that means as soon as.

Gli esempi

— Mi telefonerà appena arriverà a Roma. – He will call me as soon as he arrives in Rome.

— Appena possiamo – As soon as we can

— Appena arrivo a Milano ti faccio sapere. – As soon as I arrive in Milan, I’ll let you know. [source]

[You could also add “non appena” which is used in exactly the same way as “appena”. So you could say: Ti chiamo non appena arrivo a casa OR Ti chiamo appena arrivo a casa. They mean exactly the same thing.]

Common phrases

— Appena cucinato – Freshly cooked (Just cooked)

— Appena fatto – Freshly made (Just made)

— Appena in tempo – Just in time

Round #2: Addirittura

I learned this word while I was visiting my friend in Bagnara Calabra in Calabria and when he taught it to me, I only understood one meaning.

It’s like the word proprio that I talked about. Heard a lot + has shades of meaning that may confuse an aspirational language learner.

The meaning that he taught me is when someone is telling you some information and you’re shocked by something that is excessive or you don’t believe it, say your best friend cheated on her boyfriend with four of his best friends, so you could say ‘Addirittura – Wow. Even that?”

Other examples thanks to my lovely editor Stefania:

— Ieri sera ho bevuto otto bicchieri di vino? – Last night I drank 8 glasses of wine –> “Addirittura!”

— Lo sapevi che Marco è stato sposato quattro volte? – Did you know that Marco has been married four times? –> Addirittura.

Another meaning is:

Even

— Ora sono addirittura orgogliosi del mio nuovo lavoro. – Now they are even proud of my new job. [source]

— La Juve nel finale avrebbe potuto addirittura vincere.– La Juve in the end was even able to win it.

Round #3: Comunque

Comunque is most often used as “however” or “anyway” in Italian.

— Vedo comunque che tu sai alcune fra le parole più importanti che ci siano in italiano. – I can see however that you know some of the most important words in Italian. [source]

— Comunque vada sarà un successo – However it goes, it will be a success.

— Grazie comunque – Thanks anyway

CPF: They also say Grazie lo stesso – Thanks just the same.

Round #4: Quindi

Quindi is one of my favorite words in Italian because I felt accomplished when I learned it. In my first Italian class in Italy (where the teacher spoke zero English), my teacher kept saying Quindi…Quindi…Quindi, and after a couple of lessons I finally learned what it meant after asking a friend and I felt like I had chipped off a piece of the Rosetta Stone. Dramatic, I know.

There are words like that I just carry around with me.

I like words with stories.

ANYWHO. COMUNQUE. Quindi means so.

Underwhelming, I know.

It can also mean therefore or then.

Gli esempi

— Quindi versare sulla torta la crema livellandola con una spatola. – Then pour the cream on the cake and level it with a spatula. [source]

— Per contrastare il razzismo, si dovrebbe, quindi, combattere la paura. – In order o obstruct racism, one should, therefore, fight fear. [source]

Some synonyms in Italian could be:

— Dunque – therefore, so

— Perciò – therefore, for this reason

— Poi – then

— Dopo – after

Other speed dates:

— Italian Word Speed Dates: Tale, Eccome e Semmai

Any questions/comments? Drop ‘em in the comments below!


Listen to the Episode!

Filed Under: Beginner Italian, Grammar, Intermediate Italian, Italian, Vocabulary Tagged With: addirittura, appena, comunque, ep 117, episode 117, italian, italian speed dates, Italian vocabulary, quindi, show notes

About Cher

Cher is the founder of The Iceberg Project and a passionate learner of the Italian, Mandarin and Spanish languages. In a little town called Vegas, you can find her searching the Internet for Doctor Who and Parks & Rec memes, drinking bubble tea, or talking about how much she loves grammar.

« 33 Online Resources to Enhance Your Italian Language Repetoire
20 Phrases for Telling a Captivating Story in Italian »

Comments

  1. Sharon Oldham says

    January 24, 2014 at 10:48 am

    This is so helpful! I’m searching for your comments on “proprio” too. I felt the same way about quindi…and then came dunque. I really wanted to know those words! (a good use of propio?)

    Reply
    • cherhale says

      January 24, 2014 at 11:41 am

      Hi Sharon! Glad you found it helpful. Here’s a link to an article on proprio (always a lingering question with many lang learners): http://icebergproject.co/italian/2013/11/3-main-ways-to-use-the-word-proprio-in-italian/

      Reply
  2. Bob Weisenberg says

    February 24, 2014 at 9:27 am

    Very helpful, as usual. Thanks, Cher.

    Bob

    Reply
  3. Catherine says

    October 14, 2014 at 4:26 pm

    I’ve just discovered your blog and absolutely love it – perfect for inspiring me to get on with learning Italian.

    Reply
    • cherhale says

      October 16, 2014 at 10:48 pm

      Great to hear! :]

      Reply
  4. susan says

    March 5, 2017 at 5:31 am

    Your lesson on “speed dates”- the uses of quindi, appena, addirittura and comunque was meravigliosa! Those words have been driving me crazy and now I feel much better about their meanings.

    Reply
    • Cher says

      May 14, 2017 at 2:12 pm

      Glad to hear they were helpful!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Must-Read Articles for Upper Beginners of Italian | The Iceberg Project says:
    February 24, 2014 at 4:02 pm

    […] Italian Word Speed Dates: Appena, Addirittura, Comunque and Quindi […]

    Reply
  2. Must-Read Articles for Intermediate Italian Learners | The Iceberg Project says:
    February 24, 2014 at 5:14 pm

    […] Italian Word Speed Dates: Appena, Addirittura, Comunque and Quindi […]

    Reply
  3. [Day 9] How to Build Your Vocabulary through Learning About Things You Like | The Iceberg Project says:
    February 27, 2014 at 5:24 pm

    […] bonus prompt: Do you know how to use the words addirittura, appena, comunque + quindi in Italiano? Read this article here to find out how + make up some sample sentences of your own using each […]

    Reply
  4. Must-Read Articles for Absolute Beginners in Italian | The Iceberg Project says:
    March 14, 2014 at 4:47 pm

    […] Italian Word Speed Dates: Appena, Addirittura, Comunque and Quindi […]

    Reply
  5. Simple Prepositions in Italian {or why the smallest words hurt the most} | The Iceberg Project says:
    March 25, 2014 at 12:48 pm

    […] Not sure what comunque means? Read this article: Italian Speed Dates – Appena, Addirittura, Comunque and Quindi […]

    Reply
  6. Italian Word Speed Dates: Anzi, Dunque e Piuttosto | The Iceberg Project says:
    March 26, 2014 at 10:14 am

    […] Learn how to use quindi. […]

    Reply
  7. Italian Word Speed Dates: Finché & Affinché says:
    January 22, 2016 at 5:19 pm

    […] things, they DO have a similar function, and that’s to connect sentences together, much like “quindi” or […]

    Reply
  8. Italian Word Speed Dates: Bastare, Mancare and Piacere says:
    May 16, 2016 at 2:38 pm

    […] Word Speed Dates: Tale, Eccome, e Semmai – Italian Word Speed Dates: Appena, Addirittura, Comunque and Quindi – Italian Word Speed Dates: Anzi, Dunque e Piuttosto – Italian Word Speed Dates: Ne + […]

    Reply
  9. Italian Word Speed Dates: Perfino, Persino and Ciononostante says:
    June 8, 2016 at 7:32 pm

    […] use connector words that are more refined in nature. Instead of sticking to my favorites of “quindi” or “invece”, I have to learn how to use words like “ perciò” or […]

    Reply
  10. A Mini Road-Map for the Upper Intermediate Learner in Italian says:
    June 23, 2016 at 6:54 pm

    […] — Italian Word Speed Dates: Appena, Addirittura, Comunque and Quindi […]

    Reply
  11. Everything You Need to Know About Making Conversation in Italian says:
    March 22, 2018 at 8:24 am

    […] Italian Word Speed Dates: Appena, Addirittura, Comunque and Quindi […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Looking for Something?

UPCOMING TRIP TO ITALY?

SAY CIAO

MOST LOVED LESSONS


Made with love for Italy by Bellano Web Studio / Copyright © 2019 / Terms + Conditions

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok