εpsγloItalian, explained word by word
Every Italian translation comes back broken down word by word, each word colored by the job it does and explained, with a dictionary entry and alternatives. The politeness dial moves between tu and Lei, from blunt orders to ceremonial courtesy.
An example breakdown
Breakdown
I'm going to the library tomorrow.
Italian folds the subject into the verb ending and marks the destination with a preposition.
Click any word. The same dialog opens everywhere
portoVerb
- Why this word
- First person singular of portare. The ending carries the person, so no pronoun is needed.
- Dictionary
- portare — to carry, to take somewhere.
- Alternatives
- riporto (take back) · restituisco (return)
Politeness in Italian
The 10 steps of the politeness dial, as the app names them for Italian.
- 1HarshOpenly rude tu — snapped orders, no courtesy
- 2BluntCurt tu — bare imperatives, no courtesy words
- 3FamiliarTight-circle tu — slang and nicknames allowed
- 4CasualRelaxed everyday tu
- 5FriendlyWarm tu — per favore starts appearing
- 6CourteousLei begins — courteous standard with strangers
- 7PoliteClearly polite Lei — per favore, potrebbe
- 8RespectfulCareful Lei — conditional, hedged requests
- 9FormalDistinctly formal Lei — full courtesy formulae
- 10CeremonialMaximally deferential — Le sarei molto grato se…
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