Italian All-in-One For Dummies (123 page)

morire di fame/sete
(
to die from hunger/thirst
)

piangere di gioia/di dolore; piangere per la gioia/per il dolore
(
to cry for joy/in pain
)

ridere dalla/per la gioia
(
to laugh for joy
)

soffrire di/per la nostalgia
(
to suffer from nostalgia; to feel homesick
)

tremare di/per il freddo
(
to shiver with cold
)

Chapter 6

Demonstrative, Indefinite, and Possessive Qualifiers

In This Chapter

Indicating people and things with “this” and “that”

Using indefinite words as adjectives or pronouns

Expressing who something belongs to with possessive qualifiers

W
hen you want to point to someone or something because you want to make sure that you and your listener or reader are on the same wavelength, you can use a special set of words that help you be specific: words such as
this, some,
and
my.
You can add them to names, nouns, and pronouns, as in
Quel corso di filosofia è difficile
(
That philosophy course is difficult
). Or you can use them by themselves as pronouns, as in
Il nostro viaggio è stato magnifico. E il vostro?
(
Our trip was great. And yours?
)

You have at your disposal different kinds of “pointers,” which are the topic of this chapter:

Demonstrative qualifiers, such as
questo
(
this
) and
quello
(
that
), as in
Questa è una bella bambola
(
This is a beautiful doll
)

Indefinite words, such as
alcuni
(
some
) and
nessuno
(
anyone
), as in
Non ho parlato con nessuno
(
I didn't talk to anyone
)

Possessive pronouns and adjectives, such as
mia
and
la mia
(
my; mine
), as in
Questa borsetta è mia!
(
This purse is mine!
) and
Hai visto la mia gatta?
(
Did you see my cat?
)

This chapter points out similarities and differences between Italian and English in the use of these qualifiers, tells you how to match them to the words they refer to, and explains how to express that you're talking about part of a larger set, as in
Molti dei miei studenti sono ammalati
(
Many of my students are sick
).

Pointing to Something with Questo and Quello

The demonstrative qualifiers
questo
(
this
) and
quello
(
that
) are words you use to point to people, things, and situations. You can use them as adjectives or pronouns. They function as adjectives when you add a noun afterward. They function as pronouns when they refer to a noun, name, or pronoun you've already mentioned.

When you use either
questo
or
quello,
you coordinate it in gender and number with the person or thing to which it refers.
Questo
follows the role of the “four ending adjectives” (
-o
for masculine singular,
-i
for masculine plural,
-a
for feminine singular, and
-e
for feminine plural) while
quello
follows the definite article, as in the following examples:

questo libro
(
this book
)

questa casa
(
this house
)

questi turisti
(
these tourists
)

queste montagne
(
these mountains
)

quel tappeto [il tappeto]
(
that rug
)

quella cornice [la cornice]
(
that frame
)

quello specchio [lo specchio]
(
that mirror
)

quei ragazzi [i ragazzi]
(
those boys/young men
)

quelle attrici [le attrici]
(
those actresses
)

quegli orologi [gli orologi]
(
those watches
)

When you use either as an adjective followed by a noun, besides gender and number you need to choose the spelling of its ending depending on the vowel or consonant of the word that follows, as you do with the definite article. So, for example, you say
quel
l
'alta torre
(
that high tower
), but
quel
la
torre alta
(
that high tower
). See
Chapter 2
in Book I for details.

Demonstrative qualifiers mean exactly the same in Italian and English, with the following exceptions when it comes to using
questo
and
quello
as pronouns:

You use the form
quelli
(
those ones
) only as a pronoun:

Quelli non vogliono pagare il conto.
(
Those [people] don't want to pay the bill.
)

When you refer to a group of females only, you use
quelle
(
those ones
), which is the regular plural of
quella.

You can use
questo
or
quello
reinforced with the adverbs of place
qui/qua
(
here
) for
questo
or
lì/là
(
there
) for
quello.
You can point to a thing: