Italian All-in-One For Dummies (92 page)

see
kahl
-mee eh
vehn
-gah een kwehs-
tooh
-rah.

Calm down and come to police headquarters.

Anna:
È stato un uomo in motorino.

eh
stah
-toh oohn
woh
-moh een moh-toh-
ree
-noh.

It was a man on a moped.

Officer:
Ho capito, ma deve venire qui.

oh kah-
pee
-toh, mah
deh
-veh veh-
nee
-reh
kwee
.

I got it, but you have to come here.

Anna:
Dov'è la questura?

doh-
veh
lah kweh-
stooh
-rah?

Where is police headquarters?

Officer:
Dietro la posta centrale.

dyeh
-troh lah
pohs
-tah chehn-
trah
-leh.

Behind the main post office.

Anna:
Vengo subito.

vehn
-goh
sooh
-bee-toh.

I'm coming at once.

 

When you have to report someone and describe the thief, you must know some essential words, such as hair color, height, and so on. Many of these adjectives also come in handy when describing other people — friends, family members, classmates — not just thieves! You can form descriptive sentences like this:

La persona era . . .
(lah pehr-
soh
-nah
eh
-rah . . .) (
The person was . . .
)

•
alta
(
ahl
-tah) (
tall
)

•
bassa
(
bahs
-sah) (
short
)

•
di media statura
(dee
meh
-dyah stah-
tooh
-rah) (
of medium build
)

•
grassa
(
grahs
-sah) (
fat
)

•
magra
(
mah
-grah) (
thin
)

Note:
The preceding adjectives end in
-a
because they refer to the noun
la persona,
which is feminine.

I capelli erano . . .
(ee kah-
pehl
-lee
eh
-rah-noh . . .) (
The hair was . . .
)

•
castani
(kahs-
tah
-nee) (
brown
)

•
biondi
(
byohn
-dee) (
blond
)

•
neri
(
neh
-ree) (
black
)

•
rossi
(
rohs
-see) (
red
)

•
scuri
(
skooh
-ree) (
dark
)

•
chiari
(
kyah
-ree) (
fair
)

•
lisci
(
lee
-shee) (
straight
)

•
ondulati
(ohn-dooh-
lah
-tee) (
wavy
)

•
ricci
(
reech
-chee) (
curly
)

•
corti
(
kohr
-tee) (
short
)

•
lunghi
(
loohn
-gee) (
long
)

Aveva gli occhi . . .
(ah-
veh
-vah lyee
ohk
-kee . . .) (
His/Her eyes were . . .
)

•
azzurri
(ahdz-
zooh
-ree) (
blue
)

•
grigi
(
gree
-jee) (
gray
)

•
marroni
(mahr-
roh
-nee) (
brown
)

•
neri
(
neh
-ree) (
black; dark
)

•
verdi
(
vehr
-dee) (
green
)

Era . . .
(
eh
-rah . . .) (
He/she was . . .
)

•
calvo
(
kahl
-voh) (
bald
)

•
rasato
(rah-
zah
-toh) (
clean-shaven
)

Aveva . . .
(ah-
veh
-vah . . .) (
He/She had . . .
)

•
la barba
(lah
bahr
-bah) (
a beard
)

•
i baffi
(ee
bahf
-fee) (
a moustache
)

•
la bocca larga
(lah
bohk
-kah
lahr
-gah) (
a wide mouth
)

•
la bocca stretta
(lah
bohk
-kah
streht
-tah) (
thin lips
)

•
la bocca carnosa
(lah
bohk
-kah kahr-
noh
-zah) (
a plump mouth
)

•
il naso lungo
(eel
nah
-zoh
loohn
-go) (
a long nose
)

•
il naso corto
(eel
nah
-zoh
kohr
-toh) (
a short nose
)

Reporting a lost or stolen passport

Imagine you lose your passport, or it gets stolen while you're napping on the train. (These things happen!) The conversation that follows will help you get a new one.

Talkin' the Talk

When Diane gets off the train in Florence, she realizes that she no longer has her passport. She goes immediately to the police station.

Diane:
Ho perso il passaporto! Non so cosa fare!

oh
pehr
-soh eel pahs-sah-
pohr
-toh! nohn
soh
koh
-zah
fah
-reh!

I've lost my passport! I don't know what to do!

Police:
Sa dirmi dove, come, quando?

sah
deer
-mee
doh
-veh,
koh
-meh,
kwahn
-doh?

Can you tell me where, when, and how?

Diane:
Penso di averlo perso in treno
.

pehn
-soh dee ah-
vehr
-loh
pehr
-soh een
treh
-noh.

I think I lost it on the train.

Police:
Ora facciamo la denuncia.

oh
-rah fach-
chah
-moh lah deh-
noohn
-chah.

We'll file a report now.

Con questa denuncia, deve rivolgersi alla sua ambasciata o consolato.

kohn
kweh
-stah deh-
noohn
-chah,
deh
-veh ree-
vohl
-jehr-see
ahl
-lah
sooh
-ah ahm-bah-
shah
-tah oh kohn-soh-
lah
-toh.

You're going to need this report when you go to your Embassy or Consulate to apply for a new one.

Diane:
Grazie.

grah
-tsyeh.

Thank you.

(at the Embassy or Consulate)

Consulate
Dica?

Agent:
dee
-kah?

How can I help you?

Diane: (agitated)
Mi serve un nuovo passaporto! Subito!

mee
sehr
-veh oohn
nwoh
-voh pahs-sah-
pohr
-toh!
sooh
-bee-toh!

I need a new passport! Right away!