Register  Login  Active Topics  Maps  

Italian pronouns

  Tags: Italian | Grammar
 Language Learning Forum : Questions About Your Target Languages Post Reply
Alan Roskin
Newbie
United Kingdom
Joined 3975 days ago

5 posts - 6 votes
Studies: English*

 
 Message 1 of 7
26 February 2014 at 5:32pm | IP Logged 
Hello all,

today we went for a drive in our car.

Goggle translates the above into Italian as follows:

oggi siamo andati a fare un giro in macchina.

'our' is not included in the translation. Is this correct? Also should the noun macchina be accompanied by a
definite article, la?

I shall be grateful for any advice re above.

Cheers,   alan
1 person has voted this message useful



drygramul
Tetraglot
Senior Member
Italy
Joined 4469 days ago

165 posts - 269 votes 
Speaks: Persian, Italian*, EnglishC2, GermanB2
Studies: French, Polish

 
 Message 2 of 7
26 February 2014 at 6:37pm | IP Logged 
The translation is correct, it's just not literal.

Fare un giro in macchina is a fixed expression, that's why not only neither 'our' nor 'the' are necessary, but they would be absolutely wrong.


However, if you need to put emphasis on whose car it is (as opposed to the car of someone else), you can say
oggi siamo andati a fare un giro nella nostra macchina


Edited by drygramul on 26 February 2014 at 6:38pm

1 person has voted this message useful



albysky
Triglot
Senior Member
Italy
lang-8.com/1108796Registered users can see my Skype Name
Joined 4389 days ago

287 posts - 393 votes 
Speaks: Italian*, English, German

 
 Message 3 of 7
26 February 2014 at 6:41pm | IP Logged 
drygramul wrote:
The translation is correct, it's just not literal.

Fare un giro in macchina is a fixed expression, that's why not only neither 'our' nor 'the' are necessary,
but they would be absolutely wrong.


However, if you need to put emphasis on whose car it is (as opposed to the car of someone else), you can
say
oggi siamo andati a fare un giro nella nostra macchina



I would rather say : oggi siamo andati a fare un giro con la nostra macchina . Doesnt it sound better ?
4 persons have voted this message useful



drygramul
Tetraglot
Senior Member
Italy
Joined 4469 days ago

165 posts - 269 votes 
Speaks: Persian, Italian*, EnglishC2, GermanB2
Studies: French, Polish

 
 Message 4 of 7
26 February 2014 at 6:43pm | IP Logged 
You're absolutely right. My translation is awfully literal :(
1 person has voted this message useful



Alan Roskin
Newbie
United Kingdom
Joined 3975 days ago

5 posts - 6 votes
Studies: English*

 
 Message 5 of 7
27 February 2014 at 9:59am | IP Logged 
So 'nostra' and the definite article for the noun are needed?
1 person has voted this message useful



albysky
Triglot
Senior Member
Italy
lang-8.com/1108796Registered users can see my Skype Name
Joined 4389 days ago

287 posts - 393 votes 
Speaks: Italian*, English, German

 
 Message 6 of 7
28 February 2014 at 1:44pm | IP Logged 
If you use" nostra" to point out that the car is yours and not someone esle s , you need to use the
definite article" la" . As a general rule you always need to use the definite article with possesive adjactives
, for example : il mio cane, la nostra macchina , il suo portafoglio etc . The only exeption should be with
relatives , you say :
Mio padre , mia madre , nostro cugino etc .

I hope it helps you .

Edited by albysky on 28 February 2014 at 1:46pm

3 persons have voted this message useful



Serpent
Octoglot
Senior Member
Russian Federation
serpent-849.livejour
Joined 6598 days ago

9753 posts - 15779 votes 
4 sounds
Speaks: Russian*, English, FinnishC1, Latin, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese
Studies: Danish, Romanian, Polish, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Croatian, Slovenian, Catalan, Czech, Galician, Dutch, Swedish

 
 Message 7 of 7
28 February 2014 at 2:16pm | IP Logged 
It's better if you get a grammar book, OP.


1 person has voted this message useful



If you wish to post a reply to this topic you must first login. If you are not already registered you must first register


Post ReplyPost New Topic Printable version Printable version

You cannot post new topics in this forum - You cannot reply to topics in this forum - You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum - You cannot create polls in this forum - You cannot vote in polls in this forum


This page was generated in 0.3750 seconds.


DHTML Menu By Milonic JavaScript
Copyright 2024 FX Micheloud - All rights reserved
No part of this website may be copied by any means without my written authorization.