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1 better
I 1. ['betə(r)]to look, taste, smell better — avere un aspetto, sapore, odore migliore
2) (recovered)to be better — [patient, cold] andare meglio
to feel all the better for — sentirsi meglio dopo [rest, meal]
I feel better about doing — (less nervous) mi sento più a mio agio a fare; (less worried) mi faccio meno problemi a fare
4) (of superior quality) (di qualità) migliore, superiore5) (more virtuous) migliore6) (more skilled) [doctor, teacher] miglioreto be a better swimmer than sb. — nuotare meglio di qcn.
to be better at — essere più bravo in [subject, sport]
7) (more suitable) [way, excuse, choice] migliorethe sooner, bigger the better — prima è, più grande è meglio è
the less said about that the better — meno se ne parla, meglio è
9) (more accurate) [description, view] migliore2.the better — il, la migliore (di due)
so much the better — tanto meglio, ancora meglio
to change for the better — migliorare, cambiare in meglio
my betters — (in rank) i miei superiori; (in merit) quelli migliori di me
••for better (or) for worse — comunque vada, in ogni caso; (in wedding vow) nella buona e nella cattiva sorte
••to get the better of — avere la meglio su [ enemy]
Note:When better is used as an adjective, it is translated by migliore or meglio depending on the context (see below, and note that migliore is the comparative form of buono, meglio the comparative form of bene). The choice between migliore e meglio in the construction to be better than depends on whether buono or bene would be used originally with the noun. - Other constructions translate as follows: this is a better bag / car = questa borsa / auto è migliore; it is better to do = è meglio farlo. - For more examples and particular usages, see the entry belowII ['betə(r)]1) (more adequately) meglio, in modo migliorebetter made, organized than — fatto, organizzato meglio di
better behaved, educated — più educato, istruito
to do better — (in career, life) riuscire, meglio; (in exam, essay) fare meglio, ottenere migliori risultati; (in health) andare meglio
the better to see, hear — per vedere, sentire meglio
2) (more appropriately) meglioyou had better do o you'd better do faresti meglio a fare; I'd better go è meglio che vada; "will she come?" - "she'd better!" o "she better!" colloq. "verrà?" - "sarà meglio! better still,... — meglio ancora
••to think better of it — cambiare idea, ripensarci
III 1. ['betə(r)] 2.to think better of sb. — farsi un'opinione migliore di qcn
* * *['betə]comparative; = good* * *I 1. ['betə(r)]to look, taste, smell better — avere un aspetto, sapore, odore migliore
2) (recovered)to be better — [patient, cold] andare meglio
to feel all the better for — sentirsi meglio dopo [rest, meal]
I feel better about doing — (less nervous) mi sento più a mio agio a fare; (less worried) mi faccio meno problemi a fare
4) (of superior quality) (di qualità) migliore, superiore5) (more virtuous) migliore6) (more skilled) [doctor, teacher] miglioreto be a better swimmer than sb. — nuotare meglio di qcn.
to be better at — essere più bravo in [subject, sport]
7) (more suitable) [way, excuse, choice] migliorethe sooner, bigger the better — prima è, più grande è meglio è
the less said about that the better — meno se ne parla, meglio è
9) (more accurate) [description, view] migliore2.the better — il, la migliore (di due)
so much the better — tanto meglio, ancora meglio
to change for the better — migliorare, cambiare in meglio
my betters — (in rank) i miei superiori; (in merit) quelli migliori di me
••for better (or) for worse — comunque vada, in ogni caso; (in wedding vow) nella buona e nella cattiva sorte
••to get the better of — avere la meglio su [ enemy]
Note:When better is used as an adjective, it is translated by migliore or meglio depending on the context (see below, and note that migliore is the comparative form of buono, meglio the comparative form of bene). The choice between migliore e meglio in the construction to be better than depends on whether buono or bene would be used originally with the noun. - Other constructions translate as follows: this is a better bag / car = questa borsa / auto è migliore; it is better to do = è meglio farlo. - For more examples and particular usages, see the entry belowII ['betə(r)]1) (more adequately) meglio, in modo migliorebetter made, organized than — fatto, organizzato meglio di
better behaved, educated — più educato, istruito
to do better — (in career, life) riuscire, meglio; (in exam, essay) fare meglio, ottenere migliori risultati; (in health) andare meglio
the better to see, hear — per vedere, sentire meglio
2) (more appropriately) meglioyou had better do o you'd better do faresti meglio a fare; I'd better go è meglio che vada; "will she come?" - "she'd better!" o "she better!" colloq. "verrà?" - "sarà meglio! better still,... — meglio ancora
••to think better of it — cambiare idea, ripensarci
III 1. ['betə(r)] 2.to think better of sb. — farsi un'opinione migliore di qcn
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2 enough
[ɪ'nʌf] Iavverbio abbastanza, sufficientementeII 1.curiously enough, I like her — per quanto possa sembrare strano, mi piace
determinante abbastanza, sufficiente2.enough money, seats — abbastanza soldi, sedie
••••enough is as good as a feast — prov. il troppo stroppia
Note:When used as a determiner or a pronoun, enough is generally translated by abbastanza, which may either precede or follow the noun: we haven't bought enough meat = non abbiamo comprato abbastanza carne; there's enough meat for two meals / six people = c'è carne abbastanza per due pasti / sei persone; have you got enough chairs? = avete abbastanza sedie? will there be enough? = ce ne sarà abbastanza? (note that if the sentence does not specify what there is enough of, the pronoun ne, meaning of it / of them, must be added before the verb in Italian). - For more examples and particular usages, see the entry below* * *1. adjective(in the number or quantity etc needed: Have you enough money to pay for the books?; food enough for everyone.) abbastanza2. pronoun(the amount needed: He has had enough to eat; I've had enough of her rudeness.) abbastanza3. adverb1) (to the degree needed: Is it hot enough?; He swam well enough to pass the test.) abbastanza2) (one must admit; you must agree: She's pretty enough, but not beautiful; Oddly enough, it isn't raining.) abbastanza* * *[ɪ'nʌf] Iavverbio abbastanza, sufficientementeII 1.curiously enough, I like her — per quanto possa sembrare strano, mi piace
determinante abbastanza, sufficiente2.enough money, seats — abbastanza soldi, sedie
••••enough is as good as a feast — prov. il troppo stroppia
Note:When used as a determiner or a pronoun, enough is generally translated by abbastanza, which may either precede or follow the noun: we haven't bought enough meat = non abbiamo comprato abbastanza carne; there's enough meat for two meals / six people = c'è carne abbastanza per due pasti / sei persone; have you got enough chairs? = avete abbastanza sedie? will there be enough? = ce ne sarà abbastanza? (note that if the sentence does not specify what there is enough of, the pronoun ne, meaning of it / of them, must be added before the verb in Italian). - For more examples and particular usages, see the entry below -
3 yours
[jɔːz, jʊəz]pronome (of one person: informal) (il) tuo, (la) tua; (of one person: polite) (il) suo, (la) sua; (of more than one person) (il) vostro, (la) vostramy car is red but yours is blue — la mia auto è rossa ma la tua, sua, vostra è blu
which house is yours? — qual è la tua, sua, vostra casa?
he's a friend of yours — è un tuo, suo, vostro amico
it's not yours — non è tuo, suo, vostro
the money wasn't yours to give away — non dovevi, doveva, dovevate dare soldi non tuoi, non suoi, non vostri
yours was not an easy task — il tuo, suo, vostro non è stato un compito facile
••I'm fed up with that dog of yours! — colloq. sono stufo di quel tuo, vostro cagnaccio!
Note:In Italian, possessive pronouns have the same forms as the corresponding adjectives, are usually preceded by an article, and reflect the gender and number of the noun they are standing for. So yours is translated by il tuo, la tua, i tuoi, le tue, according to what is being referred to: my book and yours = il mio libro e il tuo; the blue car is yours = la macchina blu è la tua; his children are younger than yours = i suoi bambini sono più giovani dei tuoi; my shoes are brown, while yours are black = le mie scarpe sono marroni, mentre le tue sono nere. - When yours is used to refer to more than one person, it is translated by il vostro, la vostra, i vostri, le vostre, according to what is being referred to: my boss and yours = il mio capo e il vostro; this room is yours = questa stanza è la vostra; their children are younger than yours = i loro bambini sono più giovani dei vostri; my shoes are brown, while yours are black = le mie scarpe sono marroni, mentre le vostre sono nere. - When yours is used as a polite form when speaking to anyone you do not know very well, it is translated by il Suo, la Sua, i Suoi, le Sue, according to what is being referred to: my book and yours = il mio libro e il Suo; the blue car is yours = la macchina blu è la Sua; my children are younger than yours = i miei bambini sono più giovani dei Suoi; my shoes are brown, while yours are black = le mie scarpe sono marroni, mentre le Sue sono nere. - Yours can also be used as a polite form when speaking to more than one person; in this case, the Italian equivalent is il Loro, la Loro, i Loro or le Loro according to the gender and number of the noun referred to: my taxi and yours are waiting outside = il mio taxi e il Loro stanno aspettando fuori. - For a full note on the use of the tu, voi and Lei forms in Italian, see the entry you. - Since Italian possessive adjectives, unlike English ones, may be preceded by an article, a demonstrative adjective or a numeral, an English possessive pronoun is often translated by an Italian possessive adjective: a cousin of yours = un tuo / vostro / Suo cugino; that school friend of yours = quel tuo / vostro / Suo compagno di scuola; four books of yours = quattro tuoi / vostri / Suoi libri. - For examples and particular usages, see the entry below* * *[jɔːz, jʊəz]pronome (of one person: informal) (il) tuo, (la) tua; (of one person: polite) (il) suo, (la) sua; (of more than one person) (il) vostro, (la) vostramy car is red but yours is blue — la mia auto è rossa ma la tua, sua, vostra è blu
which house is yours? — qual è la tua, sua, vostra casa?
he's a friend of yours — è un tuo, suo, vostro amico
it's not yours — non è tuo, suo, vostro
the money wasn't yours to give away — non dovevi, doveva, dovevate dare soldi non tuoi, non suoi, non vostri
yours was not an easy task — il tuo, suo, vostro non è stato un compito facile
••I'm fed up with that dog of yours! — colloq. sono stufo di quel tuo, vostro cagnaccio!
Note:In Italian, possessive pronouns have the same forms as the corresponding adjectives, are usually preceded by an article, and reflect the gender and number of the noun they are standing for. So yours is translated by il tuo, la tua, i tuoi, le tue, according to what is being referred to: my book and yours = il mio libro e il tuo; the blue car is yours = la macchina blu è la tua; his children are younger than yours = i suoi bambini sono più giovani dei tuoi; my shoes are brown, while yours are black = le mie scarpe sono marroni, mentre le tue sono nere. - When yours is used to refer to more than one person, it is translated by il vostro, la vostra, i vostri, le vostre, according to what is being referred to: my boss and yours = il mio capo e il vostro; this room is yours = questa stanza è la vostra; their children are younger than yours = i loro bambini sono più giovani dei vostri; my shoes are brown, while yours are black = le mie scarpe sono marroni, mentre le vostre sono nere. - When yours is used as a polite form when speaking to anyone you do not know very well, it is translated by il Suo, la Sua, i Suoi, le Sue, according to what is being referred to: my book and yours = il mio libro e il Suo; the blue car is yours = la macchina blu è la Sua; my children are younger than yours = i miei bambini sono più giovani dei Suoi; my shoes are brown, while yours are black = le mie scarpe sono marroni, mentre le Sue sono nere. - Yours can also be used as a polite form when speaking to more than one person; in this case, the Italian equivalent is il Loro, la Loro, i Loro or le Loro according to the gender and number of the noun referred to: my taxi and yours are waiting outside = il mio taxi e il Loro stanno aspettando fuori. - For a full note on the use of the tu, voi and Lei forms in Italian, see the entry you. - Since Italian possessive adjectives, unlike English ones, may be preceded by an article, a demonstrative adjective or a numeral, an English possessive pronoun is often translated by an Italian possessive adjective: a cousin of yours = un tuo / vostro / Suo cugino; that school friend of yours = quel tuo / vostro / Suo compagno di scuola; four books of yours = quattro tuoi / vostri / Suoi libri. - For examples and particular usages, see the entry below -
4 each other
pronome (anche one another)••Note:Each other - which is never used as the subject of a sentence - is very often translated in Italian by using a reflexive pronoun. For examples and particular usages see the entry below* * *(used as the object when an action takes place between two (loosely, more than two) people etc: They wounded each other.) l'un l'altro* * *pronome (anche one another)••Note:Each other - which is never used as the subject of a sentence - is very often translated in Italian by using a reflexive pronoun. For examples and particular usages see the entry below -
5 Little
I 1. ['lɪtl](compar. less; superl. least) quantisostantivo femminilelittle chance — poche o scarse possibilità
2.there's little sense o point non ha molto senso; he speaks little German parla poco il tedesco; with no little difficulty non senza difficoltà; I see little of Paul these days — in questi giorni vedo Paul molto di rado
it says very little for her — non depone molto a suo favore, non le fa molto onore
little or nothing — quasi nulla, praticamente niente
••little by little — poco a poco, poco per volta, gradualmente
••to make little of — (disparage) dare poca importanza a, non dare peso a [ victory]; (not understand) non capire molto, capirci poco di [ speech]
Note:When little is used as a quantifier ( little time, little hope, little money, little chance), it is translated by poco / poca / pochi / poche: poco tempo, poca speranza, pochi soldi, poche possibilità. For examples and particular usages, see I below. - When a little is used as a pronoun ( give me a little), it is translated by un po' or un poco: dammene un po' / un poco. - When little is used alone as a pronoun ( there is little I can do), it is very often translated non... un granché: non posso fare un granché. - For examples of these and other uses of little as a pronoun ( to do as little as possible etc.), see the entry below. - For uses of little and a little as adverbs, see the entry below. - Note that less and least are treated as separate entries in the dictionaryII ['lɪtl]1) (not much) [speak, eat, go] poco2) (scarcely)3) (not at all)4) a little (bit) (slightly) un po'a little less, more — un po' meno, un po' più
stay a little longer — rimani ancora un po' o un po' di più
5) as little asIII ['lɪtl]aggettivo (compar. less; superl. least) When little is used with nouns to express such qualities as smallness, prettiness or disparagement, Italian may convey the same meaning by means of suffixes that alter the sense of the noun: a little house = una casetta; a little old man = un vecchietto; my little brother = il mio fratellino; her little sister = la sua sorellina; little girl = ragazzina; a little hat = un cappellino; little Mary = Mariuccia; a nasty little man = un perfido ometto; a silly little woman = una stupida donnetta. - Please note that, although smaller and smallest are generally used instead of littler e littlest, the Italian translation does not change: più piccolo, il più piccolo1) (small) piccoloa little house — una piccola casa, una casetta
a little something — qualcosina, una cosina
2) (young) [sister, boy] piccolowhen I was little — quando ero piccolo, da piccolo
3) (feeble) [gesture, nod] piccoloa little voice said... — una vocina flebile disse
4) (lacking influence) [farmer, businessman] piccolo6) (short) [nap, holiday, break] breve* * *['litl] 1. adjective1) (small in size: He is only a little boy; when she was little (= a child).) piccolo2) (small in amount; not much: He has little knowledge of the difficulties involved.) poco3) (not important: I did not expect her to make a fuss about such a little thing.) piccolo, (poco importante)2. pronoun((only) a small amount: He knows little of the real world.) poco3. adverb1) (not much: I go out little nowadays.) poco2) (only to a small degree: a little-known fact.) poco3) (not at all: He little knows how ill he is.) (per niente)•- a little- little by little
- make little of* * *(Surnames) Little /ˈlɪtl/* * *I 1. ['lɪtl](compar. less; superl. least) quantisostantivo femminilelittle chance — poche o scarse possibilità
2.there's little sense o point non ha molto senso; he speaks little German parla poco il tedesco; with no little difficulty non senza difficoltà; I see little of Paul these days — in questi giorni vedo Paul molto di rado
it says very little for her — non depone molto a suo favore, non le fa molto onore
little or nothing — quasi nulla, praticamente niente
••little by little — poco a poco, poco per volta, gradualmente
••to make little of — (disparage) dare poca importanza a, non dare peso a [ victory]; (not understand) non capire molto, capirci poco di [ speech]
Note:When little is used as a quantifier ( little time, little hope, little money, little chance), it is translated by poco / poca / pochi / poche: poco tempo, poca speranza, pochi soldi, poche possibilità. For examples and particular usages, see I below. - When a little is used as a pronoun ( give me a little), it is translated by un po' or un poco: dammene un po' / un poco. - When little is used alone as a pronoun ( there is little I can do), it is very often translated non... un granché: non posso fare un granché. - For examples of these and other uses of little as a pronoun ( to do as little as possible etc.), see the entry below. - For uses of little and a little as adverbs, see the entry below. - Note that less and least are treated as separate entries in the dictionaryII ['lɪtl]1) (not much) [speak, eat, go] poco2) (scarcely)3) (not at all)4) a little (bit) (slightly) un po'a little less, more — un po' meno, un po' più
stay a little longer — rimani ancora un po' o un po' di più
5) as little asIII ['lɪtl]aggettivo (compar. less; superl. least) When little is used with nouns to express such qualities as smallness, prettiness or disparagement, Italian may convey the same meaning by means of suffixes that alter the sense of the noun: a little house = una casetta; a little old man = un vecchietto; my little brother = il mio fratellino; her little sister = la sua sorellina; little girl = ragazzina; a little hat = un cappellino; little Mary = Mariuccia; a nasty little man = un perfido ometto; a silly little woman = una stupida donnetta. - Please note that, although smaller and smallest are generally used instead of littler e littlest, the Italian translation does not change: più piccolo, il più piccolo1) (small) piccoloa little house — una piccola casa, una casetta
a little something — qualcosina, una cosina
2) (young) [sister, boy] piccolowhen I was little — quando ero piccolo, da piccolo
3) (feeble) [gesture, nod] piccoloa little voice said... — una vocina flebile disse
4) (lacking influence) [farmer, businessman] piccolo6) (short) [nap, holiday, break] breve -
6 few
[fjuː] 1.(compar. fewer; superl. fewest) quantisostantivo femminile1) (not many) pochifew visitors, letters — pochi visitatori, poche lettere
on the few occasions that... — le rare volte che...
2) (some, several)every few days — a intervalli di pochi giorni, ogni due o tre giorni
over the next few days — (in past) nei giorni successivi; (in future) nei giorni a venire
3) a few qualche, alcunia few people, houses — alcune persone, case
quite a few people — un bel po' di o parecchie persone
2.a few weeks earlier — qualche settimana fa o prima
1) (not many) pochi m.pl. (-e)2) (some)3.a few of the soldiers, countries — alcuni dei soldati, dei paesi
the few who — i pochi o le poche persone che
••••to have had a few (too many) — colloq. avere bevuto qualche bicchiere di troppo
Note:When few is used as a quantifier to indicate the smallness or insufficiency of a given number or quantity ( few horses, few shops, few people), it is translated by pochi + masculine nouns and poche + feminine nouns: pochi cavalli, pochi negozi, poche persone. Equally the few is translated by i pochi / le poche: the few people who knew her = le poche persone che la conoscevano. For examples and particular usages, see I.1 in the entry below. - When few is used as a quantifier in certain expressions to mean several, translations vary according to the expression: see I.2 in the entry below. - When a few is used as a quantifier ( a few books), it can often be translated by qualche, which is invariable and is always followed by the singular: qualche libro; however, for expressions such as quite a few books, a good few books, see I.3 in the entry below. - For translations of few used as a pronoun ( few of us succeeded, I only need a few), see II in the entry below. - For translations of the few used as a noun ( the few who voted for him), see III in the entry below* * *[fju:]adjective, pronoun(not many; a very small number of: Few people visit me nowadays; every few minutes (= very frequently); Such opportunities are few.) poco- a few- few and far between* * *[fjuː] 1.(compar. fewer; superl. fewest) quantisostantivo femminile1) (not many) pochifew visitors, letters — pochi visitatori, poche lettere
on the few occasions that... — le rare volte che...
2) (some, several)every few days — a intervalli di pochi giorni, ogni due o tre giorni
over the next few days — (in past) nei giorni successivi; (in future) nei giorni a venire
3) a few qualche, alcunia few people, houses — alcune persone, case
quite a few people — un bel po' di o parecchie persone
2.a few weeks earlier — qualche settimana fa o prima
1) (not many) pochi m.pl. (-e)2) (some)3.a few of the soldiers, countries — alcuni dei soldati, dei paesi
the few who — i pochi o le poche persone che
••••to have had a few (too many) — colloq. avere bevuto qualche bicchiere di troppo
Note:When few is used as a quantifier to indicate the smallness or insufficiency of a given number or quantity ( few horses, few shops, few people), it is translated by pochi + masculine nouns and poche + feminine nouns: pochi cavalli, pochi negozi, poche persone. Equally the few is translated by i pochi / le poche: the few people who knew her = le poche persone che la conoscevano. For examples and particular usages, see I.1 in the entry below. - When few is used as a quantifier in certain expressions to mean several, translations vary according to the expression: see I.2 in the entry below. - When a few is used as a quantifier ( a few books), it can often be translated by qualche, which is invariable and is always followed by the singular: qualche libro; however, for expressions such as quite a few books, a good few books, see I.3 in the entry below. - For translations of few used as a pronoun ( few of us succeeded, I only need a few), see II in the entry below. - For translations of the few used as a noun ( the few who voted for him), see III in the entry below -
7 could
[ forma debole kəd] [ forma forte kʊd]it could be that... — potrebbe essere che
could be — colloq. forse
"did she know?" - "no, how could she?" — "lo sapeva?" - "no, come avrebbe potuto?"
you couldn't come earlier, could you? — non potresti arrivare prima, vero?
6) (expressing likelihood, assumption)he couldn't be more than 10 years old — non dovrebbe avere o non avrà più di 10 anni
••I could murder him! — colloq. l'ammazzerei!
Note:Could is formally the past tense and the conditional of can. As the past tense of can, could is translated by the appropriate past tense in the indicative: I couldn't leave the children = non potevo lasciare i bambini / non potei lasciare i bambini; few people could read or write = poche persone sapevano leggere o scrivere; he couldn't sleep for weeks = non è riuscito a dormire per settimane; we could hear them laughing = li sentivamo ridere. When preceded by and dependent on a verb in the past tense, could + verb is translated by the past conditional of the appropriate Italian verb: I was sure you could do it = ero sicuro che saresti riuscito a farlo. In reported speech, could is translated by the appropriate past tense, according to the rules of Italian grammar (see the note 1.dire): she never told us she could speak Chinese = non ci ha mai detto che sapeva parlare il cinese. - For more examples, particular usages and all other uses of could see the entry below* * *[kud]negative short form - couldn't; verb1) (past tense of can: They asked if I could drive a car; I said I couldn't; She asked if she could go.) potere2) (used to express a possibility: I could go but I'm not going to; I could do it next week if you helped me.) potere•* * *[ forma debole kəd] [ forma forte kʊd]it could be that... — potrebbe essere che
could be — colloq. forse
"did she know?" - "no, how could she?" — "lo sapeva?" - "no, come avrebbe potuto?"
you couldn't come earlier, could you? — non potresti arrivare prima, vero?
6) (expressing likelihood, assumption)he couldn't be more than 10 years old — non dovrebbe avere o non avrà più di 10 anni
••I could murder him! — colloq. l'ammazzerei!
Note:Could is formally the past tense and the conditional of can. As the past tense of can, could is translated by the appropriate past tense in the indicative: I couldn't leave the children = non potevo lasciare i bambini / non potei lasciare i bambini; few people could read or write = poche persone sapevano leggere o scrivere; he couldn't sleep for weeks = non è riuscito a dormire per settimane; we could hear them laughing = li sentivamo ridere. When preceded by and dependent on a verb in the past tense, could + verb is translated by the past conditional of the appropriate Italian verb: I was sure you could do it = ero sicuro che saresti riuscito a farlo. In reported speech, could is translated by the appropriate past tense, according to the rules of Italian grammar (see the note 1.dire): she never told us she could speak Chinese = non ci ha mai detto che sapeva parlare il cinese. - For more examples, particular usages and all other uses of could see the entry below -
8 would
[ forma debole wəd, forma forte wʊd]1) (in sequence of past tenses, in reported speech)if we'd left later we would have missed the train — se fossimo partiti più tardi avremmo perso il treno
after that I wouldn't eat any canned food — dopo quell'episodio, non ho più voluto saperne di mangiare cibo in scatola
5) (expressing desire, preference)we'd really love to see you — vorremo davvero vederti, abbiamo davvero voglia di vederti
would you like something to eat, some more tea? — vuoi qualcosa da mangiare, ancora del tè?
switch off the radio, would you? — spegneresti la radio?
8) (indicating habitual event or behaviour in past: used to)••Note:When would is used with a verb in English to form the conditional tense, would + verb is translated by the present conditional of the appropriate verb in Italian and would have + verb by the past conditional of the appropriate verb: I would do it if I had time = lo farei se avessi tempo; I would have done it if I had had time = l'avrei fatto se avessi avuto tempo. - However, in sequence of past tenses and in reported speech, would + verb is translated by the past conditional of the appropriate Italian verb: I was sure you would like it = ero sicuro che ti sarebbe piaciuto (not "piacerebbe"); he said he would fetch the car = disse che avrebbe preso (not "prenderebbe") la macchina. - For more examples, particular usages and all other uses of would see the entry below* * *[wud]short forms - I'd; verb1) (past tense of will: He said he would be leaving at nine o'clock the next morning; I asked if he'd come and mend my television set; I asked him to do it, but he wouldn't; I thought you would have finished by now.) (ausiliare per la formazione del condizionale presente)2) (used in speaking of something that will, may or might happen (eg if a certain condition is met): If I asked her to the party, would she come?; I would have come to the party if you'd asked me; I'd be happy to help you.) (ausiliare per la formazione del condizionale presente)3) (used to express a preference, opinion etc politely: I would do it this way; It'd be a shame to lose the opportunity; I'd prefer to go tomorrow rather than today.) (ausiliare per la formazione del condizionale presente)4) (used, said with emphasis, to express annoyance: I've lost my car-keys - that would happen!)•- would-be- would you* * *[ forma debole wəd, forma forte wʊd]1) (in sequence of past tenses, in reported speech)if we'd left later we would have missed the train — se fossimo partiti più tardi avremmo perso il treno
after that I wouldn't eat any canned food — dopo quell'episodio, non ho più voluto saperne di mangiare cibo in scatola
5) (expressing desire, preference)we'd really love to see you — vorremo davvero vederti, abbiamo davvero voglia di vederti
would you like something to eat, some more tea? — vuoi qualcosa da mangiare, ancora del tè?
switch off the radio, would you? — spegneresti la radio?
8) (indicating habitual event or behaviour in past: used to)••Note:When would is used with a verb in English to form the conditional tense, would + verb is translated by the present conditional of the appropriate verb in Italian and would have + verb by the past conditional of the appropriate verb: I would do it if I had time = lo farei se avessi tempo; I would have done it if I had had time = l'avrei fatto se avessi avuto tempo. - However, in sequence of past tenses and in reported speech, would + verb is translated by the past conditional of the appropriate Italian verb: I was sure you would like it = ero sicuro che ti sarebbe piaciuto (not "piacerebbe"); he said he would fetch the car = disse che avrebbe preso (not "prenderebbe") la macchina. - For more examples, particular usages and all other uses of would see the entry below
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