Agggghhhh...….I have studied via Duolingo.com for what? Three years now? Not sure...I think three years. I added Babbel in February because they give out "certificates" which are supposed to prove you have proficiency...but I hate Babbel...I hate it. I sit there sometimes wondering what the hell they want from me. And this after two years of Duolingo?
And it turns out those "certificates" are most likely useless...they are meaningless. You have to pass a test in the country you have moved to. Period. Stuff your certificates.
Yes, I have learned....because we also have a woman who, in person, now gives us lessons...and she said "You are well on the way."....oooooooookaaaaaaaay.
Sooooo….what I am leading up to is that there are many regionalisms. This is something that Americans should understand...we have MANY of them...the Old New England...Ayah! The Southern drawl. The Midwest...Yah!..not to mention the California "valley speak." So..you get it.
Well, try to get it in another country and another language....holy wow. It's difficult.
This is what I just found out this week...we learn via the computer sites how someone asks you something...and it is usually in the "formal you"...hopefully people remember their old language lessons since English really does not have the "formal you." In any case...when asking someone to try something....in Italian..it would be "Provate?"..."Do you want to try?" Do you want help would be "Volete aiutare"..the formal "you" being the "want" part....sorry, I know I am putting you to sleep....but here's the thing.....they don't do that here...……..
They use the whole infinitive....the other day in the supermarcato...my husband swore up and down that the manager lady asked him 'Aiutare?"....I asked..."Are you sure? Are you sure that's what you heard?" He swore that was all she said. I was perplexed....since aiutare is the "infinitive" and literally translated means "to help."
But today...in Con Amore...the gelato store...there was a flavor I had never seen or tried...it said "Vaniglia/cioccolato" but it didn't look like vanilla and chocolate...ish...and the girl behind the counter asked "Provare?"...which literally means "To try",,.the infinitive...instead of "Provate?"....Wow....so...my husband was right...he heard "Aiutare"....it must be a regionalism peculiar to here.....
My whole point is...you can learn a lot from the online programs.....and you will most likely be understood for the most part....but there are always regionalisms....anywhere you go.
By the way...the vaniglia/cioccolato was vanilla with small gobs of chocolate fudge in it and it was Fantastico!
And it turns out those "certificates" are most likely useless...they are meaningless. You have to pass a test in the country you have moved to. Period. Stuff your certificates.
Yes, I have learned....because we also have a woman who, in person, now gives us lessons...and she said "You are well on the way."....oooooooookaaaaaaaay.
Sooooo….what I am leading up to is that there are many regionalisms. This is something that Americans should understand...we have MANY of them...the Old New England...Ayah! The Southern drawl. The Midwest...Yah!..not to mention the California "valley speak." So..you get it.
Well, try to get it in another country and another language....holy wow. It's difficult.
This is what I just found out this week...we learn via the computer sites how someone asks you something...and it is usually in the "formal you"...hopefully people remember their old language lessons since English really does not have the "formal you." In any case...when asking someone to try something....in Italian..it would be "Provate?"..."Do you want to try?" Do you want help would be "Volete aiutare"..the formal "you" being the "want" part....sorry, I know I am putting you to sleep....but here's the thing.....they don't do that here...……..
They use the whole infinitive....the other day in the supermarcato...my husband swore up and down that the manager lady asked him 'Aiutare?"....I asked..."Are you sure? Are you sure that's what you heard?" He swore that was all she said. I was perplexed....since aiutare is the "infinitive" and literally translated means "to help."
But today...in Con Amore...the gelato store...there was a flavor I had never seen or tried...it said "Vaniglia/cioccolato" but it didn't look like vanilla and chocolate...ish...and the girl behind the counter asked "Provare?"...which literally means "To try",,.the infinitive...instead of "Provate?"....Wow....so...my husband was right...he heard "Aiutare"....it must be a regionalism peculiar to here.....
My whole point is...you can learn a lot from the online programs.....and you will most likely be understood for the most part....but there are always regionalisms....anywhere you go.
By the way...the vaniglia/cioccolato was vanilla with small gobs of chocolate fudge in it and it was Fantastico!
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