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- "Cosa c'è?"
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"C'è" means "there is". For comparison, the plural is "ci sono", meaning "there are". So "cosa c'è?" is literally "what is there?" "What is it" is its idiomatic meaning in English.
I think "is it" is more of a colloquial translation in this case? "Cosa c'è" seems to literally mean "What there is?" which can be rearranged to something more sensible in English like "What is there?" or even more simplified to "What is it?"
466
"Cosa c'è?" = "what is there?" (it is also correct for "what's the matter?" very informal)
- Cosa c'è in televisione oggi? = what is on TV today?
"Che cos'è?" = "what is it?"
- Che cos'è il cerchio della vita? = what is the circle of life?
Technically, "what's up" is the idiom. "Wa'zup", "wassup", "sup" are all just colloquial derivations of it.
If "what is it?" is valid, why not "What's that"? Seems pretty much the same meaning - or else how would you say "What's that?"
Thanks!
"Cosa c'è?" means "What is it?" in the sense of "What's wrong?" or "What's the matter?" not "What is that thing?" So if you see a friend looking upset, you would say, "Cosa c'è?" but if your kid finds some strange thing, you would say, "Cos'è?" It can be tricky because English uses "What is it?" in both of these contexts.
cosa è quello?
quello can be be a pronoun that translates to 'that one'
In Dutch we have also something like this, "er". For example wat is er? or er is niks aan de hand (nothing happened). So it is difficult to have a good translation, depends on language.
In my opinion, it should have been "what is there?". Don't really agree with Duolingo here.
Yes, someone needs to clarify. I have learned in duo that
ci + è = c'è = there is
I think it's more of a colloquial translation. "Cosa c'è" seems to literally translate to "What there is", which sounds funny in English. I think a better English approximation would be "What is there", but Duolingo simplifies it to be "What is it"?
This expression is used so often figuratively that it has lost its literal meaning. So you are forced to say explicitly "Che cosa/cosa/che c'è lí?" for physical objects.
No, in fact the "c" in this sentence stands for "ci" which is the equivalent of the French "y." The sentence would translate into French as "qu'est-ce qu'il y a ?" or "qu'y a-t-il?" which in turn translates into English as "what's up?" or "what's wrong?"
I have been taught by someone at one point that che cos'è means what is it. Is it also correct since duolingo is saying cosa c'è is how to say it?
En español = Que hay.
I think that is the right translation.
Que hay en la television hoy? Cosa C'e in televisione oggi?
