"I have a snake in my boot."
Translation:Io ho un serpente nello stivale.
75 CommentsThis discussion is locked.
Where is the possessive part of this sentence? Wouldn't "nello stivale" mean "in the boot", not "in MY boot"?
The verb "ho" indicates the owner of the boot. The possessive pronoun would be used, if the boot did not belong to the speaker. In other words, if the verb and the possessive pronoun refer to the same person, the pronoun is usually left out, especially when referring to clothes or parts of the human body.
Edit: Using "mio" is still a perfectly good option, it simply sounds more emphatic. The reason so many of you are getting your answer rejected is because the first sound following a preposition + article combination affects the form of the that combination. "stivale" begins with ST, so it's "lo stivale" -> "NELLO stivale". But "mio" begins with M, so you get "il mio stivale" -> "NEL mio stivale".
I have asked my italian friends and they say 'il mio stivale' is perfectly acceptable.
and if the owner of the boot isn't known? As in 'I have a snake in the boot over there'
You would use c'è instead of ho. (That is, there is a snake in the boot rather than I have a snake in my boot)
Regarding "nello stivale", I've edited my original comment to include things from another thread, since people seem to be mixing two different things in this thread. Hopefully my comment is clearer now. :)
And this is normal for Italian's sisters Spanish and Portuguese. Though apparently, French doesn't omit the pronoun when it comes to possessives.
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Camalek started this debate by framing the issue: "Wouldn't 'nello stivale' mean 'in the boot', not 'in MY boot?", to which Zzzzz responded "The verb 'ho' indicates the owner of the boot."
Is Zzzz's claim that "has" implies boot ownership true? No. The object of "have" is "snake" not "boot". In Cassell's Italian dictionary, I find that the verb "avere", of which "ho" is a form, can mean "to have, to possess, to wear, and, to be". None of the listed verb forms implies ownership. Ownership of the boot is thus irrelevant to the translator's decision to translate (or not) the possessive adjective "my". It can be done EITHER WAY, for reasons as follow.
WITHOUT "MIO": The translation accepted by DL without "mio" is justifiable on the grounds that the sentence would likely be expressed that way in Italian.
WITH MIO: The translation using "mio" is also justifiable. How? By either item (2) or item (3) below (or both).
f. formica (1) indicated that one who finds a snake in a boot is unlikely to care who owns the boot, (2) admitted that the translation is about "conveying the same message", and (3) asserted "You're free to say 'nel mio stivale' if you want to emphasise that it's yours". Arguably, then, DL ought to accept it as an optional translation.
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Nah, man, valid effort!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMDWgGXxYOI "Hai un amico in me"
LOL, Cedrean. You really made me laugh! You get 10 upvotes for that!
I often say "I wish that I could just Ctrl-Z my life right now and undo the last 5 minutes of it."
Can anyone explain when I use nel verses nello? I don't understand the difference? Thanks!
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Masculine nouns starting with "s" or "z" take the article "lo" instead of "il" (eg., lo squalo, lo zoo). If they start with a vowel this "lo" becomes "l'" as in "l'abbigliamento". So all these masculine nouns get "nello" while masculine nouns which do not fall in this category get "nel". Hope this helps (and that I have understood correctly).
Masculine nouns that start with s+consonant use lo, if it's s+vowel (sabato, for example) I'm pretty sure you use 'il'.
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Also if the noun is masculine and begins with 'z' it uses 'lo', for example 'lo zucchero'
Why is one correct answer "Ho un serpente nel mio stivale?" Why isn't it "nello mio stivale?"
I agree, I don't understand: if the word is lo stivale, why wouldn't "nello mio stivale" be correct
I put "nello mio stivale" as well, and want to understand why this is incorrect and why "nel mio stivale" and just "nel stivale" are correct. I read the explanation above from Zzzzz..., I guess I have to remember this exception?
It's because the word "nel"changes according to the word right next to it.
Example: Nel mio stivale/ Nello stivale mio
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This explanation is fantastic. Unfortunately, so far "... nello stivale mio" is not excepted.
It's not accepted because it's never said in this order. We Italians say "il mio stivale", never the other way around.
ho una serpe nel mio stivale. this is the correct answer given. Why is serpente not acceptable? My answer was: ho una serpente nel mio stivale.
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I used google translate so it may not be completely correct but "Verso l'infinito e oltre!"
It didn't accept "io ho un serpente nel mio stivale", and it should be correct!
Yes, the literal translation of I have a snake in my boot is Ho un serpente nel mio stivale. Of course it would be logical to say nello stivale and meaning the boot you're in (because you say ho, which is I have). And maybe this is DL point: because it is weird to say I have, when the snake is in someone else's boot, DL doesn't want us to use mio, because it is somehow unnecessary. Still, this cosy snake also could be in one of your boots you're actually not wearing. Therefore, in my opinion, the most accurate italian translation of I have a snake in my boot must be with the possessive pronoun and DL should fix it (for those who insist, c'è would be used instead, then why is the English counterpart not there is??).
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"Io ho un serpente nello stivale" is accepted.
"Io ho un serpente nel mio stivale" is also accepted
"Io ho un serpente nello mio stivale" is not accepted.
'Nel mio' or 'nello', but not 'nello mio'.
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Good post, JJyWHg. This information should clear up reasons for the debate over "mio" versus non-"mio" that are based on incorrect translations.
Correct sentence is io ho un serpente nel mio / nello stivale.
Preposition + definite article (the):
in+il= nel
in+lo=nello
in+la=nella
in+i= nei
in+gli=negli
in+le=nelle
Preposition + undefinite article (a, an, some):
in + un, uno
in + una
in + dei, degli, delle
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I am confussed la donna = womAn (singler) ,donne = womEn (plural) but in boot E is singler and i is plural which is plural in boys (ragazzi) why is this?
The rule is, the plural form of ALL nouns (feminine or masculine) ending with "E" ends with "I". Italian nouns and adjectives can be masculine and feminine, singular and plural. They change the ending vowel according to their gender (feminine or masculine) and number (singular or plural). An E is not exclusively feminine. We also have irregular nouns endings, you simply have to memorize them. https://grammaticaitaliana.net/il-genere-dei-nomi/
As I have read now all the comments it sounds a little bit difficult. I also had 'nello mio stivale' - I understand that it should be ' nel mio stivale' instead. But I do not understand why I should not use 'mio' when in english it is 'my boot'
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This sentence is similar to the one regarding having nothing 'in my pocket'. Unlike English, where the owner of said pocket, boot, etc, is named; in Italian the ownership is implied and doesn't have to be stated.
I have a snake in my boot -- I have/Ho leads the reader/listener to infer the snake is in MY boot, otherwise I'd say You have a snake in your boot, or He has in his, etc.
Reading through the SD, looks like both senetnces are accepted by DL; one just being more emphatic. I picture a person quickly becoming hysterical as they say nel mio stivale. :-)
