"I neither read nor write."
Translation:Io né leggo né scrivo.
56 Comments
Wait, with the sentence with the girl that doesn't drink either milk or water did I have to use "lei non beve né acqua né latte", but with this sentence that's a mistake?
1700
I'm not positive, but I think it is because the nés are directly modifying the verbs in this sentence "né leggo né scrivo." But in the other sentence the nés are modifying nouns so the "non" is added to modify the verb.
Non leggo né scrivo would be correct, you can report it if it is not accepted.
The other option was actually, "Non né leggo né scrivo." Why is that wrong?
It doesn't make sense, sorry.
You can choose one of these only:
-Non leggo né scrivo.
-Né leggo né scrivo. (more emphasis)
As I understand it, you shouldn't use 'non' when there's no verb before the first 'né' On the internet I found the following example sentences: "Né a te né a me interessa" and "Non interessa né a te né a me". "Non né …" would apparently be too much.
I understand that Duolingo tries to teach by example rather than stuffing rules down your throat, but sometimes it would be really helpful if things like these would be explained. I'm sure that this confusion could be solved with just a few sentences of explanation. I think that would apply to other situations as well.
I got caught the same way. I don't understand when you need the non and when you don't
I am very confused now about the use of the word non. As the previous user indicates, it should be correct. Earlier duolingo tested me on this:
"Non è né tè né caffè nero." -Translation: It is neither tea nor black coffee.
So why is "Non né leggo né scrivo" now incorrect? Can someone please explain the use or non-use of the work 'Non' at the beggining of sentences with né ___né ...
It's wrong just because you can't put two negations in a row (even if you can put them in the same sentence). For example, "non faccio niente" is right, but "faccio non niente" is wrong (two negations in a row). In this case, "non né" in a row is wrong
I know this is a long time after, but that was a query for me which you cleared up very well.
according to the following site
non ... nè ... nè ... = neither ... nor
E.g. "Non voglio né questo né quello" = I want neither this nor that / I do not want either this or that.
I am confused by this as well. I thought you could use non without the subject as the subject is implied by the verb endings. At least Duolingo has accepted that before...
Is there a reason why the speaker seems to pronounce ne as 'net' every time or is it a fluke in the recording?
Can someone please explain this? When "né" was introduced, the hints said it could mean "neither/nor" or "either/or". Since the correct answer "Io né leggo né scrivo" has no "non" in it, why wouldn't it mean "I either read or write"? Is "né" always used in a negative sense?
Yes, it is. "I either read or write" in Italian is "O leggo o scrivo": "o...o" (never "né... né"). "Né leggo né scrivo" can only mean "I neither read nor write".
There is a mistake here. When you hold the cursor over "nor," it says the correct translation is nè, but né is the actual correct answer.
Can someone please explain this? When "né" was introduced, the hints said it could mean "neither/nor" or "either/or". Since the correct answer "Io né leggo né scrivo" has no "non" in it, why wouldn't it mean "I either read or write"? Is "né" always used in a negative sense?
Né is always negative.
I don't read or write = (io) non leggo né scrivo.
I neither read nor write = (io) né leggo né scrivo.
they are apples or oranges
loro sono mele od arancie
they are neither apples nor oranges
loro non sono nè mele nè arancie
If you click the green button "Follow discussion" in the top right it subscribes you to responses as well (so you don't need to leave a placeholder comment).
Ah, that's an awesome feature. It will be great when it's available for the android app.
There is a workaround for the android app.
On your phone, open chrome (or whatever browser) separately from duo, and go to your duo hompage in chrome. Then you will be able to go to the discussion tab, click on 'Italian' on the right and search for this sentence to bring up the discussion of it, then you will be able to click on follow.
You can do all that while 'pausing' your session in duo, so practice is not disrupted.
... and a special tip ... search for a unique word in someone's comment, like if you search for thkis you will probably only find thkis discussion ... ;-)
Anyone else have the accent face the wrong way in the drop down translation?
Yes, that sounds wrong. But "Non leggo, e non scrivo neanche" would work. (remember that in modern Italian, double negations are very often used; like "non... neanche")
Help, is it only me? It's not giving me clues anymore, just the sentence in Italian.
- 1915
I prefer "Nè leggo nè scrivo," but I wanted to see if "Non leggo nè scrivo" was acceptable. It was. It is.
Although I do appreciate all the suggestions coming from students, I do believe that it is Duolingo's responsibility to enlighten us on all cases which cause confusion. After all, they explain our incorrect spelling even when it is absolutely unnecessary.
All three are grammatically correct, but the first one is a slurve ball. It says, "scrivo" twice. A pox on you, Duo! >x
Understood that the purpose of this exercise is to teach use of the conjunction "né", but wouldn't "non leggo e non scrivo" ("I do not read and do not write") be correct, as well?
Why is the preposition "ed" used here if the next word starts with the vowel letter?
"Ed" non è una preposizione. Ed and e both mean and, but ed is used before words beginning with a vowel.
Here the obvious translation would be "non so né leggere né scrivere" the only ones allowed are unnatural.
