- Forum >
- Topic: Italian >
- "Arriva qui verso le nove!"
46 Comments
The ! at the end of the sentence clearly indicates the phrase as a command or suggestion
Good point. Fair point/suggestion. But not necessarily so. Surely it could be expressing a certain amazement or even annoyance that someone was arriving so early or so late.
1190
L'imperativo di Arrivare
tu . . . . arriva !
Lei . . . arrivi !
noi . . . arriviamo !
voi . . . arrivate !
Loro . . arrivino !
You might want to read up on l'imperativo at Duo Lingo or at ThoughtCo or perhaps at Online Italian Club
- 1026
'Towards nine' doesn't work in English as a time phrase, I translated 'verso' as 'before' but was wrong, I'm assuming it's a colloquial extra meaning of the word to put it in a time phrase meaning 'about'
Think of it as an "old" clock with "hands" or pointers. The hand moves toward the designated hour, so when people meant something like "we will be ready (when the hands on the clock moves more) towards nine." One measured time with actual movement and distance. Maybe an artifact of speech, but measuring specific time started with sun dials.... Maybe a bit trivial, sorry!
>>Towards nine' doesn't work in English as a time phrase,
It works OK for me in English carli.
"Le" is used for indicating the hours of the day, except one o'clock which is "l'una".
What does "Le" actually stand for in this context. I realize you said it is a time indicator, but the word itself in this context intrigues me. Grazie!
- 1389
Same thing in Spanish, we use the plural feminine "Las" before the hours (Las dos, las tres, etc.) except for one o'clock which again, like in Italian is "La una".
I guess it's short for "Las __ horas"
I have read in the previous postings that it is the full article for ''ore". Prego!
Why not circa?
Btw, "towards nine" may not sound right at first in US English, but put it in the right casual dialect and telling someone to "Come by the house more toward(s) nine o'clock" sounds perfectly natural, like when clarifying a time.
I have the same question as Jeff. I am guessing this has to do with usage more than with grammar but to me, as an English speaker, it seems more natural to use "circa" rather than "verso." Any Italian speakers care to clarify?
Arriva is third person singular. Therefore, it should be he arrives and not arrive.
This section covers the imperative as already noted, so although it is one possible translation, it is not in the framework of the lesson.
- 580
It's probably a result of colloquialism, but could "Get here around nine" be also accepted, even though it would less of a literal translation?
In a previous sentence I translated "arrivate a casa" as "GET home early" and it was marked as incorrect - it had to be "BE home". Now in this one I put BE and that's not in any of the acceptable answers. Also, you really don't need to say AT about 9. "Be here about nine o'clock" should be fine.
Try suggesting sentences marked incorrect with the "accept answer" button. That way we can get to them in a timely fashion and make sure they work for you next time :) Get works for the "arrivate" sentence now as well!
The lesson is about imperative so with "he arrives" you are not answering right, even though this translation is possible.
There is certainly no reason why "He arrives here around nine o'clock." should not be correct. The exclamation point does not necessarily suggest a command. What if it were a famous or otherwise exciting person about to arrive? Duolingo and its computer generated answers can sometimes be a royal pain!
The imperative (l'imperativo) is used to give orders, advice, and exhortations.
Examples: Spiegaci!, = Explain to us!, Girati! = Turn around!, Non tormentarmi = Don't torment me!, Sbrigati = Hurry up!, Chiamami! = Call me!, Scrivimi! = Write me!, Sta' zitto! = Shut up!, Lasciami in pace. = Leave me alone., Mettila dietro. (una bici) = Put it in the back. (a bike), Non dirmelo! = Don't tell me!, Non fare l'innocente. = Don't play innocent., Divertiti! = Enjoy yourself!, Dille di riprendersi. = Tell her to get better., Non preoccuparti. = Don't worry yourself., Calmati! = Calm down!, Digli di chiamarla. = Tell him to call her., Tocca a te! Your turn!, Si accomodi. = Make yourself comfortable., Trascinalo a scuola! = Drag him to school!, Coprimi! = Cover me!, Vattene! = Get out of here!, Concentriamoci. = Let's focus., Tienili! = Keep them!, Finiscila. = Finish it., Prendilo. = Take it., Non farti beccare. = Don't get caught., Lascia perdere! = Let it go! Forget it!, Dimmi quand'è iniziata? = Tell me when it started?, Girati, amico. = Turn around, friend., Non bere. = Don't drink., Aspetta! = Wait!, Guarda altrove. = Look away., Stampale per il numero commemorativo. = Print them out for the tribute issue., Passami papà. = Let me speak to dad., Rallenta, tesoro! = Slow down, sweetheart!, Passami il cacciavite. = Hand me the screwdriver., Accendila. = Start it up., Dammi lo straccio.= Hand me the rag., Ruota l’accensione. = Flip the ignition., Spegnila. = Shut it off. Beh, ascoltami. = Well, listen to me., Pulisci questa roba. = Clean up this mess., Passali alla prossima persona. = Pass them to the next person., Non darmi per scontata. = Don’t take me for granted., Non farlo di nuovo. = Don’t do it again., Fa’ ciò che ho detto. = Do what I said., Uniscili! = Join them!., Guardatevi. = Look at yourselves!, Fatemi vedere cos'avete fatto. = Let me see what you have done., Scusami! = Excuse me!, Muovete i piedi. Andiamo! = Move your feet. Let's go!, Dammi il telefono., Give me the telephone.
imperativo presente [arrivàre] = present imperative [to arrive]
arrìva [non arrivàre] (tu) .......... arrive [don't arrive] (informal, singular)
arrìvi (egli) .......... arrive (formal, singular)
arriviàmo (noi) .......... let's arrive
arrivàte (voi) .......... arrive (informal, plural)
arrìvino (essi) .......... arrive (formal, plural)
Why is it arriva instead of arrivi. The first is for he, she, or it, while the second is for "you". If giving a command with the exclamation mark then arrivi should be used. Yes? No?
In verbs of the 1st group (ie infinitive ending in -are), the 2nd person singular imperative is identical to the normal 3rd person singular present tense.
An example: Imperative : parla! = speak!
Normal present : parla = he/she speaks.
Another example: Imperative : arriva qui ! = get here!
Normal present : arriva qui = he/she gets here.
In writing the exclamation mark makes the difference. In the spoken language the tone of voice makes the difference.
ENGLISH: "Come about nine." It can't be a command since the "about" makes it more of a suggestion.
lei o lui arriva should also be good i think, third person, he arrives here around nine, was not accepted !
You can't win I have a degree in languages and am well educated but DL often disagrees with my English translation. I am not doing this to learn English I used to teach English in Italy. I am doing it in order to improve my italian grammar!!
Duo requires that figures be written out in text. Your sentence is in the past tense and would translate as "è arrivato qui verso le nove" (statement of fact) whereas the original sentence is "arriva qui verso le nove" (imperative).
- 580
In addition to what @acqualinda said, it should be arrive, not arrived, as the sentence is imperative and issuing a command.
Not really. To me, by nine means no later than, while about nine could mean a little before or after
