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It's important to know that timore is "fear" in the sense that "I fear we won't get there in time. Emotional fear is paura. The opposite of il timore is la speranza (hope) but the opposite of la paura is il coraggio (courage).
WordReference has a nice explanation.
In the light of that, I think the best English translation is probably "I just have one worry."
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It makes me think of Robert Burns' poem "To a Mouse", in which he refers to the mouse as a "Wee, sleekit, cow'rin, tim'rous beastie".
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i think you can understand this sentence in two ways: - i have a unique fear - something strange, unusual - i have only one fear - nothing else. i would say it would be more correct the second one, as it is in the expression only child - figlio unico.
Yes, "unico" in Italian is pretty much only used with the meaning of "one and only"; I wouldn't rule out the "unique" translation but it isn't common at all.
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is it really necessary to have 'single' or 'only' in there? id have thought that in english it's kind of implied in that by stating that you have one problem, it is your single and only one, or you would say 'a problem' or, in some way, multiple problems...
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Perhaps singolare to mean "unique" as it is used in English? "Singular" in English is closer to what we often mean by "unique", rather than "single" - although it depends on English context. "Unique" can also mean "singel", and in "the only one".
Using both words, one and single, while common usage in American English, is actually not proper grammar. Rather, it is redundant. I understand it would be considered emphasis, but it is still redundant. "I have a fear." simple statement. "I have one fear." emphasized without redundancy. Sorry. Yes, retired, but after teaching over 40 years it just doesn't go away.
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jan...Very good explanation, thanks. Having taught for 43 years I can second your last comment!
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there is no sound on the audio for the dictation questions. it is very hard to guess an answer!
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I put "i have one fear" and it corrected me to "i have one single fear." Really?
