636 Comments
I could imagine it saying "Gli uomini dormono nello zucchero." (The men sleep in the sugar.) or "Gli uomini nuotano nello zucchero." (The men swim in the sugar.) In the Duolingo world all kinds of amazing things can happen.
I once wrote a short book in sugar. It didn't sell very well. The plot was good- but turning the pages was a pain in the ass.
I guess you could say reading a book of sugar was a bitter sweet experience.
DL is obsessed with sugar! Water in sugar, writing in sugar. How have they not updated these based on feedback that the algorithm that wrote the exercises is wrong?!
In the Norwegian duolingo world there are no more trees left so the sheep's munchies are books. Not kidding.
Let's all leave a message to our loved ones, written inside a sugar jar...
No, of course not. Sugar is meant to be put in your tea and eaten. I may have written in flour though...
That is easier if you are a man. Perhaps you can suggest that 'snow' replace 'sugar'? ;-)
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Only those of us who don't habitually spill sugar all over the dining room table I suppose!
Now... I understand that I'm new to Italian ... and we had our fair share of odd phrases in French... but.. uhh... ya know... i... Uhhh.. • speechless •
Italian people must have a thing about sugar
There was that artist, Zucchero, who had a hit with Paul Young in 1991, Senza una donna. Very talented.
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Yes, he did the Miserere duet with Andrea Bocelli. It's very powerful.
well that is really rasist and my dad is from italy so even though I have never met him I want to learn italian and teach my family italian too
Italian is not a race. That was what people used to call a "joke", and not a racist comment.
Right. If would be "xenofobic" in the case of discrimination because of nationality. Like what's happening in Latin America with Venezuelan people.
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Uh... the comment he reacted to actually did say "Italian people" and is therefore racist. The one above it, though it was a joke, questioned Italian culture. It could be a bit offensive. Ironically, sugar is much more common in American cuisine than in Italian. Italians don't put sugar into their pasta sauces, but in America it's hard to find a pre-made sauce without it! Yuck!
So saying "italian people have a thing for sugar" makes him a racist. Yuck.
I'm italian and i can assure we are not sugar perverts. That's all a DL thing.
i questioned italian culture the moment 14-year old boys commented on ❤❤❤❤❤ of a well, young adult lady, said they would bang a girl who was with me (she's also 14 and neither of us spoke italian but another girl did and she told us later) and some other stuff...ironically, i'm learning italian now because of these boys (and also some italian girls) tho i'll probably never see them again also lol why would that be racist
Oh! I thought sugar is something we eat, thanks for correcting me Duolingo!
If you prefer the abstract phrases, then I would recommend the Dutch course to you ;)
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Ah yes, I've often wondered what the compiler of the Dutch course has been smoking.
I am a native speaker in dutch and apple in dutch isn't apfel that is german apple in dutch is appel and orange is sinaasappel
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If I spent the same amount of time taking the course as I do reading the comments I guess I would be fluent by now
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Riiiiiiiiiiiight!! :D That's easily worth a lingot. Thanks for making me chuckle.
This is the dumbest sentence in English. I suspect they put it in Italian this way just for difficulty.
The idea is to be able to think in a language as abstract as possible in order to avoid learning a phrase by heart, that's not real learning.
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I suspect they use words we have been introduced to previously to illustrate usages. I think zucchero is the only word we know, so far, that starts with "z". Words starting with "z" are an exception to the il, i, la, le rules.
A lot of language packages use nonsensical sentances to teach you the structure of sentences and correct conjunction of words. Try not to get too hung up on the meaning of the actual sentance.
So, I wonder, did the men put sugar on a table and start writing in it with their fingers, or were they sitting in a huge pile of sugar writing a novel? Guess we'll never find out...
Well, i pictured large mounds of sugar and guys lounging around drawing portraits trying to Impress the local women... that says more about me than Duo... well, that's disturbing... ;-)
Yes, it's a very strange sentence although in my country there's been a TV ad about flour and somebody was actually drawing pictures in the flour scattered on the table - and was doing it really well!
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Have a look at this - Julia posted it a couple of weeks ago. :) http://res.mindbodygreen.com/img/crp/SugarWrittenOnPinkTray900-850x400.jpg.
Me being practical, I just typed they wrote in the book.. Never thought there would come a day when I'd see men writing in sugar..
One sentence ago it was "I ragazzi bevono l'acqua", and this one is "Gli uomini..." Both are plural and masculine, but when do you use each?
Use "gli" if the succeeding word begins with a vowel/z/s + consonant (e.g. gli uomini). Otherwise, "i" is used (e.g I ragazzi).
It's gli because gli umoini singular is l'uomo the l' makes it gli. It's I for ragazzi because I ragazzi singular is il ragazzo. When it has il has the definite article you use "I" but when the definite article is " l' " you use gli. At least I'm 99% sure.
When the singular definite article is Lo, the plural is "gli". Both are used before masculine nouns beginning with s + consonant or z. When the singular definite article is Il, the plural is "i". They are used before masculine nouns beginning with all other consonants. When the singular definite article is L', the plural is "gli". They are used before masculine nouns beginning with a vowel.
It is a habit of mine to write in the sugar guys. I recommend, it is very sweet :D
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Maybe women have better things to do than to spill sugar on the table and write in it.
You seriously think women would be doing something that bizarre? Only us guys would do something like that
In my school, if you don't write in sugar correctly, they give you the sugar cane.
By learning Italian in Duolingo, I discovered that many things can be done in the sugar
well, maybe they put the sugar on the table and wrote something using their fingers, like we do on the sand when we are at the beach.... hahaha... just guessing
I initially thought I was reading the sentence wrong, and spent a good ten seconds trying to work out what I'd missed, because... what. Even.
I guess you can write in sugar... BUT THAT'S JUST STUPID!!! It's better just to eat it.
"Sugar", here in brazil, also can mean "cocaine". '-' but ok... let's keep lerning.
!!!!! Here in Amarica and not alot in Italy cocaine is a drug that is not allowed.
I was really confused and I was hoping other people would be too, and I'm pretty relieved right now that I'm not alone okay
I am so glad they taught us this. I was afraid they'd never get around to teaching us useful sentences ;)
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Lo before words beginning with z or s+another consonant (sp, sl, sch, etc.).
thos phrase is for challenge but dont hurt yourself trying to do what these "men" are doing. you can write in the sugar lol it is creative though
I know it was write but for one second i thought it would not make sense if type "write" so i type "drink" instead. After saw the result, I was totally confuse ._.
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You begin by pouring the sugar out onto the table, then using the index finger of your left hand, or your right hand if you're one of those strange people who writes with the wrong hand, you trace letters in the sugar. Please give me three lingots.
I thought this would be a meaningful sentence but I see from your comments it is not. Like most people I would prefer to learn more useful sentences. I guess there could be some psychology ! in teaching in this silly way!
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If you scroll up a bit, you'll find a link that Julia posted here which is a photo of writing in sugar. Imagine sugar spilled on the surface of a table.
I just saw a sentence like "the water is in the sugar" and thought it was nonsense; cuz it is. But what the hell?! Now I know I am not crazy. Writing in sugar must be magnificent! I really want to try it, I love Italians <3
This is the first time I've come to the comments jusy for fun. I was not disappointed! I was in a Spanish lesson and it gave the phrase "I eat spiders." It seems much more fun to write in the sugar!
I imagine... me in Italy, phoning my relatives and telling what it is like: "I bambini giocano, le donne cantano e gli uomini... scrivono nello zucchero. Tutto è normale... :)
Dear fellow students, your comments throughout all the time I have spent with Duolingo, are turning into the primary reason I am sticking with this sometimes scary, sometimes puzzling and often mind-blowing course. It is like going to a retreat home. May your witticisms never die!
My brain was going, "No, this clearly can't mean what I think it means. I must be wrong." I was right. Lol.
I'm not sure about the rest of you, but I'd rather write in sand...just saying.
Which MEN have WRITTEN in sugar? Thanks to you, Duolingo made me translate this.
Does this literally mean they have a pen and are writing stuff in a pile of sugar ?
I like to think it's more of the men writing in the sugar with their fingers.
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"Happy Birthday" I once tried to get an Italian baker to write that on the icing of a cake he made for me but he refused - said it was against his principles to write messages on a cake.
Mistakes like this will be all over the place until you start downvoting the phrase. It has +8 score right now, how on the Earth DL supposed to know that it needs to be fixed?
Well thank you Duo. I'm sure this will be really handy. I definitely plan to spend my time in Italy hanging out with people who write in sugar! But the puns in these comments have made my day so cheers guys!
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Who in the heck writes in sugar? Consider a better wsy to demonstrate these words
I'm a baker and frequently write in flour. The idea of writing in sugar didn't sound strange to me =)
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I thought of bakers writing in icing, which is basically sugar, on cakes. Regardless, I must say that I don't understand why so many people gripe about this sentence. It's only a translation exercise for heaven's sake! And often, a bit of nonsense (which this is not) will stick in our memories better. Thanks for your comment Arutha.
The men write in the sugar.... Umm... Ok.... Just one question..... WHY!? I don't understand.
I've just written the answers in some sugar! It is very satisfying learning this way and you can eat your lesson when you have finished.. Sweet!
i thought ''drinking oil'' was strange, but i saw this sentence, italian men write in the sugar =)
Welcome to Duolingo, where the sentences are strange as hell at times! :D
I heard it as the men write the sugar "lo zucchero" not writing in it "nello zucchero." I was obviously wrong, but it almost makes sense that way if you picture them spelling out words on top of a cake with sugar.
This is really making me want to learn some more about Italian culture. Hehe...
Of course, it really activity for current men. Italian culture is poetic.
I know this sentence wouldn't really make sense anyway, but can you translate "nello" as "into" ?
Oh yes, there are so many inventive uses that the Vatican has published a book outlining the forbidden uses of sugar.
Would this be considered incorrect? "gli ragazzi scrivono nello zucchero" instead of "i ragazzi scrivono nello zucchero"
Gli would NOT be correct because it is the plural of "lo" which is used as the definite article before male nouns that begin with s and a consonant. Such as studente, squalo = gli studenti, gli squali. Or male nouns that begin with a z such as zio = gli zii. A noun that begins with an R does not fit this rule. Il ragazzo = i ragazzi. Also, another example when gli would be used is gli Americani.
Maybe they meant to say "Gli uomini scrivono nello giornale/libro." So far in this lesson there has also been water in the sugar. Eating and drinking aren't messed up so maybe sugar ended up in the wrong list somewhere.
Try the cake shop Torte e Più in Trastevere after midnight. Ask for Luigi.
You are strange, I am doing that every day - It looks like I can apply for Italian citizenship now :v
They spilled the sugar and now they are using their fingers to write words back and forth so as not to attract the attention of the women in the next room who will undoubtedly complain and clean it up. Why? Is the room bugged? Do they need to pass information quietly? Or are they just being silly? Scroll up for a picture of a word written in sugar.
When I read and type this I thought for sure I would be wrong but I guess not ¯_(ツ)_/¯
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http://res.mindbodygreen.com/img/crp/SugarWrittenOnPinkTray900-850x400.jpg. Capisci? (With acknowledgement to Julia S.H.)
I prefer my ice gun; better to use. 'S even easier now that i rewrote my genes so I got these lit powers
Wow, this does not make any sense to me:
Gli uomini scrivono nello zucchero = The men write in the sugar
How can one write in the sugar?
this may qualify as the oddest sentence i've seen on duolingo yet
Ive seen people writing on rice grain, but writing on sugar is something new
I heard of writing on sugar only in Duolingo, by the way if you want you can check the following link https://www.inshorts.com/news/man-holds-record-for-writing-1749-characters-on-a-grain-1485180017473
i get it, just deliver the answer they are looking for but honestly this is a really bizarre sentence
heiii...it works. I put all sugar on the floor ...and indeed...you can write in it. Ups...why is my wife angry????
after my sugar-test I know: you need 2 kg of sugar to write the magic sentence: I love you
good question, I agree completely, but if you need to say this, it gets really sweet with sugar around
My imagination: A group of men together write their lover's name in sugar and later eats it..thus, they got diabetes. I'm so lame ._.
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Instead of "Rosebud," I want my dying words to be "Io scrivo nello zucchero."
What an irrelevant comment. Please, Duolingo, make the statements relevant, and sensible. Men write in the sugar? Really?
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I don't thinks so. Sugar doesn't provide a solid surface on which to write, but if you spread sugar out on a flat surface, such as a tray, you can trace letters in it.
How could you distinguish between writing in sugar, as in sugar spread on a table; and writing in sugar, as in using sugar as the "ink" to write on a bare surface.
If that isnt clear think of these things: Writing in sand on a beach, contrasted to writing with glue and colored sand on paper.
I dont know who would grab a pen, stick it in sugar, and mess up the sugar. The ink will make the sugar taste bad!
No, those men first bought a lot of sugar, got in it, becoming very sweet, white and sticky, and only after that they decided to write something, probably a poem "how cool it is to sit in sugar"!
HOW DOES A MAN WRITE IN SUGAR!!!! THIS QUESTION DOSEN'T MAKE ANY SENSE
"The men write in the sugar " is nonesensical , AND i would never use it in Italian.
Supposing- from some obscure reason- they used sugar as a writing surface, they would have to write ON it, not IN it.
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I think bakers write on sugar quite a lot. Isn't icing basically just sugar? https://www.winni.in/vanilla-birthday-cake/pd/17937
I had to stop and read it 3 times before writing it. and I got it correct makes me laugh so loud.
I wrote a short story in sugar. It didn't sell very well. the plot was good- but turning the pages was a pain in the butt.
The men write in the sugar? This seems like a useless phrase except for bakers, perhaps.
Can anybody tell me what this sentence mean ! It doesn't make sense for me
Can anybody tell me what this sentence mean ? It really doesn't make sense for me!
It means these men write with their finger in sugar.. the same idea with sand ..
If you found "l'acqua è nello zucchero" was strange, hold on for this one...
This has got to be the strangest sentence. I can't imagine a scenario in which I need it.
Is this an error or is it normal for italian men to write in sugar...sounds kinda romantic tbh
IN A STAGE DUOLINGO WROTE IN ITALIAN THAT 'THE MEN WRITE IN THE SUGAR' what does the this mean?
Sometimes I know the translation, but the sentence is so ridiculous I click on the words cause I think I must be wrong. Nope.
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Scroll up in this forum, read from the beginning and you'll begin to understand.
Should accept the answer the men writes in the sugar, this is not an English test:/
Would you please tell me why it uses nello instead of nel? I do not know why they use lo ?
first of all, I am sacrificing my family for these Italian lessons, but wth? The men write in the sugar? Is that possible to do?
is there any reason italian people find it useful to write in sugar ? and do they write pouring the sugar into words or write words in a "slate" of poured sugar which acts like a paper ?
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Haha! Even if the sentence is silly, look at the fun you are having learning it.
Yeah I mean instead of using actual notebooks for school I use sugar. Who wouldn't?
WHY are men writing in sugar? Why in another question is there water in the sugar?? None of this makes any sense. I've done a ton of the french lessons and they are never like this. This is just nonsense.
probably the "original" sentence was: "The men write about Zucchero" beacause Zucchero is a singer. But "perhaps" lack of context and comunication between developers, native Italian speakers and translators result in this funny sentence. :) My thought. :P
Why is "gli" and not "i" they are both used for plural but isn't "gli" used before Z, S and gn. Why "i" is not used here? Thanks in advance
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I think you are confusing rules for gli with rules for lo, they are not connected. "gli" is used for masculine plural nouns beginning with a vowel, "i" is used for those beginning with a consonant. "Lo" is for singulars beginning gn, z, s+consonant and p+consonant. Hope this helps.
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http://res.mindbodygreen.com/img/crp/SugarWrittenOnPinkTray900-850x400.jpg. Courtesy of Julia
It's trying to see if we automatically say 'eat' than 'write' but we all good in italian now thanks to duolingo! this one made my day too!! ^^
So sugar is also a language? The man speaks in Italian, but he writes in sugar?
how can you writ in sugar? i am sure this is a mistake. i have seen writing with chocolate or cinnamon on coffee tough.
You can use your finger to write words in the sugar spread on a table.
I love how this is classified as "Basics 2." First you learn the hellos and goodbyes, and then you write in the sugar. WTF?
Men would do it!
It is a good thing I did not understand any Italian when I was visiting that country.
What about 'the water is in the sugar'? That is a new one for me. Someone likes his water so sweet! Hahaha
I've never said this sentence in English lol, why would I use it in Italian
I just got that one its kind of weird also can i have a lingot
What is the meaning of this stupid sentence?? Who is writing in sugar????
yes it does, because the men is plural and 'writes' is for singular nouns. the right way is 'the men write in the sugar'
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I'm familiar with five languages that have an article, and in all those languages the article precedes the noun.
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I posted this before, courtesy of Julia, but maybe you haven't seen it: http://res.mindbodygreen.com/img/crp/SugarWrittenOnPinkTray900-850x400.jpg
