"Cosa fai?"
Translation:What do you do?
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Stick with it friends. You will learn that "fare" is one of the most widely used verbs in Italian and it takes on MANY different meanings depending on context.
I translated this as "What do you do?" and it says that answer is correct. Can someone tell me if this is used the same way in Italian as in English? (I.e., to ask about a person's job)
This is my question as well. In English, "What do you do?" (implying for a living) and "What are you doing?" (implying what are you doing right this moment) are two very different questions, and I'd like to know which one I'm asking with "Cosa fai?"!
It s the same as English. Saying "cosa fai?" you could both be asking "what are you doing now?" and "what do you do in your life?" (example what job do you do). So "Cosa fai?" is both "Che stai facendo?" (present continues) and "Che fai per vivere/che lavoro fai?". Hope it helps ;)
Thanks for the clarification. I do understand that in Italian it can mean either, which is great. But in English it is definitely not the same. "What are you doing" means in this moment, and "what do you do" means what do you do with your time, presumably as a job.
If you stretch it, "what are you doing these days" or "what are you doing now" (with "now" meaning in a general sense, not at this very moment) could be used to ask "what is your job" but without qualifications you wouldn't expect someone to answer with their profession.
I am not really sure but I take as spanish (que haces) so i think it is used like what are you doing 'in this moment'
I put "What are you doing" and it said my answer was correct. But What do you do and What are you doing is very different. I'm confused a tad..
I've noticed when learning Spanish that sometimes where we would use the gerund (what are you DOING) they can just stick with the present indicitive i guess (what do you do) even though it is two different questions in English. I havent gotten far in Italian but it seems italian is the same in thay aspect
Ok, so I translated 'Cosa fai' as "What do you make?" and Duolingo translated it as "What are you doing?", and both are correct, but, those are two completely different sentences.
My question is, what would be the "normal" translation for Cosa fai? (if such a thing exists)
578
in Italian language the verb "fare" is used a lot.
in this case without context both ("do" and "make") are ok
- cosa puoi fare? = what can you do?
- io faccio una torta = I make a cake
- tu fai una domanda = you (1 person) ask a question
- voi fate una domanda = you (2+ people) ask a question
- mio padre fa l'avvocato = my father is a lawyer
- loro fanno la doccia = they take a shower
- noi facciamo colazione = we have breakfast
we make (prepare) breakfast = noi prepariamo la colazione
http://italian.about.com/od/verbs/a/italian-verb-fare-idiomatic-expressions.htm
- 478
can anyone tell me how is that verb going?
io fa tu fai lui\lei -?- noi famiamo? voi faviete? loro favono?
something like this?
- 578
Simple present of the verb "fare" (to do/to make)
io faccio - tu fai - lui/lei fa - noi facciamo - voi fate - loro fanno
Italians usually say Che fai or Cosa stai facendo, whenever i used Cosa fai, they pointed out that it is incorrect, can anyone clarify?
- 578
All your sentences are correct and interchangeable.
more precisely
- "cosa stai facendo?" = "what are you doing?"
- "che cosa fai?"/ "cosa fai?" / "che fai?" = "what do you do?" and also "what are you doing?"
Duolingo usually requires gerund tense for that: "Cosa stai facendo" = What are you doing/making?
http://italian.about.com/od/verbs/a/italian-verbs-gerund-form.htm gerund it is taught later on in the skill tree
So "Cosa stai facendo" and "Cosa fai?" both mean "What are you doing/making?" but the former is more acceptable?
Also, how would you ask, "What do you make?" if asking about salary or just generally?
Yes, "Cosa stai facendo" is more acceptable for "What are you doing/making" than "cosa fai".
Generally "what do you make?" = "cosa fai?"
I think that "What do you make? as if asking "How much do you earn?" would be Quanto guadagni? (guadagnare = to earn http://www.wordreference.com/iten/guadagnare)
How would Present Progressive be in Italian or wouldn't we use it here?
It would be nice to be able to switch this kind of exercises of, when you have turned of the sound. Useful if in a train.
Fai according to duolingo also means '(you) shoot up' so does this also refer to what drugs you are using? For example, you shoot up heroine.
- 578
the italian idiom for your sentence is:
- Q: "di cosa ti fai?" = "what type of drug do you use for yourself?"
- A: "io mi faccio di eroina" = "I shoot up heroine"
- 2438
It depends on context, really. If you asked this of someone who was actively doing something, they would certainly understand you, but more accurate might be "cosa sta(i) facendo?". It can also mean "what's up", "wassup?", "how ya doing", etc. - all based upon context and how you say it. This could, however, be locale dependent, but is certainly valid in Umbria.
This verb thing is going so quickly all of a sudden, probably 20 or so verbs and no infinitives to help us memorize or am l missing out on a theoretic part somewhere?
"What do you make?" was accepted as a correct translation. I believe it's expected on this stage to use simple present (not progressive) wherever it's possible. It would be great if Duolingo somehow explains or at least hints the intentions of a task,
Italianman: Cosa fai? (What do you make?/ What do you do?) Englishman: I'm a lawyer. Italianman: Soldi (Money)
- 2438
I'm a bit confused. Everything I have learned has pointed that "what are you doing" is a present progressive tense and would therefore be "cosa stai facendo". I simply do not grok when present indicative implies ongoing action.
There is present continuous in italian, but I assume that we haven't reached the level of present continuous here on duolingo.
What is the difference between io faccio and io fò? Why are these two possible?
Can you please make up your mind on how many points I earn from learning a new part?
why can one translate "cosa fai?" with either simple present or continuous, but "lei parla" is--per discussions and busuu answer--is only translated with the simple present?
Why does it only give me the option for "What do you make" if the answer is "What are you doing"? Is the direct translation as abrasive as it would be in English?
- 2438
It can mean both, and as far as being abrasive, it is all about the intonation you give it. I often us it for the equivalent of "whatcha doin'?"
Che fai? Cosa fai? Translation: what are you doing Especially relevant in present tense
Those words were not available. I put "what do you make" and it said it was correct.
Is it what are you doing or what do you do ? Big difference in English.
If one were to say "Che cosa fai", would it still be grammatically correct and would it mean anything different?
fare is a versatile verb, as is to do in English
Context would help when translating which meaning is most appropriate
I seem to be missing where we see how things are (conjugated?) their form for different usage....he she you they etc
