- Forum >
- Topic: Italian >
- "È probabilmente mia moglie."
32 Comments
OK I get why you use "it" but, wives are always female so SHE should be accepted here. no?
While gramatically correct, one usually knows if the woman is one's wife or not (although i am reminded of a certain Simpsons episode where such confusion would be applicable).
Even "There is a woman on the phone," as phone is handed to another.
"It is probably my wife" is how it would most often said.
They both sound ok to me in different circumstances, and I think duo should accept both. And you are certainly correct dm, I would say the same about the phone call.
During the process of learning these new adverbs in section 'adverbs 2' it has seemed natural to me to lean these by separating them into two groups: those that have a last vowel just before 'mente' and those that don't. Usually it is rather obvious whether or not an easily translatable adverb will have the final vowel, but this word seems to lack a vowel just before the 'mente' part, and seems to 'break' the mold by which I am learning these. I was expecting something like:
probabilemente
or even better sounding:
probabilamente
Surprised by this one, and might find it hard to remember how to spell it other than brute force.
I agree -- are there some "rules of thumb" out there (no doubt with exceptions!) for when "a" vs. "e" vs. <no vowel> precedes "mente"?
The rule seems to be: feminine form + 'mente', except for words ending in l or r. They drop the last vowel.
Caterinabella: I'm not sure I understand what it is you're commenting on: "It is..." vs "It's" -- If so, both are correct. If that's not the point of the comment, I'm confused.
Definite pronouns are not used with family members and relatives when referred to in the singular. So, "È mia moglie", "È mio cugino", "È mia suocera", etc. but "Sono i miei genitori", "Sono le mie sorelle", etc. Note that you do use the pronoun with "È la mia famiglia" (maybe because you're referring to a collection of people even though "famiglia" is a singular noun). An exception: Use the pronoun with informal singular relatives (like mamma and papà) .
