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- Topic: Italian >
- "Abbiamo parecchie domande."
53 Comments
Same question Oh My last heart……How do you guys distinguish quite a lot between quite a few. It is nowhere to be deduced here!
1169
I don't know that it's a rule, but it sounds best to me (American English speaker) when "quite a few" is used with countable nouns and "quite a lot" is used with uncountable nouns. For example, "quite a lot of sugar" vs "quite a few sugar cubes", "quite a lot of chocolate" vs "quite a few chocolate bars", "quite a lot of sand" vs "quite a few sunbathers". "Quite a lot of questions" doesn't sound right to me.
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Would it be connected with that direct/indirect object stuff? We have quite a few chocolate bars but quite a lot OF chocolate. So would the latter translate as parecchie DI cioccolato?
Right direction, I think, but cart before the horse, grammatically, I believe. The gender/number of "parecchio/a/I/e" depends on the noun it modifies. So, "parecchio di cioccolato". Reverso.net translated this as "quite a lot of chocolate".
You're right about quite a few, but the phrases "a lot of/lots of" are used for both countable and uncountable nouns.
"Quite a few" has the same meaning as "quite a lot" in English, but it's an idiomatic understatement. I couldn't imagine it having a direct translation with the same sort of sarcastic connotation. Can anyone clarify this?
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This is especially confusing because the modifier "quite" carries opposite meanings in British and American popular use. I recall my English colleague's discomfort when an American assessor said his work was "quite good". The American meant better than just good; the Brit understood somewhat good, but not "quite" reaching the standard.
I OBJECT! You stole my heart for We have a lot of questions.
Please be kind, DL. On typos, on quibbles on meaning. I gets to me then I close the stuff and walk away. Thanks, Wilting Lily
Hi atalayongan...Please take the time to report this!..It takes very little additional time, and it's the only way to signal needed additions and changes. We share your frustration, but it's great language learning site that's free, and provides good interactive instruction, learning incentives and fun! Duolingo does not object to efforts to make them even better!
- 136
A lot of would be molte domande. I just think that would be more appropriate. Parecchie seems to suggest a lesser amount.
It doesn't mean "few". However Duo's translation is "quite a few", which is quite a different matter. I suggest you look up parecchio in a major dictionary, such as http://dizionari.repubblica.it/Italiano-Inglese/P/parecchio.php. If you are not a native English speaker, look up the modifier "quite a ..." in your native language English references.
- 1187
No, I am not a native speaker. Yes, you are right, it is not opposite, it means a lot but not so many, something between.
https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/4085/what-is-the-proper-usage-of-quite-a-few
In my native language Greek, there's a separate word for it, as it is parecchio, so I can understand it.
Thanks!
'Parecchi/e' also translates as 'several'. In English it is more common and usually more appropriate than the options listed, except when "quite a few" is a euphemism for "a lot". Duo accepts 'several'.
Well, in my opinion there is a significant difference in English between "quite a few" and "a few". First means that you have a few, but at the same time it is quite a lot of something and second means a few, when you have let's two or three and it is not a lot of something. The first is equal to "many" and the second is equal to "some", so DL should not accept the answer "We have a few questions" (it accepts), while not accepting "We have some questions" (it doesn't accept). The same with "Abbiamo parecchi milioni" - if "parrecchi" means "quite a few" or "many" then answer "We have a few millions" is simply wrong, while it is currently accepted.
If you look at http://dizionari.repubblica.it/Italiano-Inglese/P/parecchio.php and, having done that, also at http://dizionari.repubblica.it/Inglese-Italiano/F/few.php?lingua=en, you'll find a large range of translations in both directions. ["Some" does not seem to be one of them].
The most useful learning exercise is to consider the different contexts in which the meanings are grouped.
Is there any such thing as a "correct" translation?
I agree with you that it is hard to find a correct translation, as context is usually necessary. From the links which you provided I see that both "some" and "a few" are not present, which means I was correct saying answer "We have a few millions" should not be accepted by DL in another exercise - only "quite a few" would be good.
Wrong. In fact "quite some time" is rather a common phrase.
Top result from Google: quite some : phrase of quite
<pre>1. a considerable amount of.
"she hasn't been seen for quite some time"
2. informal way of saying quite a —— .
"Old Darlington was quite some place to live in"
</pre>
But IMO "several" is a much better translation of parecchi(e) in most contexts, including this one.
I stand corrected, and agree on "quite some time." Otherwise, seems obsolete in modern usage.
I got this right except for the ful stop! This software can be really annoying.
- 15
If you are saying you lost a heart because of a full stop I have to tell you seriously you must have had something else wrong. I've been around over a year and haven't used full stops, or any punctuation more than a dozen or so times. I never capitalize (I get a slap on the wrist for German nouns but no heart lose) and have never-ever-lost a heart for that reason alone. On timed practice I often don't use accents and that usually doesn't get noticed - unless the meaning of the word changes. Of course by the time you've read this you'll no longer have access to your sentence so will not be able to recheck. Just believe me Duo is very laid back where punctuation is concerned.
Peculiarly, EN a demand = IT una richiesta, as if meanings have swapped places over time. The economic term "demand" is IT "domanda", but that seems to be all.
- 1473
Thank you, malcolmissimo. How very odd that "demand" has become "request". I will watch that now, though, thanks to your explanation.
Abbiamo parecchie domande, per questo torniamo più e più volte al forum di Duolingo.
How are "We have quite a few questions" and "We have a bunch of questions" different as far as the use of the word "parecchie" is concerned? Would the not basically equate to the same thing?
Different parts of speech. Italian has parecchie parole for this meaning of a bunch. See https://dizionari.repubblica.it/Inglese-Italiano/B/bunch.html - the main choices seem to be gruppo e combriccola.
It really isn't worth trying loose translations with Duo, because he's a machine and he thinks you haven't learned the vocabulary.
'We have plenty questions' marked wrong. I am not native so not sure. Can someone explain
We would say "We have so many questions" in English, not "we have got so many..."
Abbiamo=we have parecchie=so many; a ton; a lot
There's not a verb in English or Italian, to my knowledge, for "have got." It is incorrect grammar to add "got" to have.
