Are you tired of using the so boring Mi piace and do you want to explore alternative ways to express appreciation in Italian?
This little article is then what you are looking for!
Indeed, I am going to tell you 9 easy and effective ways to express appreciation in Italian, that will make you sound more fluent and improve your vocabulary!
1) Mi va... / Mi vanno... / Mi andrebbe... (I feel like I... / I’d fancy...)
This particular way of expressing appreciation is quite informal.
You will use it in a conversation with your friends or simply in a situation where you feel particularly comfortable.
It corresponds to the more polite vorrei, which is the conditional form of the verb volere.
e.g.
A: Paolo, ti va/andrebbe una birra? (A: Paolo, would you fancy a beer?)
B: No, grazie. Però mi vanno/andrebbero le patatine. (B: No, thank you. I’d rather fancy some chips.)
Look at the two sentences. In the first one, the object is just singular: una birra (a beer), that is why we used ti va/andrebbe.
On the other hand, in the second sentence, the object is plural: le patatine (the chips). This means that the verb changes according to the object.
2) Amo... / Adoro... (I love/adore)
This is to express particular appreciation of something. It means you are really fond of something.
e.g.
I miei figli adorano dormire (My sons adore sleeping.)
Loredana ama la danza (Loredana loves dancing.)
These two verbs are very similar in meaning because they express a strong appreciation for something, but I would say that amare is more suitable for expressing what you really love doing.
3) Sono un(a) fan di... (I’m a fan of...)
In Italian we use the English word “fan”, to mean supporter or enthusiast.
It is actually the abbreviation of the English word “fanatic”.
e.g.
Sono un grande fan della Nutella. (I’m a big fan of Nutella.)
Hands up if you don’t! :)
4) Preferisco... (I prefer...)
Imagine you are in a chocolate shop and must choose amongst different kinds of chocolate. The moment you must tell what you would like to have, you would say something like: Preferisco la cioccolata al latte. (I prefer milk chocolate.)
I would say this is a verb you will use to distinguish between what you like and what you don’t. Indeed, if someone offers you something if you use this verb, it will be perfectly clear to your interlocutor what you prefer from a high array of possibilities.
5) Vado pazzo per... (I’m crazy about...)
Is there anything else that makes you go crazy apart from chocolate? If yes, please tell me in the comment section! :)
e.g.
Vado pazzo per le noccioline. (I’m crazy about peanuts.)
6) Provo gusto a... (I enjoy...)
e.g.:
Provo gusto ad aiutare le persone. (I enjoy helping people.)
This is a figurative expression. The word gusto literally means taste.
It is like you have a specific taste for something or doing something.
7) Mi garba... / Mi garbano... (I like...)
This expression is very Tuscan!
Indeed, people from Tuscany are very used to prefer saying this rather than the more common mi piace / mi piacciono. They are synonyms for this reason!
To me, it sounds very soft and elegant. I really like how it sounds.
Remember, this expression is not only similar in the meaning with mi piace / mi piacciono, but also in the way you structure the sentence.
This means that you will always want to conjugate the verb according to the object, not the subject!
e.g.
Mi garba molto la tua cravatta! (I really like your tie!)
Mi garbano le buone maniere. (I like good manners.)
8) Trovo interessante... (I find interesting...)
e.g.:
Trovo interessante questo articolo. (I find interesting this article.)
You can refer to a person, an object or a situation. In my opinion, this is a very polite way to mean someone or something intrigues you.
And finally, the last one:
9) Non mi dispiace... (I don’t dislike...)
Sometimes, to sound even more polite you will have to pass through the double negation to express appreciation! As in maths, two negatives make a positive!
e.g.
Non mi dispiace il nuovo film di Paolo Genovese! (I don’t dislike the new film by Paolo Genovese!)
If you say this, means you enjoy something or someone but really, if you weren’t asked, you probably would not choose it. It is not that you don’t like it, but... you neither enjoy that particularly.
So, that is all for today’s lesson.
Thank you for reading this article!
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Ciao!
