Negative Connecting and Disjunctive Coordinating Conjunctions (neither/nor/not even, etc) Flashcards
(n)or/(n)either
I don’t like skiing or skating on ice
Non mi piace sciare nè pattinare sul ghiacco.
(n)or/(n)either
Daniele speaks neither Spanish nor German
Daniele parla nè spagnolo nè tedesco.
(n)either/not even
Your friend (f) is not funny and not even good-looking.
La tua amica non è simpatica e neanche/neppure bella.
Neache and neppure replace “anche” in negative sentences. They are interchangable, though neanche is a bit more common
(n)either/not even
I never spoke to the leading actor and I do not even intend to.
(Literally, as best as I can tell. “I never directed a word to the leading actor and I don’t have the intention to do so.”)
Non ho mai rivolto la parola all’attore protagonista e neanche/neppure ho intenzione di farlo.
Neache and neppure replace “anche” in negative sentences. They are interchangable, though neanche is a bit more common
(n)either/not even
Not only did he not smile to him, he did not even greet him.
Non solo non gli sorrise nemmo lo salutò
This deck was made from the grammar lesson in Episode 271 of News in Slow Italian. I’m not sure how “nemmo” differs from “neache” and “neppure” and why the the indirect object is used with “sorrise” and the direct object is used with “saluto”.
To introduce subordinate clauses to give a negative connotaton
I wouldn’t attend that conference even if they paid me!
(can be at the front of sentence or connect in the middle)
Neanche/Neppure/Nemmeno se mi pagassero parteciperei a quella conferenza!
or
Non parteciperei a quella conferenza neanche/neppure/nemmeno mi pagassero!
as well as (typically used to avoid the repition of the conjunction “e”)
I invited the museum’s director, the curator of the exhibition, a few journalists, as well as a number of bloggers.
Ho invitato il direttore del museo, il curatore della mostra, alcuni giornalisti, nonchè alcuni blogger.
(note how “alcuni” can be used to me “a few”, “a number of” and also “some”)
or (simple usage)
Do you enjoy spending your vacation more at the beach or in the mountains?
Ti piace di più passare le vacanze al mare o in montagne?
or (either/or constricution)
Either we ride our bikes to the park, or we borrow Matteo’s car.
O andiamo al parco in bicicletta o/oppure prendiamo in prestito la macchina di Matteo.
(either “o” or “oppure” would be appropriate in the 2nd case)
or (but a stong disjunctive sense to convey the choices are in opposition to one another)
We can stay at home and relax, or we can go to Martina’s party.
Possiamo restare a casa e rilassarci, oppure possiamo andare alla festa di Martina.
or (used at the start of a sentence to propose a different action)
Marta: We have time to go grocery shopping today!
Marco: Or we can finally take the dog to the veterinarian!
Marta: Oggi abbiamo tempo per fare la spesa!
Marco: Oppure possiamo finalmente portare il cane dal veterinario!
“that is” or “in other words” (takes on an explicitive role)
I don’t like green vegetables, that is, spinach, artichokes, zucchini, etc.
Non mi piacciono le verdure verdi, ovvero gli spinaci, i carciofi, le zucchine, ecc.
(this is the primary use of “ovvero” in contemparary italian)
or (has the connetation of “ or rather” and a clause typically follows)
Either the boys have decided to remain silent, or they know nothing.
O i ragazzi hanno deciso di tacere, ovvero non sanno nulla.
(this is the less common use of “ovvero”)
otherwise (often used in situations when what follows is seen as a consequence of what come before the conjunction)
.
I hope I can bring my friend (f) to the party, otherwise I won’t go.
Spero di poter portare la mia amica alla festa, altrimenti non ci andrò.
