Italian · Intermediate (B1) · Chapter 9 of 12
Health and lifestyle
Uno stile di vita sano
Talk about health and habits in Italian: give advice with è importante che, bisogna and se fossi in te, and use the congiuntivo imperfetto.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Talk about habits, food, sleep and exercise
- Give advice with è importante che and bisogna
- Form the congiuntivo imperfetto
- Imagine with se + congiuntivo imperfetto + conditional
Listen
In Como, Michela, a physiotherapist, talks to her older brother Fabrizio, who has back pain. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Michela
Allora, Fabrizio, come va la schiena?
So, Fabrizio, how's your back?
Fabrizio
Male. Il medico dice che devo muovermi di più, ma non ho mai tempo. Lavoro dieci ore al giorno.
Bad. The doctor says I need to move more, but I never have time. I work ten hours a day.
Michela
Lo so, ma è importante che tu faccia un po' di sport ogni giorno. Basta mezz'ora.
I know, but it's important for you to do a bit of exercise every day. Half an hour is enough.
Fabrizio
Mezz'ora? E quando? La sera sono stanchissimo.
Half an hour? And when? In the evening I'm exhausted.
Michela
Se andassi al lavoro in bici, faresti sport senza perdere tempo. L'ufficio è a tre chilometri da casa tua.
If you cycled to work, you'd get some exercise without wasting time. The office is three kilometres from your house.
Fabrizio
In bici, con la pioggia? Non credo che sia una buona idea.
By bike, in the rain? I don't think that's a good idea.
Michela
Quando piove, prendi l'autobus e scendi una fermata prima. E a pranzo cosa mangi?
When it rains, take the bus and get off one stop early. And what do you eat for lunch?
Fabrizio
Di solito un panino davanti al computer.
Usually a sandwich in front of the computer.
Michela
Ecco, vedi? È meglio che tu faccia una vera pausa. E quanti caffè bevi?
There you go, you see? It's better for you to take a proper break. And how many coffees do you drink?
Fabrizio
Cinque o sei al giorno.
Five or six a day.
Michela
Troppi. Se fossi in te, ne berrei al massimo due. E bisogna che tu dorma almeno sette ore.
Too many. If I were you, I'd have two at most. And you need to sleep at least seven hours.
Fabrizio
Va bene, dottoressa. Ci provo. Ma se ti ascoltassi sempre, non avrei più una vita!
All right, doctor. I'll try. But if I always listened to you, I wouldn't have a life any more.
Understand
It's important that…
To give advice or say what's necessary, Italian uses impersonal phrases like , (it's better), and (you need to, it's necessary). About a specific person, add + congiuntivo: (It's important for you to do exercise), (You need to sleep more).
When you mean people in general, just use the infinitive: (Exercise is important), (You need to drink plenty of water).
| For everyone: + infinitive | For one person: + congiuntivo |
|---|---|
The congiuntivo imperfetto
The is used for things that aren't real, especially after . It's very regular: take the form of the imperfetto without -vo (anda-vo, legge-vo, dormi-vo) and add -ssi, -ssi, -sse, -ssimo, -ste, -ssero. So gives , () gives and () gives .
Only a few verbs are irregular: → , → , → .
| Person | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| / / | |||
If I were you: se + congiuntivo imperfetto
In chapter 6, + present talked about real possibilities. For something imaginary or unlikely, use + congiuntivo imperfetto, and the conditional in the other half: (If you cycled to work, you'd get some exercise).
(If I were you) is the classic way to give advice: (If I were you, I'd have two; the conditional of is ). Never use the conditional after : say , not se avrei tempo.
- Se avessi più tempo, farei sport.If I had more time, I'd do some exercise.
- Se fossi in te, andrei dal medico.If I were you, I'd go to the doctor.
- Se dormissi di più, staresti meglio.If you slept more, you'd feel better.
More in the grammar: If-clauses: se + present, se + congiuntivo imperfetto · The conditional: would and would have · The congiuntivo: the Italian subjunctive
New words
- muoversito move, to get moving · …; congiuntivo:
- bastait's enough; that's enough · = half an hour is enough; = Stop it!
- mezz'orahalf an hour · feminine; = hour
- la bicibike · feminine; short for ; the same in the plural; = by bike
- il chilometrokilometre · masculine; … = three kilometres from…
- senzawithout · = without wasting time
- la pioggiarain · feminine; = to rain
- il paninosandwich, filled roll · masculine
- veroreal, proper; true · = a proper break
- al massimoat most
- bisognayou need to, it's necessary · never changes: ;
- Ci provo.I'll try. / I'll give it a go. · from (to try)
- ascoltareto listen to · no word for “to”:
- la vitalife · feminine
Practise
1.Complete: “È importante che tu ___ di più.” (sleep)
2.Complete with the congiuntivo imperfetto of .
If I were you, I'd go to the doctor.
3.Complete with the conditional of (tu).
If you cycled to work, you'd get some exercise.
4.Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.You need to drink plenty of water.
5.Which sentence is correct?
6.Match the Italian with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
Se fossi in te, andrei dal medico.
If I were you, I'd go to the doctor.
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.