{"id":13274,"date":"2017-01-20T11:04:43","date_gmt":"2017-01-20T10:04:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/?p=13274"},"modified":"2017-01-20T11:04:43","modified_gmt":"2017-01-20T10:04:43","slug":"la-gatta-ha-scoreggiato","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/la-gatta-ha-scoreggiato\/","title":{"rendered":"La Gatta Ha Scoreggiato!!!"},"content":{"rendered":"

We were sitting in front of the computer, trying to find inspiration for the last blog of the week. We’d thought of translating a song by Fiorella Mannoia, but the lyrics turned out to be so abstract and metaphorical that it soon became evident that il gioco non valeva la candela<\/b> (it wasn’t worth it).<\/span><\/p>\n

And then suddenly … the cat farted!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Bella, she looks so innocent, doesn’t she!<\/em><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

Eureka … grazie Bella la gatta per l’ispirazione!<\/b> (thanks for the inspiration Bella the cat!)… cough cough … pheeewie …<\/p>\n

So, change of plan dear readers, Bella may have just saved us from struggling to translate the untranslatable … and you from making an embarrassing mistake.<\/p>\n

A mistake, you say … how’s that?<\/p>\n

Well, take a look at these two verbs:<\/p>\n

score<\/em>ggiare<\/b> = to fart
\nscora<\/em>ggiare<\/b> = to discourage<\/p>\n

See the problem?<\/p>\n

Change one little vowel and you could find yourself red faced, as once happened to a student of Italian who told one of their classmates, in front of the whole class “non ti voglio scoreggiare!”<\/b> (I don’t want to fart on you!). Yes, there was much mirth in the classroom that day!<\/p>\n

What they meant, of course was “non ti voglio scoraggiare” <\/b>(I don’t want to discourage you).<\/p>\n

So … how are you going to remember, in the heat of the moment, which is correct? Here’s my tried and tested tip: start from the word cor<\/b>a<\/b><\/span>ggio<\/b> (courage). Notice how even in English it uses the letter ‘a’<\/span>: coura<\/span>ge.<\/p>\n

From the noun cor<\/b>a<\/b><\/span>ggio<\/b> we have the verb incor<\/b>a<\/b><\/span>ggiare<\/b> (to encoura<\/span>ge). Now remember that many Latin word that begin with the prefix dis-<\/i> in English use the prefix s-<\/i> in Italian, e.g. piegare<\/b> (fold) spiegare<\/b> (unfold, also explain). Hence, incor<\/b>a<\/b><\/span>ggiare<\/b> (to encoura<\/span>ge) becomes s<\/b><\/span>coraggi<\/b>a<\/b><\/span>re<\/b> (to dis<\/span>coura<\/span>ge).<\/p>\n

The moral is, don’t hesitate to hesitate. Take that extra second to think about what you’re going to say and abbiate cor<\/b>a<\/b><\/span>ggio!<\/b> (have coura<\/span>ge!)<\/p>\n

Oh yes, that song. Well if you’re really interested, here it is.<\/p>\n