{"id":15691,"date":"2018-02-26T13:18:33","date_gmt":"2018-02-26T12:18:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/?p=15691"},"modified":"2018-03-19T10:05:06","modified_gmt":"2018-03-19T09:05:06","slug":"qualche-problema","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/qualche-problema\/","title":{"rendered":"Qualche Problema"},"content":{"rendered":"

Indefinite adjectives are used to indicate an undefined number or quality of things or persons. They’re mostly straightforward, but there’s an important exception that can easily trip you up.<\/span><\/p>\n

Probably the most frequently used aggettivo indefinito<\/strong> (indefinite adjective) is qualche<\/strong>, which means ‘some’, ‘any’, or ‘a few’. The confusing thing about qualche<\/strong> is that although it expresses the idea of plurality, it’s always used in the singular. So, what does that actually mean in practice? Let’s look at a few examples:<\/p>\n

\"Serena<\/a>

A qualche persona piacerebbe molto abitare vicino al mare.<\/strong> Some people would really like to live near the sea. Photo of Serena by Geoff<\/em><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

The very strong wind has knocked down some trees<\/span>
\nIl vento fortissimo ha abbattuto qualche albero<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

We went to the Naval Museum a few weeks<\/span> ago
\nSiamo andati al Museo Navale qualche settimana<\/span> fa<\/strong><\/p>\n

Are there any nice places<\/span> to visit near Parma?
\nC’\u00e8 qualche bel posto<\/span> da visitare vicino a Parma?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Unfortunately there have been a few problems<\/span> with the documents
\nPurtroppo c’\u00e8 stato qualche problema<\/span> coi documenti<\/strong><\/p>\n

As you can see from the examples above, sentences using qualche<\/strong> are always constructed in the singular<\/span>. So whereas in English\u00a0we say ‘Are there any nice places …’, in Italian we say ‘C’\u00e8 qualche bel posto …’<\/strong> which, if you translate it literally, means ‘Is there any nice place’. Yes, it sounds strange and illogical, and will definitely cause you some uncertainty and confusion until you get used to it.<\/p>\n

Another common indefinite article, which can be interchangeable with qualche<\/strong>, is alcuni\/alcune<\/strong>, which, you’ll be glad to hear, closely resembles its English counterpart in that it is only used in its plural form (apart from in negative constructions – see below<\/em>). Here are the same example sentences from above, but this time using alcuni\/e<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

The very strong wind has knocked down some trees<\/span>
\nIl vento fortissimo ha abbattuto alcuni alberi<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

We went to the Naval Museum a few weeks<\/span> ago
\nSiamo andati al Museo Navale alcune settimane<\/span> fa<\/strong><\/p>\n

Are there any nice places<\/span> to visit near Parma?
\nCi sono alcuni bei posti<\/span> da visitare vicino a Parma?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Unfortunately there have been a few problems<\/span> with the documents
\nPurtroppo ci sono stati alcuni problemi<\/span> coi documenti<\/strong><\/p>\n

As you can see from the examples above, sentences using alcuni\/e<\/strong> are always constructed in the plural.<\/p>\n

N.B. alcun\/alcuno\/alcuna<\/strong> (the singular forms of alcuni\/alcune<\/strong>) are only used in negative sentences. As with qualche<\/strong>, they are also followed by the singular. For example:<\/p>\n

I don’t know any good restaurants near here
\nNon conosco alcun buon ristorante qui vicino<\/strong><\/p>\n

I didn’t buy any plants on the market
\nNon ho comprato alcuna pianta al mercato<\/strong><\/p>\n

However, in colloquial Italian it’s far more common to use nessun\/nessuno\/nessuna <\/strong>(lit. nobody or nothing), For example:<\/p>\n

I don’t know any good restaurants near here
\nNon conosco nessun buon ristorante qui vicino<\/strong><\/p>\n

You may also find the following blog useful: How to say Any in Italian<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

Indefinite adjectives are used to indicate an undefined number or quality of things or persons. They’re mostly straightforward, but there’s an important exception that can easily trip you up. Probably the most frequently used aggettivo indefinito (indefinite adjective) is qualche, which means ‘some’, ‘any’, or ‘a few’. The confusing thing about qualche is that although…<\/p>\n

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