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Italian Word of The Day Supported by: Fluente logo For Members

Italian word of the day: 'Intrattenersi'

Clare Speak
Clare Speak - [email protected]
Italian word of the day: 'Intrattenersi'
Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond

Keep yourself entertained for a minute by learning how to use this Italian word.

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Italians are famous for finding leisurely ways to pass the time – whether that’s a three-hour Sunday lunch or an afternoon of people-watching on the piazza. However you spend it, free time is an important topic here.

So if you’ve got a moment to spare, let’s talk about keeping ourselves entertained in Italian.

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We can say:

Per far passare il tempo

To pass the time

Or alternatively, we can use the verb intrattenersi – to be entertained.

For beginners, this is a fairly easy way to up your Italian game with an impressive bit of grammar while still talking about a simple subject.

For example:

La gente vede i film per intrattenersi, questo è quanto.

People watch films to be entertained, that’s all.

This is the intransitive reflexive version of the verb intrattenere (to entertain). Don’t click away in horror just yet - that basically just means we add a different ending to the verb depending on who we’re speaking to or about, and it's a common construction that you'll see time and time again in Italian.

Intrattenermi means ‘to entertain myself.’

Intrattenerti means ‘to entertain yourself’

And so on. For example:

Devo trovare altri modi per intrattenermi.

I have to find other ways to entertain myself.

Cosa fai per intrattenerti tutto il giorno?

What do you do to keep yourself entertained all day?

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As well as entertaining yourself, in Italian you can also ‘entertain’ a conversation or even a relationship.

Intrattenere una conversazione 

To hold a conversation

Intrattenere buoni rapporti con qualcuno 

To maintain a good relationship or rapport with somebody

Whatever level your Italian is at, we’re sure you’ll agree that learning a new language is a great way to keep yourself occupied.

Do you have a favourite Italian word, phrase or expression you'd like us to feature? If so, please email us with your suggestion.

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