Italian expression of the day: 'Di solito'
Here's a phrase Italian language beginners usually overlook.
When we want to say "usually" in Italian, it is easiest to reach for the adverb usualmente - which helpfully sounds very similar.
We have an easy time recognising the meaning of Italian (regular) adverbs which simply have the Italian -mente suffix tacked on instead of the English -ly.
While there are plenty of Italian false friends to beware of, usualmente is one that means what it seems to.
But it's a shame to keep using that one word when Italian has at least half a dozen others, including normalmente, comunemente, ordinariamente, tradizionalmente, and abitualmente.
And one slightly different phrase you'll hear used often in spoken Italian is di solito (pronounced 'di-SOL-i-toh').
It too is an adverb, and it means the same thing as usualmente: usually, or ordinarily.
- Di solito rientro a casa verso le sei.
- I usually get home at about six o’clock
- Il parco, di solito, è pieno di famiglie.
- The park is usually full of families.
You can use the similar adverb solitamente in much the same way.
- Le immagine solitamente sono di bassa qualità
- The photos are usually of poor quality
- Non bevo molto vino solitamente.
- I don't usually drink much wine
Both come from the word solito, meaning "usual":
- vediamoci domani alla solita ora
- See you tomorrow at the usual time
Solito comes from the Latin verb soleo, meaning "to have the habit of ". But unlike with the other (also Latin-derived) synonyms above, this one hasn't made the journey across into English.
It's also how you'll ask for your "usual" at the coffee bar once you've become a regular.
- il solito per favore
- the usual please
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When we want to say "usually" in Italian, it is easiest to reach for the adverb usualmente - which helpfully sounds very similar.
We have an easy time recognising the meaning of Italian (regular) adverbs which simply have the Italian -mente suffix tacked on instead of the English -ly.
While there are plenty of Italian false friends to beware of, usualmente is one that means what it seems to.
But it's a shame to keep using that one word when Italian has at least half a dozen others, including normalmente, comunemente, ordinariamente, tradizionalmente, and abitualmente.
And one slightly different phrase you'll hear used often in spoken Italian is di solito (pronounced 'di-SOL-i-toh').
It too is an adverb, and it means the same thing as usualmente: usually, or ordinarily.
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