Now that you know that even the most advanced students of the Italian language need some vocabulary enrichment, I have a question for you....
When dealing with advanced Italian vocabulary I always wonder what is the definition that my students give of it. Is advanced vocabulary a specific terminology? Or maybe it corresponds to some sophisticated and stately (maybe old-fashioned) words?
I'll tell you what it means to me. To me, advanced vocabulary is that which gives you more communicative strategies in terms of quantity, but also that which allows you to come as close as possible to the language spoken by native Italian speakers.
There are some categories of advanced vocabulary that are part of those communicative strategies that a student with an average level of Italian does not usually practice. Identifying and beginning to study these vocabulary categories is what really helps to move from good Italian to excellent Italian.
Below, I will list seven Italian vocabulary categories that advanced students should know!
Do not worry too much about the breakdown of these categories as many of these Italian expressions fall into one or more of the categories and, generally speaking, they are all idioms.
This is the largest category of this list and that is because Italians love using them! I find that the easiest way to start learning this vocabulary is to further break it down into sub-categories such as parts of the body, animals, food, and clothing.
Yes, Italian has phrasal verbs. They are formed by combining verbs and adverbs (such as Giù, Su, Avanti, Via, etc.) Although this topic is briefly covered for learners, it is used everyday by native speakers of Italian. Good news is that phrasal verbs are easier to master compared to pronominal verbs.
These are expressions containing nouns and verbs that, when put together, mean something very different from their respective definitions. This can lead to phrasal verbs being a confusing topic.
I believe that the best way to understand this topic is to look at an example. Andare nel pallone, as you know means ‘to go and enter the ball’; however, when Italians use this phrase it is meant as ‘to be confused’ or ‘to be stuck on something’. Some common verbs used in locuzioni verbali: dare, fare, and andare.
You are probably wondering what is the difference between this category (locuzioni verbali) and the previous category (verbi sintagmatici). Verbi sintagmatici are formed by a verb plus an adverb, while locuzioni verbali are all the other forms of phrasal verbs.
Same story, but now with adverbs. The Italian language is rich with adverbial phrases. Although these phrases may contain zero adverbs, when put together they act as an adverb. Think of “alla svelta” - ”quickly” or “per niente” - “at all”.
If you want to boost your vocabulary and sound like a native speaker, you should have some fun through the use of proverbs and cliches.
If your goal is to fully understand what a native Italian speaker is saying, you should probably add some bad words to your vocabulary. They are idioms after all!
