For the past seven years I have managed to avoid private lessons. My self-taught Italian has fared me well when ordering wine, grappa and pizza, but even a Black Sheep (Pecora Nera) such as I, realises that I need to try to learn more than the 20 words and 3 phrases that are currently in my vocabulary.
Last night I completed my first Italian lesson with a real live tutor.My tutor has excellent qualifications and experience to tutor me. During the day she teaches the Italian language to 7 to 10 year olds at a primary school and is therefore qualified enough to teach to my standard and level of intelligence. Obviously I checked her credentials and found that she has the patience of a saint and to date she hasn’t gaffa taped any of her pupils to the chair when they misbehaved.
The English help students to articulate correctly by teaching them tongue twisters, these are little rhymes that become increasingly more difficult to say as the volume of alcohol is increased. You didn’t know this famous English drinking game?
Here is an example of a typical English tongue twister
Pecora Nera picked a peck of pickled peppers;
A peck of pickled peppers Pecora Nera picked;
If Pecora Nera picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where’s the peck of pickled peppers Pecora Nera picked?
The Italians have gone one better, they have included a tongue twister as part of their daily language, it is a word that I am going to try my best to avoid. What is this fabulous word I hear you cry.
It is non other than Gli
Here is a clip I found of a young boy pronouncing gli
As you can see It is not difficult, unless of course you are an Englishman, here is my pitiful attempt.
Many many thanks to my wonderful tutor….
God,this is funny!!! She needs to tell you to try saying the Olde Worlde English word, Ye, with an L in front of it. Good luck PN. Sxx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Sally,
She was very patient, in the recording you can hear her bang her pen on the table, in frustration..
LikeLiked by 3 people
Sally, that makes a lot of sense… I will surprise her on Friday….
LikeLiked by 1 person
Remember to record that lesson too 🙂
LikeLike
I recorded the lesson, so I could listen to it later, I only uploaded that segment in a moment of madness.
If she threatens to gaffer tape me to the wall you will hear about it
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s pretty close, Sally. By George, he’ll get it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
leeeee, liiieeeee, geeeee, nnnhhhhlllleeeeEEE
LikeLiked by 1 person
lol. Oh glee ! Her Italian is very good eenglees 😀
LikeLiked by 2 people
She is fab, she was trying her best not not to laugh
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’d pronounce it Lyee and be done with it. Close enough.
She’ll be hitting the grappa before the next lesson… Is there a next lesson…?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Next lesson is on Friday at 5pm. She is used to dealing with 7 year old kids, so I shouldn’t be a problem.
However if she hits the grappa or the valium, I will give her some time off.
LikeLiked by 2 people
so funny. i’ve been learning spanish from the teacher who comes into my kindergarten classroom for the last 12 years and i still am behind the children each year.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hi Beth
I know the feeling, I can see Mrs S look at me when a 4 year old has a better grasp of the language that I do.
But it is a nightmare of a language, if you listen to Italians during everyday conversation you will often hear “scusi non capisco” (I don’t understand)
They will then explain what they are trying to say. I mean, good grief, if the Italians don’t understand each other what chance have I got!!!!!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Ha ha ha! Maybe your tongue just wasn’t meant to do certain things 😉 She has a great laugh – I’m sure I’ll be hearing plenty more of it! 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
Certainly not linguistic acrobatics, how am I supposed to glue my tongue to the roof of my mouth and say gli or was it lee or glee
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m doing it right now 😉
LikeLiked by 2 people
Oh, dio! Please give us more recordings of the lessons. What colour is her hair, now??? As compared to a few weeks from now, and a few more lessons.
LikeLike
I have an hour and a half of recordings as I stumbled through the days of the week and how to say yellow and lots of other manic moments,
LikeLiked by 1 person
First of all, I love your tongue twist with the personalized Pecora Nera addition!
I also feel your pain as an American who tried to learn the “gli” sound … I can’t say that I’ve nailed it but I kind of fake it til I make it! Perhaps I should teach the “gli” sound to my train mates this morning?
Your recording is fabulous by the way!
LikeLike
Hi Lia,
All thanks go to my wonderful tutor, she spent 4 mins trying to teach me one word!!!! And she made me an espresso. Very talented and patient lady
LikeLiked by 2 people
She sounds like a great tutor and oh, espresso too:)
LikeLike
She gave me HOMEWORK !!!! I think she is taking this a bit to serious for my liking. Where will it stop? Detention or running around the garden in I don’t hand in my homework or if I try to eat sweets during lesson time.
LikeLike
How on earth do you think you will learn if you don’t have homework?
One of my classmates is complaining about how much we got last week (they are probably all grumbling) Ah, well, no pain, no gain as is often said.
LikeLike
🙂
I didn’t expect homework
LikeLike
Oh, you silly man. But then it has probably been a while since you were last in school. I’m slogging through my homework….I only have 3.5 hours till I have to leave for class! Yikes! And here I am pausing to check my email!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hilarious! That “gli” combo is a killer for sure!
LikeLike
Tony, it nearly killed me, she kept saying no, its like this. It all sounded the same to me
LikeLike
Hahahaha … seems to me that when you told her your tongue can do many things but not “that”, she quickly changed subjects before you tried to show her exactly what it can do …
LikeLiked by 3 people
A Freudian slip, I was obviously thinking of sticking stamps onto letters, and being able to twist my tongue around thank you and think, TH being difficult for Italians
LikeLike
Hahahaha – that’s like my gli lesson!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And oh my goodness, it get’s worse glielo…. ARGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Anyway, I sympathise. Keep going! x
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am pretty close in my ability/attempt to pronounce “gli”…. Believe me, it has to do with the position of the tongue and it’s hard to explain in writing. When you say “li” the tip of your tongue is pressing against the back of your teeth. To say “gli” your tongue is pressing the roof of your mouth. And my teacher also said to try saying “yee” when you see ” gli” and you will get it eventually.
I just want someone to teach me how to roll my “r’s”!
LikeLike
Even if I manage “gli” I will never manage rolling my “r’s” it is just not going to happen.
LikeLike
I’m afraid I’ll never roll mine either. They will always be able to tell I was not born in Italy.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Maybe some of us in the US could ship you some peanut butter to help stick your tongue to the roof of your mouth???
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes please, I will send you my address. smooth peanut butter please
LikeLiked by 1 person
Any particular brand preference? You know it will probably cost more for me to mail it than those outrageous prices they charge for it there (I know it can be found).
LikeLike
Erm!! glllliiiiiieeeee
LikeLike
Oh dear Lord. You poor man and all that Italian being beat into you. I could hardly understand the video. The acoustics are terrible or maybe I just don’t get it. Will you be needing prayers or more wine as you learn from a true Italian?
LikeLike
Isn’t is clear?? It was when I tested it. I will have another listen to it. I think I need all the help I can get, wine, prayer, grappa
LikeLiked by 1 person
Matbe the video was bad because of my computer or I just have trouble understanding “foreign words.” The woman’s voice sounded mufflked and as if she were speaking in a room with very poor acoustics. ANyhow it matters not if I hear it or not. It matters only if the videos about language will help you learn what is needed. I’ll offer up some prayers for you and just maybe prayers will help you get a good grasp of Italian which has been eluding you for years. 🙂
LikeLike
Noooo click on the video below, the one with my advatar, it is a sound recording I took during my lesson
LikeLiked by 1 person
Okay will go back to find it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
My thoughts are still “oh my Lord.” Must the dang word gli, be perfect. I am much like you. I can not get most Spanish words correct. Just can’t twist my tongue or I simple do not get it. I wish you luck. Would it not be simpler if your wife spoke simple words to you at dinner time and you could learn a bit at a time?
LikeLiked by 1 person
😀 😀
I think wine is the answer – or if it was already involved, then MORE wine is the answer!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I was as good boy, not a drop passed my lips. Friday may be a different matter
LikeLike
Hopefully you will share the resulting recording with us… 🙂
LikeLike
Mmmm, I will have to have a think about it. I might develop an inferiority complex if you start laughing at me 😉
LikeLike
No, no, we’re not laughing at you, of course…just sympathising. I think. 🙂
LikeLike
🙂 🙂 🙂
LikeLike
At half and hour per word, the girl’s going to earn a mint! Thanks for the great laugh. Thuuuursday. Now that I know it’s a hard word for Italians, i’ll try to slip it into the conversation a bit more the next time I meet one.
LikeLiked by 1 person
They don’t have the TH sound, Italians tend to say tank you and tree instead of three. gli is just about impossible for me
LikeLiked by 1 person
Just cough every time you come across it. The French have problems with “th” too – it comes out as a “z” or and “f”. I have great fun drilling them in “Three Free Trees”. Give it a try, it will give you hours of fun. 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ahh ha, I think I will get a T shirt printed with it on
LikeLiked by 1 person
Or you can make it a ecological stand and put ‘Free Three Trees on Thursday!”
LikeLiked by 1 person
I will have some fun with my students next weel
LikeLiked by 1 person
I still struggle with this sound too…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Impossible! I try to avoid masculine plurals at all costs otherwise I sound like I have marbles in my mouth.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Haha! This is funny! I’m learning Italian (badly) and this is one sound that is not happening! Glad I’m not the only one!
LikeLiked by 1 person
If I can give you a piece of friendly advice…. give it up.
For seven years I have tried to master this Language and to be honest I would probably have had more luck learning the Xhosa language of Southern Africa which is made up of clicks and whistles
LikeLiked by 1 person
I enjoyed this, reminded me when my Dad was trying his best to teach me to say the word foot in Spanish which is pie, I was only able to say it correctly once then.
LikeLike
Some people find learning a language easy, I am not one of them
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s like you said if I read correctly about gluing your tongue to the roof of your mouth.Some words are just difficult.
LikeLike