Italian Gone Sexy (IGS)

Lezione 12-'I like'

Ciao a tutti! That means: hey everyone! Ti ricordi, vero? You remember, right?

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I'm now going to teach you a very important expression in Italian: Mi piace.

Mi piace=I like in English.

It has the same function as Me gusta in Spanish, therefore the subject who 'does' the liking isn't you as in 'I like' but the thing that you like.

Sound confusing? Don't worry, just follow these examples ;):

Mi piace il cioccolato. I like chocolate. (Lit: To me likes chocolate/Chocolate likes to me).

Il cioccolato is the subject in Italian, and you can use it to start a sentence with mi piace, too:

Il cioccolato mi piace. I like chocolate.

When you state a general noun, like food, you must add the article, so Mi piace il cioccolato, NOT mi piace cioccolato.

Mi piace la pizza. I like pizza.

OR

La pizza mi piace.

Remember ONE thing, however: there is a slight distinction between the two forms of stating you like something. For example, Mi piace il cioccolato and Il cioccolato mi piace. Generally, there aren't really any rules regarding their usage, however you usually use the latter form when what you like has already been discussed and you want to emphasize that as for yourself, you like it/you don't like it.

Example: A: Il cioccolato non e' buono (Chocolate isn't tasty).

B: Il cioccolato mi piace! (As for me, however, I actually like chocolate!)

BUT:

B: Mi piace il cioccolato!

A: Il cioccolato non e' buono.

Think you got it? PM me if you think you may need some help.

Mi piace l'insegnante. I like the teacher.

OR

L'insegnante mi piace.

*You can use it for a variety of topics, such as sports:

Mi piace il calcio (CAL-choh). I like football.

OR

Il calcio mi piace Use this for all of the following forms if you want ;)

Mi piace il tennis. I like tennis.

Mi piace l'hockey. I like hockey.

*And, of course, people you've just met:

Lui mi piace! I like him! (Lit: He likes to me)

Lei mi piace! I like her (Lit: She likes to me)

*If you want to say that you don't like something, just add non in front of mi piace:

Non mi piace il cioccolato. I don't like chocolate.

OR

Il cioccolato non mi piace. As with the following esempi (examples).

Non mi piace l'insegnante. I don't like the teacher.

Lui non mi piace. I don't like him (Lit: He not to me likes)

Lei non mi piace. I don't like her (Lit: She not to me likes).

*You can still take away the subject when it is already clear who is being talked about:

EX: Did you speak to that boy? Yes, I like him!

Hai parlato con quel ragazzo? Sì, mi piace!

Or to answer negatively, simply add non (not)- Hai parlato con quel ragazzo? Sì, ma non mi piace. (Did you speak to that boy? Yes, but I don't like him).

Certamente, this is only used for singular nouns.

In Spanish, when you want to say you like more than one thing, you say: Me gustan. In Italian it works the same way, but you say: Mi piacciono.

Esempi: Mi piacciono i gatti-I like cats OR I gatti mi piacciono.

Mi piacciono i biscotti-I like biscuits OR I biscotti mi piacciono.

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*Another simple thing you should know is how to express liking actions.

EX: I like reading/to read.

In Italian, just use the formula mi piace + infinitive verb (leggere, ballare etc.)

EX:

Mi piace leggere. I like reading.

OR

Leggere mi piace.

Mi piace mangiare. I like eating.

OR

Mangiare mi piace.

Mi piace ballare. I like dancing.

OR

Ballare mi piace.

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Finally, if you wish to state you like doing more than just one action, you simply say Mi piace and therefore you DON'T use Mi piacciono.

Es.: Cosa ti piace fare? (What do you like doing?) Mi piace leggere e ballare. NOT Mi piacciono leggere e ballare.

OK! Very simple lesson, especially if you are a native Spanish speaker or are learning Spanish.

Alla prossima! (See you next time!)