Italian · CEFR Band 1 (A1) · Chapter 13
C'è un bar qui vicino?Is there a bar nearby?
Two little words open the city: c'è («there is, it exists») and ci sono (its plural). C'è un bar qui vicino? Ci sono due banche. The CILS exam question is literally this — «C'è un supermercato qui vicino?» — and from today it is yours. Mind the difference: è tells how or where a thing you already know is; c'è announces that a thing EXISTS. With them come the city words: il bar, il ristorante, il negozio, il supermercato, la farmacia, la banca — and the pair qui/vicino.
Dialogue
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C'è un bar qui vicino?— Is there a bar nearby?
- MikeGiulia… c'è un bar qui vicino?Giulia… is there a bar nearby?
- GiuliaSì! C'è il bar di Marco — e ci sono due ristoranti e una farmacia.Yes! There's Marco's bar — and there are two restaurants and a pharmacy.
- MikeE un museo? C'è un museo qui vicino?And a museum? Is there a museum nearby?
- GiuliaNo, non c'è. C'è un supermercato!No, there isn't. There's a supermarket!
Dialogue
i
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Il giro del quartiere— The neighborhood tour
- MarcoGiulia, qui c'è la farmacia — e vicino ci sono due banche.Giulia, here's the pharmacy — and nearby there are two banks.
- GiuliaE c'è un supermercato?And is there a supermarket?
- MarcoSì, c'è — è qui vicino. Ma non c'è un museo!Yes, there is — it's nearby. But there is NO museum!
- GiuliaNon c'è un museo, ma c'è il bar di Marco: il museo del cappuccino!There's no museum, but there is Marco's bar: the cappuccino museum!
Vocabulary
i
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- c'è
phrasethere is (ci + è squeezed — announces that something exists)
- ci sono
phrasethere are (the plural of c'è)
- il bar
n.m.the bar, café (borrowed word — never changes: i bar)
- il ristorante
n.m.the restaurant (-e noun: i ristoranti)
- il negozio
n.m.the shop, store
- il supermercato
n.m.the supermarket (the CILS listening word)
- la farmacia
n.f.the pharmacy
- la banca
n.f.the bank (plural le banche — an h sneaks in to keep the hard c, chapter 4's shield again)
- vicino
adverbnear, nearby (qui vicino = right around here)
- il museo
n.m.the museum
Grammar
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C'è and ci sono — announcing the world
Explanation
To say that something exists or is found somewhere, Italian has a dedicated pair: c'è + singular (C'è un bar), ci sono + plural (Ci sono due banche). The difference from è: use è to talk about a thing you already know (Il bar è piccolo. Dov'è il bar?); use c'è to ANNOUNCE it (C'è un bar qui vicino — «it exists, and it is here»). Many languages cover both jobs with a single verb, which is why the trap is invisible: if you are introducing something new, you need c'è. Negation is clean: non c'è, non ci sono (Non c'è un museo). And the question stays identical to the statement — only the voice rises: C'è un supermercato qui vicino? That is, word for word, the CILS A1 exam question. With qui and vicino you close the circle: Qui c'è la farmacia. Il supermercato è qui vicino.
Examples
- C'è un bar. Ci sono due banche.There's a bar. There are two banks.
- Il bar è piccolo. C'è un bar qui vicino.The bar is small. There's a bar nearby.
- Non c'è un museo. Non ci sono treni.There isn't a museum. There are no trains.
- C'è un supermercato qui vicino?Is there a supermarket nearby?
- C'è un bar qui vicino?Is there a bar nearby?
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