Italian · CEFR Band 1 (A1) · Chapter 30
Cosa vuoi fare?What do you want to do?
The three modals finally step into the open: volere (voglio!), potere (posso?), dovere (devo…). Chapter 20's vorrei and chapter 25's deve were them in disguise. The golden rule: modal + BARE infinitive — voglio andare, not «voglio vado». With the modals come invitations (Andiamo al cinema? Perché non vieni?) — the exact CILS written-production format: a message to a friend with day, time and place. And P7 teaches elision: why Italian sounds like a river, not like words in a row.
Dialogue
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Andiamo al cinema?— Shall we go to the movies?
- GiuliaMike, stasera c'è un film italiano al cinema. Vuoi venire?Mike, tonight there's an Italian film at the movie theater. Do you want to come?
- MikeSì! Voglio andare al cinema — e dopo voglio mangiare una pizza!Yes! I want to go to the movies — and afterwards I want to eat a pizza!
- GiuliaPerfetto! Il film è alle otto.Perfect! The film is at eight.
- MikeMa non posso venire alle otto: devo studiare. Possiamo andare alle nove?But I can't come at eight: I have to study. Can we go at nine?
- GiuliaSì, possiamo: c'è anche il film delle nove!Yes, we can: there's a nine o'clock showing too!
Dialogue
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Il messaggio— The message
- MarcoGiulia, scrivo a Mike: «Ciao! Sabato vogliamo andare al mare. Vuoi venire con noi? Alle dieci, alla stazione».Giulia, I'm writing to Mike: «Hi! On Saturday we want to go to the seaside. Do you want to come with us? At ten, at the station».
- GiuliaPerfetto! E aggiungi: «Se non puoi venire alle dieci, possiamo aspettare». Gentile e chiaro.Perfect! And add: «If you can't come at ten, we can wait». Kind and clear.
- MarcoE Mike scrive: «Grazie! Non devo studiare sabato. Vorrei venire — anzi: VOGLIO venire!»And Mike writes: «Thanks! I don't have to study on Saturday. I would like to come — no wait: I WANT to come!»
- GiuliaPerché non invitiamo anche Anna? Più siamo, meglio è!Why don't we invite Anna too? The more we are, the better!
Vocabulary
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- volere
verbto want (voglio, vuoi, vuole, vogliamo, volete, vogliono — vorrei is its polite conditional, chapter 20 unmasked)
- potere
verbcan, to be able to (posso, puoi, può, possiamo, potete, possono — «può lavorare» and «puoi prenotare» are attested CILS lines)
- dovere
verbmust, to have to (devo, devi, deve, dobbiamo, dovete, devono — chapter 25's directions-deve now has its whole family)
- venire
verbto come (vengo, vieni, viene — irregular; vuoi venire? is the invitation's heart; full paradigm in Band 2)
- invitare
verbto invite (regular -are: invito, inviti — perché non invitiamo Anna?)
- aspettare
verbto wait (for) — no preposition, like ascoltare: aspetto l'autobus
- stasera
adverbtonight, this evening (sta- «this» + sera; sibling stamattina «this morning»)
- insieme
adverbtogether (andiamo insieme! — the invitation's favorite word)
- perché non…?
phrasewhy don't…? (the soft invitation: Perché non vieni con noi? — perché's second job, chapter 38 brings the third)
- dopo
adverbafterwards, later
- scrivere
verbto write (scrivo a Mike = I'm writing to Mike)
- aggiungere
verbto add
Grammar
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Volere, potere, dovere — one engine, one infinitive
Explanation
The three modals cover wish, possibility and obligation: VOLERE — voglio, vuoi, vuole, vogliamo, volete, vogliono; POTERE — posso, puoi, può, possiamo, potete, possono; DOVERE — devo, devi, deve, dobbiamo, dovete, devono. All three irregular, all three with the same syntax: conjugated modal + BARE infinitive, no preposition — voglio andare, posso venire, devo studiare. One engine per sentence: the modal conjugates, the second verb stays as the dictionary shows it. If your language chains two conjugated verbs or inserts a particle between them, the reflex «voglio vado» is the classic error — the test: does the second verb end in -are/-ere/-ire? Good. Anything else? Repair it. The negative goes on the modal: non posso venire. And old friends unmask: vorrei = volere in its polite version (ask at the bar), deve andare = the dovere of directions. To invite: Vuoi venire? Andiamo…? Perché non…? — with day, time and place, and you already have the exam's message.
Examples
- Voglio andare al mare, ma devo lavorare.I want to go to the seaside, but I have to work.
- Posso pagare con la carta? Certo!Can I pay by card? Of course!
- Vuoi venire con noi sabato alle dieci, alla stazione?Do you want to come with us on Saturday at ten, at the station?
- Non possiamo venire stasera: dobbiamo stare a casa.We can't come tonight: we have to stay home.
Grammar
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P7 — Italian is a river: elision and linking
Explanation
You have already used elision a hundred times without its name: l'amica, un'ora, dov'è, c'è. The rule: when two vowels touch between words, the first often falls and the apostrophe marks the spot — la + amica → l'amica. It happens with articles (lo/la → l', una → un'), with di (d'Italia), with come and dove (com'è, dov'è). Elision's cousin is troncamento: buono → buon giorno, bello → bel tempo, grande → gran — the word shortens before another, no apostrophe. Why all this? Because Italian is spoken in BREATH GROUPS, not word by word: «mi-fa-male-la-testa» is one wave, «vuoi-venire-con-noi» another. Reading each word separately sounds robotic; the linking is half the accent. The practical tip: read the chapter's sentences aloud like a river — where you hear two vowels collide between words, that is where Italian writes the apostrophe.
Examples
- la amica → l'amica · una ora → un'ora · dove è → dov'èthe friend · one hour · where is
- buono → buon giorno · bello → che bel tempo!good → good morning · beautiful → what lovely weather!
- Vuoi venire con noi?Do you want to come with us?
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