Hello students around the world is welcome to this new article!
How are you doing? I am very well! If any of my students are reading this article you will already know, for 6 months I have a new job, I used to work more with italki and with a family where I helped their children with disabilities to build an independent living project.
I loved my two jobs but it was hard for me to run from one side to the other and to reconcile everything with my studies; yes because in the meantime I was attending university and graduated in 2021 with a degree in science for investigation and security.
My two jobs gratified me so much and I believed that no other job in life would gratify me so much, until one day I got the phone call of a lifetime: a position in the corporate administration of my family's company, with security duties: how to say no? At first I didn't feel able, there were so many things to do and learn and every day I made so many mistakes, but then as the days and weeks went by, I got better and better at it until today I have so many responsibilities.
But the word responsibility for me hides an even better word: gratification. And so today I want to teach you how to compliment in Italian and then I will tell you some ways to say thank you and you're welcome.
Expressions for COMPLIMENTARY in Italian.
What unites a promotion at work, a college degree, a wedding, a pretty girl? The need to compliment each other! And here are some ways to do it:
1. If you want to congratulate someone on their achievements or because they have done a job very well, you can use short, simple formulas such as:
VERY GOOD = BRAVISSIMO/A! (referred to a person not to the action)
THAT GOOD!= CHE BRAVO! (Same as previous)
EXCELLENT WORK! = OTTIMO LAVORO!
Perhaps, if you want to encourage him for the future, you could add other expressions to these formulas such as:
CONTINUE THAT! = CONTINUA COSÌ
YOU ARE REALLY ON THE BALL!= SEI DAVVERO IN GAMBA
The person will feel motivated and do even better next time!
2. To compliment someone in specific circumstances such as weddings, graduations, promotions at work, or other such events, you can instead use slightly more formal phrases and formulas such as:
BEST WISHES! = AUGURI!
CONGRATULATIONS!= COMPLIMENTI!
CONGRATULATIONS!= CONGRATULAZIONI!
CONGRATULATIONS!= FELICITAZIONI!
Possibly, to these you can also add small phrases such as:
CONGRATULATIONS ON THE HAPPY EVENT!= COMPLIMENTI PER IL LIETO EVENTO
CONGRATULATIONS ON THE MILESTONE ACHIEVEMENT!= FELICITAZIONI PER IL TRAGUARDO RAGGIUNTO!
CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE EARNED IT! AUGURI! TE LO SEI MERITATO!
3. To make a physical appreciation, however, you can use THAT followed by a NAME, an ADJECTIVE, or BOTH.
For example:
What a beautiful girl! = che bella ragazza
What a hottie! = che schianto
What a cute baby! = che bambino carino
What beautiful eyes! = che occhi splendidi
But you can also use “che” to compliment someone on a character level!
For example:
How kind! = che gentile
What a charming/charming person!= Che persona incantevole/affascinante!
How courteous! =che cortese
Of course, no one forbids you from using "BE + noun, adjective or both"
For example:
You are beautiful = sei bellissima
You are a great person = sei una bella persona
4. To express appreciation in general, about anything, you can use HOW + verb
For example:
How kind you are! = come sei gentile
How well you draw! =come disegni bene
How well you speak Italian! = come parli bene italiano
5. If you haven't seen someone for a long time and, when you meet them again, you want to express your compliments about their physical appearance, you can say:
YOU LOOK IN (GREAT) SHAPE! = TI VEDO IN OTTIMA FORMA
YOU LOOK REALLY GOOD! = STAI PROPRIO BENE
YOU LOOK GOOD! = TI TROVO BENE
YOU ARE IN GOOD SHAPE = SEI IN FORMA
6. If you want to express your appreciation for someone's look, their style, because maybe they cut their hair, or wear a very fashionable outfit, you might say:
THIS HAIRCUT/OUTFIT LOOKS GOOD ON YOU! = QUESTO TAGLIO/OUTFIT TI DONA
YOU LOOK GREAT!= STAI DA DIO
this outfit looks fabulous on you or it looks great on you.= QUESTO VESTITO TI STA UNA FAVOLA oppure TI STA A PENNELLO
7. If, on the other hand, you want to compliment someone who looks much younger than their real age, you can say:
YOU WEAR YOUR YEARS (VERY) WELL= PORTI (MOLTO) BENE I TUOI ANNI
or
YOU DON'T SHOW THEM AT ALL= NON LI DIMOSTRI PER NIETE
Anyone would appreciate such a compliment!
Finally, I remind you to use these expressions only if you mean it! A person, otherwise, will immediately understand that it is a fake compliment and ... will not be very happy!
And do you know of other ways to compliment? What is the best compliment you have ever given? And what is the nicest one you have ever received? Instead, in the next article we will talk about how to say thank you and how to respond in an original way.
Thank you all for your attention, I look forward to seeing you in the comments! Ciaoo :)
