Expressing an opinion or belief, agreement or disagreement - Expressing emotions, feelings, attitudes and opinions - Functions - A Practical Guide - Modern Italian Grammar

Modern Italian Grammar: A Practical Guide, Third Edition (2013)

Part B. Functions

III. Expressing emotions, feelings, attitudes and opinions

27. Expressing an opinion or belief, agreement or disagreement

27.1 Expressing or seeking an opinion or belief

There are many ways of expressing your own opinion, whether hesitantly or forcefully. You can also seek someone else's opinion using a similar range of expressions.

27.1.1 Pensare, credere expressing an opinion

The verb pensare can be used in three different ways to express an opinion.

Pensare di and a noun:

Cosa pensate di questo cantante?

What do you think of this singer?

Pensare di followed by a verb infinitive (see 2.2.1):

Pensi di essere infallibile?

Do you think you are infallible?

Pensare che followed by the subjunctive (see 2.2.14):

I clienti pensavano che il direttore fosse molto in gamba.

The customers thought that the manager was very good.

Where pensare means ‘to think’, ‘to believe’ (not ‘to think of’ as in the first example), it can be replaced by credere:

Lo credevano un genio.

They thought he was a genius.

I clienti credevano che il direttore fosse onesto.

The customers thought that the manager was honest.

Another verb which expresses opinion is ritenere which can be followed by di and an infinitive or che and a subjunctive:

Ritengo di avere i requisiti da voi richiesti.

I believe I have the qualities you are looking for.

Mio padre riteneva che le vacanze fossero una perdita di tempo e denaro.

My father thought that holidays were a waste of time and money.

For ways in which you can make a point in a discussion or argument, see 41.4.3.

27.1.2 Credere expressing a belief

Credere can also be used to convey religious, political, ideological or other strong belief. In this context it is generally used with in:

Credo in Dio Padre onnipotente, creatore del cielo e della terra.

I believe in God the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. (adapted from the Creed)

I buddisti credono nella reincarnazione dell'anima.

Buddhists believe in the reincarnation of the soul.

I musulmani credono nella rivelazione del Corano.

Muslims believe in the revelations of the Koran.

Se non credi in te stesso non raggiungerai mai il tuo scopo.

If you don't believe in yourself, you will never reach your goal.

Molti italiani credono in un sistema educativo pubblico e gratuito.

Many Italians believe in an education system that is public and free.

27.1.3 Sembrare, parere expressing an opinion

The verbs sembrare, parere are used impersonally (‘it seems…’) with an indirect object or object pronoun (see 3.4.2) to express an opinion. They are slightly more tentative in expressing a view than pensare or credere:

Ci sembra che sia una iniziativa valida.

It seems to us that this is a worthwhile initiative.

Ti pare giusto escludere Teresa?

Do you think it's fair to exclude Teresa?

As well as this impersonal use, sembrare and parere can also be used to say how a person or object seems, in which case the person or object becomes the grammatical subject of the sentence:

Il suo ragionamento non mi è sembrato molto valido.

His reasoning didn't seem very sound to me.

Come ti sembra questo progetto?

What do you think of this project?

Come vi è parso il direttore d'orchestra?

How did the conductor seem to you?

I bambini non mi sembravano molto contenti.

The children didn't seem very happy to me.

27.1.4 Nouns meaning ‘opinion’

There are lots of words meaning ‘opinion’: il giudizio, l'opinione, il parere, la valutazione. Probably the most frequently used is il parere. They are followed by di or su.

Vorrei conoscere il Suo parere sulla qualità dei nostri prodotti.

I would like to know your opinion of the quality of our products.

Qual è la tua valutazione della situazione?

What is your evaluation of the situation?

You can also use the expression essere del parere ‘to be of the opinion (that)’:

Mio marito è del parere che dovremmo andare a sciare nelle Dolomiti quest'anno.

My husband is of the opinion that we ought to go skiing in the Dolomites this year.

Noi siamo del parere opposto.

We are of the opposite opinion.

27.1.5 Phrases meaning ‘in my opinion’

Any of the following phrases can be used as an adjunct to the main message of the sentence, with the meaning ‘in my opinion’: a mio parere, a parer mio, nella mia opinione, per me, secondo me, secondo la mia opinione. The phrases do not alter the verb tense or mood. The conditional mood can convey the fact that the view expressed is a personal opinion, especially in the press (see also 42.9), where it is important to stress that the opinion is subjective and not a proven fact.

A mio parere, Berlusconi era molto abile nel manipolare l'opinione pubblica.

In my opinion, Berlusconi was very skilled at manipulating public opinion.

Al parere del mio professore di storia, il Risorgimento è il periodo più interessante della storia italiana.

In my history teacher's opinion, the Risorgimento is the most interesting period in Italian history.

Per me, non ci sono alternative.

In my opinion there are no alternatives.

Secondo mio padre i genovesi sarebbero tirchi.

According to my father the Genoese are mean.

Nella mia opinione, imparare una lingua significa imparare anche una cultura.

In my opinion, learning a language means learning a culture as well.

You can also say:

Secondo la mia opinione, imparare una lingua significa imparare anche una cultura.

Secondo can be used not only with a personal opinion, but also with a saying, a tradition, or a legend:

Secondo la leggenda, nel castello girerebbe il fantasma di un soldato austriaco morto in modo violento.

According to legend, the castle is haunted by the ghost of an Austrian soldier who died violently.

Secondo un detto popolare, ‘chi dorme non piglia pesci’.

According to a popular saying, ‘he who sleeps doesn't catch fish’.

27.2 Expressing agreement, disagreement

An important linguistic function in any language is to be able to express or indicate agreement or disagreement with a person or a statement. Not surprisingly, there are many ways of doing this in Italian, some more polite than others.

27.2.1 Expressing agreement

Simple expressions of agreement include:

OK

OK

va bene

all right

essere d'accordo

(to be) agreed / in agreement

essere favorevole

to be in favour (of)

è vero / è giusto

that's true / that's correct

Note how these expressions are used:

È vero quello che dici tu.

What you say is true.

Era vero che c'erano pochi dipendenti disposti a lavorare anche il sabato.

It was true that there were few employees willing to work on Saturdays too.

Sono d'accordo che bisogna cambiare la struttura del reparto.

I agree that we need to change the structure of the department.

Essere d'accordo is followed by con when saying you agree with someone:

Sono d'accordo con te.

I agree with you.

Essere d'accordo can be followed by con or su with a noun, to say what you agree with:

I dipendenti saranno d'accordo con la decisione del sindacato.

The employees will agree with the decision of the trade union.

I clienti sono d'accordo sul prezzo.

The customers are in agreement on the price.

The expression mettersi d'accordo (to come to an agreement) can also be used (see also 27.2.2):

I paesi islamici devono mettersi d'accordo per aiutare a risolvere i problemi in Siria.

The Islamic countries have to come to an agreement, in order to help solve the problems in Syria.

Other ways of expressing agreement, particularly in the spoken language, include:

Hai proprio ragione.

You're absolutely right.

Sì, anch'io la vedo così.

Yes, I see it like that too.

Naturalmente.

Naturally. (Of course.)

27.2.2 Expressing disagreement

Expressions of disagreement include:

essere contrario a

to be against

non condividere (una scelta, una decisione)

not to agree with (a choice, a decision)

non essere d'accordo

not to be in agreement

non è vero

it's not trae

per niente

not at all

sbagliare

to be wrong

Here are some examples of how these expressions are used:

Non condivido la tua scelta di partner.

I don't agree with your choice of partner.

Su questo aspetto del Trattato di Maastricht gli Eurodeputati inglesi non sono mai stati d'accordo con gli Eurodeputati francesi.

On this aspect of the Treaty of Maastricht the English Euro MPs have never been in agreement with the French Euro MPs.

Sbagli. Vincerà la Juventus, non il Milan.

You are wrong. Juventus will win, not Milan. (Italian football teams)

The phrase non è vero can be used to correct a statement or deny an accusation. In formal language, the construction non è vero takes the verb in the subjunctive:

Non è vero che l'abbiano licenziato. È stato lui a dare le dimissioni.

It's not true that they've fired him. It was he who resigned.

Often in less formal language, the indicative is used instead:

Non è vero che Marco è stato fuori per una settimana.

It's not true that Marco has been away for a week.

Another way of expressing disbelief is:

Non ci credo per niente.

I don't believe a word.

27.2.3 Agreeing in part: non dico che

Non dico takes che followed by a verb in the subjunctive:

Non dico che vada bene il suo comportamento, ma lo capisco.

I'm not saying that his behaviour is all right, but I can understand it.