From our blog
News, developments and articles from Regina Coeli
In Italian, what does the prefix ‘s’ do to the word?
Adding an ‘s’ to the beginning of an Italian word often creates the opposite, often negative meaning of the word.
Playing with modal verbs
In Dutch as well as in other languages, the six help verbs (otherwise known as modal verbs) add something to the meaning of the main verb. For those who have grown up with the Dutch language, this is nothing new. However, it’s a different matter for people learning how to speak Dutch.
El problema and la solución, a masculine/feminine problem
When someone says in Dutch ‘het fiets’ (the bicycle) or ‘de vliegtuig’ (the aeroplane), it can come across as irritating because it should be ‘de fiets’ and ‘het vliegtuig’. When you’re learning a foreign language, it is important to avoid making mistakes in the use of the definite articles.
The jump from social to business Dutch
Amsterdam is not the easiest place to learn Dutch. At the slightest sound of a foreign accent, a kind, sympathetic Dutch person immediately breaks into English! This has happened so many times to Sofia Derossi, an Italian, who has lived in Amsterdam for three years now.
Short refresher course in Italian
Earlier this year, Paul Luijten did a short training course at Regina Coeli to get his Italian back up to scratch. “Italians love it when you speak Italian with them but they won’t correct you. At Regina Coeli, they do!
Finito
In our Spanish lessons for beginners, we often hear our course members using the word 'finito'.