Pronominal verbs
Learn each spoken expression as a form and a meaning.
Farcela and cavarsela
Farcela means to manage or succeed: ce la faccio, ce la fai, ce la facciamo. The small pronouns belong to the expression and do not simply replace a named object. Its past form is ce l’ho fatta. Cavarsela means to cope or manage reasonably well: me la cavo, te la cavi, se la cava; its past form is me la sono cavata. In the group chat, Luca can handle the poster but the whole event is not yet confirmed.
- Ce la facciamo a finire la bozza?· Can we manage to finish the draft?
- Con la grafica me la cavo.· I can handle the graphics.
- Te la cavi con le domande del pubblico?· Can you handle the public’s questions?
- Dopo la riunione, ce l’abbiamo fatta a spiegare il piano.· After the meeting, we managed to explain the plan.
Andarsene and volerci
Andarsene means to leave: me ne vado, te ne vai, se ne va. In the past, the participle agrees with the person: me ne sono andato or andata. Volerci expresses what is needed or how much time is needed: ci vuole una conferma, ci vogliono due verifiche. The verb agrees with the singular or plural item needed. In this case the exact time for final confirmation is unknown.
- Martedì me ne vado alle sette.· On Tuesday I leave at seven.
- Sara non se ne va prima della fine, se l’incontro si terrà.· Sara will not leave before the end if the event happens.
- Ci vuole una conferma della sala.· A room confirmation is needed.
- Ci vogliono due verifiche: sala e accesso.· Two checks are needed: room and access.