If someone offers you an explanation, but you’re having trouble understanding the meaning behind their words, it’s natural to ask this question: what do you mean?
One way to express this in Italian is to use the phrase what do you mean? where, word for word, can be translated as What do you want to say?
what do you mean?
what do you mean?
what is a combination of words That and what Together they mean “what?” However, you’ll hear these words alone as interrogative sentences in more informal contexts. That itself is more prolific in central and southern Italy, while what Heard more in the North and Sardinia.
- what do you mean? = what do you mean? (more formal, used everywhere)
- what do you mean? = what do you mean? (central and southern Italy)
- what do you mean? = what do you mean? (Northern Italy and Sardinia)
you want is the second person singular modal verb think Means “want/hope”.if you change it to third person singular want toyou get the very useful phrase:
What does it mean?
What does it mean?
Finally we come to scary Means “to say/tell” in Italian.
Another possible way of saying this phrase is with the verb meaning is meaning is”Intend“. However, it will give the phrase a more formal tone. You can also add from needmeaning is Exactlyput more emphasis on this issue.
What do you mean (exactly)?
What do you mean (exactly)?
On the less formal end, we also have the expression what do you mean? (ignite. In what sense?) and But what to do? (Lit. But how?).
I can not go. – Which way can you not go? We’ve already booked our tickets!
I can not go. – What do you mean you can’t go? We’ve already booked our tickets!
Here are some other phrases used to ask about the meaning of things:
- What are you trying to infer? = lit. What are you trying to infer?
- what do you mean)? = What do you mean? (used when there is a conflict) / What does that mean?
- What does it mean? = What does this mean? (than the formal it mean)
