Common Italian collocation
| Literally | To have hunger |
| IPA pronunciation | /aˈveːre ˈfaːme/ |
| You do NOT say |
Avere fame
To be hungry
Although you could literally translate to be hungry as essere affamato, where affamato is an adjective, in everyday life this expression is rarely used.
Ideally you would say something like sono affamato!, I am hungry!, to emphasize your condition: I *am* hungry (and I need food ASAP). If all you want to do is say you’re hungry, stick to avere fame.
Essere affamato
To be hungry
Examples
Se hai fame, dovresti mangiare qualcosa.
If you’re hungry, you should eat something.
Ho fame! Cosa c’è per cena stasera?
I’m hungry! What’s for dinner tonight?
La giraffa sembrava molto affamata.
The giraffe looked very hungry.
Molte persone nel mondo vanno a letto affamate ogni sera.
Every night, many people go to bed hungry around the world.
Related lessons
- avere (to have)
- fame (hunger)
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