Significado
Understanding words exactly as said.
Contexto cultural
In Italian public offices, employees often 'prendono alla lettera' regulations to avoid responsibility, a practice known as 'scaricabarile' (passing the buck). The character of Catarella in 'Il Commissario Montalbano' is a beloved cultural icon because he constantly takes figurative language literally, causing linguistic chaos. Italians take recipes 'alla lettera' when it comes to traditional ingredients. Substituting pecorino with parmesan in Amatriciana is often seen as a violation of the 'letter' of the dish. Because Italian is a high-context language, 'prendere alla lettera' is often used as a gentle insult to imply someone is socially dense or lacks 'spirito'.
Cooking Context
If an Italian tells you to follow a recipe 'alla lettera', they usually mean don't add cream to the Carbonara!
Sarcasm Alert
Italians use a lot of hyperbole. If someone says 'Ti ammazzo!' (I'll kill you!) while laughing, please do NOT take it alla lettera.
Significado
Understanding words exactly as said.
Cooking Context
If an Italian tells you to follow a recipe 'alla lettera', they usually mean don't add cream to the Carbonara!
Sarcasm Alert
Italians use a lot of hyperbole. If someone says 'Ti ammazzo!' (I'll kill you!) while laughing, please do NOT take it alla lettera.
Verb Variation
You can swap 'prendere' with 'seguire' to sound more precise when talking about rules or paths.
Ponte a prueba
Complete the sentence with the correct form of the idiom.
Non essere così serio! Non devi sempre ____ alla lettera quello che dico.
The idiom is 'prendere alla lettera'.
Which situation best describes 'prendere alla lettera'?
Marco says: 'I'm so hungry I could eat a horse!' and Sofia starts looking for a horse for him to eat.
Sofia ignored the hyperbole and acted on the literal meaning.
Match the Italian phrase with its English equivalent.
Match the following:
These are related expressions with distinct meanings.
Complete the dialogue.
A: 'Il capo ha detto che dobbiamo finire entro stasera a ogni costo!' B: 'Non lo ____ alla lettera, intende solo che è importante.'
The sentence requires the imperative or present indicative 'prendi' (you take).
🎉 Puntuación: /4
Ayudas visuales
Banco de ejercicios
4 ejerciciosNon essere così serio! Non devi sempre ____ alla lettera quello che dico.
The idiom is 'prendere alla lettera'.
Marco says: 'I'm so hungry I could eat a horse!' and Sofia starts looking for a horse for him to eat.
Sofia ignored the hyperbole and acted on the literal meaning.
Empareja cada elemento de la izquierda con su par de la derecha:
These are related expressions with distinct meanings.
A: 'Il capo ha detto che dobbiamo finire entro stasera a ogni costo!' B: 'Non lo ____ alla lettera, intende solo che è importante.'
The sentence requires the imperative or present indicative 'prendi' (you take).
🎉 Puntuación: /4
Preguntas frecuentes
3 preguntasNo. In technical fields or cooking, it is a positive trait showing precision. In social fields, it can imply a lack of humor.
Yes, 'prendere in parola' means to take someone at their word (to trust their promise), which is slightly different from 'alla lettera'.
The opposite would be 'interpretare a braccio' (to improvise) or 'leggere tra le righe' (to read between the lines).
Frases relacionadas
Seguire alla lettera
synonymTo follow instructions exactly.
Prendere per oro colato
builds onTo believe something as absolute truth.
Prendere sul serio
similarTo take something seriously.
Parola per parola
specialized formWord for word.
