A reader has written to us to ask about two particles: vi and ci. Many of us are familiar with these particles as personal pronouns, indicating the second person plural and the first person plural, respectively. But let's review and cite some examples. 

Most of the time, at least in conversation, vi refers to the second-person plural object personal pronoun. It can be both direct or indirect. In other words, it's translated as "you" plural, as an object. Let's look at a couple of examples. 

Io quello che vi posso dire è che in campagna si cerca sempre di salvare il salvabile.

What I can tell you is that in the country, you always try to salvage what is salvageable.

Captions 99-100, Imma Tataranni Sostituto procuratore S1 EP2 Come piante fra sassi - Part 22

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Mettetevi qua. -Ma perché?

Put yourselves here. -But why?

Caption 61, Non è mai troppo tardi EP 2 - Part 8

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When there is a direct object pronoun such as lo (it) involved, vi changes to ve. 

Uscite. Ve lo dico io quando potete rientrare.

Come on out. I'll tell [it to] you when you can go in again.

Caption 1, La Ladra EP. 7 - Il piccolo ladro - Part 14

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This is true for all particles in this category. (ci→ce, ti→te, si→se, vi→ve, mi→me).

Ce lo stiamo chiedendo da stamattina.

We've been asking ourselves that since this morning.

Caption 15, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone S1EP5 Misericordia - Part 4

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See this lesson about ci. It links to another lesson on the same topic. The lesson begins with the meaning referred to above, that of a personal pronoun. But it goes on to talk about ci meaning "in that place," or "there." Here is an example where the particle ci is attached to the root of the infinitive essere (to be).

Devi esserci anche tu.

You have to be there, too.

Caption 44, JAMS S1 EP7 - Part 7

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This could have been Ci devi essere anche tu with the particle separate from the verb. Both ways are correct!

This lesson focuses on ci meaning "there," with examples. Do a search of ci to find even more lessons about this particle. 

If you have gotten this far, with a grasp of ci, then it's time to look at vi. If you are still confused about ci, don't worry. There is a reason there are so many lessons about ci. There is always something new to learn about this pesky little particle.

The next part of the lesson is about a word you might see more than hear, so you can even skip it, but if you are curious, it's good to know about vi meaning "there," even though you will likely never need to actually use it. You can always use ci and it won't be wrong. 

Some grammarians say that vi and ci (when they mean "in that place," or "there") are synonymous, but that vi is more formal. That may be true in many cases, but let's dig a bit deeper. Why would someone use vi instead of ci?

Some scholars posit that vi means "there" but implies a restricted space, whereas ci is more generalized. In other words, vi refers to a precise destination, whereas ci can refer to anywhere. 

One interesting detail is that vi derives from the Latin "ibi" → "there"; ci derives from "ecce hic" → "behold here."

In Calabria vi sono due isole: una è l'Isola Dino, che è la più grande, come ho detto prima e l'altra invece è la [sic]... Isola di Cirella, che è un po' più a sud,

In Calabria, there are two islands: one is Dino Island, which is the biggest, as I said before and the other, instead, is the [sic]... Cirella Island, which is a bit further south,

Captions 27-29, Antonio e l'Isola di Dino

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The speaker could have used ci. But here he is getting specific, referring to Calabria, so vi works, too. In the next example, once again, the speaker (who, in this case, is the teacher) is talking about a specific language (Italian), so vi is appropriate but not necessary.

In both examples, the language is more formal than in everyday conversation. In the first example, someone is providing some factual information about Calabria. In the second example, a teacher is using somewhat formal language with his students. The movie the clip is from takes place in the 1960s which might be another reason for vi in place of ci. 

Nella nostra amata lingua, vi sono molte parole che iniziano con la "o"...

In our beloved language, there are many words that begin with O...

Captions 49-50, Non è mai troppo tardi EP 2 - Part 11

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If you do a quick search of vi sono on the videos page, you will find examples where the meaning is totally different. So context matters. In the following example, vi refers to "you" plural, and sono is the first person singular of the verb essere (to be). 

Vi sono mancato un po'? -Sì.

Did you miss me a little? -Yes.

Caption 48, Non è mai troppo tardi EP 2 - Part 8

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One related word you might see on a listino prezzi (price list) for a hotel or other accommodation as you travel in Italy is ivi. It means therein, so you might see something like: Pernottamento ivi compreso la prima colazione (overnight stay including breakfast)

For interested learners, here is an article delving into the difference between vi and ci. It's in English. CUNY article 

We hope to have cleared up some doubts about vi and ci! You can write to us at [email protected].

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We see the word che meaning "that" or "which" all the time in sentences. It's a very common conjunction. 

Ad Ercolano, c'è un pomodoro che è diventato simbolo di un'importante voglia di cambiamento.

In Ercolano, there is a tomato that has become a symbol of an important desire for change.

Captions 21-22, Pomodori Vulcanici Pomodori del Vesuvio - Part 7

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But che does more. Here is a lesson about using che to say things with simplicity, a great asset when you're just learning. It helps make conversation. Here, it means "how."

Che carino, Però adesso devo scappare, altrimenti mio fratello mi uccide.

How sweet. But now I have to run, otherwise my brother will kill me.

Caption 29, Il Commissario Manara S2EP9 - L'amica ritrovata - Part 11

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Che can also mean "what." See this lesson. 

Scusa, ma io che ci faccio qui? Non conto niente.

Sorry, but what am I doing here? I don't count for anything.

Caption 3, Moscati, l'amore che guarisce EP1 - Part 2

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In our featured expression che ne so?, che basically stands for "what." We can often translate che ne so as "What do I know?" Sometimes we might translate it as, "How should I know?" It's often a rhetorical question. 

Nilde, ma che mangia il bambino la mattina? -Ma che ne so?

Nilde, but what does the child eat in the morning? -How should I know?

Captions 2-3, Un medico in famiglia Stagione 3 S3 EP1: Ciao famiglia - Part 3

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We've taken care of che. But what about that little word ne? Ne is a particle, called una particella in Italian, and if we look ne up in the dictionary we see it means several things. But mostly, it encompasses both a preposition and the indirect object pronoun "it" or "them." See this lesson about ne.

As mentioned in the lesson, we often don't even notice the word ne because it's so short and because we are not looking for it if we're thinking in English. Once you start thinking in Italian, it will become easier to use and notice. Italians will be very tolerant and understand you anyway, even if you don't use it, so don't worry about it too much. But learning an expression with ne will already make you sound more fluent. 

In our expression, ne means "about it." The tricky thing is that we don't bother with "about it" in English, but in Italian, not always, but in general, we will hear that little ne in there. 

Che ne so? What do I know [about it]?

Finally, we get to so, which is simply the first person singular of the verb sapere (to know).

You might have already learned how to say "I know" and "I don't know" in Italian. Italians add the direct object pronoun lo ("it" or "that").

Sì, lo so (yes I know [that].

Non lo so (I don't know [that]).

But che ne so can also be used in the middle of a sentence, as we would use "I don't know." It's a kind of filler phrase. We can leave it out and the meaning doesn't change much. 

perché, diciamo... -comunque devono sostenere il peso. -Devono sostenere il peso, più che altro devono fare, che ne so, la stessa cosa per un'ora.

because, let's say... -anyway they have to support the weight. -They have to support the weight, more than that, they have to, I don't know, do the same thing for an hour.

Captions 50-51, Francesca Cavalli - Part 2

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Ma tu ti devi aggiornare, sarai rimasto sicuramente, che ne so, ai Pooh.

But you have to get up to date. You must have remained, I don't know, at Pooh.

Caption 66, Un medico in famiglia Stagione 1 EP5 Lele, ti presento Irene - Part 2

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Allora, due colleghi decidono di scambiarsi il posto, firmano un modulo, e se non ci sono problemi, ma gravi, eh, tipo, che ne so, uno deve essere sotto inchiesta.

So, two colleagues decide to switch places, they sign a form, and if there are no problems, but serious huh, like, I don't know, one [of them] has to be under investigation.

Captions 38-40, Il Commissario Manara S1EP8 - Morte di un buttero - Part 12

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Dice, chissà se c'ha un lenzuolo da piegare, se ti manca... che ne so? C'è un tubo che perde acqua...

Saying, who knows if she has some sheets to fold, if you're out of... I don't know... There's a pipe that leaks...

Captions 39-40, Il Commissario Manara S2EP8 - Fuori servizio - Part 1

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For more about particles ci and ne, see Daniela's video lessons (in Italian). 

In this video, Marika explains the particle ne.

Marika explains all about the verb mettere (to put) in this video lesson.

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As you will see, there are dozens of different ways to use mettere. But what can sometimes be tricky is that in English we don’t generally use “put” without some sort of preposition or adverb. We always think of “put in,” “put on,” or “put up,” but in Italian, at least in casual speech, we might hear:

Metti un po’ di sale.
Put [in] a bit of salt.

In a recent episode of Stai lontana da me, there is a discussion between two guys in a couple. One is criticizing the cooking methods of the other:

No, allora cuciniamo per terra

No, so let's cook on the floor

come nel Medioevo. -Ma che c'entra?

like in the Middle Ages. -But what does that have to do with it?

Metti meno olio, no, scusami. -Sì, nella Preistoria.

Put in less oil, right? Excuse me. -Yes, in prehistoric times.

Captions 88-90, Stai lontana da me - Rai Cinema

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The grammatically correct way to say this would be by attaching an indirect pronoun at the end of the verb to mean “in it”:

Mettici meno olio, no?
Put in less oil, can’t you?

If we look carefully, however, we see that earlier in the discussion, they actually do say things the right way:

Chi cucina? Ah, sì,

Who cooks? Ah, yes,

con tutto l'olio che ci metti

with all that oil that you put in,

me l'incrosti da matti, guarda, ogni volta.

you cake them up like crazy, look, every time.

Captions 86-87, Stai lontana da me - Rai Cinema

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In the previous example ci stands for “into them,” where it represents the baking pans. For more on metterci, see this lesson. The lesson also talks about using mettere to say how long something takes—how much time you “put into something” (Marika will talk about this in part 2 of her lesson on mettere).

Here’s another thing to remember with mettere. In an episode of Commissario Manara, there's a dicey situation, and Luca lifts Lara up to help her. She exclaims:

Aiutami. Ah, ah, ah... mettimi giù!

Help me. Ah, ah, ah... put me down!

Captions 40-41, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP2 - Vendemmia tardiva

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In the example above, a single word is formed from the verb and object pronoun together. In this case Lara is using the informal imperative and she’s using herself as the direct object.

In the following example, however, mettimi looks identical, but means something different. This time mi at the end of mettimi is an indirect object and means in this case, “for me.” The direct object is questo (this).

No, mettimi questo sulla scrivania per favore, io vado con la Rubino.

No, put this on the desk for me please. I'm going with Rubino.

Caption 42, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP8 - Morte di un buttero

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And just to add a little something more to the pot, we have the word smettere. An “s” attached to a verb often shifts its meaning to the opposite.

Mi metto al lavoro alle dieci e smetto alle tre di pomeriggio.
I start working at ten and I quit at three in the afternoon.

So a way to ask someone to stop doing something is smettila (stop it)!
In fact, in a recent episode of La Tempesta, Paolo’s neighbor is telling him off.

Terzo, la devi smettere di parcheggiare la Porsche

Third, you have to stop it with parking the Porsche

davanti al pettine delle bici.

in front of the bike rack.

Captions 72-73, La Tempesta - film - Part 1

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Learn more:
Direct object pronouns 
Particelle (little words like mi, ci, ti...)