Mica is one of those Italian words that confuse many learners of Italian. And that can be frustrating since it’s very used in conversations.
So, today I’ll try to explain how we Italians use the word mica.
Are you ready? Let’s start.
Mica
1. One of the major uses of the Italian word mica is to strengthen the negation “non”. When mica is used in this way, it’s placed after a verb.
Examples:
a. Non si è mica presentato alla fine!
He didn’t show up in the end!
b. Non è mica uno scherzo questo!
This is no laughing matter!
c. Non sono mica stata io!
It wasn’t me!
d. Non è mica una tragedia!
It’s not a tragedy!
As you can notice, in all the examples above mica can be replaced by affatto.
Although mica is used to emphasize a negation, in spoken Italian it can be used without the word non, preserving the function explained above nonetheless.
In this case, however, mica should be placed before the verb.
Examples:
e. Mica si è presentato alla fine!
He didn’t show up in the end!
f. Mica è uno scherzo questo!
This is no laughing matter!
g. Mica sono stata io!
It wasn’t me!
h. Mica è una tragedia!
It’s not a tragedy!
2. The second use of the word mica is in questions to mean “by any chance”.
Examples:
i. Mica sei arrabbiato con me, spero!
You don’t happen to be mad at me, I hope!
l. Non hai mica visto la mia borsa?
Didn’t you happen to see my purse?
m. Hai mica una sigaretta?
You don’t happen to have a cigarette, do you?
3. Finally, mica is used in a common informal Italian expression: mica male.
Mica male is used to express a positive opinion.
Examples:
n. Mica male la tua giacca!
Cute jacket!
o. Mica male ‘sta torta!
This cake’s not bad!
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Credits
Original image by pcdazero
Difference between finché and affinché
