I almost quit my job (It implies that I didn't). Ho quasi lasciato il mio lavoro.
Does it mean exactly the same thing, implying that I still have my job?
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8Almost. Sorry, couldn't resist– miniBillMar 25, 2014 at 23:31
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3Consider also quasi quasi : "quasi quasi sto a casa" -> "I'm tempted to stay home" ( source: oxforddictionaries.com/translate/italian-english/quasi )– magmaMar 26, 2014 at 11:18
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5 Answers
"Quasi" is fine, but to be more clear (and emphatic) I would have used
Per poco non lasciavo il lavoro
which conveys clearly both the fact that in the end I opted to keep it, but that I almost got there.
answered Mar 26, 2014 at 0:19
I'm Italian and I prefer Vic's version:
Ho quasi lasciato il mio lavoro (perché mi trattano male).
I almost quit my job (because they treat me badly).
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Yes, but I'd prefer using imperfetto and omitting the possessive
Quasi lasciavo il lavoro
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@Vic I find it more colloquial; probably the grammar would prescribe quasi lasciai il lavoro.– egreg ♦Mar 25, 2014 at 11:59
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1consider also regional variations; as a native Italian speaker, I find @egreg's form slightly awkward, while I find yours perfect, despite him being a native Italian speaker from a nearby region.– magmaMar 25, 2014 at 12:46
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1The use of the imperfetto confused me, but from what I have studied , "Quasi lasciai il lavoro", could be seen in a book, or heard in Sicily and other southern regions, isn't that right?– VicMar 25, 2014 at 13:00
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@Vic Probably yes. In the North passato remoto is used really sparingly; mostly when you want to refer to something that happened a long ago. Although it would be more grammatically correct in most circumstances. By the way: I agree with egreg that imperfetto sounds more colloquial and would sound strange only in formal contexts. I think it sounds as if the speaker is somehow "passionate" about the statement (I'd imagine the speaker gesticulating when saying that), while ho quasi lasciato sounds a bit detached from the fact.– BakuriuMar 26, 2014 at 9:51
In your example the two sentences do have the same meaning (compare the definitions: almost, quasi) but, generally speaking, "almost" and "quasi" are not always equivalent, as "quasi" has one more meaning that "almost" has not.
In fact "quasi" can also mean "as if":
Come, come se fosse ...: [...] Frequente con un part. pass.: avanzava veloce, q. portato dal vento. In funzione di cong. subordinativa (col senso di «come se»), col verbo al congiuntivo: insisteva, q. avesse ragione lui;
Still another possibility:
Stavo quasi per lasciare il mio lavoro
which is not a past continuous :-)
