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In English we use "on a second thought" to express that we're thinking again about a previously made choice. I've seen this expression in a comment to this post, A word whose meaning is "one whose diet includes fish but no other meat", and I wondered how to express that in Italian.

Another example: we can say, "You know, on a second thought, I think I'll go to watch that film" if we previously decided not to watch it.

How can we say a similar expression in Italian?

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3 Answers 3

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I'd say a ripensarci (slightly more formal) or ora che ci penso, where something like di nuovo (“again”) or meglio (“better”) is implied.

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    Also "ripensandoci ...", "pensandoci bene/meglio..."
    – persson
    Apr 10, 2015 at 21:28
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    or a pensarci bene...
    – martina.physics
    Apr 11, 2015 at 10:53
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    Upvoted but altough "ora che ci penso" might be used to express pretty much the same thing we are all understanding, it is not correct in this case, nor it implies "di nuovo" or "meglio", because it states the exact opposite of "a ripensarci", it means that you didn't tought about something previously but you're doing it right now
    – kos
    Apr 11, 2015 at 13:31
  • Also, referring to @martina 's comment, being even pickier, "a pensarci bene" it's not correct either, because it doesn't imply having tought of such thing previously, while as with "ora che ci penso" I agree that it might be used to express pretty much the same thing
    – kos
    Apr 11, 2015 at 13:52
  • @kos, I partially agree with you, but I believe that while the literal meaning of ora che ci penso would entail that one didn't previously think about the subject at all, its actual meaning is that you evaluated it superficially or fleetingly, while now are actually considering it fully. So I'd confirm it as a candidate to convey the meaning of “on a second thought”.
    – DaG
    Apr 11, 2015 at 13:59
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Ora che ci penso - in case when you just want to add some more details or clarify something.

"Pensi a questo: il vestitino, per caso, non era perfettamente asciutto?" "Oddio!" sclamò il dottore. "Ora che ci penso... sì, era asciutto."

Anzi - in case when you change your mind, so that your second thought is completely different from the first one.

"Anche nei laboratori e nella serra è tutto okay, ma in ogni caso non è che lui li frequentasse molto. Anzi, non ricordo per niente l'ultima volta che è stato qui."

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    "Ora che ci penso" is "now that I think about it". It's not exactly the same, although it's good enough 90% of the time (that is - when your rethinking is instantaneous).
    – Tobia Tesan
    Apr 11, 2015 at 10:06
  • I agree with Tobia Tesan, see this comment
    – kos
    Apr 11, 2015 at 13:33
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Ripensandoci has the exact meaning you're looking for.

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