4

I was recently in italy in a high class hotel restaurant and after the waiter served me wine I said "grazie" and he returned something that sounded like "Grazie bui" (or "Grazie piu" but I think it was the first one).

I never heard that before. Normally I get an answer like "prego" or similar. What does "Grazie bui" mean? According to wikitionary "bui" could be the plural of "buio" meaning "darkness" or "dark" but that wouldn't match up I believe.

Improve this question
3
  • 3
    Might it be Grazie a voi (= “Thank you!” with a respectful form for “you”?)
    – DaG
    Jul 15, 2015 at 13:15
  • 1
    Yes, at times, speaking, shortened to "grazie voi" which sounds close to "grazie bui".
    – user519
    Jul 15, 2015 at 13:29
  • Ah, yes that could be. I thinkt that's the right answer, maybe you should post it as an answer so I can select it as "the" answer.
    – Shihan
    Jul 16, 2015 at 8:23

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
7

I believe it was actually Grazie a voi (= “Thank you!” with a respectful form for “you”).

In some parts of Italy, especially in the South, some consonants are pronounced as more voiced than in standard Italian; so “v” tends towards “b” and “t” towards “d” (as in the parody of a politician of some time ago, who was described as saying “Dorondondario” for “Toronto, Ontario”).

Improve this answer
1
  • 2
    Furthermore, the closing of the /o/ towards the /u/ under certain circumstances (like voi→vui or vuje) is peculiar to many median and southern dialects.
    – Walter Tross
    Jul 17, 2015 at 20:20

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.