Phrases › At the Clothing Store › Porto la quarantadue.

Porto la quarantadue.

I take a size forty-two.

Pronunciation

'Quarantadue' — stress 'qua-RAN-ta-DUE'. The 'qu' is always 'kw' in Italian, never 'k' alone.

When to use it

When asked your size, or when looking for something specific on a rail. Knowing your Italian size makes shopping much smoother.

What it means

'Porto' from 'portare' — in clothing context it means 'I wear/take'. The definite article 'la' precedes the size number in Italian, which is a unique structure.

Variations

Sono una taglia media.

I'm a medium.

Alternative using S/M/L sizing, increasingly common

Sono tra la M e la L.

I'm between M and L.

Useful when you're between sizes

Di solito prendo la S.

I usually take an S.

Casual way to express size

Mini Dialogue

Commessa: Che taglia porta? Cliente: Porto la quarantadue. Commessa: Bene. Questo modello è disponibile dalla quaranta alla quarantotto. Cliente: Ottimo.

Assistant: What size do you take? Customer: I take a forty-two. Assistant: Good. This style is available from forty to forty-eight. Customer: Great.

Cultural Note

Italian tailoring heritage means sizing is taken seriously. In quality stores, staff may suggest measuring you properly rather than just trusting a number from another country.

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Che taglia porta?

Ha questo in rosso?

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