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How to Say ‘Oh, I have very little cash.’ in Italian

Ah, contanti ne ho pochissimi.

ah kohn-TAN-tee neh oh poh-KEES-see-mee

[ah kohn-TAN-tee neh oh poh-KEES-see-mee]

💬 Usage Tip: When you put the thing first, Italian points back to it with ne "of it". Contanti ne ho pochissimi works like "cash, I have very little of it".

Phrase Breakdown

Ah, contanti

ah kohn-TAN-tee

Ah, cash

This puts the topic first: 'as for cash...'. Stress 'contanti' on the middle syllable: con-TAN-ti.

Example

Ah, contanti? Un momento.

Ah, cash? One moment.

Words in this phrase

[ah]

ah / oh

Interjection expressing surprise or interest.

Example

Ah, non lo sapevo!

Oh, I didn't know!

contanti

[kohn-TAN-tee]

Cash

Physical form of money like coins and notes.

Example

Preferiamo che tu usi contanti per pagare.

We prefer that you use cash to pay.

ne ho pochissimi.

neh oh poh-KEES-see-mee

I have very little of it.

'Ne' refers back to the cash. Link 'ne ho' smoothly, as in 'neh-oh'.

Example

Di soldi, ne ho pochissimi.

As for money, I have very little.

Words in this phrase

[neh]

of them / some of it

A pronoun that refers back to something already mentioned, like mushrooms.

Example

Hai dei funghi? Ne vuoi ancora?

Do you have some mushrooms? Do you want more of them?

[oh]

I have

First person singular of avere, used with a past participle to form the present perfect.

Example

Ho parlato con tre aziende oggi.

I have spoken with three companies today.

pochissimi

[poh-KEES-see-mee]

very few

Superlative of 'pochi' (few): extremely little.

Example

Ho pochissimi soldi.

I have very little money.

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