How to Say ‘I'm sorry’ in Italian
Mi dispiace
mee dee-SPYAH-cheh
[mee dee-SPYAH-cheh]
💬 Usage Tip: [dispiace] doesn't work like English "sorry" word-for-word: it means something like "it displeases me / I'm sorry about it." The same idea appears in [ti dispiace?] for "do you mind?"
Phrase Breakdown
Mi
[mee]
me / to me
An object pronoun meaning 'to me'; in this phrase it is part of the expression meaning 'I'm sorry'.
Se faccio un errore, dico: "Mi dispiace."
If I make a mistake, I say: "I'm sorry."
dispiace
[dee-SPYAH-cheh]
is displeasing / I'm sorry
Literally suggests something is displeasing to me; in common use, it means 'I'm sorry'.
Se faccio un errore, dico: "Mi dispiace."
If I make a mistake, I say: "I'm sorry."
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