# volendo



## pane13

I have heard the word volendo being used over and over again but I am not sure what it translates to exactly in *E*nglish

Can anyone explain how to use it in context......

some examples:  Volendo possiamo andare al cinema

volendo avrei potuto andare ma invece sono rimasta a casa...

Can anyone help explain this word...I did search it and I saw another thread that explained the meaning but I still do not understand the word exaclty.....


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## misskelly

"Volendo possiamo andare al cinema." I might say that with the meaning of "Let's go to the cinema."

"Volendo andare, dovrei avere la macchina..." I'd say that if I would like to go somewhere but I can't because I'm not having a car...

"Volendo" It's used to say something you would like to do, but... there is always something else to deal with: the possibility, the willingness, the chance, the money...


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## pane13

oh...ok I think it is more clear to me now....

volendo sarei anche andata alla festa ma non avevo un regalo...

I would have liked to go to the party but I did not have a gift....is that correct???


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## misskelly

Perfect!


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## pane13

Ok! Thank you so much!!!


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## giovannino

I think that in this case the gerund is the equivalent of a conditional clause:

1. Volendo ( = se vogliamo) possiamo andare al cinema

If we are in the mood for it/if we feel like it we could go to the cinema

2. Volendo ( = se avessi voluto) avrei potuto andare ma invece sono rimasta a casa...

If I had (really) wanted to I could have gone but I stayed at home instead

 I would tend to use 1. , for instance, in response to someone who is complaining about having to spend a boring evening at home.


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## misskelly

I agree, it is a way of saying we use to express what we would like to do.


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## housecameron

misskelly said:


> I agree, it is a way of saying we use to express what we would like to do.


 
Or what we’d have liked to do (past), as giovannino already pointed out.

But it also means _"se si vuole/ se uno vuole"_

_Volendo, si può aggiungere un po' di cipolla_ (in a recipe)
_Volendo, si può cambiare l'ordine delle icone sul desktop._

By the way:
Volendo (avrei) *sarei *potut*a* andare ma invece sono rimasta a casa


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## brian

Does the subject of "volendo" always have to be the subject of the main sentence? For example, if I want to say, "Se *vuoi*, te lo posso mandare subito," could I say "Volendo, te lo posso mandare subito"? Or does that _only_ mean "Se *voglio*, posso mandartelo subito" because the subject of "posso" is "io"?

It's interesting also that you use "volendo" even in the past to mean "se avessi voluto" instead of perhaps "avendo voluto."


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## prinkle

I prefer "we could"


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## brian

What do you mean?


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## kittykate

brian8733 said:


> Does the subject of "volendo" always have to be the subject of the main sentence?
> 
> For example, if I want to say, "Se *vuoi*, te lo posso mandare subito," could I say "Volendo, te lo posso mandare subito"?
> 
> Or does that _only_ mean "Se *voglio*, posso mandartelo subito" because the subject of "posso" is "io"?
> 
> It's interesting also that you use "volendo" even in the past to mean "se avessi voluto" instead of perhaps "avendo voluto."
> 
> You do that too, in English:
> 
> _Grazie per essere venuto _
> _Thanks for coming_


 
caterina


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## brian

Haha! I hadn't noticed.  Grazie, caterina.


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## housecameron

Brian, non è semplicissimo da spiegare, ho dovuto scomodare il Treccani :

Con valore ipotetico e spesso anche finale
Volendo che/a volere che (= se si desidera che; affinché)
_Volendo fare le cose con giustizia...._
_A volere (volendo) che tutto proceda nel modo migliore..._

Come inciso e, solo con valore ipotetico
Volendo, si potrebbe (= se proprio si fosse decisi, se si insistesse)
_A volere (volendo) tutto si può fare_

Neanche a volere (neanche volendo): per dire che un fatto è impossibile, anche se si cercasse di provocarlo intenzionalmente: 
_Se segui le mie indicazioni, non puoi sbagliare neanche a volere (neanche volendo)_

Meglio?_ _


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## ToscanoNYC

I completely agree with Housecameron.  I often use "volendo" to indicate that I would be willing to agree to do something, though that particular thing is not exactly at the top of my priority.
Example:
"Volendo, potremmo andare al ristorante".  By using this expression, I indicate that if my interlocutor insists, I'd agree to go to the restaurant, though it wouldn't be my first choice.  I would use it as a hint that basically I wouldn't mind staying at home.


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## brian

That's very interesting. If I were to say, "If we wanted, we could go to a restaurant," it may or may not hint at what I _really_ wanted to do. Some other words would be necessary, or perhaps a certain tone. For example, "If we _really_ wanted to, we could go to a restaurant," or "If we wanted to, I guess/suppose we could just go to a restaurant" would hint that going to a restaurant is a viable option if the interlocutor insists, but it's not exactly what I'd prefer. This probably translates best to "volendo." But if I said, "You know, if we wanted, we could go to a restaurant," to me it would mean "Hey! I have a good idea! We could go to a restaurnt," suggesting that I would like to do that.


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## prinkle

brian8733 said:


> That's very interesting. If I were to say, "If we wanted, we could go to a restaurant," it may or may not hint at what I _really_ wanted to do. Some other words would be necessary, or perhaps a certain tone. For example, "If we _really_ wanted to, we could go to a restaurant," or "If we wanted to, I guess/suppose we could just go to a restaurant" would hint that going to a restaurant is a viable option if the interlocutor insists, but it's not exactly what I'd prefer. This probably translates best to "volendo." But if I said, "You know, if we wanted, we could go to a restaurant," to me it would mean "Hey! I have a good idea! We could go to a restaurnt," suggesting that I would like to do that.


Exactly: we could


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## brian

But prinkle, a simple "we could," as I explained above, does not suffice. "If we wanted, *we could* go to a restaurant" may suggest that I really do want to go a restaurant (perhaps I just had a sudden burst of inspiration), but "volendo" doesn't suggest that.


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## giovannino

brian8733 said:


> "If we wanted to, I guess/suppose we could just go to a restaurant" would hint that going to a restaurant is a viable option if the interlocutor insists, but it's not exactly what I'd prefer. This probably translates best to "volendo."


 
I agree. I think your translation conveys the most common meaning of "volendo" perfectly.


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## misskelly

housecameron said:


> Or what we’d have liked to do (past), as giovannino already pointed out.
> 
> But it also means _"se si vuole/ se uno vuole"_
> 
> _Volendo, si può aggiungere un po' di cipolla_ (in a recipe)
> _Volendo, si può cambiare l'ordine delle icone sul desktop._
> 
> By the way:
> Volendo (avrei) *sarei *potut*a* andare ma invece sono rimasta a casa


 ?

Well, I'm not sure that this is a mistake, actually.
It isn't uncommon to hear "avrei potuto" in the Nord-Est Italy. Maybe it's due to their letteral translation of the slang "Voendo garia poesto"


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## housecameron

misskelly said:


> ?
> Well, I'm not sure that this is a mistake, actually.


 
Ho solo evidenziato che è preferibile la versione con _essere,_ nel caso in cui il verbo all'infinito sia _andare._


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## HIEROPHANT

pane13 said:


> volendo sarei anche andata alla festa ma non avevo un regalo...
> 
> I would have liked to go to the party but I did not have a gift....is that correct???


 
In my opinion the Italian sentence is...odd...is wrong.
You cannot use "volendo" when there's something that prevents you from doing it.
In this case (assuming that you cannot show up at a party without a gift) you cannot go to the party, so you cannot think at going as a possiblity - and "volendo" implies that you can actually do something.

volendo = se volessi...potrei [and other conjugations] = if I would want...I could....

Just my 2 cents.


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## misskelly

housecameron said:


> Ho solo evidenziato che è preferibile la versione con _essere,_ nel caso in cui il verbo all'infinito sia _andare._


 

Hai dimenticato di specificare:
Se uso _avere_, *potuto* resta invariato:
avrei potuto,
avresti potuto,
avremmo potuto,
etc.
Se uso _essere_, devo specificare la desinenza:
sarei potuto (s.m.)  sarei potuta (s.f.)
saresti potuto (s.m.)  saresti potuta (s.f.)
saremmo potuti (pl.m.) saremmo potute (pl.f.)


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## housecameron

Misskelly, suggerendo "_*sarei *potut*a* andare"_ mi pare di non aver dimenticato nulla, visto che pane ha scritto "...ma invece sono rimast*a* a casa"

Comunque esistono già diversi thread in merito.


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## misskelly

HIEROPHANT said:


> In my opinion the Italian sentence is...odd...is wrong.
> You cannot use "volendo" when there's something that prevents you from doing it.
> In this case (assuming that you cannot show up at a party without a gift) you cannot go to the party, so you cannot think at going as a possiblity - and "volendo" implies that you can actually do something.
> 
> volendo = se volessi...potrei [and other conjugations] = if I would want...I could....
> 
> Just my 2 cents.


 
I'd translate this sentence in this way:
_Volendo serei anche potuta/o andare alla festa ma non avevo un regalo..._
I might go to the party, if I had a present to give... or
I went to the party, if I had a present to give...
We use to say "Volendo" with the meaning of "Nothing stopped me to go to the party, besides the present issue..."

_Volendo, si può aggiungere una cipolla.(In a recipe)_
_Volendo si possono cambiare le icone sul desktop._
“Volendo” means “a piacere”, OK but… How do you say “a piacere” in English?
You can add an onion
You may add an onion
You might add an onion
If you are able to...
If you want to...
If you like to...
If you like onions
If you feel like doing that..., and
If you have the onion, too.
I wouldn’t include “prefer” because it imply a choice between things.
All these possibilities can stand for “volendo”. In a recipe they want to say: “if you like the taste of”, or “if you can digest it”, so “you might add an onion” suit better, in my opinion.
If you like, you can change the icons order in your desktop.
Mainly, “volendo” is used to “give an option”.
But it’s even a way of saying that we Italian people uses, like you English people uses “Let’s”, I guess.

Andiamo al cinema?(normal version)
Volendo si potrebbe andare al cinema.(Sometime followsChe ne dici (pupa)?(Much cooler. Maybe the gay's thinking to do somthing else than to watch the film... Going to the cinema is sinonimous of kissing you in the dark, sometimes.
 
See you


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## misskelly

housecameron said:


> Misskelly, suggerendo "_*sarei *potut*a* andare"_ mi pare di non aver dimenticato nulla, visto che pane ha scritto "...ma invece sono rimast*a* a casa"
> 
> Comunque esistono già diversi thread in merito.


 
Scusa! Non mi permetterei mai di infierire, la mia era solo una precisazione bonaria... Siccome siamo di diversi gradi di comprensione, io avrei scritto "Volendo (avrei potuto) sarei potuta/o..." per non dare la possibilità a dei principianti di sbagliare: se io fossi inesperta, nel leggere "Volendo (avrei) *sarei* potut*a*..." potrei pensare che anche "avrei potuta" può essere lecito. Del resto, se mi presenti la frase così: "Bay the way: Volendo (avrei) *sarei *potut*a* ...etc."... sono più incline a pensare ad una correzione che ad un'opzione aggiuntiva.

Vogliamoci bene


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## Stiannu

I think the meaning can vary significantly according to the context.
If _volendo_ is used referring to the past and to an event that did not occur, it probably conveys the idea of an obstacle or something which prevented it to occur (even the will of the speaker).

_A - Perché sei rimasto a casa? Saresti potuto andare alla festa..._
_B - Sì, volendo ci sarei potuto andare_ (if the sentence ends here, it probably means that B didn't go because he didn't want to)

_A - Perché sei rimasto a casa? Saresti potuto andare alla festa..._
_B - Sì, volendo ci sarei potuto andare, ma poi mi ha telefonato C e abbiamo chiacchierato un'ora_ (B is not really clear about his will, he's just stating that he had the opportunity to go... but the phone call delayed him)

If used to propose something, it also depends on the context and the tone:
_A - Ho una magnifica idea! Andiamo a giocare a bowling!_
_B- Bowling?! ... Volendo..._ (B is trying to let A understand that he doesn't really want, he's hesitating)

_A - Stasera non ho voglia di cucinare. Volendo, possiamo andare al ristorante... ti va? _(A uses _volendo_, but he's making the proposal so he's probably favorable)


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## horseman

Hi..I've read all these postings ..and  am more confused than ever.  In simple terms ..does  volendo   mean "I want to"..or "we  want to" ..and how is it distinguished from Voglio..or Vogliamo..?

Thanks!


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## Angel.Aura

Ciao horseman,


horseman said:


> Hi..I've read all these postings ..and  am more confused than ever.  In simple terms ..does  volendo   mean "I want to"..or "we  want to" ..and how is it distinguished from Voglio..or Vogliamo..?


A very precise answer here (post #6):


giovannino said:


> I think that in this case the gerund is the equivalent of a conditional clause:
> 
> 1. Volendo ( = se vogliamo) possiamo andare al cinema
> 
> If we are in the mood for it/if we feel like it we could go to the cinema
> 
> 2. Volendo ( = se avessi voluto) avrei potuto andare ma invece sono rimasta a casa...
> 
> If I had (really) wanted to I could have gone but I stayed at home instead
> 
> I would tend to use 1. , for instance, in response to someone who is complaining about having to spend a boring evening at home.


You can't distinguish it from voglio/vogliamo, because 'volendo' is a peculiar and impersonal use of the verb.


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## horseman

Thank you ..that is much clearer!


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