owe
own
No one owes you a living.
Nessuno ti deve pagare da vivere.
– Saying
Nessuno ti deve pagare da vivere.
– Saying
✓ You still owe me fifty euros, remember?
✗ You still *own* me fifty euros, remember?
Mi devi ancora cinquanta euro, ti ricordi?
If you owe someone something, you are “in debt” to them. This can be money or something “abstract” like an apology, a favour, respect, or even your life! For example:
✓ How much do I owe you?
Quanto ti devo?
✓ I owe you a favour/an explanation/an apology.
Ti devo un favore/una spiegazione/delle scuse.
✗ I *own* you a favour/an explanation/an apology.
✓ I owe my life to the fantastic hospital staff.
Devo la mia vita al personale fantastico dell’ospedale.
If you own something, it’s your property, it belongs to you. (You are its owner.) For example:
✓ Most Italians own their own house.
La maggior parte degli italiani possiede una casa.
✓ Do you own your cat, or does your cat own you?
Sei padrone del tuo gatto, o il tuo gatto è il tuo?
Now try the quiz below! There are FIVE answers. The pass mark is 100% (5 out of 5). Click on the blue arrows to go to the next or previous question. You can check your answers immediately or when you’ve finished the quiz.