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Né la cameriera né la parrucchiera lavorano la domenica.

Né la cameriera né la parrucchiera lavorano la domenica.
Neither the waitress nor the hairdresser works on Sundays.
FromLesson 57inHardcore Italian
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Questions & Answers about Né la cameriera né la parrucchiera lavorano la domenica.

Why is the verb plural “lavorano” when each profession is singular?

Because né … né … coordinates two singular nouns into a single compound subject. In Italian the verb normally agrees with the whole coordinated subject, so you use the third-person plural: Né la cameriera né la parrucchiera lavorano…

  • Other examples: Né Marco né Lucia vengono, Né il cane né il gatto dormono.
Do I also need “non,” like “Né la cameriera né la parrucchiera non lavorano…”?

No. When né … né … comes before the verb (as here), it already carries the negation, so adding non is redundant and non‑standard.

  • Correct: Né la cameriera né la parrucchiera lavorano la domenica.
  • However, if the né … né … part comes after the verb, you do need non:
    • Subjects after the verb: Non lavora / Non lavorano né la cameriera né la parrucchiera.
    • Objects/complements after the verb: Non lavorano né il sabato né la domenica.
Can I use a singular verb instead of “lavorano”?

Not when né … né … stands before the verb as the subject; the plural is the standard choice.
When the verb comes first (with non), both singular and plural are found; the singular is common:

  • Non lavora né la cameriera né la parrucchiera.
  • Also heard: Non lavorano né la cameriera né la parrucchiera.
Why does “né” have an accent? Is it different from “ne”?
Yes. né (with acute accent) is the conjunction meaning “neither/nor.” The accent is obligatory in writing. ne (no accent) is a clitic pronoun meaning “of it/them; from there,” as in Ne ho due (“I have two of them”). Don’t confuse né with è (“is”), which has a grave accent.
What’s the difference between “la domenica,” “di domenica,” and just “domenica”?
  • la domenica = “on Sundays” in a habitual sense (every Sunday).
  • di domenica = also habitual; stylistic variant of similar meaning.
  • domenica (no article) typically means “on Sunday” referring to a specific Sunday (often the next one): Domenica non lavoro.
    You can also say ogni domenica or tutte le domeniche for clarity.
Why is it “la domenica” and not “il domenica”?
Because domenica is feminine in Italian, so it takes la. Most other weekdays are masculine and take il for habitual meaning (e.g., il lunedì, il martedì), but Sunday is la domenica.
Do I need a comma before the second “né”?
No. né … né … is a correlative conjunction and normally takes no comma: Né la cameriera né la parrucchiera… A comma could appear only to mark an unusual pause or added phrase, not as the default.
Do the articles “la” before the professions imply specific people?

Yes. La cameriera and la parrucchiera with definite articles point to specific women known in context (“the waitress,” “the hairdresser”).
If you mean the professions in general, use plurals: Né i camerieri né i parrucchieri lavorano la domenica.
Bare singulars without articles (e.g., né cameriera né parrucchiera) are unusual as subjects; they’re fine in predicate position after verbs like fare/essere: Non fa né la cameriera né la parrucchiera.

Can I list more than two items with “né”?
Yes. You can chain them: Né la cameriera né la parrucchiera né la barista lavorano la domenica. Keep the verb in the plural.
Can “né … né …” connect objects or time phrases too, not just subjects?

Absolutely. Examples:

  • Objects: Non vedo né la cameriera né la parrucchiera.
  • Time phrases: Non lavorano né il sabato né la domenica.
  • Places: Non lavorano né in centro né in periferia.
Is “parrucchiera” spelled correctly? Why the H and the double letters?
Yes: parrucchiera (double R and double C, plus H). The ch keeps a hard K sound before i/e (compare c + i/e = “ch” as in “cheese,” while ch + i/e = “k”). So parrucchiera is pronounced with a hard /k/ sound in -cchi-. Without the H, parruciera would be read with a “ch” sound, which is wrong.
Are days of the week capitalized in Italian?
No. They’re lowercase in running text: lunedì, martedì, domenica. Capitalize only at the start of a sentence or in certain titles/headings.
Is there another natural way to say “neither works on Sundays”?

Yes:

  • Nessuna delle due lavora la domenica. (both are female)
  • Nessuno dei due lavora la domenica. (male/mixed or unspecified)
    You can also keep the verb first: Non lavora né la cameriera né la parrucchiera.

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