Meaning
especially, particularly, mainly
In a sentence
Mi piace uscire la sera, specialmente d'estate.
I like going out in the evening, especially in summer.
Mi piace tutta la frutta, specialmente le mele.
I like all fruit, especially apples.
Non mangio carne, specialmente a pranzo.
I don't eat meat, especially at lunch.
Usage notes
- Use specialmente in neutral speech and writing; soprattutto is often more common in everyday conversation.
- For emphasis on one item in a list, especially before a noun, particularly can sound more natural as in particolarmente or soprattutto.
- It usually modifies the whole clause or a phrase: Specialmente d'estate, ... / mi piace specialmente il pesce.