ITALIAN GRAMMER

Italian Alphabet
Letter Sound in Italian

a Father
b Boy
c Cow
ch k sound in kit (not part of the alphabet)
ci, ce Choose (not part of the alphabet)
d Dog
e Seven
f Frog
gi,ge dj sound in giant (not part of the alphabet)
h Silent
i ee sound in street
j (not considered part of the alphabet- appears in loanwords like
jeans)
k (not part of the alphabet, same as above)
l Long
m Monkey
n Nose
o Open
p Pan
q k sound in kit, always followed by u
r Trilled
s Sing
t Time
u ou sound in you or too
v Violin
w (not part of the alphabet)
x (not part of the alphabet)
y (not part of the alphabet)
z Zebra

Note: Italian s the closest language to Latin in pronunciation and writing.

There are NO silent vowels.
per (for) is shorthanded to x. For example, for you => x te (instead of per te)
Telling Time in Italian Italian Culture
Climate Italy has a highly diverse climate because of its position in
What time is it? => Che ora è? the Mediterranean and the mountainous terrain. The higher
altitudes tend to cold, wet, and snowy, and the coastal
1:44 p.m. = È l'una e quarantaquattro regions have mild winters, warm and dry summers, and even
2:30 p.m. = Sono le due e mezza hot summers in the low valleys.
8:06 a.m. = Sono le otto e sei (di mattina)
10:15 p.m. = Sono dieci e un quarto (di sera)
Events / Merry Christmas => Buon Natale!
at 6 (sharp) = Sono le sei (in punto)
Festivities / Happy New Year => Buon Anno!
It's midnight = È mezzanotte.
Holidays Happy Easter => Buona Pasqua!
It's noon = È mezzogiornio.
Happy Halloween => Buon Halloween
When do we go? = A che ora andiamo?
Happy Valentine's Day => Buon San Valentino
Happy Birthday => Buon compleanno!
Happy Saint's Day => Buon onomastico
Days of the Week: Seasons: Sports / Music The most popular sports include soccer, volleyball,
Sunday => domenica Spring => la primavera / Art waterpolo, motor racing, fencing, rugby, cycling, and hockey.
Monday => lunedì Summer => l'estate Sports are also part of festivities like Palio, and the venician
Tuesday => martedì Autumn/Fall => l'autunno gondola race. Football (soccer) is the most popular sport in
Wednesday => mercoledì Winter => l'inverno Italy.
Thursday => giovedì
Friday => venerdì Other: The arts go back for millennia. Much of what the world has in
Saturday => sabato day => il giorno art and music, theater and opera, is due to Italian influence
today => oggi or invention. Amongst its greatest artistic heritage are artists
Months of the Year: yesterday => ieri like: Bernini, Botticelli, Caravaggio, Donatello, Leonardo da
January => gennaio tomorrow => domani Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, and Titian.
February => febbraio week => la settimana Politics There is more than enough history to have several pages of
March => marzo next => il prossimo information about the politics of Italy, but this is an attempt to
April => aprile last => l'ultimo keep it fairly brief and focused on modern day Italy:
May => maggio month => il mese Parliament consists of a Chamber of Deputies and a Senate,
June => giugno year => l'anno a separate judiciary and executive branch headed by the
July => luglio decade => decennio Prime Minister over a Council of Ministers (or cabinet). The
August => agosto century => secolo President of the Italian Republic is elected for 7 years. The
September => settembre President nominates the Prime Minister, and elections
October => ottobre choose him and the houses of paliament.
November => novembre
December => dicembre Elections are complex. Both houses are elected for up to 5
years, but can be dissolved by the President. The judicial
system is based on Roman law and the Napoleonic code,
-The End- along with other statutes.

Italy has 20 regions, five of which have special status to

enact legislation on local matters. Within each region there
are provinces and municipalities.
 Colors in English Pronunciation in Italian

Religion About 95% of the population is Catholic. The remainder are black nero/a
Protestants, Jews, and Muslims. All faiths have equal white bianco/a
freedom. gray grigio/a
brown marrone/i
red rosso/a
Dress / Food Italians are rich in culture. This is no different for their styles
orange arancione/i
in fashion and food. They enjoy a rich cuisine, with pastas,
yellow giallo/a
wine, and bread being the most recognized. The U.S.
green verde/i
attributes pizza to Italy, though a true Italian pizza is quite
blue azzurro/a
different from the traditional pizza found in the U.S.
purple viola
Localization There are many dialects in Italy, including Tuscan, Ligurian, Common Phrases in Italian
Abruzzese, Cicolano-Reatino-Aquilano, Pugliese, Umbrian,
Laziale, Central Marchigiano, Lombardo, Molisano, Here are some conversational phrases that are essential for survival:
Neapoloitan, Piemontese, Sicilian, Venetian. It is said that
Piemontese, and Sicilian are different enough to be their English Italian
own languages. Italian dialects have elements of French, Good morning. Buona mattina.
Spanish, Greek, etc. Good afternoon. Buon pomeriggio.
Good evening. Buona sera.
Hello, my name is John. Ciao, il mio nome è John.
What is your name? Come ti chiami?
How are you? Come stai?
I am fine. Sto benissimo.
Nice to meet you. Piacere.
Goodbye. Arrivederci.
See you later. A presto.
I am lost. Where is the restroom? Sono perso. Dov' è il bagno?
the hotel l'hotel
the restaurant il ristorante
the airport l'aeroporto
the American embassy l'ambasciata americana
Excuse me. Mi scusi.
Please. Per favore.
Thank you. Grazie.
I'm sorry. Sono spiacente.
You are welcome (it was nothing). Di niente.
How much does it cost? Quanto costa?
There are many. Ce ne sono molti.
Will you buy this? Comprate questo?
What time is it? Che ora e`?
How do you say maybe in French? Come si dice forse in francese?
Yes. Sì.
No. No.
I do not understand. Non capisco.
Would you speak slower, please. Puo` parlare lentamente per piacere?
Who? Chi?
Why? Perchè?
Italian Numbers and Colors Italian Grammar: Sentences | Verbs | Nouns | Adjectives |
Prepositions | Adverbs
Number in English Pronunciation in Italian
0 zero
1 uno Adjectives
2 due Adjectives agree with the nouns to which they refer. They follow the same
3 tre pattern as nouns
4 quattro
5 cinque Sing Plur
6 sei -O -I Ex: bambino/i bravo/i
7 sette -A -E Ex: casa/e bella/e
8 otto -E -I Ex: ragazza/e intelligente/i
9 nove
10 dieci
11 undici
12 dodici Possessive Adjectives
13 tredici
14 quattordici My => il mio/la mia = singular i miei/le mie = plural
15 quindici Your => il tuo/la tua = singular i tuoi/le tue = plural
16 sedici His/Hers/Its => il suo/la sua = singulari suoi/le sue = plural
17 diciassette Our => il nostro/la nostra = singular i nostri/le nostre = plural
18 diciotto Their => il loro/la loro = singular i loro/le loro = plural
19 diciannove
20 venti
30 trenta
40 quaranta
50 cinquanta
60 sessanta For the demonstrative adjectives this, that, these, those use questo,
70 settanta questa, quest' and quel, quell', quello, quella. For example,
80 ottanta this/that bed => questo/quel letto (masculine noun)
90 novanta this/that apple => questa/quella mela (feminine noun)
100 cento this/that bird => quest'/quell' uccello (word begins with vowel)
200 duecento these/those jackets => queste/quelle giacche
100% cinquecento
1000 mille
2000 due mila
100%0 cinque mila
100,000 cento mila
1,000,000 un milione

349 trecento quaranta nove

2007 due mila sette
Italian Grammar: Sentences | Verbs | Nouns | Adjectives | Prepositions Common Nouns in Italian: Business and Jobs
| Adverbs
Family | Work | School | Food | Places, Directions, and Transportation
already => già House and Furniture | Body and Clothing | Animals and Nature | Religion |
badly => male Fantasy
well => bene
here => qui Business (Commercio)
there => là office => ufficio to pay => pagare
inside => all'interno/dentro city => città to buy => comprare
outside => fuori / all'esterno the rent => l'affitto to sell => vendere
often => spesso tax => tassa to cost => costare
always => sempre the cost => il costo to rent => affittare
never => mai price => il prezzo to deposit => depositare
soon => presto bill => fattura
usually => solitamente estimate => valutazione
quickly => rapidamente check => l'assegno
slowly => lentamente balance => totale
passport => passaporto
luggage/baggage => bagaglio
currency exchange => cambio
To form adverbs drop the last vowel of a feminine noun and add -mente. customs => abitudini
entrance => entrata
For example: exit => uscita
natural => naturale => naturalmente information => le informazioni
slow => lento => lentamente
easy => facile => facilmente Jobs
probable => probabile => probabilmente actor (m/f) => attore librarian => il bibliotecario
accountant => il contabile mechanic => il meccanico
architect => l'architetto nurse => l' infermiera
attorney/lawyer => l'avvocato pharmacist => il farmacista
baker => il panettiere police officer => l' ufficiale di polizia
banker => il banchiere postal worker => l'impiegato postale
business person => persona d' affari professor => il professore / la
carpenter => il carpentiere professoressa
computer programmer => il psychologist => lo psicologo
programmatore reporter => il/la giornalista
cook => il cuoco retired => il pensionato
dentist => il dentista salesperson => il commesso / la
doctor => il dottore / la dottoressa commessa
electrician => elettricista secretary => il segretario / la
engineer => ingegnere segretaria
factory worker => operaio di fabbrica singer => il cantante
fire fighter => vigile del fuoco student => lo studente
hair dresser => il parrucchiere taxi driver => il conducente del tassì
/laparrucchiera teacher => il maestro / la maestra
judge => giudice veterinarian => il veterinario
writer => l'autore
Common Nouns in Italian: School
Family | Work | School | Food | Places, Directions, and Transportation
House and Furniture | Body and Clothing | Animals and Nature | Religion |
Fantasy
Accounting => la contabilità
Algebra => l' algebra
Art => l'arte
Biology => la biologia
Business => il commercio
Chemistry => la chimica
Computer Science => l'informatica
Dance => la danza
Economics => l'economia
Foreign languages => le lingue
straniere
Geography => la geografia
Geometry => la geometria
History => la storia
Math => la matematica
Music => la musica
Physical education => l'educazione
fisica
Physics => la fisica
Political Science => le scienze
politiche
board/chalkboard => la lavagna
book => il libro
college => l'università
computer => il computer
desk => il banco
dictionary => il dizionario
paper => la carta
pencil => la matita
pen => la penna
professor => il professore / la
professoressa
school =>la scuola
student => lo studente
teacher => il maestro / la maestra
test/quiz => l'esame (m)
university => l' università
to study => studiare
to learn => imparare
to teach => insegnare
Italian Grammar: Sentences | Verbs | Nouns | Adjectives |
Prepositions | Adverbs
ARTICLES
Definite Articles (the)
Masculine: il, lo, l', i, gli
Feminine: la, l', le
Indefinite Articles (a)
Masculine: un, uno
Feminine: una, un'
NOUNS
Plural Nouns
Plural Nouns
There are three groups of nouns in Italian. The first is masculine, the
second is feminine, and the third can be of either gender. The plurals are
made by dropping the final vowel and replacing it as follows:
1st group (masculine): libro = book, libri = books
2nd group (feminine): casa= house, case= houses
3rd group (m or f): insegnante= teacher, insegnanti= teachers
SingPlur
-O -I
-A -E
-E -I
Italian Grammar: Sentences | Verbs | Nouns | Adjectives | Transportation (trasporto)
by airplane => l'aeroplano engine => motore
Prepositions | Adverbs
by bicycle => la bicicletta wheel => ruota
by boat => la barca window => finestra/finestrino
among => fra di by bus => l'autobus ticket => biglietto
at => a/in by car => l'automobile
between => fra/tra on foot => a piedi to fly => volare
for => per by moped => in motociclo to walk => andare
from/of/about => da/di/circa by motorcycle => la motocicletta to drive (car) => guidare
in front of => davanti a by subway => in metro`
behind => dietro a by taxi => in tassì
in => in by train => in treno
on => su
across from => attraverso
over/above => sopra
under/below => sotto Common Nouns in Italian: Religion
near => vicino a
far from => lontano da Family | Work | School | Food | Places, Directions, and Transportation
with => con House and Furniture | Body and Clothing | Animals and Nature | Religion |
without => senza Fantasy

angel => l'angelo hell => l'inferno

baptism => il battesimo
Bible => la Bibbia
bishop => il vescovo
Buddhism => il Buddismo
cathedral => la cattedrale
Christianity => cristianita`
church => la chiesa
faith => la fede
God => dio
heaven => il cielo
Judaism => il Giudaismo
monastery => il monastero
Pope => il papa
prophet => il profeta
Protestant => protestante
religion => la religione
sermon => il sermone
temple => il tempio
worship => il culto

Religion
Common Nouns in Italian: Directions, Places and Italian Grammar: Sentences | Verbs | Nouns | Adjectives |
Transportation Prepositions | Adverbs

Family | Work | School | Food | Places, Directions, and Transportation Basic Sentence Structure
House and Furniture | Body and Clothing | Animals and Nature | Religion | Subject + Verb + Object
Fantasy
Negative Sentences
Driving Directions (Direzioni)
Italian uses double negatives.
How do we get to ? => Come si arriva to accelerate => accelerare
never => non...mai (non goes before the verb, mai goes after the verb)
a______ to break/stop => fermarsi
neither...nor => non...nè...nè
Where is _? => Dov'e` il/la_ to go => andare
no longer, no more => non...piu`
What time does it leave? => A che ora parte turn left => girare a sinistra
nobody => non...nessuno
il/la __ turn right => girare a destra
not even => non...neanche
Can you draw it for me? => Puo` scriverlo go straight => andare diritto
nothing => non...niente
per favore?
Comparatives / Superlatives
map => la cartina
as ____ as => cosi` ____ come, tanto___________quanto
corner => l'angolo
less ___ than => meno ___ di/che
street => la starda
more ___ than => più ___ di/che
city => la citta`
as many ___ as => tanto ___ quanto
downtown => il centro citta`
For example,
Places (Posti)
Maira is taller than her. => Maria e` più alta di lei.
airport => l'aeroporto pastry shop => la pasticceria
I am smarter than you. => Sono più astuto di voi.
bakery => il panificio park => il parco
Peter runs less quickly than me. => Peter corre meno velocemente di me.
bank => la banca pharmacy => la farmacia
The kitchen is as big as the living room. => La cucina é tanto grande quanto
beach => la spiaggia police station => il stazione di
il salotto.
cafe => il bar polizia
I have more books than her. => Ho piu` libri di lei.
church => la chiesa post office => l'ufficio postale
We have as many cars as him. => Abbiamo tante automobili quante ne ha
factory => la fabbrica pool => la piscina
lui.
garden => il giardino restaurant => il ristorante
grocery store => il negozio di alimentari school => la scuola
home => la casa stadium => lo stadio
hospital => l'ospedale store => il negozio
library => la biblioteca train station => la stazione del
market => il mercato treno
movie theater => il cinema town hall => il municipio
museum => il museo bookstore => la libreria
zoo => lo zoo
Italian Grammar: Sentences | Verbs | Nouns | Adjectives |
Prepositions | Adverbs
Conjugating regular verbs is fairly simple. Take off the last three letters of -
are, -ere, and -ire ending verbs and add these to the stem:
Common Nouns in Italian: House and Furniture
Family | Work | School | Food | Places, Directions, and Transportation
House and Furniture | Body and Clothing | Animals and Nature | Religion |
Fantasy

house => la casa table => la tavola

apartment => l' appartamento chair => la sedia
-ARE ending room => la stanza couch => il divano
(I) -o living room => il soggiorno desk => la scrivania
(you) -i kitchen => la cucina window => la finestra
(he/she/it) -a dining room => la sala da pranzo door => la porta
(we) -iamo hallway => il corridoio wall => la parete / il muro
(you all) -ate stairs => la scala bed => il letto
(they) -ano bathroom => il bagno blanket => la coperta
bathtub => la vasca da bagno television => la televisione
-ERE ending shower => l' acquazzone radio => la radio
(I) -o sink => il lavandino refrigerator => il frigorifero
(you) -i roof => il tetto stove => la stufa
(he/she/it) -e garage => il garage oven => il forno
(we) -iamo yard => il prato dishwasher => la lavapiatti
(you all) -ete closet => l'armadio microwave => il microonde
(they) -ono light => la luce
garbage => l' immondizia
Some -IRE verbs have alternative endings
-IRE ending
(I) -o / -isco
(you) -i / -isci
(he/she/it) -e / -isce
(we) -iamo

(you all) -ite

(they) -ono / -iscono

ESSERE
---Past Tense (Imperfect):
---Present Tense: I was = io ero
I am = io sono you were = tu eri
you are = tu sei he/she/it was = lui/lei era
he/she/it is = lui/lei é we were = noi eravamo
we are = noi siamo you all were= voi eravate
they are = loro sono they were = loro erano
you all are= voi siete
Common Nouns in Italian: Food
AVERE
Family | Work | School | Food | Places, Directions, and Transportation ---Present Tense:
---Past Tense (Imperfect):
House and Furniture | Body and Clothing | Animals and Nature | Religion |
I had = io avevo
Fantasy
I have = io ho you had = tu avevi
you have = tu hai he/she/it had = lui/lei aveva
breakfast => la colazione bread => il pane
he/she/it has = lui/lei ha we had = noi avevamo
lunch => il pranzo pasta => la pasta
we have = noi abbiamo you all had = voi avevate
dinner => la cena cereal => i cereali
you all have= voi avete they had = loro avevano
they have = loro hanno
bowl => la ciotola fruit => la frutta
cup => la tazza apple => la mela
CONOSCERE (know or be acquainted with)
fork => la forchetta banana => la banana
---Present Tense: ---Past Tense (Imperfect):
knife => il coltello orange => l'arancia
plate => il piatto grapes => l'uva I knew = io sapevo
spoon => il cucchiaio peach => la pesca I know = io conosco you knew = tu sapevi
tomato => il pomodoro you know = tu conosci he/she/it knew = lui/lei
beer => la birra watermelon => l'anguria he/she/it knows = lui/lei conosce sapeva
coffee => il caffè we know = noi conosciamo we knew = npi sapevamo
juice => il succo di frutta meat => la carne you all know= voi conoscete you all knew= voi sapevate
milk => il latte chicken => il pollo they know = loro conoscono they knew = loro sapevano
tea => il tè turkey => il tacchino
water => l'acqua ham => il prosciutto FARE
wine => il vino fish => il pesce ---Present Tense: ---Past Tense (Imperfect):
egg => l' uovo I made = io facevo
desert => il dolce cheese => il formaggio I make = io faccio you made = tu facevi
ice cream => il gelato you make = tu fai he/she/it made = lui/lei faceva
cake/pie => la torta vegetables => le verdure he/she/it makes = lui/lei fa we made = noi facevamo
lettuce => la lattuga we make = noi facciamo you all make= voi you all made = voi facevate
broccoli => i broccoli fate they made = loro facevano
butter => il burro carrot => la carota they make = loro fanno
jam => la marmellata celery => il sedano
cucumber => il cetriolo Commands
sugar => lo zucchero salad => l'insalata The imperative tense is used for commands. This tense is formed using
salt => il sale these rules:
pepper => il pepe
broth/soup => il brodo / la zuppa 1. The second person singular and plural (tu and voi) forms are the same as
their present indicative forms, with the exception of -are verbs, which add -a
to the root.

2. The formal lei/loro form take the present subjunctive form.

3. The first person plural (noi) form also uses the present indicative form.
Here are some examples: Common Nouns in Italian: Fantasy
Aprire cantare vendere Family | Work | School | Food | Places, Directions, and Transportation
tu (you) Apri canta vendi House and Furniture | Body and Clothing | Animals and Nature | Religion |
lei (he/she)Apra canti venda
noi (we) apriamocantiamovendiamo
loro (they) Aprano cantino vendano archer => il tiratore d'arco
armor => l'armatura
To form negative commands place non before the Infinitive form: arrow => la freccia
Don't sleep! => (tu) Non dormire! axe => l'ascia
Don't sing! => Non cantare! bow => l'arco
castle => il castello
cauldron => il calderone
demon => il diavolo
devil => il diavolo
dragon => il drago
dungeon => il castello
dwarf => il nano
elf => l'elfo
fairy => la fata
ghost => il fantasma
Fantasy
giant => il gigante
goblin => il nano
king => il re
knight => il cavaliere
lance => la lancia
magic => la magia
mermaid => la sirena
moat => il fossato
monster => il mostro
mummy => la mummia
princess => la principessa
queen => la regina
shield => lo scudo
sword => la spada
throne => il trono
tower => la torretta
unicorn => l'unicorno
wizard => il mago
Common Nouns in Italian: Family Common Nouns in Italian
Family | Work | School | Food | Places, Directions, and Transportation
Click on the following links to view the vocabulary word list:
House and Furniture | Body and Clothing | Animals and Nature | Religion |
Fantasy Family
House and Furniture
Words for family members,
family => la famiglia grandchildren => nipoti Objects around and in the home,
extended family, and relations.
relatives => il parenti grandson => il nipote and words for different rooms.
parents => i genitori granddaughter => la nipote
mother => la madre niece => la nipote Work
Body and Clothing
father => il padre nephew => il nipote Nouns for the business place
Common clothing articles and
brother => il fratello cousin (m/f) => il cugino / la cugina including objects and job titles.
words for various body parts.
sister => la sorella husband => il marito
son => il figlio wife => la moglie
School Animals and Nature
daughter => la figlia single => singolo
Class names or subjects of study, Popular animals and things found
uncle => lo zio married => sposato
and objects found at school. out in the wild.
aunt => la zia divorced => divorziato
grandmother => la nonna widow => vedova
grandfather => il nonno Food Religion
Breads, meats, fruits, vegetables Nouns often used in religious
and desserts. conversation.

Places, Directions, and Fantasy

Transportation Medievil things from history and
Words for driving directions, from the world of make-believe.
places, and modes of
transportation.
Common Nouns in Italian: Animals and Nature
Common Nouns in Italian: Body and Clothing
Family | Work | School | Food | Places, Directions, and Transportation
House and Furniture | Body and Clothing | Animals and Nature | Religion | Family | Work | School | Food | Places, Directions, and Transportation
Fantasy House and Furniture | Body and Clothing | Animals and Nature | Religion |
Fantasy
dog => il cane forest => la foresta
cat => il gatto trees => l' albero head => la testa hat => il capello
mouse => il topo plant => la pianta brain => il cervello earrings => gli orecchini
bird => l'uccello flower => il fiore hair => i capelli shirt => la camicia
chicken/rooster => il pollo/gallo jungle => la giungla face => la faccia blouse => la camicetta
cow => la mucca ocean => l'oceano ear => l'orecchio dress => il vestito
duck => l'anatra river => il fiume eye => l'occhio pants => i pantaloni
goat => la capra pond => lo stagno mouth => la bocca jeans => i jeans
horse => il cavallo lake => il lago nose => il naso shorts => i pantaloncini
pig => il maiale hill => la collina neck => il collo skirt => la gonna
sheep => la pecora mountain => la montagna shoulder => la spalla sock => il calzino
waterfall => la cascata chest => il torace shoe => la scarpa
lion => il leone rainbow => l'arcobaleno stomach => lo stomaco swimsuit => il costume da bagno
tiger => la tigre sky => il cielo waist => la vita underwear => la biancheria intima
bear => l'orso cloud => la nube back => la schiena glove => il guanto
wolf => il lupo rain => la pioggia heart => il cuore belt => la cintura
elephant => l'elefante snow => la neve arm => il braccio coat => il cappotto
monkey => la scimmia elbow => il gomito ring => l' anello
skunk => la puzzola wrist => polso
eagle => l'aquila hand => la mano My arm hurts. =>Mi fa male il braccio.
fish => il pesce finger => il dito Are you hurt? => State male?
whale => la balena leg => la gamba I have a headache. => Ho mal di testa.
thigh => la coscia Do you have aspirin? => Avete un' aspirina?
shin => lo stinco You are hurting me. => Mi fate male.
foot => il piede Don't hurt him/her. => No fargli/farle male.
toe => il dito