Planning a trip to Italy? Well, maybe now it's not the best time to travel (I am writing this article in January 2021), but I am sure we will start traveling again soon. This gives you extra time to study and practice your Italian, so make sure you learn these 25 phrases before you come to Italy. They will be extremely useful! 1. Greetings You should also know the greetings before you come to Italy, but I haven't included them in the list as I wrote an entire article on those that you can check out here . 2. Grazie Thank you I am sure you know this word already, but do you know how to pronounce it correctly? Make sure you pronounce every single vowel, especially the "i" and "e" at the end. It's not gra-tsi but gra-tsi-eh . You can hear the pronunciation of this word on my YouTube video attached to this post. Grazie is very nice, but you can also use grazie mille ( thank you a lot , lit. thank you a thousand ) if you want to be extra nice. 3. Prego You're welcome Since you know how to say thank you now, we should also learn how to say you're welcome , right? Very easy: prego ! This word can actually be used in a lot of different ways; its main use is as you're welcome , however, it also means go ahead both when you're talking to someone and you want them to express their idea, but also when you're walking into a store and you let someone enter or pass in front of you to be nice. Prego is also used to say come in when someone is knocking on your door. 4. Scusa and Scusi Sorry, excuse me I am sure you've heard this word as well, or perhaps you've heard scusi that is a very popular Italian word abroad. Scusa and scusi both mean the same thing ( sorry or excuse me ) but scusa is informal, while scusi is formal. This means, that you will be using scusa with people you know well, your friends and family, or eventually, people that you don't know but are about your age or younger. On the other hand, you're going to use scusi in a formal setting, for example at work, with people much older than you and university. Scusa and scusi means both sorry and excuse me . So you can use it both to apologize but also to get someone's attention. Let's say you are on the metro in Roma and you accidentally step on your friend's foot, so you want to apologize and say: scusa . Now, let's say you are still on the metro and you see an old lady dropping her wallet. She didn't realize it, so you pick it up for her and you get her attention saying scusi to give her wallet back. In the first case, you would use scusa because you're talking to a friend, in the second case you would use scusi if you are talking to a woman older than you. Scusa and scusi can also be used at the restaurant to get the waiter's attention or to a person on the street to ask for directions. 5. Scusami and Mi scusi Sorry, excuse me These two words are basically the same, but they add the pronoun "mi", just to add a bit more emphasis on the person that is speaking. 6. Mi dispiace I am sorry, I feel sorry This word is also very popular but many students still use it incorrectly. Mi dispiace can be used to apologize but remember that is very emotional. We usually use it when our friend tells us about something bad that happened to him/her, so we say that we feel sorry for what happened. Let's say for example that they've run out of pasta and wine at home, so we say mi dispiace ! You can also use it to apologize but remember that it's more emotional than just scusa . Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me! 7. Per favore or Per piacere Please These two expressions don't need much explaining. They just mean please . They are completely interchangeable so you can use them in the same way. Let's say you walk into a bar to get your caffè and say: "Scusi, prendo un caffè, per favore/per piacere" (Excuse me, I'll have a coffee, please). 8. Come ti chiami? What's your name? Don't you want to know people's names? Remember that Come ti chiami? is informal. If you want to use the formal version go for Come si chiama? 9. Mi chiamo Stefano My name is Stefano To answer the previous question you just need to add your name to mi chiamo ( my name is lit. I am called ). In my case, mi chiamo Stefano . 10. Come stai? How are you? This is the easiest way to ask someone how they're doing. Remember that this expression is informal. If you want to be formal, you just need to get rid of the "i" and say " come sta?" . 11. Sto bene, grazie! E tu? I am good, thanks! What about you? 12. Sto benissimo, grazie! I am very good, thanks! 13. Sto alla grande, grazie! I am very good, thanks! This is just an alternative to benissimo . I love this expression as it's very positive and happy. 14. Come va? How is it going? This expression is very similar to come stai , but we're using the verb "va" (from andare = to go ) as you would in English (How is it going ?). 15. Va tutto bene, grazie! Everything is going well, thanks! This is one potential answer to "come va?" . 16. Dov'è + place ? Where is + place? You want to make sure you know this expression as it is going to be very useful during your next trip. Let's not kid ourselves, you're not going to use it to ask for directions. You're never going to say something like "Dov'è il colosseo?" to a random person on the street. We have phones and everyone uses maps. But, let's say you are at a restaurant and you want to ask where the restroom/toilet is. You can't use your phone for that! For instance, you could say Dov'è il bagno? ( Where's the bathroom?) . Or, let's say you just got to the hotel you're staying at and you want to ask where the breakfast room is, so you say "Dov'è la sala colazioni?" . 17. Quanto costa? How much is it? How much does it cost? This expression is used to ask for the cost of an item. If you are asking for the cost of multiple items, then you want to use the plural version "Quanto costano?" . 18. Quant'è? How much is it? How much does it cost? This expression is very similar to the previous one, but it's usually used when you're asking for the total amount you are supposed to pay. "Quanto costa?" is usually used to ask for the cost of a specific item, whereas "quant'è?" is used to ask for the total amount of money you need to pay at the cashier. The only problem with this is that the person is going to answer with numbers. If you don't know numbers, try to learn them before your next trip to Italy as they are going to be useful for a lot of different things. 19. Mi può dare + item ? Can you give me + item ? Let's say you are in a bakery and you want to buy that amazing arancino ( click here if you don't know what that is ) that is staring at you. To ask the baker to give you that arancino you can just say "Mi può dare un arancino?" . If you don't know the name of the thing you're buying, you can say "mi può dare quello?" ( Can you give me that? ) and just point the thing you want. To be nicer, you can add the expression please that we learned before: per favore or per piacere . 20. Vorrei... I would like... This verb can be used in several different ways. You could use it at a restaurant to order your food, for example " Vorrei una lasagna, grazie" (I would like a lasagna, thank you!). 21. Prendo... I'll have... This expression is just an alternative to the previous one, and again it can be used at a restaurant, bar, pizzeria... "Prendo" literally translates as "I take". 22. Ci può portare il conto? Can we have the check/bill? Well, that's pretty straightforward. You would use it to ask for the bill/check at the restaurant. You can also add per favore or per piacere in there to make it nicer. P.S. We don't usually tip waiters in Italy, so it's not something you should worry about. 23. Di dove sei? Where are you from? Super useful expression if you want to initiate a conversation with someone. 24. Sono di + city or Sono + adjective I am from + city / I am + adjective If you get asked "Di dove sei?" you want to make sure you answer correctly. You have two options. You either say Sono di + the name of city you're from or Sono + adjective of nationality. Let me give you a few examples: Sono di Roma = I am from Rome Sono di Milano = I am from Milan Sono americano = I am American Sono francese = I am French Make sure you look up your adjective of nationality so that you will always know what to answer. You can translate your adjective of nationality using my favorite Online Dictionary: WordReference . I love this dictionary as it's very detailed and gives a lot of examples. If the adjective you find ends in -o then you will have to change based on your gender. For instance, if you are an American man, the translation is going to be american o . But, if you are a woman, you want to change that to american a . If the adjective you find ends in -e, then you won't have to worry about it. For example, francese , French , works both for men and women. P.S. We don't capitalize adjectives of nationality. 25. Scusami, non parlo molto bene l'italiano. I am sorry, I don't speak Italian very well. These sentences are going to help you to get started, but of course, you might find yourself in a situation in which you need to switch to English. But before you do that you you may want to apologize for not speaking Italian very well. But let me add something... YET. You don't speak Italian very well YET. And if you would like to take your Italian to the next level, make sure to check out my Online Italian Course for Beginners . I am sure you'll love it! I hope you enjoyed these phrases for your next trip to Italy and I'll see you soon! Ciao!

The verb "piacere" is a bit tricky but once you understand how it works, I am sure you won't have any problems using it correctly during conversation. Let's dive right in! The verb piacere is one of the trickiest verbs in Italian because it works very differently compared to English. In today's article, we will see how it is used, the grammar rules behind it, and I will be giving you an awesome tip that will make this verb much easier to understand. Before we start talking about how piacere works in Italian, let's look at the main differences compared to English: In English, you would say: I like something . "I" is the subject of the sentence, the person doing the "liking". The thing you like (something) is the object of the action. In Italian, the thing you like will become the subject of the sentence and the person who does the liking is the person the action is directed to. So, you would say Mi piace qualcosa . To make things a little bit easier, I always tell my students to think it this way; instead of saying "I like something", think it as "something is pleasing to me" . As you can see from the previous example, something is now the subject of the action and to me (the person who's doing the liking) becomes the person the action is directed to. This is the logic of the verb piacere in Italian! Now let's see the actual rules! 1. Piace and Piacciono You probably already know that mi piace means I like , however that is not completely true. This is because you need to choose the right form of piacere based on the object that is liked. Mi piace means I like only when the object that is liked is singular . But if you like multiple objects, then you will have to choose piacciono . Let me give you a few examples to better understand: Mi piace la pizza = I like pizza Mi piacciono le canzoni d'amore = I like love songs In the first example, we're choosing piace because the object that is liked (la pizza) is singular! In the second example, we're choosing piacciono because we like multiple things. The object that is liked (le canzoni d'amore) is plural! This is the first rule you need to remember: you choose piace when the object that is liked is singular and piacciono when it's plural! 2. Piacere with a verb Sometimes, you might need to say that you like doing something. For example, I like singing, cooking or travelling . Well, in that case, you will need to use the singular form piace ! Mi piace cantare = I like singing Mi piace cucinare = I like cooking Mi piace viaggiare = I like travelling Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me! 3. Conjugation of Piacere The main problem with the verb piacere is that you won't always say mi piace , sometimes you'll need to say that you like or he likes . How do we do that? First of all, you can notice that I am not using the usual personal pronoun io with the verb piacere , I am not saying io piace or piacciono . Instead, I am saying mi . That's because mi means to me , and it's an indirect object pronoun. I've never talked about indirect object pronouns on my blog or my YouTube Channel , but I will very soon! In the meantime, let me show you how these pronouns work so you can start to memorize them and use them in real conversation. Let's go over the conjugation of piacere in the present, together with indirect object pronouns: Mi piace/piacciono = I like Ti piace/piacciono = You like Gli piace/piacciono = He likes Le piace/piacciono = She likes Ci piace/piacciono = We like Vi piace/piacciono = You (guys) like Gli piace/piacciono = They like Does that make sense? All these pronouns translate "to + pronoun". When I am saying mi piace or piacciono , I am actually saying that something is pleasing to me . The same thing applies to ti that actually means to you . Let me show you the translation of these pronouns to better understand and visualize them: Mi = to me Ti = to you Gli = to him Le = to her Ci = to us Vi = to you guys Gli = to them Pronouns in Italian are much more complex than this, but this is how they work with the verb piacere . Let me give you a few examples to better understand: Ti piacciono i film d'azione? = Do you like action movies? ( Are action movies pleasing to you?) Le piace la pasta = Does she like pasta? ( Is pasta pleasing to her?) Vi piacciono queste foto? = Do you like these photos? ( Are these photos pleasing to you?) Gli piace nuotare? = Does he like swimming? ( Is swimming pleasing to him?) Makes sense? I think it does! As you can see, if you think the verb piacere as to be pleasing to someone you will also understand why you're using piace or piacciono . In the first example we are saying ti piacciono because i film is plural. That's why in English we're saying "ARE action movies pleasing to you?" . In the second example, we're saying " IS pasta pleasing to you?" , making it singular, and that's why we use piace . 4. Expressing the subject One last thing before you start practicing with piacere ! Sometimes you might need to say "Stefano likes pizza" or "My mother likes reading". Basically, you need to express the subject! What do we do in this case? Well, if you're thinking Stefano piace la pizza ... you're wrong, unfortunately. If you phrase this way, you're missing a very important part of the sentence: to . Again, remember that the translation would be: pizza is pleasing TO Stefano . So, where's the TO there? No worries, it's very easy! You'll need to add the preposition A (= to) in front of the person that is doing the liking. The correct way to say Stefano likes pizza is A Stefano piace la pizza . It's not that bad, isn't it? Let's see some other examples: A mia madre piace leggere = my mother likes reading Ai miei figli piacciono le patatine fritte = my kids like french fries/chips A Marco piace il mare = Marco likes the sea Final recap I have to admit, that was a lot to take in! Let's do a quick recap of what we talked about today: You choose piace or piacciono based on how many things you like. Piace if singular, piacciono if plural. You use the indirect object pronouns (mi, ti, gli, le, ci, vi, gli) to conjugate the verb piacere. You add the preposition A in front of the person who is doing the liking if you decide to express the subject! I hope this helps! If you have any questions just send me a message in the contact section of the website and don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel for more Italian tips! Ci vediamo presto, ciao! Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me!

You may think that saying where you come from is the easiest thing, however, many students (even the most advanced ones) still get this wrong. Prepositions don't spare anyone, that's why I am here to talk about it! Di dove sei? (Where are you from?) and Da dove vieni? (Where do you come from?) are definitely the most common questions foreigners get asked in Italy. We want to know where you come from! But you want to make sure you answer this question correctly! How can you do that? Well, it's very simple and you even have 3 different options! Essere + adjective of nationality Essere + di + city where you come from Venire + da + country Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me! 1. Essere + adjective of nationality This is very simple and no preposition is required for this one (yay!). For example, I would say: sono italiano (= I am Italian). My advice is to look up your adjective of nationality (you can use my favorite online dictionary ( WordReference ). You need to keep two things in mind: 1. If the adjective you found ends in -o then you'll need to change the last vowel according to the gender of the subject. I say sono italian o because I am a man. If you are a woman you would change the -o into -a and say sono italian a . Let me give you a couple of more examples: Sono american o = I am American (man) Sono american a = I am American (woman) Sono spagnol o = I am Spanish (man) Sono spagnol a = I am Spanish (woman) Sono russ o = I am Russian (man) Sono russ a = I am Russian (woman) Sono brasilian o = I am Brazilian (man) Sono brasilian a = I am Brazilian (woman) 2. If the adjective you found ends in -e , then you won't need to change it. For example: Sono francese = I am French (both men and women) Sono inglese = I am English (both men and women) Sono canadese = I am Canadian (both men and women) P.S. As you can see we don't capitalize adjectives of nationality. 2. Essere + di + city If you want to say you come from *any city in the world*, you just need to say sono di + city . For example: Sono di Milano = I am from Milan Sono di New York = I am from New York Sono di Londra = I am from London Sono di Parigi = I am from Paris This is extremely important: SONO DI is used with cities only! You wouldn't use it with countries. Saying SONO DI ITALIA is very, very wrong! So is SONO DA ITALIA , wrong! The verb essere can't be used with the preposition DA , only with DI , and the whole expression SONO DI is preferably used with cities. 3. Venire + da + country/city First of all, you need to know that the verb venire is irregular, so the first person singular is going to be vengo . Then, you would use vengo with da + definite article + country , or da + city . If you don't know how to combine the preposition DA + definite articles, this list below might help: Da + il = dal Da + lo = dallo Da + i = dai Da + gli = dagli Da + la = dalla Da + le = dalle Da + l' = dall' Since I come from Italy, I would say: vengo dall'Italia . Italia is considered feminine and singular, so the right article would be L' that combined with the preposition da , forms dall' . Let me give you some more examples: Vengo dagli Stati Uniti = I come from the United States Vengo dall'Inghilterra = I come from England Vengo dal Brasile = I come from Brazil Vengo dalla Francia = I come from France Vengo da can be used with cities as well, with no article. For example: Vengo da Milano = I come from Milan Vengo da Roma = I come from Rome Vengo da Washington DC = I come from Washington DC And what about you? Di dove sei? Get in touch with me and let me know where you come from! A presto! Stefano Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me!

Are you struggling in choosing the right helping verb to use with passato prossimo ? In today's article, we will cover the rules to choose the right helping verb and I will be giving you some tips to avoid common mistakes! Before we dive into today's topic let's do a quick recap of PASSATO PROSSIMO . This tense is used to describe an action that took place in the past. More specifically, it is used when the action is well defined in a specific moment in the past and eventually started and finished. Passato prossimo is formed this way: Subject + auxiliary verb in the present (essere/avere) + past participle The past participle doesn't change when you use the verb avere , but you need to change it according to the gender and number of the subject when using essere . The big question is: when do I use essere and when avere ? Most of the verbs in Italian actually require avere , so we will talk about the verbs that take essere . Then, if you have a verb that doesn't fall in these categories, you will use avere . Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me! 1. Verbs suggesting motion This does not work all the time, but generally, verbs suggesting some kind of movement take essere. This is the list of verbs of motion taking essere that I suggest you memorize: Andare → sono andato (I went) Venire → sono venuto (I came) Salire → sono salito (I went up) Scendere → sono sceso (I went down) Cadere → sono caduto (I fell) Partire → sono partito (I left) Entrare → sono entrato (I went in, I entered) Uscire → sono uscito (I went out, I exited) (Ri)Tornare → sono (ri)tornato (I came back, I returned) Arrivare → sono arrivato (I arrived) Let me give you a couple of examples using these verbs: Sono andato a fare shopping con mia sorella (I went shopping with my sister) Sono ritornati a casa alle 2 (They came back home at 2) Sono arrivata in ritardo a lavoro (I arrived late at work) 2. Verbs suggesting NO motion I know this is weird because it's the opposite of the previous one. However, verbs suggesting you (or the subject) staying still in one place, usually takes essere . Stare → sono stato (I stayed) Rimanere → sono rimasto (I remained, I stayed) Restare → sono restato (I remained, I stayed) Let me give you some more examples: Sono rimasta a casa ieri sera perché ero stanca (I stayed at home last night because I was tired) Siete mai stati in Italia? (Have you guys ever been to Italy?) P.S: Restare does NOT mean "to rest" but it's actually a synonym of "rimanere". "To rest" is riposarsi . 3. Verbs suggesting a change of state All those verbs that suggest a transformation or development in the subject require essere . Crescere → sono cresciuto (I grew up) Diventare → sono diventato (I became) Nascere → sono nato (I was born) Morire → sono morto (I died) For example, I could say: sono nato e cresciuto in Italia (I was born and raised in Italy). 4. ALL reflexive verbs There's not much explanation needed here. All reflexive verbs take essere . All of them! No exception! Lavarsi → mi sono lavato (I washed myself) Vestirsi → mi sono vestito (I got dressed) Divertirsi → ci siamo divertite (we had fun (f.)) 5. The verb ESSERE itself Don't forget that the verb essere takes essere itself to form passato prossimo. The past participle of essere is stato , so that means that the passato prossimo of "essere" and "stare" are going to be the same. Sono stato might be I was, I stayed or I've been . You can easily figure it out from the context. If your verb doesn't fall in any of these categories, then it probably takes avere . Of course, there are many exceptions, but if you follow these rules, you'll be able to form 90% of Italian passato prossimo with no troubles. A presto! Stefano Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me!

In today's article, I will list some extremely useful expressions with the verb avere . Don't forget to watch my YouTube video on this topic for the full explanation! You probably already know that the verb avere means to have in English. However, there are many idiomatic expressions that use avere , and they are extremely common, so you want to make sure you know them and start using them in your daily Italian conversations. I will list them below with their English translation, however, if you want the full explanation and useful example sentences, don't forget to watch my YouTube video related to this topic! Avere fame → to be hungry Avere sete → to be thristy Avere fretta → to be in a hurry Avere voglia di → to want, to feel like Avere sonno → to be sleepy Avere paura di → to be scared of Avere bisogno di → to need Avere caldo → to be hot Avere freddo → to be cold A presto! Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me!

Ciao! As you probably know, I have a brand new office (you can watch the video here ) and I would love to receive some letters from your countries written in Italian to hang them on a wall. This is a way to feel closer to each other. If I get enough letters I will go through them and read them in a YouTube video! If you're interested in this little project, you can send your letter here: Stefano Chiaromonte Via Palmiro Togliatti 36/B, San Severo, FG, 71016, Italia I can't wait to receive your letters! Un abbraccio dall'Italia, Teacher Stefano

CI can be so many things in Italian. Do you know how to use it properly? Well, let's find out in today's article. The first thing we need to understand is that CI is a pronoun, therefore it replaces things. As you probably know, ci can be a reflexive, direct object, and indirect object pronoun. We are not going to focus on these functions of CI in today's article, but let me give you some examples anyway: Ci laviamo → we wash ( ourselves ) Chiama ci ! → call us ! Ci hai detto una bugia! → you told us a lie 1. CI as THERE One of the first functions of CI is " there " in the expressions c'è and ci sono . Let me give you some examples: C'è l'acqua in frigorifero? → is there water in the fridge? Ci sono 22 studenti in classe → there are 22 students in class Don't forget that you can apply this also to past and/or future tenses: C'erano alcuni problemi con i documenti → there were some issues with the documents Ci sarà molto sole domani → there will be a lot of sun tomorrow (= it will be very sunny tomorrow) 2. CI is used to replace expressions of place One of the reasons why I love ci is because it replaces anything else that other pronouns can't. Ci can replace a word or expression introduced by these prepositions: a , in , su , and da . A) Sei mai stato in Italia ? B) No, non ci sono mai stato! → A) Have you ever been t o Italy ? B) No, I've never been there . A) Ti piacerebbe andare a Roma ? B) Certo, vorrei andar ci subito! A) Would you like to go to Rome ? B) Of course, I would like to go there now! A) Sei mai salito sulla terrazza del Duomo di Milano? B) No, non ci sono ancora salito → Have you ever been on the terrace of the Duomo di Milano? B) No I haven't been up there yet. A) Vai da Marco stasera? B) No, non ci posso andare perché ho la febbre! → A) Are you going to Marco's house tonight? B) No, I can't go there because I've got a fever. 3. CI is used to replace words introduced by CON Ci is also used to replace words or names introduced by the preposition con (with). Let me give you two examples: A) Esci con il tuo ragazzo oggi? B) No, ci esco domani! → A) Are you going out with your boyfriend today? B) No, I am going out with him tomorrow! A) Che farai con la farina e il lievito ? B) Ci faccio una pizza per stasera! → A) What are you going to do with flour and yeast ? B) I am making a pizza for tonight with them ! We're done with today's article! If you'd like a more in-depth explanation of the uses of CI, don't forget to check out my YouTube Video on this topic! Anyway, CI has also many other uses in the Italian language such as the expressions ci vuole and ci vogliono , CI used with some verbs, the so-called ci di proprietà and more! If you want to know more about these other uses, let me know and I'll make sure to make another video and article about this topic! A presto, Stefano

Passato prossimo is one of the two most important past tenses in Italian, let's see how to use it and how it's formed! Passato prossimo is a past tense used to describe an action that took place in the past (duh!). However, not any action in the past. More specifically, we are talking about an action that started and finished in the past, that took place at a specific time, or in a specific amount of time. That moment could be a very specific one in the past or even a long continuous one and as long as it's defined, we are going to use passato prossimo , most of the time! 1. How is PASSATO PROSSIMO formed? Passato prossimo is formed this way: Subject + auxiliary verb (essere/avere) in the present + past participle One of the most common questions I get from my students is: how do I choose between essere and avere . We're not going to talk about this in today's blog article as I already wrote another article on this topic that you can check out here . 2. Past participle The past participle is formed by adding a specific ending to the stem of the verb. Let me show you how: Amare (to love) forms the past participle by dropping the ending of the infinitive (-are) and adds -ato : amato (loved). Cadere (to fall) adds -uto : caduto (fallen). Sentire (to hear) adds -ito : sentito (heard) Just to recap: -ARE → -ATO -ERE → -UTO -IRE→ -ITO Remember that the past participle is a sort of adjective and therefore you need to change it according to the gender and number of the subject only when you are using ESSERE as an auxiliary verb. Let me show you some examples: Io ho mangiato and lei ha mangiato and noi abbiamo mangiato Io sono andato (io, Stefano) but io sono andata (io, Chiara) but noi siamo andati So, when you're using avere , you won't have to worry about changing the past participle. When you're using essere , you will have to change the past participle according to the subject: Masculine singular → -O Feminine singular → -A Masculine plural → -I Feminine plural → -E Some verbs, especially the most common ones, have an irregular past participle that you will have to memorize. Here are just a few of the very common ones: Fare (to do/to make) → fatto (done/made) Vedere (to see) → visto (seen) Dire (to say/to tell) → detto (said/told) 3. Conjugation Let me conjugate two verbs for you, to make sure you understand how to conjugate verbs in passato prossimo . Let's conjugate GUARDARE (to watch). This verb takes avere : Io ho guardato Tu hai guardato Lui/Lei ha guardato Noi abbiamo guardato Voi avete guardato Loro hanno guardato Here, we're saying I watched, you watched, he/she watched... Now, let's conjugate the verb PARTIRE (to leave) . This verb takes essere so we will need to change the past participle according to the gender and number of the subject. Io sono partit o / a Tu sei partit o / a Lui è partit o Lei è partit a Noi siamo partit i / e Voi siete partit i / e Loro sono partit i / e Here, we're saying I left, you left, he/she left... All right! I hope you now have a better understanding of passato prossimo in Italian. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to reach me in the contact section of the website. Un abbraccio, Stefano

Are you struggling to choose between Passato Prossimo and Imperfetto in Italian? Well, you're in the right place then! In today’s article, we’ll talk about how to choose the correct past tense: passato prossimo or imperfetto ? It all comes down to the type of action you have. I am going to give you some examples and explain the actual rules along the way. 1. Repeated vs one-time Mia mamma faceva sempre una torta buonissima. Mia mamma ieri ha fatto una torta buonissima. In the first case, we’re saying that "my mom always used to make a delicious cake". In the second we’re saying that "my mom made a delicious cake yesterday". And here’s the first difference! If we’re talking about a repeated action then we’ll go for imperfetto, instead, if we have a one-time action , very specific , very defined , then we go for passato prossimo! Don’t forget that the idea of repeated action has to be very general . This is because imperfetto is a tense used to describe actions that are not well-defined on a timeline. Let me give you another example: Andavo sempre in palestra da ragazzo. Sono andato tre volte in palestra la scorsa settimana. The first one makes sense: I used to go to the gym when I was a boy . The second one... don’t let it fool you. It might look repeated because you went three times, but three times that week and that’s it. It’s not something you used to do every week! I hope that makes sense! 2. Habit vs non-regular actions Let me tell you that this is one is very similar to the previous one! Let's look at a few examples: Da bambino andavo al mare tutte le domeniche. Da bambino sono andato al mare una volta. In the first sentence, we clearly have a regular action, a habit in the past, because "da bambino" , when I was little , I would go to the beach every Sunday . That’s the idea: a regular action, a habit, something you used to do regularly, you would do regularly in the past. That's why we use imperfetto . In the second example, da bambino sono andato al mare una volta , I went just once and that’s it! That's why I use passato prossimo . 3. Imperfetto and Passato Prossimo in the same sentence Sometimes though you might have multiple past tenses, multiple actions in one sentence. Let me give you one example: Mentre studiavo , è arrivata Chiara. Here we have two actions: "me studying" and "Chiara arriving". The action of "me studying" is long, continuous and it has been interrupted by "Chiara arriving". So I could translate that sentence: While I was studying, Chiara arrived. You would use imperfetto for the long action and passato prossimo for the short sudden one ! I hope this article helped and if you have any questions, send me an email in the contact section of my website. Un abbraccio, Stefano

Reflexive verbs are extremely important and common in Italian. Do you know what they are and how to use them? If you don't, then you're in the right place! What’s a reflexive verb? Think of it as a mirror . If you look at yourself in the mirror, what are you going to see? Yourself , right? A mirror reflects the image and a reflexive verb does the same thing! A reflexive verb is used when the subject of the action (the person doing the action) is the same as the object of the action. Most of the time when we talk about reflexive verbs we need to say that the subject of the action is the same as the subject. Sometimes, it’s very obvious. The verb “ lavarsi ” means to "wash oneself". Of course, if you’re showering, you’re washing yourself. So that makes sense. With some reflexive verbs, though, it’s less obvious. For example, take the verb “sentire” which normally means to hear. However, when we make it reflexive and we say “ sentirsi ”, then it means “to feel”, for example "mi sento bene" (I feel good). Although many reflexive verbs make sense by adding “myself” or “oneself” in general in English, sometimes it doesn’t work. Sometimes, by making a verb reflexive, we’re just changing the meaning of the verb. Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me! 1. How do you conjugate a reflexive verb? A reflexive verb will always end in -si in the infinitive. Therefore, we will get rid of the -si and conjugate the verb as we would normally do in the present (or any other tense). For example: Lavarsi → lavar(e) → conjugate this as an - are verb (lavo, lavi, lava, laviamo, lavate, lavano) Mettersi → metter(e) → conjugate this as an - ere verb Vestirsi → vestir(e) → conjugate this as an - ire verb Once we have conjugated the verb we need to add the reflexive pronouns . 2. Reflexive pronouns Reflexive pronouns are placed before the verb in the present, past, or future tense and are there to remind you that a specific verb is reflexive. These are the reflexive pronouns that you will need to use for each personal pronoun (subject): Mi (io) Ti (tu) Si (lui/lei) Ci (noi) Vi (voi) Si (loro) Let’s conjugate the verb lavarsi : Io mi lavo Tu ti lavi Lui/lei si lava Noi ci laviamo Voi vi lavate Loro si lavano Now let’s conjugate mettersi (to put on): Io mi metto Tu ti metti Lui/lei si mette Noi ci mettiamo Voi vi mettete Loro si mettono 3. Some examples Svegliarsi : to wake up (or to wake yourself up) → Mi sveglio tutti i giorni alle 7:00 di mattina (I wake up every day at 7:00 in the morning) Vestirsi : to get dressed (or to dress yourself) → Mi vesto in fretta perché sono in ritardo (I get dressed quickly because I am late) Chiamarsi : to be called → Mi chiamo Stefano (I am called Stefano, my name is Stefano) Sentirsi : to feel (sentire to hear, sentirsi to feel) → Ti senti bene? (Do you feel good/well, are you all right?) Divertirsi : to have fun → Ci divertiamo alla festa di Giorgia (We have fun at Giorgia's party) I hope this article helped and if you have any questions, send me an email in the contact section of my website. Un abbraccio, Stefano Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me!

Ready to learn how to say and use these words in Italian? They are mostly filler words and are so common! I am sure you use these words or expressions in English every day but maybe you struggle in using them in Italian because you don’t know their translation or maybe the translation does not even exist! Well, in today’s article we’re going to go over these words and understand how to translate them to Italian, or at least I'll give you the closest word we have if there is not a direct translation! Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me! 1. Actually I use this word in English every single day. What would I say in Italian? First of all, I would say that this word is not used in Italian with the same frequency you would use it in English but we do have a translation. You have two options: in realtà or a dire il vero . Let me give you a couple of examples: Il mio amico sembra italiano ma in realtà/a dire il vero è tedesco → My friend looks Italian but actually he is from Germany. Pensavo che andassi in Italia. No, in realtà vado in Francia quest’estate → I thought you were going to Italy. No, actually I am going to France this summer. 2. Like Oh wow! How many times do you use this in English? Although I hate using “like” too much, sometimes we just need it. And of course, Italian does have its counterpart. Let’s say you’re saying something but you need to think. What can you say in Italian? Sono andato in Italia questa estate e siamo andati in, diciamo , una specie di ostello → I went to Italy this summer and we went to, like, this sort of hostel. We use diciamo to buy ourselves some time and make sure we can continue our sentence. We can also use tipo . These two words are extremely informal and I tend to avoid them as much as I can both in English and Italian, but sometimes it’s useful to throw in some filler words like diciamo or tipo to buy yourself some time and think! 3. To be like Let’s say you’re telling a story and you’re telling me what your friend was saying. You start saying: He came to my house and he was like: "Where’s the cake that I made?" . How would we translate the he was like . For starters, we could just use dire (ha detto) but very often if we want to be colloquial we can use the verb fare in the present and dire mi fa . (Lui) È venuto a casa mia e mi ha detto : "Dov’è la torta che ho preparato?" (Lui) È venuto a casa mia e mi fa : "Dov’è la torta che ho preparato?" 4. Whatever I absolutely love this one. I know this is not the nicest thing, but sometimes we just don’t care: so, whatever! How we would say that in Italian? You need one word: vabbè . Scusa Stefano, sono in ritardo. Vabbè non ti preoccupare → I am sorry Stefano I am late. Whatever no worries. Of course, intonation and context are key here. 5. It's not like You have been invited to go to Europe this summer with your friends but they are going everywhere except Italy. We all know you want to visit Italy. So it’s not like you don’t want to go with them but you’d rather go to Italy. How would you say that? Non è che non voglio andare con loro però preferisco andare in italia. So, remember: it’s not like → non è che 6. You know I am sure this is very common, and again we use it all the time to buy ourselves some time when we are speaking. This is not a tricky one though, because we say exactly the same thing in Italian. We just say: sai . Sono stato in Italia e, sai , mi è piaciuta tantissimo ma mi sto pentendo di non essere andato a Venezia → I’ve been to Italy and, you know, I loved it but I am regretting I didn’t go to Venice. 7. It's good This can be applied to so many things! You agree with your friends on something, you show interest and you say: it’s good, it’s ok, all right . How do we say that in Italian? Super easy: va bene . Ci vediamo la prossima settimana alla stessa ora? Sì, certo, va bene ! → Are we meeting next week at the same time? Yeah sure, it’s good (that’s good/all right). 8. That's it! We're done for today's article, that's it! Before letting you go, let me tell you how we would say that's it in Italian! Very easy, I am going to give you two options: tutto qui or è tutto . Ok, tutto qui for today's article! I hope it helped and if you have any questions, send me an email in the contact section of my website. Un abbraccio, Stefano Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me!

Do you know how to tell whether a word is masculine or feminine in Italian? If you don't, this blog article is for you! Sometimes understanding whether a word is masculine or feminine can be kind of tricky. In today’s blog article, I am going to give you some tips to get the gender of a word right most of the time and also some tricks on how to make nouns plural based on their gender! Let’s get started! Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me! 1. Masculine or feminine? Nouns ending in -o are usually masculine: amico, treno, panino Nouns ending in -a are usually feminine: amica, studentessa, bicicletta Nouns ending in -e may be masculine or feminine: studente (m.), caffè (m.) and automobile (f.), notte (f.) However, if we look at the last syllable of words ending in -e rather than just the last letter we can use this trick to get the gender right. If a word ends in: -IONE : feminine (English -ion ): televisione, nazione, opinione -ORE : masculine (English -or ) attore, autore, professore 4. Nouns ending in CONSONANT are usually words of foreign origin that we have borrowed from another language (such as English). They are usually masculine: film, bar, autobus, sport Common exceptions: Ending in -a but masculine : problema, diploma, programma Ending in -o but feminine : radio, mano 2. Plural nouns rules All words ending in -O or -E have plural in - I so: amico → amici treno → treni televisione → televisioni studente → studenti professore → professori Words ending in -A have their plural in -E ONLY if they are feminine : studentessa → studentesse bicicletta → biciclette, casa → case Words ending in -A that are masculine have their plural in -I : problema → problemi programma → programmi Words of foreign origin don’t change : il film → i film You can understand if a word of foreign origin is singular or plural by the definite article and, no worries, I will be making another article on this topic very soon! If you have any questions about this topic, feel free to send me a message in the contact section of my website. Do you want to take your Italian to the next level? Check out my Online Italian course for beginners "Be Italiano" and start learning today to become a real Italiano, like me! A presto, Stefano