How do you say hello in Italian?

"Ciao" (chow) is the friendly hello and goodbye; use "buongiorno" with people you don't know, and "buonasera" from late afternoon onwards.

Is Italian easy to learn for English speakers?

Italian is one of the friendlier languages for English speakers: spelling matches pronunciation almost perfectly, and much of the vocabulary is familiar. Verb endings take the most practice.

How many Italian words do I need for a holiday?

Roughly 40 well-chosen words will carry you through cafés, shops, directions and small talk. LingoMatrix builds that set around your trip and shuffles them into practice sentences.

Can I hear the Italian pronunciation?

Yes. Every translation includes a phonetic respelling and a read-aloud button so you can copy the rhythm.

English → Italian

English to Italian translation, with audio

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Common Italian phrases

Hello, how are you?
Ciao, come stai?
chow, KOH-meh STAI
I'd like a coffee, please.
Vorrei un caffè, per favore.
vor-RAY oon kaf-FEH, pair fa-VOH-reh
Where is the train station?
Dov'è la stazione?
doh-VEH la sta-TSYOH-neh
I don't understand.
Non capisco.
non ka-PEES-koh
How much does it cost?
Quanto costa?
KWAN-toh KOS-tah

Greetings and polite Italian

Good morning.
Buongiorno.
bwon-JOR-noh
Please.
Per favore.
pair fa-VOH-reh
Thank you very much.
Grazie mille.
GRA-tsyeh MEE-leh
Excuse me.
Mi scusi.
mee SKOO-zee
See you later.
A dopo.
a DOH-poh

Ordering food and drink in Italian

A table for two, please.
Un tavolo per due, per favore.
oon TA-vo-loh pair DOO-eh
The menu, please.
Il menù, per favore.
eel meh-NOO, pair fa-VOH-reh
I'll have a glass of red wine.
Prendo un bicchiere di vino rosso.
PREN-doh oon beek-KYEH-reh dee VEE-noh ROS-soh
Is there a vegetarian dish?
C'è un piatto vegetariano?
cheh oon PYAT-toh veh-jeh-ta-RYA-noh
The bill, please.
Il conto, per favore.
eel KON-toh, pair fa-VOH-reh

Getting around in Italian

Where is the toilet?
Dov'è il bagno?
doh-VEH eel BA-nyoh
Two tickets, please.
Due biglietti, per favore.
DOO-eh bee-LYET-tee
Can you help me?
Può aiutarmi?
pwoh a-yoo-TAR-mee
I'm looking for the hotel.
Sto cercando l'hotel.
stoh chair-KAN-doh loh-TEL
Do you speak English?
Parla inglese?
PAR-la een-GLEH-zeh

English to Italian: common questions

How do you say hello in Italian?: "Ciao" (chow) is the friendly hello and goodbye; use "buongiorno" with people you don't know, and "buonasera" from late afternoon onwards.
Is Italian easy to learn for English speakers?: Italian is one of the friendlier languages for English speakers: spelling matches pronunciation almost perfectly, and much of the vocabulary is familiar. Verb endings take the most practice.
How many Italian words do I need for a holiday?: Roughly 40 well-chosen words will carry you through cafés, shops, directions and small talk. LingoMatrix builds that set around your trip and shuffles them into practice sentences.
Can I hear the Italian pronunciation?: Yes. Every translation includes a phonetic respelling and a read-aloud button so you can copy the rhythm.

Numbers 1–10 in Italian

1 uno
2 due
3 tre
4 quattro
5 cinque
6 sei
7 sette
8 otto
9 nove
10 dieci

More counting help: numbers in other languages.

Go beyond translation

Translating is a great start, but you remember words you use. The LingoMatrix sentence builder gives you 10 pronouns, 10 verbs, 10 adjectives and 10 nouns in Italian chosen for your own situation — 10,000 sentence combinations you can shuffle, read and hear.

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