first steps in learning to speak italian compiled and assembled by ed

FIRST STEPS IN LEARNING TO SPEAK ITALIAN
COMPILED AND ASSEMBLED BY
ED R. WESTWATER
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Italian I Tutorial: Basic Phrases, Vocabulary and Grammar
1. Basic Phrases / Frasi semplici
Buon giorno
bwon zhor-no
Hello / Good morning/afternoon
Buona sera
bwoh-nah seh-rah
Good evening
Buona notte
bwoh-nah noht-teh
Good night
Ciao
chow
Hi / Hello / Bye (informal)
Arrivederci
ah-ree-vuh-dehr-chee
Goodbye
ArrivederLa
ah-ree-vuh-dehr-lah
Goodbye (formal)
A più tardi
ah pyoo tar-dee
See you later
A presto / A dopo
ah press-toh / ah doh-poh
See you soon
A domani
ah doh-mahn-ee
See you tomorrow
Per favore / Per piacere
pehr fah-voh-reh / pehr pee-ahcheh-reh
Please
Grazie (mille)
graht-zee-eh (mee-leh)
Thank you (very much)
Prego
preh-goh
You're Welcome
Mi dispiace
mee dee-spyah-cheh
Sorry
Scusi / Scusa
skoo-zee / skoo-zah
Excuse me (formal /
informal)
Andiamo!
on-dee-ah-mo
Let's go!
Come sta? / Come stai?
koh-meh stah / koh-meh sty
How are you? (formal / informal)
Sto bene.
stoh beh-neh
I am fine / well.
Non c'è male.
nohn cheh mah-leh
Not bad.
Abbastanza bene.
ah-bah-stahn-tsah beh-neh
Pretty good.
Così così.
koh-zee koh-zee
So so.
Sì / No
see / noh
Yes / No
Come si chiama?
koh-meh see kee-ah-mah
What's your name? (formal)
Come ti chiami?
koh-meh tee kee-ah-mee
What's your name? (informal)
Mi chiamo...
mee kee-ah-mo
My name is...
Piacere / Molto lieto.
pee-ah-cheh-reh / mohl-toh lee-ehtoh
Pleased / Nice to meet you.
Signore, Signora, Signorina
seen-yoh-reh, seen-yoh-rah, seen-yoh-reen-ah
Mister, Misses, Miss
Di dov'è?
Di dove sei?
Sono di...
dee doh-veh
Where are you from? (formal)
dee doh-veh seh-ee
Where are you from?
(informal)
soh-noh dee
I am from...
Quanti anni ha?
kwahn-tee ahn-nee ah
How old are you? (formal)
Quanti anni hai?
kwahn-tee ahn-nee ah-ee
How old are you? (informal)
Ho venti anni.
oh vehn-tee ahn-nee
I am 20 years old.
Parla italiano?
par-lah ee-tahl-ee-ah-no
Do you speak Italian? (formal)
Parli inglese?
par-lee een-gleh-zeh
Do you speak English?
(informal)
Parlo italiano. / Non
parlo inglese.
par-lo ee-tahl-ee-ah-no /
non par-lo een-gleh-zeh
I speak Italian. / I don't
speak English.
Capisce? / Capisci?
kah-pee-sheh / kah-pee-shee
Do you understand? (formal /
informal)
[Non] capisco.
[non] kah-pees-koh
I [don't] understand.
Non so. / Lo so.
non soh / low soh
I don't know. / I know.
Può aiutarmi? / Puoi aiutarmi?
pwoh ah-yoo-tar-mee / pwoh-ee ahyoo-tar-mee
Can you help me? (formal /
informal)
Certamente / D'accordo.
cher-tah-mehn-teh / dahkohr-doh
Sure / OK.
Come?
koh-meh?
What? / Pardon me?
Desidera? / Desideri?
deh-zee-deh-rah / deh-zee-deh-ree
May I help you? (formal / informal)
Come si dice "house" in italiano?
koh-meh see dee-cheh "house" een ee-tah-lee-ah-noh
How do you say "house" in Italian?
Dov'è / Dove sono...?
doh-veh / doh-veh soh-noh
Where is / Where are... ?
Ecco / Eccoli...
eh-koh / eh-koh-lee
Here is / Here are...
C'è / Ci sono...
cheh / chee soh-noh
There is / There are...
Cosa c'è?
koh-zah cheh
What's the matter? / What's wrong?
Non importa. / Di niente. /
Di nulla.
nohn eem-por-tah / dee neeehn-teh / dee noo-lah
It doesn't matter.
Non m'importa.
nohn meem-por-tah
I don't care.
Non ti preoccupare.
nohn tee preh-ohk-koo-pah-reh
Don't worry. (informal)
Ho dimenticato.
oh dee-men-tee-kah-toh
I forgot.
Devo andare adesso.
deh-voh ahn-dah-reh ahdes-soh
I have to go now.
Ho fame. / Ho sete.
oh fah-meh / oh seh-teh
I'm hungry. / I'm thirsty.
Ho freddo. / Ho caldo.
oh freh-doh / oh kal-doh
I'm cold. / I'm hot.
Mi annoio.
mee ahn-noh-ee-oh
I'm bored.
Salute!
sah-loo-teh
Bless you!
Congratulazioni!
kohn-grah-tsoo-lah-tsee-ohnee
Congratulations!
Benvenuti!
behn-veh-noo-tee
Welcome!
Buona fortuna!
bwoh-nah for-too-nah
Good luck!
Tocca a me! / Tocca a te!
tohk-kah ah meh / tohk-kah
ah teh
It's my turn! / It's your turn!
(informal)
Ti amo.
tee ah-moh
I love you. (informal)
È pazzo! / Sei pazzo!
eh pats-soh / seh-ee pats-soh
You're crazy! (formal / informal)
Sta zitto! / Stai zitto!
stah tseet-toh / sty tseet-toh
Be quiet / Shut up! (formal /
informal)
Va bene!
vah beh-neh
OK!
Notice that Italian has informal and formal ways of saying things. This is because there is more
than one meaning to "you" in Italian (as well as in many other languages.) The informal you is
used when talking to close friends, relatives, animals or children. The formal you is used when
talking to someone you just met, do not know well, or someone for whom you would like to
show respect (a professor, for example.) There is also a plural you, used when speaking to more
than one person.
Also, the words pazzo and zitto refer to men. If you are talking to a woman, use pazza and zitta.
If you are talking to more than one person (all men, or a group of men and women), use pazzi
and zitti. If you are talking to more than one person (all women), use pazze and zitte.
EXAMPLES OF ITALIAN PROVERBS
TAKEN FROM
(2) ABOVE
A
A buon intenditor poche parole.
English translation: Few words to the good listener.
Idiomatic meaning: A word to the wise is sufficient.
A caval donato non si guarda in bocca.
English translation: Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.
A chi dai il dito si prende anche il braccio.
English translation: Give them a finger and they'll take the arm.
Idiomatic meaning: Give them an inch and they'll take a mile.
A ciascuno il suo.
English translation: To each his own.
A confessore, medico e avvocato non tener il ver celato.
English translation: To confessor, doctor, and lawyer do not hide the truth.
A mali estremi, estremi rimedi.
English translation: Desperate times call for desperate measures.
A nemico che fugge, ponti d'oro.
English translation: For the enemy who escapes, golden bridges.
A ogni uccello il suo nido è bello.
English translation: To every bird, his own nest is beautiful.
Idiomatic meaning: There's no place like home.
A rubar poco si va in galera, a rubar tanto si fa cariera.
English translation: Steal a little, go to jail; steal a lot, make a career of it.
A tutto c'è rimedio, fuorchè alla morte.
English translation: There is a cure for everything except death.
Acqua cheta rovina i ponti.
English translation: Silent waters run deep.
Acqua passata non macina più.
English translation: That's water under the bridge.
Aiutati che Dio t'aiuta.
English translation: Help youself and God will help you.
Idiomatic meaning: God helps those who help themselves.
Al bisogno si conosce l'amico.
English translation: A friend in need is a friend indeed.
Al contadino non far sapere quanto è buono il formaggio con le pere.
English translation: Don't let the farmer know how good cheese is with pears.
Ama il prossimo tuo come te stesso.
English translation: Love thy neighbor as thyself.
Ambasciator non porta pena.
English translation: Don't shoot the messenger.
Amico di tutti e di nessuno è tutt'uno.
English translation: A friend to all and a friend to none is one and the same.
Avere le mani in pasta.
English translation: To have a finger in the pie.
I
Il bugiardo vuole buona memoria.
English translation: The liar needs a good memory.
Il meglio è nemico del bel bene.
English translation: The perfect is the enemy of the good.
Il mondo è bello perchè è vario.
English translation: Viva la différence!
Il primo amore non si scorda mai.
English translation: You never forget your first love.
Il riso abbonda in bocca degli sciocchi.
English translation: Laughter is abundant in the mouth of fools.
Il riso fa buon sangue.
English translation: Laughter is the best medicine.
Il silencio è d'oro e la parola è d'argento.
English translation: Speech is silver, silence is golden.
Il tempo è denaro.
English translation: Time is money.
Il tempo guarisce tutti i mali.
English translation: Time heals all wounds.
Il tempo viene per chi sa aspettare.
English translation: All things come to those who wait.
N
Ne ammazza più la gola che la spada.
English translation: Gluttony kills more than the sword.
Né di Venere né di Marte non si sposa né si parte!
English translation: Neither marry nor travel on either Tuesday or Friday!
Nessuna nuova, buona nuova.
English translation: No news is good news.
Non c'è fumo senza arrosto.
English translation: Where there's smoke, there's fire.
Non c'è rosa senza spine.
English translation: Every rose has its thorn.
Non destare il can che dorme.
English translation: Let sleeping dogs lie.
Non dire quattro se non l'hai nei sacco.
English translation: Don't say four if you don't have them in the sack.
Idiomatic meaning: Don't count your chickens until they hatch.
Non è tutto oro quello che luce.
English translation: All that glitters is not gold.
Non fare il male ch'è peccato; non fare il bene ch'è sprecato.
English translation: Don't do evil because it's a sin; don't do good because it's wasted.
Non giudicare un libro dalla relativa copertura.
English translation: Don't judge a book by its cover.
Non si puo avere la botte piena è la moglie ubriaca.
English translation: You can't have your cake and eat it too.
Non si vive di solo pane.
English translation: One does not live by bread alone.
Non tutti quelli che hanno lettere sono savi.
English translation: Not all those who are learned are wise.
Non tutto il male vien per nuocere.
English translation: Every cloud has a silver lining.
Nulla è nuovo sotto il sole.
English translation: There is nothing new under the sun.