03 May Italian Language Guide for travel in Italy
You can usually travel around Europe and make do with the English language, you may need a bit more help at times.
While most people in the bigger cities understand and speak English, things will change as you move to the countryside.
It is always better to have a guide with basic translations that you will need while ordering food, taking direction, and especially for medical emergencies.
Here are some important phrases that I have gathered that will solve most of your needs.
Simple Greetings
| English | Italian Translation |
|---|---|
| Hello | Salve! (sal-vay) |
| Hello, how are you? | Salve, come va? (sal-vay ko-may va?) |
| Good morning | Buongiorno (bu-on-jour-no) |
| Good afternoon | Buon pomeriggio (bu-on po-mer-eej-jio) |
| Good evening | Buonasera (bu-on-a-say-ra) |
| Good night | Buonanotte (bu-ona-not-tay) |
| Thank you very much | Grazie mille (gra-tsee mee-lay) |
| Thank you, too | Grazie a Lei (gra-tsee a lay) |
| Goodbye, see you next time | Arrivederci alla prossima (arr-ee-va-der-chee al-la pros-see-ma) |
| The weather is lovely today, isn’t it? | Bella giornata oggi, vero?(bella jee-or-na-ta ojji vay-ro?) |
| My name is… | Mi chiamo… (mee kee-amo) |
| I’m American | Sono americano (so-no am-er-ee-kah-no) |
| Where are you from? | Lei di dov'è? (lay dee do-vay?) |
| Nice to meet you | Piacere (pee-a-chay-ray) |
| I’m having a great time! | Mi sto divertendo molto (mee sto dee-ver-ten-do mol-to) |
| I don't understand! | Mi scusi, non capisco (mee scoo-see non ka-pee-sko) |
| I don’t speak Italian very well | Non parlo italiano molto bene (non par-lo ital-ee-ah-no mol-to beh-nay) |
| Could you say that again please? | Potrebbe ripetere, per favore? (po-tre-bay ree-peh-teh-reh per fa-vawr-ay) |
| Please write that down for me | Potrebbe scrivermelo? (po-tre-bay skree-ver-may-lo?) |
| What does that mean? | Cosa vuole dire? (ko-sa vu-ol-ay dee-ray?) |
| Do you speak English? | Parla inglese? (par-la een-glay-say?) |
| I’m sorry | Mi scusi (mee skoo-see) |
| I don’t know | Non lo so (non lo so) |
| All right | Va bene (va be-nay) |
| Never mind | Non importa (non eem-por-ta) |
Communication Problems
| English | Italian Translation |
|---|---|
| I don't understand! | Mi scusi, non capisco (mee scoo-see non ka-pee-sko) |
| I don’t speak Italian very well | Non parlo italiano molto bene (non par-lo ital-ee-ah-no mol-to beh-nay) |
| Could you say that again please? | Potrebbe ripetere, per favore? (po-tre-bay ree-peh-teh-reh per fa-vawr-ay) |
| Please write that down for me | Potrebbe scrivermelo?(po-tre-bay skree-ver-may-lo?) |
| What does that mean? | Cosa vuole dire? (ko-sa vu-ol-ay dee-ray?) |
| Do you speak English? | Parla inglese? (par-la een-glay-say?) |
| I’m sorry | Mi scusi (mee skoo-see) |
| I don’t know | Non lo so (non lo so) |
| All right | Va bene (va be-nay) |
| Never mind | Non importa (non eem-por-ta) |
Numbers
| English | Italian |
|---|---|
| One | uno (oo-no) |
| Two | due (doo-ay) |
| Three | tre (tray) |
| Four | quattro (kwat-ro) |
| Five | cinque (chee-kway) |
| Six | sei (say) |
| Seven | Sette (say-tay) |
| Eight | Otto (ot-to) |
| Nine | nove (no-vay) |
| Ten | dieci (dee-ay-chee) |
| Eleven | undici (oon-dee-chee) |
| Twelve | dodici (do-dee-chee) |
| Thirteen | tredici (tray-dee-chee) |
| Fourteen | quattordici (kwa-tor-dee-chee) |
| Fifteen | Quindici (kween-dee-chee) |
| Sixteen | sedici (say-dee-chee) |
| Seventeen | Diciassette (dee-chee-a-set-tay) |
| Eighteen | diciotto (deechee-otto) |
| Nineteen | diciannove (dee-chee-no-vay) |
| Twenty | venti (ven-tee) |
| Twenty-one | ventuno (ven uoono) |
| Twenty-two | Ventidue (ven-tee-doo-ay) |
| Thirty | trenta (tren-ta) |
| Forty | quaranta (kwa-ran-ta) |
| Fifty | cinquanta (cheen-kwan-ta) |
| Sixty | sessanta (ses-san-ta) |
| Seventy | settanta (se-ten-ta) |
| Eighty | ottanta (o-tan-ta) |
| Ninety | novanta (no-van-ta) |
| Hundred | cento (chen-to) |
| Two hundred | Duecentoc (doo-ay-chen-to) |
| Five hundred | cinquecento (cheen-kway-chen-to) |
| Seven hundred sixty five | Settecentosessantacinquesimo (settay-chento -sessanta cheekway simo) |
| One Thousand | Mille (mee-lay) |
Eating at a Restaurant
| English | Italian Translation |
|---|---|
| A table for one / two please | Un tavolo per uno / due, per favore (oonta-vo-lo peroo-no/doo-ay,per favoray?) |
| Are you open yet? | Siete già aperti? (see-et-ay jee-ah a-per-tee?) |
| Can we wait (for a table)? | Possiamo aspettare (per un tavolo) (poss-ee-amo as-pett-ah-ray per oon ta-va-lo?) |
| Can we sit over there? | Possiamo sederci laggiù? (poss-ee-amo se-der-chee la-jee-oo) |
| Excuse me! [Calling a waiter] | Mi scusi! (mee skoo-see) |
| What do you recommend? | Cosa mi consiglia? (ko-sa mee kon-sihl-ya?) |
| What’s your most popular dish? | Qual è la specialità della casa? (Kwal e la spe-chee-a-lee-tay de-la ka-sa?) |
| What’s this? | Cos'è questo? (ko-say kwes-to?) |
| The cheque, please | Il conto, per favore (il kon-to, per fa-vor-ay) |
| Can I have the menu, please? | Potrei avere il menu, per favore? (pot-ray a-vay-ray eel me-noo, per fa-vo-ray?) |
Traveling in Italy
| English | Italian Translation |
|---|---|
| I want to go to | Vorrei andare a (vo-ray an-da-ray a) |
| What time is the next train/bus to… ? | A che ora parte il prossimo treno/autobus per…? (a kay oh-ra par-tay eel pros-see-mo tray-no / auw-to-boos per..?) |
| How much is it? | Quanto costa? (kwan-to kos-ta?) |
| 1 ticket / 2 tickets (to…), please | biglietto / 2 biglietti - per …, per favore (oon bil-yeto / doo-ah bil-yetti per…, per fa-vo-ray) |
| How long does it take? | Quanto dura il viaggio?(kwan-to doo-ra eel vi-ahj-o) |
| Where should I go now? | Dove devo andare adesso? (do-vay day-vo an-da-ray a-day-sso?) |
| When does it leave? | Quando parte? (kwan-do par-tay?) |
| What time is it (now)? | Che ore sono (adesso)?(kay ora so-no a-day-sso?) |
| Does this train/bus stop in…? | Questo treno/autobus ferma a…? (kwes-to tray-no / auw-to-boos fer-ma a…?) |
| Excuse me, is this…? | Mi scusi, è qui…? (mee skoo-see, ee kwee…?) |
| Where is… on the map? | Dove si trova… sulla carta? – (do-vay see tro-va…. soo-la kar-ta?) |
Asking for Directions
| English | Italian Translation |
|---|---|
| Excuse me, could I ask you something? | Mi scusi, posso farle una domanda? (mee skoo-si, posso far-lay oo-na do-man-da?) |
| I want to go to _ | Vorrei andare a ___ (vo-ray an-da-ray a _) |
| I want to go here | Vorrei andare qui (vo-ray an-da-ray kwee) |
| I’m lost | Mi sono perso/persa (mee so-no per-so/persa) |
| How can I get there? | Come posso arrivarci?(ko-mo pos-so a-rree-var-chee?) |
| Is it this way? | È di qua? (ay dee kwa?) |
| Can you show me on the map? | Potrebbe indicarmelo sulla carta?(po-tray-bay een-di-kar-may-lo soo-la kar-ta?) |
| Where is _ ? | Dov'è ___? (do-vay _?) |
| I’m sorry to bother you, but… | Mi scusi, ma… (mee skoo-see ma) |
| I’m looking for a place with good food around here | Cerco un posto qui in zona dove si mangi bene (cher-ko oon pos-to kwee in zo-na do-vay see man-gee bay-nay) |
| Do you know anyone [here]? | Ne conosce qualcuno? (nay kon-os-chay kwal-koo-no?) |
| Thank you, anyway | Grazie comunque |
Shopping in Italy
| English | Italian Translation |
|---|---|
| I like this | Mi piace questo (mee pee-a-chay kwes-to) |
| How much is this? | Quanto costa questo? (kwan-to kos-ta kwes-to?) |
| If I buy these together? | Se li compro entrambi? (see lee com-pro en-tram-bee?) |
| It’s too expensive for me | È troppo caro per me (ay troh-poh ca-roh per may) |
| Can you do me a discount? | Può farmi uno sconto? (poo-o far-mee oo-no skon-to?) |
| I’m looking for a … | Cerco una …(cher-ko oo-na …) |
| I’m just looking around | Sto solo guardando(Sto so-lo gwar-dan-do) |
| Just a moment | Un attimo (oon attee-mo) |
| Yes, please | Sì, grazie (see, gra-tsee) |
| No, thanks | No, grazie (no, gra-tsee) |
Medical Emergencies
| English | Italian Translation |
|---|---|
| Can you help me, please? | Può aiutarmi, per favore? (poo-o ay-oo-tar-mee, per fa-vo-ray?) |
| I need to see a doctor | Devo andare da un medico (de-vo an-day-ray da oon me-dee-ko) |
| I don’t feel well | Non mi sento bene (non mee sen-to bay-nay) |
| He/she doesn’t feel well | Non si sente bene (non see sen-tay bay-nay) |
| Is there a hospital near here? | C'è un ospedale da queste parti?(chay oon os-pay-da-lay da kwes-tay par-tee) |
| Take me to the hospital please | Mi porti in ospedale, per favore (mee por-tee in os-pay-da-lay, per fa-vo-ray) |
| It hurts here [pointing to body part] | Mi fa male qui (mee fa ma-lay kwee) |
| I need some medicine | Ho bisogno di medicine(o bi-son-yo dee me-dee-cee-nay) |
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