Common Italian Phrases for Beginners: 50 Basics
🇮🇹 Italian · 50 cards · A1 · by Giulia Ferrante
These are the fifty phrases my students end up using on their very first day in Italy: greetings, thank-yous, ordering at the bar, asking for directions in the street. Two things trip people up. First, the tu/Lei split — scusa and come stai? are for friends, mi scusi and come sta? for the barista you've never met, a shop assistant, anyone older. Second, several phrases refuse to translate word for word: prego covers "you're welcome", "go ahead" and "have a seat", and magari on its own means "I wish", not "maybe". Learn the usual reply to each phrase too — piacere mio, crepi, altrettanto. That is where real conversations start.
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How to use this deck
Flip through the cards, then switch to Quiz. Tap the play button on any row to hear it. The full table below is there to read, print or copy into your own flashcard app.
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All 50 cards
| # | Italian | English | Example | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ciao Informal only; works for both hello and goodbye. Not for strangers in a shop or office, or for people much older than you. | Hi, bye | Ciao! Che bella sorpresa. Hi! What a lovely surprise. | |
| 2 | Buongiorno Polite and safe with anyone. Used from waking up until early afternoon. | Good morning, good day | Buongiorno, un cappuccino per favore. Good morning, a cappuccino please. | |
| 3 | Buonasera Starts around 4–5 p.m., earlier in winter. Used both on arrival and on leaving. | Good evening | Buonasera, avete un tavolo libero? Good evening, do you have a free table? | |
| 4 | Buonanotte Only when someone is going to bed or heading home late at night; never a greeting. | Good night | Buonanotte, dormi bene. Good night, sleep well. | |
| 5 | Salve Neutral middle ground: less familiar than ciao, less formal than buongiorno. Useful when you don't know whether to use tu or Lei. | Hello | Salve, posso entrare? Hello, may I come in? | |
| 6 | Arrivederci Polite goodbye in shops, offices and restaurants. Very formal variant: arrivederLa (to one person you address with Lei). | Goodbye | Grazie di tutto, arrivederci! Thanks for everything, goodbye! | |
| 7 | A presto Neutral: fine with friends and in polite settings alike. | See you soon | È stato un piacere, a presto! It was a pleasure, see you soon! | |
| 8 | A domani Same pattern with other times: a lunedì, a sabato, a stasera. | See you tomorrow | Io vado, a domani! I'm off, see you tomorrow! | |
| 9 | Ci vediamo Literally "we see each other". Informal and extremely common. | See you | Ci vediamo sabato in centro. See you Saturday in the centre. | |
| 10 | Buona giornata Said when parting during the day; shop staff use it constantly. In the evening: buona serata. | Have a nice day | Ecco il resto, buona giornata! Here's your change, have a nice day! | |
| 11 | Come stai? Informal (tu), for friends, family and people your age. | How are you? | Come stai? Non ti vedo da mesi. How are you? I haven't seen you in months. | |
| 12 | Come sta? Formal (Lei): strangers, older people, professional settings. | How are you? (formal) | Buongiorno dottore, come sta? Good morning doctor, how are you? | |
| 13 | Come va? Works formally and informally, and can ask about things as well as people. | How's it going? | Come va il nuovo lavoro? How's the new job going? | |
| 14 | Bene, grazie Add e tu? or, formally, e Lei? to hand the question back. | Fine, thanks | Bene, grazie, e tu? Fine, thanks, and you? | |
| 15 | Tutto bene With rising intonation, Tutto bene? means "is everything okay?" | All good, everything's fine | Tutto bene, non preoccuparti. All good, don't worry. | |
| 16 | Non c'è male Literally "there's nothing bad". A modest, very Italian answer to come va? | Not bad | Non c'è male, potrebbe andare peggio. Not bad, it could be worse. | |
| 17 | Per favore Per piacere and per cortesia are just as common and equally polite. | Please | Mi passi il pane, per favore? Can you pass me the bread, please? | |
| 18 | Grazie mille Literally "a thousand thanks". Stronger than plain grazie; grazie alone is fine everywhere. | Thanks a lot | Grazie mille per l'aiuto! Thanks a lot for the help! | |
| 19 | Prego Answers grazie, but also means "go ahead", "after you" and, from staff, "how can I help you?" | You're welcome, go ahead | Prego, si accomodi qui. Please, have a seat here. | |
| 20 | Figurati Informal (tu); the formal version is si figuri. | Don't mention it, no problem | Non devi ringraziarmi, figurati! You don't have to thank me, don't mention it! | |
| 21 | Scusa Informal (tu). Use it both to apologise and to get someone's attention. | Sorry, excuse me | Scusa, ti ho fatto aspettare. Sorry, I kept you waiting. | |
| 22 | Mi scusi Formal (Lei): the phrase to use when stopping a stranger in the street. | Excuse me (formal) | Mi scusi, questo posto è libero? Excuse me, is this seat free? | |
| 23 | Mi dispiace Expresses regret or sympathy, not a small apology: if you step on someone's foot, say scusa or mi scusi. | I'm sorry | Mi dispiace, non posso venire. I'm sorry, I can't come. | |
| 24 | Permesso Said when squeezing past people on a bus, and when stepping into someone's home. | Excuse me (coming through) | Permesso, devo scendere qui. Excuse me, I need to get off here. | |
| 25 | Piacere Literally "pleasure". Neutral register; common reply: piacere mio. | Nice to meet you | Piacere, sono Marco. Nice to meet you, I'm Marco. | |
| 26 | Come ti chiami? Informal (tu); the formal version is come si chiama? | What's your name? | E tu come ti chiami? And what's your name? | |
| 27 | Mi chiamo... Literally "I call myself". Sono + name works too and sounds a bit more casual. | My name is... | Mi chiamo Elena, piacere. My name is Elena, nice to meet you. | |
| 28 | Di dove sei? Informal (tu); formally di dov'è? Answer with sono di + city, sono + adjective of nationality. | Where are you from? | Parli bene l'italiano, di dove sei? You speak Italian well, where are you from? | |
| 29 | Parli inglese? Informal (tu); formal: parla inglese? Asking in Italian first goes a long way. | Do you speak English? | Scusa, parli inglese? Sorry, do you speak English? | |
| 30 | Non parlo bene l'italiano Softer and more useful than non parlo italiano, which tends to end the conversation. | I don't speak Italian well | Non parlo bene l'italiano, ma capisco quasi tutto. I don't speak Italian well, but I understand almost everything. | |
| 31 | Non capisco Neutral; the example uses the formal può. To a friend: puoi parlare più lentamente? | I don't understand | Non capisco, può parlare più lentamente? I don't understand, could you speak more slowly? | |
| 32 | Puoi ripetere, per favore? Informal (tu); formal: può ripetere, per favore? | Can you repeat that, please? | Puoi ripetere, per favore? C'è troppo rumore. Can you repeat that, please? It's too noisy. | |
| 33 | Come si dice...? Your best friend when a word disappears mid-sentence. | How do you say...? | Come si dice "spoon" in italiano? How do you say "spoon" in Italian? | |
| 34 | Cosa vuol dire? Literally "what does it want to say". Che cosa significa? means the same. | What does it mean? | Cosa vuol dire "magari"? What does "magari" mean? | |
| 35 | Non lo so Keep the lo: non so on its own sounds unfinished unless something follows (non so dove sia). | I don't know | Non lo so, chiedi a lei. I don't know, ask her. | |
| 36 | Un attimo Literally "a moment". Un momento is interchangeable. | Just a second | Un attimo, arrivo subito! Just a second, I'm coming! | |
| 37 | Va bene As a question, Va bene? means "is that okay with you?" | Okay, fine | Va bene, facciamo domani sera. Okay, let's do tomorrow evening. | |
| 38 | Certo Certamente is the more emphatic, slightly more formal version. | Of course, sure | Certo, puoi usare il mio caricabatterie. Of course, you can use my charger. | |
| 39 | Quanto costa? For more than one item: quanto costano? Quant'è? asks for the total. | How much does it cost? | Scusi, quanto costa questa borsa? Excuse me, how much is this bag? | |
| 40 | Posso pagare con la carta? Small bars sometimes prefer cash, so it's worth asking before you order. | Can I pay by card? | Posso pagare con la carta o accettate solo contanti? Can I pay by card, or do you take cash only? | |
| 41 | Vorrei un caffè Vorrei is the polite way to order anything. Un caffè means an espresso; the sweet breakfast pastry is a brioche in the north, a cornetto further south. | I'd like a coffee | Vorrei un caffè e una brioche. I'd like a coffee and a pastry. | |
| 42 | Il conto, per favore Waiters won't bring it until you ask; in Italy that's politeness, not neglect. | The bill, please | Abbiamo finito: il conto, per favore. We've finished: the bill, please. | |
| 43 | Dov'è il bagno? In bars you'll also see la toilette. Same pattern: dov'è la stazione? | Where's the toilet? | Scusi, dov'è il bagno? Excuse me, where's the toilet? | |
| 44 | Mi sono perso A man says mi sono perso, a woman mi sono persa. | I'm lost | Mi sono perso, mi può aiutare? I'm lost, can you help me? | |
| 45 | Aiuto! Emergency use only. To ask a favour, say mi può aiutare? or mi puoi aiutare? | Help! | Aiuto! Qualcuno chiami un medico! Help! Somebody call a doctor! | |
| 46 | Ho fame Literally "I have hunger". Same structure: ho sete (thirsty), ho sonno (sleepy), ho freddo (cold). | I'm hungry | Ho fame, mangiamo qualcosa? I'm hungry, shall we eat something? | |
| 47 | Buon appetito Said at the table before starting to eat. Reply: grazie, altrettanto. | Enjoy your meal | Buon appetito a tutti! Enjoy your meal, everyone! | |
| 48 | In bocca al lupo Literally "into the wolf's mouth". The expected answer is crepi! (or crepi il lupo!). | Good luck | In bocca al lupo per l'esame! Good luck with the exam! | |
| 49 | Che bello! Becomes che bella! with a feminine noun: che bella casa! | How lovely!, great! | Che bello, finalmente sei qui! How lovely, you're finally here! | |
| 50 | Magari On its own it means "I wish", not "maybe". Before a verb (magari vengo) it does mean "maybe". | I wish!, if only | Magari! Ma domani devo lavorare. I wish! But tomorrow I have to work. |
Giulia Ferrante
Native Italian · Speaks English, French
From Bologna, where the food vocabulary alone could fill a deck. I teach Italian to travellers and expats and build decks around the situations they land in first.
Published
Questions about this deck
- When do I switch from buongiorno to buonasera?
- Buongiorno covers the morning and early afternoon; most Italians switch to buonasera around 4–5 p.m., earlier once it gets dark in winter. If you're unsure, salve works at any hour and with anyone. Buonanotte is not a greeting — save it for when someone is going to bed or heading home late at night.
- What's the difference between scusa, mi scusi and mi dispiace?
- Scusa and mi scusi are the same phrase in two registers: scusa for friends and people your age, mi scusi for strangers, older people and any formal situation. Both work for small apologies and for getting someone's attention. Mi dispiace means "I'm sorry" in the sense of regret or sympathy — turning down an invitation, or hearing bad news. Don't use it when you bump into someone on the bus.
- Does prego only mean "you're welcome"?
- No. Prego answers grazie, but it also means "go ahead", "after you", "please, have a seat" and, from a shop assistant or barista, "what can I get you?" Context and tone do all the work. Among friends, figurati (formally si figuri) is the more casual reply to a thank-you.
- Why do Italians answer in bocca al lupo with crepi?
- In bocca al lupo literally means "into the wolf's mouth", and the set reply is crepi! or crepi il lupo! — "may the wolf die". Many people consider answering grazie bad luck, a bit like thanking someone politely for "break a leg". Buona fortuna exists but sounds bookish in everyday speech.
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