In most places you visit in Italy, you’ll find that people can speak at the very least some basic English but for once, wouldn't it be nice if you could converse in the native language while visiting Italy?
"If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart."
- Nelson Mandela
There are some great online tools to help you learn the lingo and to give you a head start with your pronunciation which is exactly what we are going to look at today in this article, as well as some other more traditional options like hiring a tutor.
Learn Italian Using Online Resources!
Thanks to computers, tablets, and smartphones, learning Italian has been made much easier. Furthermore, for those on a budget, there are plenty of ways to learn Italian for free.
I particularly recommend Duolingo or Babbel.
For me, Duolingo was the app that worked best, learning a language on Duolingo is fun because lessons are split into bite-sized skills that feel like games. As mentioned this app is available to use for free, with ads and limitations however there is a plus version that comes at a price.
Babbel however, doesn't have a free version, so it might be worth considering what you can afford before you choose which app to go with.
Another great tool is Podcasts, in particular the free Coffee Break Italian podcasts, which offer different levels of tuition, dependent on your ability. Where ever you get your podcasts whether it's with Apple, Spotify or the Google Playstore it doesn't matter, make sure you download Podcasts in Italian and repeat them aloud.
when you’re out and about in Italy, google or apple translate are perfectly adequate for conversing when in a bind.
Learning Italian: Everyday Phrases and Vocabulary
One of the things I find absolutely vital when learning a new language is a Personalised Phrasebook.
How to Create a Personalised Italian Phrasebook.
This does not need to be anything fancy just a copy or notepad, with two different coloured pens, one for the Italian words and one for the English translation. Every time you learn a new phrase you know you will use again write it down phonetically, correctly and then in English.
Below are a few essential everyday words and phrases we at Superprof thought you might want to get started.
| English | Italian |
| Yes | Si |
| No | No |
| Hello | Buongiorno |
| Goodbye | Arrivederci |
| Hi | Ciao |
| Please | Per favore |
| Thank you very much | Grazie mille (grazie) |
| How are you? | Come stai? |
| Excuse me | Scusi il disturbo |
| Nice to meet you | Piacere |
Here is a short list of things you might find in your Italian drawers
Indumenti e accessori (clothes and accessories):
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Una maglietta: a t-shirt
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Una camicia: a shirt
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Una sciarpa: a scarf
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Un cappello: a hat
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Una gonna: a skirt
If you’re going to learn Italian, you absolutely must learn about food!
Il cibo (food):
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Il primo piatto: starter
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Il secondo piatto: main course
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Il contorno: side dish
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Il dessert: dessert
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Una bottiglia di vino: a bottle of wine
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Una bistecca al sangue: a rare steak
It might be handy to learn words for transport in order to get around.
Transporto (transport):
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La macchina: car
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La bicicletta: bicycle
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L’aereo: aeroplane
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Il treno: train
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Il taxi: taxi
Hopefully, these three lists of Italian vocabulary will be a good start towards boosting your Italian language skills.
"Sai cos’è l’amico? Un uomo che ti conosce a fondo e nonostante ciò ti vuole bene."
(“Do you know what a friend is? Someone who knows you deeply and still loves you.”)
Vittorio Gassman gave us this beautiful quote about friendship in his movie Profumo di Donna (“Scent of a Woman”). It depicts the quintessential and bittersweet quality of the movie.
Still not sure if you're ready to take on learning a whole new language? We have plenty of reasons why you should!
Reasons to Learn Italian
Of course, the main reason people will want to learn Italian is that it is a beautiful language that will allow you to converse more easily when you visit Italy.
But did you know there are two HUGE advantages to learning another language that not everyone knows about?
1 Speaking another language enhances your employability
We live in a multicultural world in the midst of the digital age, so no matter where in the world you reside, whether it is in Ireland or New York, people who have experience in more than one language are high in demand in the job market in all sectors and industries, as employers consider them to be better communicators and problem solvers.
Naturally, it makes sense, those who speak both English and Italian are going to be highly desirable employees, as both languages are spoken most globally.
2 Speaking another language improves your long-term memory and attention span
Learning a second language improves your attention span and improves your long-term memory. When speaking, bilinguals or multilingual people are constantly switching between two or more languages in their minds, and this switching improves the brain’s ability to concentrate on one thing while ignoring other irrelevant information.
Try Italian Lessons with Superprof
One of the main reasons people like to study languages with a tutor is because after meeting with you they will have a clear strategy for you to reach your language learning goals and will be there to support you every step of the way.
Most of the tutors at Superprof offer you the option to take in-home or online lessons. This means you can learn whichever way is more comfortable for you, in your own space, at your own pace and at whatever time suits you.
I haven't even mentioned the best part yet, most of our tutors even provide the first lesson for free, yep that's right so all you have to do is go to the homepage type in the lesson you are looking for, select a location and then all of the tutors will pop up most of him provide the first lesson for free and the prices for every other lesson will be available beside their name.
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