Italian Grammar

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at the simple prepositions, and the different ways of using "di" = usually "of"!

:)

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The Prepositions:

di = of

a = to, at, in

da = from, by

in = in

con = with

su = on, over, above

per = in order to, for

tra/fra = among, between

Ex:

Uno studente di italiano.

Un treno da Roma a Firenze.

Studia in biblioteca.

"di" can describe possession, origin, material, time and subject/topic:

La bicicletta è di Mario.

Sono di Firenze.

Un tavolo di legno.

Di mattina bevo caffè.

Un libro di letteratura.

Perfetto!

😊

For inquries about private tutoring, contact us at: italianlessons (at) gmx.com!

And support us to make it possible to continue this series - on: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar!

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at some exceptions to the spelling, and how some of the "-are" verbs use prepositions!

:)

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Verbs on -care and -gare keep the "hard sound":

cerco

cerchi

cerca

cerchiamo

cercate

cercano

Verbs on -iare usually have just one "i" in "you" singular, and "we" plural:

mangio (I eat)

mangi

mangia

mangiamo

mangiate

mangiano

"Ascoltare, aspettare, guardare" have no preposition after them.

Aspetto l'autobus.

Ascoltano un bel podcast!

"Insegnare, cominciare, imparare" have an "a" afterwards when used before another verb.

Imparo a scrivere.

Cominciamo a viaggare il prossimo mese.

For "pensare" we use:

"pensare a" for thinking about something/someone

"pensare di" for thinking about doing something.

In Italian, when meaning "in order to" or "with the purpose of" something, use "per":

Viaggiano per imparare. 

Studia per avere un grande futuro.

Bravissimi!!

😊

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For more Italian Grammar episodes: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar!

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at the first group of verbs and the present tense, with the "-ARE" verbs!

:)

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Standard endings with PARLARE:

parlo

parli

parla

parliamo

parlate

parlano

Ex:

Abito a Boston

Dove abiti?

Abitiamo a Dallas, in Texas.

Present is also used for near future or largely certain future:

Lavoro tra dieci minuti.

Domani sera impariamo il greco.

L'estate prossima compro una chitarra.

Perfetto!

Great work 😊

...

For more Italian Grammar episodes: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar

Ciao!

Here's a first Grammar Review covering the key elements to remember from episode 1-15!

:)

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nouns

uno = before z, s+const, pn, gs

lo, gli = before z, s+const, pn, gs + vowels

ending on consonant or accented vowel - no plural ending on nouns

to be/to have

io sono - tu sei - lui/lei è --- noi siamo - voi siete - loro sono

io ho - tu hai - lui/lei ha --- noi abbiamo - voi avete - loro hanno

adj

usually after noun but, if on "the list", before.

But with modifier (molto, poco etc), put both after.

3 colors that don't change in plurals: blu, rosa, viola.

Great work!

😊

..

For more Italian Grammar episodes: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar!

The phrases:

another day

a beautiful house

the same book

a long river

the first day

a small coffee

a new friend

a young uncle

a big square

the last evening

a good holiday

The sentences:

I'm an Italian student. Today is a long Thursday. I'm in a big piazza. The friends have special ice creams. We have a nice day!

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Solutions:

un altro giorno

una bella casa

lo stesso libro

un lungo fiume

il primo giorno

un piccolo caffè

un nuovo amico

un giovane zio

una grande piazza

l'ultima sera

una buona vacanza

gli altri giorni

le belle case

gli stessi libri

i lunghi fiumi

i primi giorni

piccoli caffè

nuovi amici

giovani zii

grandi piazze

le ultime sere

buone vacanze

Solutions sentences:

Sono uno studente italiano. Oggi è un lungo giovedì. Sono in una grande piazza. Gli amici hanno gelati speciali. Abbiamo una bella giornata!

Great work!

...

For extra episodes and more exercises, subscribe to this podcast on Pateron: https://www.patreon.com/ItalianGrammar!

Here we'll have a mixed list, and then some phrases to put in both singular and plural.

Part I

general questions

closed doors

a perfect house

a traditional outfit

the traditional outfits

a dramatic vacation

dramatic days

an incredible book

original bikes

the open bookshop

open bookshops

a special pen

special pens

a normal Monday

normal days

an Italian piazza

Italian piazza

Part II:

an american student

an open book

a special ticket

a closed park

light blue sea

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Solutions Part I

domande generali

porte chiuse

una casa perfetta

un vestito tradizionale

vestiti tradizionali

una vacanza drammatica

giorni drammatici

un libro incredibile

biciclette originali

la libreria aperta

librerie aperte

una penna speciale

penne speciali

un lunedì normale

giorni normali

una piazza italiana

piazze italiane

Solutions Part II

uno studente americano

un libro aperto

un biglietto speciale

un parco chiuso

mare azzurro

gli studenti americani

i libri aperti

i biglietti speciali

i parchi chiusi

mari azzurri

Excellent work!

😊

..

For more Italian Grammar episodes: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar!

Here's a list of drills - with solutions!

Part I:

an american student

a female american student 

a famous/known church 

a public square

a public park

a hard exercise

the closed door

closed houses

a living story

the attentive boy

the attentive girl

a complete book

content students

a splendid day

a splendid holiday

the light blue ocean

a mysteriuos question

Part II:

the happy girl

an important book

a fast car

the fast cars

an interesting holiday

a sad movie

an intelligent question

easy exercises

strong emotions

a green park

an available flat

elegant outfits

a strong coffe

the special days

the possible travels

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And Solutions!

Uno studente americano 

Una studentessa americana 

una chiesa nota

una piazza pubblica

un parco pubblico

un esercizio duro

la porta chiusa

case chiuse

una storia viva

il ragazzo attento

la ragazza attenta

un libro completo

studenti contenti

un giorno splendido

una vacanza splendida

il mare azzurro

una domanda misteriosa

la ragazza felice

un libro importante

una macchina veloce

le macchine veloci

una vacanza interessante

un film triste

una domanda intelligente

esercizi facili

emozioni forti

un parco verde

un appartamento disponibile

vestiti eleganti

un caffè forte

i giorni speciali

i viaggi possibili

Great work!

..

For more Italian Grammar episodes: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at the colors in Italian, and how to say light and dark for a color!

:)

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I colori:

blu

viola

azzurro

verde

giallo

arancione

rosa

rosso

marrone

bianco

grigio

nero

Three of the colors are always the same: "blu","rosa", "viola".

Modify with chiaro (light) and scuro (dark).

Ex:

Blue skies - Cieli blu

Light blue skies - Cieli azzurri

Translate:

The tree is dark green now.

She has violet flowers

They have a red table and brown chairs.

He sees a blue river, and a yellow sun.

Perfetto!

😊

..

For more Italian Grammar episodes: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar

Ciao!

In the episode we'll look at some important expressions where you'd say "I have" instead of "I am" in Italian!

:)

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Expressions:

avere caldo

avere fame

avere freddo

avere paura

avere ragione

avere sete

avere sonno

avere torto

avere fretta

Ex:

Ho fame - I'm hungry.

Hai sete? - Are you thirsty?

Translate:

After the long trip, Lucia is very sleepy.

Yes, you're right!

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You'd also say "have" for age:

"I have 25 years" - Ho 25 anni.

How old are you - ........

Lucia is 23 years? - ...........

Excellent work!

😊

..

For more Italian Grammar episodes: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at the adjective "bello", "beautiful", and how the endings follow the pattern of the specific article!

:)

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"bello" comes before the noun (it's "on the list"), and follows the pattern of the specific article. (il,lo,la,l' - i,gli,le).

Ex:

il giorno - il bel giorno

lo zio - il bello zio

l'amico - il bell'amico

la donna - la bella donna

l'anima - la bell'anima

i libri - i bei libri

gli alberi - i begli alberi

le cattedrali - le belle cattedrali

Try:

the beautiful book

the beautiful sister

the beautiful studio

the beautiful tree

the beautiful appartments

the beautiful boys/guys

the beautiful girls

the beautiful sports

Sentences:

We have beautiful weather

We have beautiful days

They have a beautiful studio

You (plural) have beautiful apartments

Note!

If "bello" is after the noun, f.ex. with a modifier - it follows the standard ending: "bello", "bella", "belli", "belle".

Try:

the very beautiful book

the very beautiful studio

the very beautiful appartments

the very beautiful houses

Sum up:

"bello" - when in front, endings follow pattern of specific articles, both sing./plural.

When after; standard endings.

Excellent work!

😊

..

For more Italian Grammar episodes, and to listen ad-free: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at the different forms of "buono", and why we say "buon giorno" and "buon viaggio", and not "buono"!

:)

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"buono" is "on the list" - and comes before the noun.

The endings in singular follow the pattern of the unspecific article:

buono, buon, buona, boun' 

Ex:

un libro - un buon libro

un giorno - un buon giorno

uno sport - un buono sport

same in specific, single.

il caffè - il buon caffè

il bar - il buon bar

lo sport - il buono sport

Try:

the good travel

the good book

the good student

the good pizzas

the good beginnings

Sentences:

Today I would like a good pizza.

They have a good studio.

We have the good tickets.

Sum up;

Ending of "buono" follows the unspecific/undetermined article, in the singular form.

Great work! 😊

..

For more Italian Grammar episodes, and to listen ad-free: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at where to put the adjective, and how that influences the article. For more episodes and extra exercises on this topic, subscribe to the extended podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ItalianGrammar or Redcircle: https://redcircle.com/shows/italian-grammar!

Welcome!

:)

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In general: always after the noun.

But if on this list, put the adjective first:

altro 

bello

bravo

brutto

buono

caro

cattivo

giovane

grande

lungo

nuovo

piccolo

primo

stesso

vecchio

vero

ultimo

Ex:

un altro giorno

un lungo fiume

Try:

a small house

the first day

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If adjective BEFORE the noun - it determines the article:

uno studente

un bravo studente

gli amici

i nuovi amici

With modifier (molto, poco, abbastanza, un po'); both are placed AFTER the noun. 

a very new book - un libro molto nuovo.

a very smalll cup - una tazza molto piccola

In short:

The general rule: after.

Sometimes, first. (Which determines the article)

With modifier, always after.

Great work!

😊

...

For extra episodes and more exercises, subscribe to this podcast on Pateron: https://www.patreon.com/ItalianGrammar

or Redcircle: https://redcircle.com/shows/italian-grammar

Welcome!

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In the episode we'll look at the two types of adjectives, those ending on "-o" or "-e" as their "base", and how they change. For more episodes and extra exercises on this topic, subscribe to the extended podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ItalianGrammar or Redcircle: https://redcircle.com/shows/italian-grammar!

:)

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adjectives on -o

italiano

italiana

italiani

italiane

Ex:

un ragazzo italiano

una ragazza italiana

libri italiani

chiese italiane

adjectives on -e

"-e" in singulars, "-i" in plurals.

Ex:

un giorno importante

una storia importante

libri importanti

città importanti

Try:

a new river

a new light

new doctors

new keys

In short:

"o" changes to: o,a,i,e

"e" has "-e" in singulars, "-i" in plurals.

Excellent work!

😊

...

For extra episodes and more exercises, subscribe to this podcast on Pateron: https://www.patreon.com/ItalianGrammar

or Redcircle: https://redcircle.com/shows/italian-grammar

Welcome!

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In the episode we'll look at both nouns, "essere" and "avere", and also days and numbers!

:)

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- Ciao, Lucia. Come stai?

- Bene, e tu?

- Bene, grazie. Quando è la lezione di letteratura?

- È lunedì. Tutti i lunedì.

- Bene. Avete dieci lezioni?

- No, abbiamo dodici lezioni. E voi?

- Abbiamo dieci lezioni. Le lezioni d'arte sono tutte le domeniche.

- Benissimo. Oggi è giovedì. Dove sono gli amici?

- Gli amici sono in biblioteca. Dov'è Dante?

- Dante è a casa. Cosa leggi?

- È un libro di Virgilio, l'Eneide. È molto buono.

- Perfetto. Ci vediamo domenica, ciao!

- Ciao! 

Well done!

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at the "c'è", "ecco", and how to say "don't have". And talk about ice cream!

:)

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- Ciao, Dante!

- Ciao, Beatrice. Hai un caffè?

- Sì, ho un caffè. E tu?

- No, non ho un caffè. Ho un gelato!

- Bene! C'è una gelateria qui?

- Sì, c'è una gelateria in piazza.

- Perfetto. Vorrei un gelato!

- Ecco, ho un gelato per te!

- Grazie!

- Prego! Ciao!

- Ciao!!

Splendido! 😊🍨

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In this episode we'll use the grammar so far with nouns, and the verbs "to have" and "to be" - avere and essere!

:)

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- Ciao, Marco!

- Ciao, Lucia! Come stai?

- Bene, grazie. E tu?

- Grazie, molto bene. Oggi ho una lezione di arte italiana!

- Che gioia! Hai anche un libro?

- Sì, ho un libro di storia dell'arte! 

- Benissimo. Dov'è la lezione?

- È all'università. Sono studente. E tu?

- Anch'io sono all'università. Sono una studentessa di letteratura. 

- Stupendo! Come sono gli studenti?

- Molto simpatici.

- Bene. Ci vediamo, ciao!

- Ciao!!

Great!

😊

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at the weekdays and their meaning, and the numbers 1-100.

:)

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I giorni della settimana:

lunedì

martedì

mercoledì

giovedì

venerdì

sabato

domenica

Numbers 1-20:

zero

uno

due

tre

quattro

cinque

sei

sette

otto

nove

dieci

undici

dodici

tredici

quattordici

quindici

sedici

diciasette

diciotto

diciannove

venti 

And from 30-100:

trenta

quaranta

cinquanta

sessanta

settanta

ottanta

novanta

cento

Ex.

I have three Fridays available/free

She has five Saturdays free

I have a course ten Mondays

I'm in Venice three Sundays

Great! 😊

...

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

La Pronuncia!

In this first pronunciation episode we'll go through how we can see if there's a hard or a soft "g" and "c", we'll look at the sounds "gl" and "gn" - and on which syllable to stress in Italian words!

:)

....

c and g:

with ci, ce, gi, ge - a soft sound.

Other cases: hard sound.

gl and gn:

"gl" has the sound like in "million" in English.

Ex: famiglia

"gn" has the sound like "onion"

Ex: signora

Stress in a word:

In general - next to last syllable.

If there's an accented vowel as the last letter: stress on the last syllable

A handful of exceptions stress the third to last.

Ex: sabato, facile, tavola.

Well done!

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at five question words for what, who, where, when and how - with examples and some exercises!

:)

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Question Words:

Cosa?, Che cosa?, Che? = what

Chi? = who

Dove? = where

Quando? = when

Come? = how

Ex:

Cosa leggi? 

Cos'è un'arancia?

Chi è?

Chi ha una pizza?

Dove sei?

Dov'è la piazza?

Quando hai tempo?

Quando sei alla stazione?

Come stai? 

Com'è il tempo?

Note that "cosa è", "dove è" and "come è" are all shortened to "cos'è", "dov'è" and "com'è"!

To translate:

What is Santa Maria del Fiore?

Who is Brunelleschi?

When are you in the piazza?

Where are you today?

Perfetto! 😊

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at the different versions of the verb "to have", and how to use it in sentences, and how to make questions.

:)

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AVERE - "to have"

io ho (pronounce with a silent h)

tu hai

lui, lei ha

noi abbiamo

voi avete

loro hanno

Examples:

Ho un libro.

Abbiamo una casa.

Ha una torta?

For negative statments:

Non ho un libro.

Non abbiamo una pizza.

And for questions:

Ha un libro Marco?

Marco ha un libro?

Marco ha un libro, vero?

Marco ha un libro, non è vero?

Final ex:

Do you have a coffee?

Yes, I have a coffee.

No, I don't have a coffee.

Perfetto!

😊

...

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at the specific/definite forms of the articles in Italian - in both the singular and plural forms.

:)

...

For the singular:

"il" - standard masculine

"lo" - masculine, same as with "uno" (four cases: before z, s+consonant, ps, gn), plus before vowels.

Ex:

il giorno

lo sport

lo studente

"la" - standard feminine:

la casa 

la sera

If "lo" and "la" come before a vowel - we shortened both to " l' ":

l'apartemento

l'amico

l'amica

..

For the plurals:

"i" - standard masculine

"gli" -same as with "lo": 4 main cases + vowels

"le" - feminine

Ex:

i giorni

i fiori

gli amici

le case

Self-testing - find article in singular, and article + noun ending in plural:

cattedrale

notte

sera

psicologo

Well done!

...

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at when to use "un", "uno" and "una" as the unspecific article for nouns.

:)

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un - standard masculine:

un libro

un treno

un giorno

uno: 4 main cases: before z, s+consonant, ps, gn.

z: uno zio, uno zucchero

s + consonant: uno sport, uno spaghetto, uno spettacolo

gn: uno gnomo

ps: uno psicologo

una - feminine:

una casa

una sera

.... mela

.... ragazza

.. and "una" before a vowel is shortened to "un' " - f.ex "un'amica" - a female friend.

Ex:

sorella

amico 

studente

arancia

Excellent! 😊

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

Some extra practice on how to find the gender of a noun, and how to change a singular to a plural (building on Grammar Episode #4 and #5!)

stanza

acqua

camicia

ragazzo

uovo

strada

sole

caffè

fiume

zio 

energia

cliente

banca  

olandese

mare

chiave

Well done! 😊

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at how to change the endings of the nouns, when going from singular to plurals.

:)

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For the three different main endings:

"o" singular, becomes "i"

bigletto - bigletti

treno - treni

"a" goes to "e"

sera - sere

casa - case

"e" goes to "i"

fiume - fiumi

notte - notti

..

And some nouns do not change in the plurals, f.ex imported words ending on a consontant (bar, sport, film), and nouns ending on an accented vowel (città, virtù, caffè).

Great work!

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at the two genders for Italian nouns, and the three different endings "o", "a" and "e".

:)

..

In general, "o" is for masculine and "-a" is for feminine:

il libro

il ragazzo

la casa

la chitarra

If a noun ends on "-e", it could be either feminine or masculine:

il fiume

il nome

la notte

la luce

And some nouns on "-e" depends on the gender of the person it describes, for example:

il cliente or la cliente = the customer/client

il parente or la parente = the relative

and you can guess for "cantante" - meaning singer!

So now you know how to find the gender of a noun, and when to look it up (most of the "-e" nouns).

Excellent work!

😊

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In this episode we'll look at how to use "ci è", "ci sono", and "ecco".

:)

..

In the context of this episode "ci" translates to "there".

"Ci è" means "there is", and is usually shortened to "c'è"

"Ci sono" means "there are".

Ex:

C'è un treno oggi?

Ci sono posti liberi?

..

"Ecco" means "here!", "here it is!", "look!", "there it is!", and is a way of drawing attention to something.

Ecco il caffé!

Ecco il treno!

Well done! 😊

..

Intro-music is "Night in Venice" by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5763-night-in-venice/

License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Ciao!

In the episode we'll look at when to use the formal and causal forms, and when to use the subject pronoun.

:)

Part 1:

In general with the casual and formal forms:

"tu/voi" is used between young people, adults talking to young people, and when talking to relatives or friends.

"Lei/Loro" is used when talking to adults, or between adults who don't know each other well (more formal, more distance).

When using the formal form:

"tu" changes to "Lei" (for you)

"voi" changes to "Loro" (for you in plural, or "you all").

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Examples:

casual: Io sono di Firenze, e tu? 

formal: Io sono di Firenze, e Lei?

casual: Noi siamo studenti, e voi? 

formal: Noi siamo studenti, e Loro? 

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Part 2:

You would normally use subject pronoun only for emphasis or clarification in Italian. Normally you would say:

Sono Marco.

instead of "Io sono Marco."

Great work!

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Ciao!

Here are the forms of "essere":

io sono

tu sei

lui,lei è

noi siamo

voi siete

loro sono

...

Examples:

Io sono americano.

Tommaso è italiano.

Marco e io siamo in un caffè.

Tommaso e Marco sono amici.

I am a student (uno studente / una studentessa).

You are american.

We are from Dallas (di Dallas).

They are students (studenti).

Marco non è americano.

Tommaso is not English (inglese).

...

For more Italian Grammar episodes, and to listen ad-free: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar

Welcome back!

In the episode we're expanding the dialogue with the phrases for "What's your name?" and "My name is ...", and also the word for "Pleasure!"

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Episode transcript:

- Ciao, come stai?

- Bene grazie, e tu?

- Bene, grazie! 

- Come ti chiami?

- Mi chiamo Dante. E tu?

- Mi chiamo Beatrice.

- Piacere!

- Molto piacere.

- Ciao!

- Arrivederci, ciao!!

:D

...

For more Italian Grammar episodes, and to listen ad-free: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar

Welcome!

In this episode we have the basic greetings, and the words for "hello" and "how are you" in Italian!

Dialogue:

- Ciao! Come stai? 

- Bene, Grazie! E tu?

- Molto Bene, Grazie!

- Ciao!!

- Arrivederci, ciao!

..

For more Italian Grammar episodes, and to listen ad-free: https://patreon.com/ItalianGrammar