ChatPal Logo
Start 7 days free

Italian vocabulary · Topic 1 of 10

Greetings & Essentials in Italian

Italians greet each other a lot, and the greeting changes with the time of day and how well you know someone. Ciao is for friends, buongiorno and buonasera are for everyone else. These 100 words and phrases cover hellos, polite words, and the small question words that hold a conversation together.

Entries
100
Full guides
100

Showing all 100 entries in rank order.

  1. 1Hellointerjectionciaoformal: buongiorno
  2. 2Thank youphrasegrazie
  3. 3Goodbyeinterjectionarrivederciinformal: ciao
  4. 4Pleaseadverbper favore
  5. 5Yesinterjectionsì
  6. 6Nointerjectionno
  7. 7Good morningphrasebuongiorno
  8. 8Good nightphrasebuonanotte
  9. 9How are you?phraseCome stai?formal: Come sta?
  10. 10I'm sorryphrasemi dispiaceto apologize: scusa
  11. 11You're welcomephraseprego
  12. 12Excuse mephrasescusito get past: permesso
  13. 13Good afternoonphrasebuon pomeriggio
  14. 14Good eveningphrasebuonasera
  15. 15Nice to meet youphrasepiacere
  16. 16My name is…phrasemi chiamo…
  17. 17What's your name?phraseCome ti chiami?formal: Come si chiama?
  18. 18I'm fine, thanksphrasesto bene, grazie
  19. 19See you laterphrasea dopo
  20. 20See you tomorrowphrasea domani
  21. 21See you soonphrasea presto
  22. 22I love youphraseti amoto friends and family: ti voglio bene
  23. 23Thank you very muchphrasegrazie mille
  24. 24No, thank youphraseno, grazie
  25. 25What?pronounche cosa? / cosa?
  26. 26Where?adverbdove?
  27. 27When?adverbquando?
  28. 28Why?adverbperché?
  29. 29How?adverbcome?
  30. 30Who?pronounchi?
  31. 31How much?phrasequanto?
  32. 32Which?pronounquale?
  33. 33I don't understandphrasenon capisco
  34. 34Do you speak English?phraseParli inglese?formal: Parla inglese?
  35. 35Can you repeat that, please?phrasePuoi ripetere, per favore?formal: Può ripetere, per favore?
  36. 36More slowly, pleasephrasepiù piano, per favore
  37. 37I don't knowphrasenon lo so
  38. 38How do you say…?phraseCome si dice…?
  39. 39What does this mean?phraseChe cosa significa?
  40. 40I speak a little (Italian, Hindi…)phraseparlo un po' di italiano
  41. 41Okayinterjectionva bene / ok
  42. 42Of coursephrasecerto / certamente
  43. 43Maybeadverbforse
  44. 44No problemphrasenessun problema
  45. 45Welcome!interjectionbenvenuto/a
  46. 46Congratulations!interjectioncongratulazioni / complimenti
  47. 47Happy birthday!phrasebuon compleanno
  48. 48Good luck!phrasebuona fortunainformal: in bocca al lupo
  49. 49Cheers!interjectionsalute! / cin cin!
  50. 50Have a nice dayphrasebuona giornata
  51. 51Take carephrasestammi bene / abbi cura di te
  52. 52Where are you from?phraseDi dove sei?formal: Di dov'è?
  53. 53I'm from…phrasesono di… / vengo da…
  54. 54How old are you?phraseQuanti anni hai?formal: Quanti anni ha?
  55. 55Ipronounio
  56. 56Youpronountuformal: Lei; plural: voi
  57. 57Hepronounlui
  58. 58Shepronounlei
  59. 59Wepronounnoi
  60. 60Theypronounloro
  61. 61Andconjunctione
  62. 62Orconjunctiono
  63. 63Butconjunctionma
  64. 64Becauseconjunctionperché
  65. 65Withprepositioncon
  66. 66Withoutprepositionsenza
  67. 67Hereadverbqui
  68. 68Thereadverblì / là
  69. 69Thispronounquesto/a
  70. 70Thatpronounquello/a
  71. 71Veryadverbmolto
  72. 72Alsoadverbanche
  73. 73Onlyadverbsolo
  74. 74Notadverbnon
  75. 75Nothingpronounniente / nulla
  76. 76Help!interjectionaiuto!
  77. 77One moment, pleasephraseun momento, per favore
  78. 78Well done!interjectionbravo/a!
  79. 79Bless you! (after a sneeze)phrasesalute!
  80. 80Happy New Year!phrasebuon anno!
  81. 81Merry Christmas!phrasebuon Natale!
  82. 82Get well soonphraseguarisci prestoformal: si rimetta presto
  83. 83Have a good tripphrasebuon viaggio
  84. 84Sweet dreamsphrasesogni d'oro
  85. 85Long time no seephraseda quanto tempo!
  86. 86I miss youphrasemi manchi
  87. 87Let's go!phraseandiamo!
  88. 88Really?adverbdavvero?
  89. 89I agreephrasesono d'accordo
  90. 90That's rightphraseesatto! / è vero
  91. 91Come in!phraseavanti! / entra!
  92. 92What's up?phrasecome va?
  93. 93It doesn't matterphrasenon importa
  94. 94Have fun!phrasedivertiti!
  95. 95I have a questionphraseho una domanda
  96. 96What happened?phrasecos'è successo?
  97. 97Don't worryphrasenon preoccupartiformal: non si preoccupi
  98. 98Be careful!phrasestai attento/a!
  99. 99Have a good weekendphrasebuon fine settimana
  100. 100Hurry up!phrasesbrigati!

Practice these words in a conversation

Meet someone new at a café in Rome

In ChatPal you play out this scene in Italian with an AI conversation partner, out loud, and get personalized feedback on what you said.

Practice this scenario

Greetings & Essentials in other languages

More topics in Italian

FAQ

Greetings & Essentials in Italian: common questions

When should I say ciao and when buongiorno?

Say ciao to friends, family, and people your age in casual settings. Use buongiorno (until mid-afternoon) or buonasera (later) with shop staff, older people, and anyone you would address with Lei.

What is the difference between scusa and scusi?

Both mean "excuse me" or "sorry". Scusa is informal (tu) and scusi is formal (Lei). Use scusi with strangers, waiters, and shop staff.

How do Italians say "you're welcome"?

The everyday answer to grazie is prego. You will also hear di niente (it's nothing) in casual conversation.

Ready to say it out loud?

ChatPal is a voice-first app for practicing real conversations in Italian. Try real scenarios and get personalized feedback on your speaking.

Start with 7 days free.