Dialogue - Italian

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Vocabulary (Review)

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Ciao. Hello, hi, bye.
buon giorno good morning, good day, good afternoon
e and

Lesson Notes

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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson Is on Italian Greetings.
Buon giorno. Ciao.
"Good morning. Hi/Hello."

 

 

Ciao is the easiest and most common Italian form of greeting: people use it to say "hi," "hello," or "goodbye." We should only use this greeting with people whom we are well acquainted with, such as friends or relatives.

 

 

On the other hand, we may use buon giorno with anybody, even people we meet for the first time. Literally, buon giorno means "good day"; however, we may also interpret it as "good morning" or "good afternoon." As a rule of thumb, we can use buon giorno only during daytime-from morning until evening-or from before daybreak to before dusk. If we want to say "good afternoon," we sometimes use buon pomeriggio.

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Lesson Transcript

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Intro
Consuelo: Buongiorno a tutti!
Marco: Marco, here. Absolute Beginner Season 1 Lesson 1: Greeting Your New Friends with Perfect Italian.
Consuelo: Hello, everyone. I'm Consuelo and welcome to ItalianPod101.com.
Marco: With us, you'll learn to speak Italian with fun and effective lessons.
Consuelo: We also provide you with cultural insights.
Marco: And tips you won't find in a textbook. In today's class, we will focus on Italian greetings.
Consuelo: This conversation takes place at the bus stop.
Marco: The conversation is between Melissa Cox and Alessio Martini.
Consuelo: In the first conversation, they will be speaking informal Italian. In the second conversation, the Italian is very formal.

Lesson conversation
Marco: Let's listen to the conversation.
Marco: Informal.
Melissa: Ciao, mi chiamo Melissa, e tu?
Alessio: Ciao, piacere. Io mi chiamo Alessio.
Melissa: Piacere Alessio.
Marco: Formal.
Melissa: Buon giorno, mi chiamo Melissa Cox. E lei? Come si chiama?
Alessio: Buon giorno. Alessio, Alessio Martini. Piacere di conoscerla.
Melissa: Molto lieta.
Marco: Let's hear it slowly now.
Consuelo: Ancora una volta, lentamente.
Melissa: Ciao, mi chiamo Melissa, e tu?
Alessio: Ciao, piacere. Io mi chiamo Alessio.
Melissa: Piacere Alessio.
Melissa: Buon giorno, mi chiamo Melissa Cox. E lei? Come si chiama?
Alessio: Buon giorno. Alessio, Alessio Martini. Piacere di conoscerla.
Melissa: Molto lieta.
Marco: And now with the translation.
Consuelo: Questa volta con la traduzione.
Consuelo: Ciao, mi chiamo Melissa, e tu? / Hi, my name is Melissa. And you?
Marco: Ciao, piacere. Io mi chiamo Alessio. / Hi. Nice to meet you. My name is Alessio.
Consuelo: Piacere Alessio. / Nice to meet you Alessio. / Buon giorno, mi chiamo Melissa Cox. E lei? Come si chiama?/ Good morning. My name is Melissa Cox, and you, sir, what is your name?
Marco: Buon giorno. Alessio, Alessio Martini. Piacere di conoscerla. / Good morning. Alessio, Alessio Martini. Nice to meet you.
Consuelo: Molto lieta. / Very pleased to meet you.
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
Marco: Hey, Consuelo. Italians commonly greet each other by shaking hands, right?
Consuelo: Sure, and the handshake must be quite strong. And you know, Marco, what friends do when they meet?
Marco: Oh, yes. I saw them in Italy. They kiss each other on both cheeks.
Consuelo: Exactly. We do it when we meet, but also when we leave.
VOCABULARY AND PHRASES
Marco: Let's take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson.
Consuelo: buon giorno
Marco: Good morning. Good day. Good afternoon.
Consuelo: buon giorno
Marco: And the next word is…
Consuelo: ciao
Marco: Hello. Hi. Bye.
Consuelo: ciao
Marco: And today's last word is…
Consuelo: e
Marco: And.
Consuelo: e
KEY VOCABULARY AND PHRASES
Marco: So, Consuelo, what expression are we studying today?
Consuelo: That's the Italian expression “Piacere di conoscerla”.
Marco: Nice to meet you.
Consuelo: “Piacere di conoscerla” is a very formal greeting as we are talking to the other person using “Lei”.
Marco: Yes, the third singular person "she" used as courtesy form in Italian.
Consuelo: Italians generally use the formal “Lei” with everyone except family members, close friends, classmates and children. For informal occasions, we always use “tu”.
Marco: You, the “tu” form denotes familiarity. It can also be used to express group solidarity such as among university colleagues or women.
Consuelo: So, Marco, in case you want to say, "Nice to meet you," using “tu”, what would you say?
Marco: Ah, that's different. It should be “Piacere di conoscerti”.
Consuelo: Yes, but you can also simply say, “Piacere”.
Marco: That's excellent.

Lesson focus
Consuelo: Let us look at today's Grammar Point.
Marco: The focus of this lesson is on Italian greetings.
Consuelo: Let's start with “Ciao”. “Ciao” is the easiest and the most common Italian form of greeting. People use to say, "Hi," "Hello," or "Goodbye."
Marco: But be careful. We should only use this greeting with people whom we are well-acquainted with such as friends or relatives.
Consuelo: On the other hand, we may use “Buongiorno” with anybody, even people we meet for the first time.
Marco: Literally, “Buongiorno” means "Good day." However, we may also interpret it as "Good morning," or "Good afternoon."
Consuelo: As a rule of thumb, we can use “Buongiorno” only during daytime, from morning until evening or from before daybreak to before dusk.
Marco: And when we want to say "Good afternoon," we can use…
Consuelo: “Buon pomeriggio”

Outro
Marco: That’s just about does it for today. Before we go, we want to tell you about a way to drastically improve your pronunciation.
Consuelo: The voice recording tool.
Marco: Yes, the voice recording tool in the Premium Learning Center.
Consuelo: Record your voice with a click of a button.
Marco: And then, play it back just as easily.
Consuelo: So, you record your voice and then listen to it.
Marco: Compare it to the native speakers.
Consuelo: And adjust your pronunciation.
Marco: This will help you improve your pronunciation fast. Arrivederci!
Consuelo: A presto! Ciao!
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