Culture Class: Essential Italian Vocabulary
Let Italian culture be your guide as you build up essential vocabulary and phrases.
Beginner

Curriculum

Culture Class: Essential Italian Vocabulary

What are the 5 most popular sweets in Italy? What vocabulary do I need to know to have a conversation with Italian-speaking locals? You'll learn all this and more in this Culture Class Series! Vocabulary is essential to mastering Italian. In this 25-lesson series, you'll learn the *most* essential Italian vocabulary words related to culture and daily life. These words have been hand picked by our Italian native speakers and cover topics like popular Italian dishes, national holidays and cities.

Lesson # Title
(English)
Topic
(English)
Target sentences
(Target Language)
1 National Holidays Daily Life Natale
Pasquetta
Ferragosto
Immacolata Concezione
Capodanno
2 Food Food & Drink pizza margherita
insalata caprese
lasagne
cotoletta alla milanese
spaghetti alla carbonara
3 Drinks Food & Drink caffè
cappuccino
spremuta di arancia rossa
Limoncello
Prosecco
4 Home-cooked Meals Food & Drink polpette
minestrone
frittata
pasta al forno
crostata
5 Sweets and Desserts Food & Drink panna cotta
gelato
macedonia
torrone
cannolo
6 Fruits Food & Drink limone
uva
anguria
arancia
pesca
7 Vegetables Food & Drink pomodoro
melanzana
rucola
cipolla
carciofo
8 Food Souvenirs Food & Drink Parmigiano Reggiano
Gianduiotto
aceto balsamico
cantuccini
Grappa
9 Pop and Traditional Culture Society & Culture presepe
Carnevale
sagre
tarantella
cerimonia nuziale
10 Historical Figures Culture & Society Giulio Cesarre
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Cristoforo Colombo
Nerone
Lorenzo de' Medici
11 Animals Geography & Nature piccione
coniglio
lupo
gatto
cane
12 Plants Geography & Nature geranio
olivo
vite
pino marittimo
zagara
13 Geographical Features Geography & Nature Etna
Grotta Azzurra
Tevere
mar Mediterraneo
lago Maggiore
14 Cities Geography & Nature Roma
Milano
Firenze
Venezia
Siena
15 Sports Recreation & Leisure calcio
basket
pallavolo
tennis
ciclismo
16 Recreational Activities Recreation & Leisure aperitivo
picnic
andare allo stadio
cinema
shopping
17 Tourist Attractions and Places Recreation & Leisure Colosseo
Torre di Pisa
Ponte Vecchio
Duomo di Milano
Canal Grande
18 Common Household Items People & Homes caffettiera
gelatiera
termosifone
fioriera
forno
19 Medicines and drugs Health & Emergencies Aspirina
Moment
Benagol
Aulin
Lasonil
20 Natural Disasters Geography & Nature terremoto
eruzione vulcanica
inondazione
frana
incendio
21 Modes of transportation Transportation & around town tram
macchina
motorino
autobus
metropolitana
22 Shops or services in town Transportation & around town panificio
tabaccheria
fruttivendolo
bar
pasticceria
23 Chain Stores Transportation & around town La Rinascente
Spizzico
La Feltrinelli
Esselunga
Trony
24 Musicians and Artists Fine Arts Leonardo da Vinci
Michelangelo
Sandro Botticelli
Giuseppe Verdi
Giacomo Puccini
25 Writers Fine Arts Dante Alighieri
Alessandro Manzoni
Giovanni Boccaccio
Umberto Eco
Italo Calvino