Learn all you need to know about greetings in Italian
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Intro |
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| Michael: How do you greet someone at different times of the day? |
| Ofelia: And are there any alternatives? |
| Michael: At ItalianPod101.com, we hear these questions often. Imagine the following situation: Ben Lee greets his friend, but he didn't notice how late it had become. Ben says, |
| "Good morning!" |
| Ben Lee: Buongiorno! |
| Dialogue |
| Ben Lee: Buongiorno! |
| Alessandro Amato: Sono già le cinque e mezza. Buonasera! |
| Michael: Once more with the English translation. |
| Ben Lee: Buongiorno! |
| Michael: "Good morning!" |
| Alessandro Amato: Sono già le cinque e mezza. Buonasera! |
| Michael: "It's already half past five. Good evening!" |
Lesson focus |
| Michael: In this lesson, we will talk about how to greet someone in Italian at different times of the day. Just like in most languages, Italian uses greetings depending on what time it is. That being said, there are greetings for "day," |
| Ofelia: giorno, |
| Michael: and "evening," |
| Ofelia: sera. |
| [Recall 1] |
| Michael: Let's start by taking a closer look at the dialogue. |
| Do you remember how Ben Lee says "Good morning?" |
| (pause 4 seconds) |
| Ofelia as Ben Lee: Buongiorno! |
| Michael: This literally means "good day," but it can be used to mean "good morning," "good afternoon," or even just "hello." You can use it all day, until sunset, in both formal and less formal situations. Ben probably used this greeting after the sun had set and guessed it was still ok. Let's break the word down—first is |
| Ofelia: buon |
| Michael: which means "good," next is |
| Ofelia: giorno |
| Michael: which means "day." You can find this greeting written as one word or two separate words. Both spellings are correct. |
| [Recall 2] |
| Michael: Now, let's take a look at our second sentence. |
| Do you remember how Ben's friend says "It's already half past five. Good evening?" |
| (pause 4 seconds) |
| Ofelia as Alessandro Amato: Sono già le cinque e mezza. Buonasera! |
| Michael: Ben's friend first points out that it's already half past five and then greets Ben with |
| Ofelia: buonasera |
| Michael: which literally means "good evening," and it's a common way to greet people during the evening and at night, in both formal and less formal situations. Let's break the word down—first is |
| Ofelia: buona |
| Michael: which means "good," next is |
| Ofelia: sera |
| Michael: which means "evening." You can find this greeting written as one word or two separate words. Both spellings are correct. |
| Michael: Another similar greeting is |
| Ofelia: buon pomeriggio. |
| Michael: which literally means "good afternoon." This greeting is less commonly used, but it's still useful to know. Use it if you want to emphasize the fact that it's afternoon, otherwise the more common |
| Ofelia: buongiorno |
| Michael: will do. |
| Now, in casual situations, as you might already know, the most common greeting is |
| Ofelia: ciao |
| Michael: It means "hi" or, depending on the situation, "bye," since it's also a parting expression. You can use it at any time of the day, but remember that it's informal. |
| There's another greeting that doesn't depend on the time of the day, and can be used either in formal or casual situations, that's |
| Ofelia: salve |
| Michael: which translates to "hello." |
| [Summary] |
| Michael: In this lesson, you learned that Italian has time-related greetings, and these are |
| Ofelia: buongiorno |
| Michael: for "good morning," or "good afternoon." You can use this all day until the sun sets. Next is |
| Ofelia: buonasera |
| Michael: for "good evening." You can use it after the sun sets. Next is |
| Ofelia: buon pomeriggio |
| Michael: for "good afternoon." This is not so common, but you can use it if you want to put emphasis on the fact that it's afternoon. We also introduced two common greetings not related to the time of day. The first is |
| Ofelia: ciao |
| Michael: which means "hi," is informal, and can be used also when leaving. Last we saw is |
| Ofelia: salve |
| Michael: which translates to "hello," and can be used at any time of the day, and for any occasion either formal or casual. |
| Review |
| Michael: Let's review. Respond to the prompts by speaking aloud. Then, repeat after the native speaker focusing on pronunciation. |
| Do you remember how Ben says "Good morning?" |
| [Beep. Pause 5 seconds.] |
| Ofelia as Ben Lee: Buongiorno! |
| Michael: Listen again and repeat. |
| Ofelia as Ben Lee: Buongiorno! |
| [Beep. Pause 5 seconds.] |
| Ofelia as Ben Lee: Buongiorno! |
| Michael: And do you remember how Ben's friend says "It's already half past five. Good evening?" |
| [Beep. Pause 5 seconds.] |
| Ofelia as Alessandro Amato: Sono già le cinque e mezza. Buonasera! |
| Michael: Listen again and repeat. |
| Ofelia as Alessandro Amato: Sono già le cinque e mezza. Buonasera! |
| [Beep. Pause 5 seconds.] |
| Ofelia as Alessandro Amato: Sono già le cinque e mezza. Buonasera! |
Outro |
| Michael: Do you have any more questions? We're here to answer them! |
| Ofelia: A presto! |
| Michael: See you soon! |
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