Dialogue

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Vocabulary (Review)

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Lesson Notes

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Lesson Transcript

Ciao a tutti! Sono Consuelo. Hi everybody! I’m Consuelo.
Welcome back to ItalianPod101.com’s Italiano in tre minuti, the fastest, easiest, and most fun way to learn Italian.
In the last lesson, we learned how to be grateful to people by saying grazie. Today we’ll learn some of the most common greetings used in Italy.
Pronti? Are you ready? Allora cominciamo, so let’s start!
The most used informal greeting is:
Ciao!
(One more time, slowly: Ciao).
Ciao means “hi,” “hello,” or "goodbye." That’s why we use it when we meet but also when we leave. We should only use this greeting with friends or relatives.
And now let’s continue discussing the formal way to greet people.
The one you are used to hearing in Italy and at Italianpod101.com is:
Buongiorno!
(One more time, slowly: Buongiorno).
Literally, buongiorno means "good day"; however, we may also interpret it as "good morning" or "good afternoon." As a rule of thumb we can use buongiorno only during the daytime—from morning until evening.
During the evening we say:
Buonasera!
(One more time, slowly: Buonasera).
So, since sera obviously means “evening,” buonasera stands for good evening.
Buongiorno and buonasera are used when we meet someone, but when we leave, we don’t say them again. In this formal situation Italians use:
Arrivederci!
(One more time, slowly: Arrivederci).
Arrivederci means “good-bye.”
Finally, in Italian we use an expression meaning “see you soon” that can be considered both formal and informal. That is:
A presto!
(One more time, slowly: A presto).
Now you can greet people in many different ways in Italian!
Let’s say them all again. When meeting and leaving friends, we use:
(background changes, on the street)
Ciao!
When meeting older people or someone we don’t know:
Buongiorno or buonasera!
When leaving in a formal situation, we say:
Arrivederci!
When leaving, no matter whether it's a formal or informal situation:
A presto!
It’s easy, isn’t it?
Now it’s time for Consuelo’s tips.
In formal situations, Italians commonly greet each other by shaking hands. On the other hand, if we meet someone we are very friendly with, we kiss each other on both cheeks. Don’t be afraid to do it with your Italian friends—it’s normal!
(someone enters, we say ciao and kiss each other on cheeks.)
During the next lesson we’ll learn the meaning of the phrase parla inglese? Do you already know it? We'll be waiting to talk about it with you in our new Italiano in tre minuti lesson.
Ciao, a presto, alla prossima lezione!!

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