Languages · Italiano
Video Chat with Italian Speakers
Italian is easiest to learn the way Italians use it: out loud, with expression and often with their hands. To practice Italian with native speakers, a random video chat gets you a real conversation in seconds, and on Omlet it's free, runs in your browser and needs no sign-up.
Omlet has no language matching and an English-only interface, so you find Italian speakers by country. Set the country filter to Italy, or to Switzerland, where Italian is spoken in Ticino and parts of Graubünden while most of the country speaks German or French. The filter's first day is free, then it costs $3 one time for that device and browser. The free day starts with a card, and the $3 is charged once when it ends unless you cancel in Settings. Or keep matching worldwide and ask: Parli italiano?
Where people speak Italian
Italian (Italiano) is an official language in 4 countries and territories. To meet people from one of them, pick it with the country filter.
- Italy
- San Marino
- Switzerland
- Vatican City
Useful Italian phrases for video chat
Short, natural phrases you can use in your first minute on camera. The pronunciation is a simple English-style guide; stressed syllables are in capitals.
| English | Italian | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Hi! / Bye! (informal) | Ciao! | CHOW |
| Good evening! | Buonasera! | bwoh-nah-SEH-rah |
| Do you speak Italian? | Parli italiano? | PAR-lee ee-tah-LYAH-noh |
| How's it going? | Come va? | KOH-meh VAH |
| Where are you from? | Di dove sei? | dee DOH-veh SAY |
| What's your name? | Come ti chiami? | KOH-meh tee KYAH-mee |
| My name is … | Mi chiamo … | mee KYAH-moh |
| Nice to meet you. | Piacere! | pyah-CHEH-reh |
| I'm learning Italian. | Sto imparando l'italiano. | stoh eem-pah-RAHN-doh lee-tah-LYAH-noh |
| Can you speak more slowly? | Puoi parlare più lentamente? | PWOY par-LAH-reh PYOO len-tah-MEN-teh |
| How do you say … in Italian? | Come si dice … in italiano? | KOH-meh see DEE-cheh … een ee-tah-LYAH-noh |
| What do you do for work? | Che lavoro fai? | keh lah-VOH-roh FAI |
| Sorry, I didn't understand. | Scusa, non ho capito. | SKOO-zah, non oh kah-PEE-toh |
| Until next time! | Alla prossima! | AHL-lah PROS-see-mah |
Tips for practicing Italian on video chat
- Italy is on Central European Time (UTC+1, UTC+2 in summer). Evenings there, roughly 8 to 11 pm, line up with the afternoon on the US East Coast and early evening in the UK.
- Learn a few filler words so you sound less like a textbook: allora (so, well), cioè (I mean), dai (come on), boh (no idea) and magari (maybe, or I wish).
- Ask about food from their region. Nearly every Italian region has dishes it's proud of, and the question gets people talking for minutes.
- When you hear a word with an accent mark, ask your partner to type it in the chat: è (is) and e (and) are different words, and seeing them helps you remember.
- Repeat corrections out loud right away. Saying the right version once, in context, sticks better than a note you never reread.
Tu or Lei with someone new?
Italian has an informal tu and a formal Lei. Lei takes the same verb form as he and she, so Di dove sei? (tu) becomes Di dov'è? and Come ti chiami? becomes Come si chiama?
Between adults of a similar age on a casual video chat, tu is the norm. Start with Lei if your partner is clearly older or the tone feels formal, and switch when they suggest it. You can also ask: Possiamo darci del tu? (Can we use tu with each other?)
Double consonants and other sounds
Italian spelling is regular, which makes it friendly to pronounce. Every vowel is spoken clearly, and stress usually falls on the second-to-last syllable. These points make the biggest difference:
| What you see | How it sounds | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Double consonants (ll, nn, pp) | Held a beat longer | nono (ninth) vs nonno (grandfather) |
| c or g before e or i | Soft: ch as in chip, j as in jet | ciao, gelato |
| ch or gh | Hard: k and g | che, spaghetti |
| gli | Like the lli in million | famiglia (family) |
| gn | Like the ny in canyon | gnocchi, bagno (bathroom) |
| r | Tapped or rolled | Roma, caro |
Practice pairs before a chat: caro (dear) and carro (cart), capello (hair) and cappello (hat). Say one at random and ask your partner which they heard.
Regions, dialects and gestures
Italian sounds different in Milan, Rome, Naples and Palermo, and many people also speak a regional language or dialect at home, such as Neapolitan, Sicilian or Venetian. On camera you'll mostly hear standard Italian with a regional accent. Asking Di che regione sei? (Which region are you from?) is a great way to open that topic.
Italian speakers in Switzerland have an accent of their own and a few local words. Hand gestures are part of everyday speech for many Italians, and video lets you see them; our guide to hand gestures around the world explains which ones travel well and which don't.
A 10-minute session
- Minutes 0 to 2: Ciao, say where you're from and Sto imparando l'italiano.
- Minutes 2 to 6: ask about their city or region and its food, and repeat one new word back to them.
- Minutes 6 to 8: ask Come si dice …? for something you wanted to say but couldn't.
- Minutes 8 to 10: offer a few minutes of English if they'd like practice, then close with Grazie, alla prossima!
Our language exchange page explains how to set up fair back-and-forth practice with the people you meet, and the language exchange tips cover corrections and splitting time.
Practice Italian with the country filter
Omlet's interface is in English only, and it doesn't match people by language or translate anything. There are two easy ways to find Italian speakers:
- Use the country filter. Press Country, pick a country where Italian is spoken (for example Italy, Switzerland or San Marino), then press Start.
- Ask whoever you meet. On Worldwide matching, a quick "Do you speak Italian?" costs nothing to try.
The country filter's first day is free (you add a card to start, and can cancel in Settings before the charge). After that it's $3 one time for that device and browser, with no subscription. It can make matching slower when fewer people from that country are online; if a match takes a while, try another country or switch back to Worldwide.
Say you're practicing Italian in your first sentence and ask your partner to slow down or correct you. It's a normal request.