Lesson 2: Buongiorno! Welcome to your Italian Course

Ciao a tutti! In today’s lesson, we’re going to dive into the world of numbers, time, and daily routines in Italian. So grab your caffeinated beverage of choice ☕️ and let’s get started!

You can find the complete series of my free Italian crash course by clicking the link. Ready to move ahead? Jump to Lesson 3: Basic Vocabulary & Nouns → after this lesson.

Italian Numbers: Counting, Time, and Age (0-100)

Numbers are the building blocks of language, and in Italian, they are molto importante! Let’s start with counting from 0 to 100. 🙌

Number	Italian	Number	Italian	Number	Italian
0	zero	34	trentaquattro	68	sessantotto
1	uno	35	trentacinque	69	sessantanove
2	due	36	trentasei	70	settanta
3	tre	37	trentasette	71	settantuno
4	quattro	38	trentotto	72	settantadue
5	cinque	39	trentanove	73	settantatré
6	sei	40	quaranta	74	settantaquattro
7	sette	41	quarantuno	75	settantacinque
8	otto	42	quarantadue	76	settantasei
9	nove	43	quarantatré	77	settantasette
10	dieci	44	quarantaquattro	78	settantotto
11	undici	45	quarantacinque	79	settantanove
12	dodici	46	quarantasei	80	ottanta
13	tredici	47	quarantasette	81	ottantuno
14	quattordici	48	quarantotto	82	ottantadue
15	quindici	49	quarantanove	83	ottantatré
16	sedici	50	cinquanta	84	ottantaquattro
17	diciassette	51	cinquantuno	85	ottantacinque
18	diciotto	52	cinquantadue	86	ottantasei
19	diciannove	53	cinquantatré	87	ottantasette
20	venti	54	cinquantaquattro	88	ottantotto
21	ventuno	55	cinquantacinque	89	ottantanove
22	ventidue	56	cinquantasei	90	novanta
23	ventitré	57	cinquantasette	91	novantuno
24	ventiquattro	58	cinquantotto	92	novantadue
25	venticinque	59	cinquantanove	93	novantatré
26	ventisei	60	sessanta	94	novantaquattro
27	ventisette	61	sessantuno	95	novantacinque
28	ventotto	62	sessantadue	96	novantasei
29	ventinove	63	sessantatré	97	novantasette
30	trenta	64	sessantaquattro	98	novantotto
31	trentuno	65	sessantacinque	99	novantanove
32	trentadue	66	sessantasei	100	cento
33	trentatré	67	sessantasette

🔈 Pro tip: Notice how numbers 11-19 have unique forms (undici, dodici, tredici…). From 20 onward, they follow a pattern: tens + unit (venti + uno = ventuno). When the tens word meets ‘uno’ or ‘otto’, the final vowel drops: ventotto (28), not ventiotto.

🤔 Let’s practice using these numbers in different contexts. For example, if you want to say your age, you can say, “Ho venti anni!” (I am 20 years old!) or “Ho trentaquattro anni!” (I am 34 years old!). Now, let’s move on to time.

Days of the Week, Months, and Seasons

To talk about time, we need to know the days of the week, months, and seasons. Here they are:

Days of the Week

• Monday: lunedì
• Tuesday: martedì
• Wednesday: mercoledì
• Thursday: giovedì
• Friday: venerdì
• Saturday: sabato
• Sunday: domenica

Months

• January: gennaio
• February: febbraio
• March: marzo
• April: aprile
• May: maggio
• June: giugno
• July: luglio
• August: agosto
• September: settembre
• October: ottobre
• November: novembre
• December: dicembre

Seasons

• Spring: primavera
• Summer: estate
• Autumn/Fall: autunno
• Winter: inverno

💭 Now let’s practice using these words in sentences. For example, “Vado al cinema venerdì!” (I’m going to the cinema on Friday!) or “Mi piace l’estate perché posso andare in spiaggia.” (I like summer because I can go to the beach.)

🔈 Pro tip: In Italian, days of the week and months are NOT capitalized (unlike English). Use “di” before days for habitual actions: “di lunedì” = “on Mondays”. Use “a” before months: “a gennaio” = “in January”.

Telling Time in Italian

Knowing numbers is essential for telling time. Here’s how it works:

• Che ora è? / Che ore sono? (What time is it?)
• È l’una. (It’s 1:00.)
• Sono le due / tre / quattro… (It’s 2:00 / 3:00 / 4:00…)
• Sono le tre e dieci. (It’s 3:10.)
• Sono le tre e mezzo. (It’s 3:30.)
• Sono le tre e un quarto. (It’s 3:15.)
• Sono le tre meno un quarto. (It’s 2:45 / quarter to three.)

🌟 Try it yourself: Look at the clock right now and say the time in Italian. “Sono le ___.” This simple habit will make telling time feel natural in no time!

Talking about Daily Routines and Activities

To express your daily routine or talk about activities, we need some useful verbs. Here are a few common ones:

• To wake up: svegliarsi 😴
• To eat breakfast: fare colazione 🍳
• To go to work: andare al lavoro 🚗
• To have lunch: pranzare 🍽️
• To take a nap: fare un pisolino 😴💤
• To have dinner: cenare 🍽️
• To go to bed: andare a letto 🛌

🌞 Let’s put these verbs into action! For example, “Mi sveglio alle sette.” (I wake up at seven.) or “Vado a letto tardi perché mi piace guardare film.” (I go to bed late because I enjoy watching movies.)

Putting It All Together: Your Daily Schedule in Italian

Now let’s combine numbers, time, and daily routines into full sentences. Here’s an example dialogue:

Marco: A che ora ti svegli? (What time do you wake up?)

Sara: Mi sveglio alle sette e faccio colazione. (I wake up at seven and have breakfast.)

Marco: E a che ora vai al lavoro? (And what time do you go to work?)

Sara: Vado al lavoro alle nove. Pranzo all’una. (I go to work at nine. I have lunch at one.)

Marco: Perfetto! Io invece ceno alle otto e vado a letto alle undici. (Perfect! I, on the other hand, have dinner at eight and go to bed at eleven.)

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🎉 Bravo! You’ve completed Lesson 2 of your Italian course. Let’s recap what you’ve learned:

• ✅ Counting from 0 to 100 in Italian
• ✅ Days of the week, months, and seasons
• ✅ Telling time like a native
• ✅ Daily routine vocabulary and verbs
• ✅ Describing your daily schedule in Italian

Keep practicing these skills, and you’ll become a pro in no time! A presto! 👋

Continue building your Italian with the next lessons:

• Lesson 1: Basic Phrases for Beginners ←: Start with greetings, pronunciation, and essential travel phrases.
• Lesson 3: Basic Vocabulary & Nouns →: Colors, family members, animals, and how noun gender works.
• Lesson 4: Verbs & Present Tense →: Conjugate regular and irregular verbs to form complete sentences.