Whether you're trying to make a dinner reservation, ask about a train schedule, or just chat about your week, knowing the days, months, and how to express dates is fundamental. The good news? Italian makes it quite straightforward, often more so than English.
01How do you say the days of the week in Italian?
The days of the week in Italian are all masculine and do not begin with a capital letter, unlike in English. Most end in -dì (from dies, Latin for 'day').
| Italian | Meaning | Hear |
|---|---|---|
lunedì /luneˈdi/ | Monday | |
martedì /marteˈdi/ | Tuesday | |
mercoledì /merkoleˈdi/ | Wednesday | |
giovedì /dʒoveˈdi/ | Thursday | |
venerdì /venerˈdi/ | Friday | |
sabato /ˈsabato/ | Saturday | |
domenica /doˈmenika/ | Sunday |
No 'on' needed
When you want to say 'on Monday' or 'on Tuesday', you often just use the day itself: lunedì (on Monday), martedì (on Tuesday). For emphasis or to specify 'every Monday', you might use il lunedì.
02What are the months of the year in Italian?
Just like the days, the months in Italian are not capitalized. They are generally masculine, though you won't often use articles with them unless you're talking about a specific instance.
| Italian | Meaning | Hear |
|---|---|---|
gennaio /dʒenˈnajo/ | January | |
febbraio /febˈbrajo/ | February | |
marzo /ˈmartso/ | March | |
aprile /aˈprile/ | April | |
maggio /ˈmaddʒo/ | May | |
giugno /ˈdʒuɲɲo/ | June | |
luglio /ˈluʎʎo/ | July | |
agosto /aˈɡosto/ | August | |
settembre /setˈtembre/ | September | |
ottobre /otˈtobre/ | October | |
novembre /noˈvembre/ | November | |
dicembre /diˈtʃembre/ | December |
03How do you say and write dates in Italian?
In Italy, dates are written and said in the order of day, month, year (DD/MM/YYYY), which is different from the common American English MM/DD/YYYY. To say a date, you'll use the definite article il (the) before the number, then the month.
The first day of the month is always 'il primo'.
- È venti maggio. → È *il* venti maggio. Always use 'il' before the day number when saying a date.
- Il primo di gennaio. → Il primo gennaio. No 'di' is needed between the number and the month.
- Il dieci di marzo duemilaventiquattro. → Il dieci marzo duemilaventiquattro. Again, avoid 'di' when stating the full date.
Do days of the week get capitalized in Italian?
Are months capitalized in Italian?
How do you say 'on' a specific day in Italian?
How do you write the year in Italian?
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