Word lists › Italian
The most common Italian words, in frequency order
This is a frequency-based Italian word list: words ranked by how often they actually occur in everyday text, with translations and pronunciation. Frequency-based learning means studying words in this order, so every hour goes to the words you will meet most. Learn the first 500 and you will recognise about 63% of the words in everyday Italian. That is Zipf's law, and it is why this list is in this order. The first 250 are below; Zipf teaches all 5,000.
63%of everyday Italian text is the first 500 words
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The 250 most common Italian words
| # | Word | IPA | Part of speech | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | il | /il/ | article | the |
| 2 | di | /di/ | preposition | used to indicate possession, after the thing owned and before the owner; of; ’s; from |
| 3 | e | /ˈe/ | conjunction | and; (e... e) both... and or just ... and |
| 4 | uno | /ˈu.no/ | numeral | one |
| 5 | che | /ˈke/ | conjunction | that; than |
| 6 | essere | /ˈɛs.se.re/ | verb | Used as a copula. to be; Denotes absolute time. |
| 7 | a | /ˈa/ | preposition | Indicates the indirect object. to; Indicates the place, used in some contexts, in others in is used. in, to |
| 8 | in | /in/ | preposition | in; to |
| 9 | avere | /aˈve.re/ | verb | to have |
| 10 | non | /non/ | adverb | not; un- |
| 11 | per | /per/ | preposition | for; to, in order to |
| 12 | si | /si/ | pronoun | oneself, himself, herself, itself, themselves; each other, one another |
| 13 | con | /kon/ | preposition | with, together |
| 14 | fare | /ˈfa.re/ | verb | to do; to make |
| 15 | da | /da/ | preposition | from (all senses); Used to indicate the house, place, or establishment of; at/to + -'s |
| 16 | questo | /ˈkwes.to/ | article | this, these; the last, the past |
| 17 | ma | /ma/ | conjunction | but, however; but, on the contrary |
| 18 | come | /ˈko.me/ | adverb | how |
| 19 | tutto | /ˈtut.to/ | adjective | all |
| 20 | più | /ˈpju/ | adverb | comparative degree of molto; more; anymore, any longer |
| 21 | se | /se/ | conjunction | if; whether |
| 22 | potere | /poˈte.re/ | verb | can, could; to be able to; may, might; to be possible to |
| 23 | suo | /ˈsu.o/ | article | his, her, its; your (polite singular form) |
| 24 | mi | /mi/ | pronoun | clitic accusative of io. me; clitic dative of io. (to) me |
| 25 | quello | /ˈkwel.lo/ | pronoun | that |
| 26 | anche | /ˈan.ke/ | adverb | also, too, as well, besides; even |
| 27 | o | /ˈɔ/ | conjunction | The thirteenth letter of the Italian alphabet, called o and written in the Latin script. |
| 28 | altro | /ˈal.tro/ | adjective | other |
| 29 | ci | /ˈt͡ʃi/ | pronoun | us; ourselves; each other |
| 30 | solo | /ˈso.lo/ | adjective | alone |
| 31 | mio | /ˈmi.o/ | pronoun | mine |
| 32 | dire | /ˈdi.re/ | verb | to utter (produce (speech or other sounds) with one's voice); to recite |
| 33 | su | /ˈsu/ | preposition | on, upon, onto, on top; over |
| 34 | dovere | /doˈve.re/ | verb | to owe; to have to do something (must) |
| 35 | cosa | /ˈkɔ.za/ | pronoun | what |
| 36 | vedere | /veˈde.re/ | verb | to see; to look at |
| 37 | io | /ˈi.o/ | pronoun | I |
| 38 | volere | /voˈle.re/ | verb | to want |
| 39 | ti | /ˈti/ | pronoun | accusative/dative of tu; you; second-person singular of si; you |
| 40 | anno | /ˈan.no/ | noun | year (all senses) |
| 41 | stare | /ˈsta.re/ | verb | to stay, remain; to keep, stick |
| 42 | perché | /perˈke/ | conjunction | because, why; so, so that, in order that |
| 43 | cui | /ku.i/ | pronoun | prepositional of che: whom, which; dative of che: to whom; to which |
| 44 | molto | /ˈmol.to/ | adverb | much, very much, a lot (with verbs); very, really, very much (with adjectives or adverbs) |
| 45 | quando | /ˈkwan.do/ | conjunction | when; since, since when, ever since |
| 46 | andare | /anˈda.re/ | verb | to go; to be agreeable (to), to be pleasing (to) (idiomatically, to feel like, to want/like) [with a ‘person with feeling’ and di ‘thing desired’] |
| 47 | parte | /ˈpar.te/ | noun | part; deal (a quantity, especially a large one) |
| 48 | tra | /tra/ | preposition | between; among |
| 49 | venire | /veˈni.re/ | verb | to come; to arrive |
| 50 | prima | /ˈpri.ma/ | adverb | before; once, formerly |
| 51 | loro | /ˈlo.ro/ | pronoun | they |
| 52 | due | /ˈdu.e/ | numeral | two |
| 53 | sapere | /saˈpe.re/ | verb | to know (information); to be able to, can, could (to know how to) |
| 54 | ora | /ˈo.ra/ | noun · feminine | hour |
| 55 | così | /koˈzi/ | adverb | so; like this/that |
| 56 | nuovo | /ˈnwɔ.vo/ | adjective | new |
| 57 | dopo | /ˈdo.po/ | adverb | after, later |
| 58 | stesso | /ˈstes.so/ | adjective | same |
| 59 | bene | /ˈbɛ.ne/ | noun · masculine | good |
| 60 | proprio | /ˈprɔ.prjo/ | adjective | own |
| 61 | ne | /ne/ | pronoun | from this; from that; from these; from those, sometimes not translated in English; about this; about that; about these; about those |
| 62 | poi | /ˈpɔj/ | adverb | then; later |
| 63 | sempre | /ˈsɛm.pre/ | adverb | always; still |
| 64 | nostro | /ˈnɔs.tro/ | article | our; of ours |
| 65 | dare | /ˈda.re/ | verb | to give (to transfer the possession/holding of something to someone else); to yield, to bear, to produce, to return |
| 66 | me | /ˈme/ | pronoun | me |
| 67 | quanto | /ˈkwan.to/ | pronoun | how much, however much; how ...! ... so much! |
| 68 | tuo | /ˈtu.o/ | article | your (informal) |
| 69 | chi | /ki/ | pronoun | he/she/they who, those who, the ones who; (archaic) whom; whoever, who |
| 70 | ancora | /anˈko.ra/ | adverb | still; again |
| 71 | lavorare | /la.voˈra.re/ | verb | to work |
| 72 | giorno | /ˈd͡ʒor.no/ | noun | day |
| 73 | volta | /ˈvɔl.ta/ | noun | time, instance, occasion; turn |
| 74 | persona | /perˈso.na/ | noun | person, pl people, persons; someone, somebody, anybody |
| 75 | tempo | /ˈtɛm.po/ | noun | time; time, age, period |
| 76 | senza | /ˈsɛn.t͡sa/ | preposition | without |
| 77 | quale | /ˈkwa.le/ | pronoun | which |
| 78 | mai | /ˈma.i/ | adverb | never; ever, always |
| 79 | ogni | /ˈoɲ.ɲi/ | article | each, every |
| 80 | pensare | /penˈsa.re/ | verb | to think; to think about someone |
| 81 | tanto | /ˈtan.to/ | adjective | so much |
| 82 | trovare | /troˈva.re/ | verb | to find; to visit (a friend, relative, etc.) |
| 83 | vita | /ˈvi.ta/ | noun | life; body, build, shape |
| 84 | primo | /ˈpri.mo/ | adjective | first; initial |
| 85 | prendere | /ˈprɛn.de.re/ | verb | to take, hold, pick up, get; to conquer (of a political territory or entity) |
| 86 | secondo | /seˈkon.do/ | noun · masculine | second |
| 87 | dove | /ˈdo.ve/ | adverb | where |
| 88 | grande | /ˈɡran.de/ | adjective | of greater physical dimensions or numerosity; big, large (in size or quantity) |
| 89 | no | /ˈnɔ/ | adverb | not; Used at the end of a sentence as a sort of tag question or to emphasize a statement; isn't it so, right |
| 90 | leggere | /ˈlɛd.d͡ʒe.re/ | verb | to read |
| 91 | già | /ˈd͡ʒa/ | adverb | already, yet; as early as |
| 92 | alcuno | /alˈku.no/ | adjective | some |
| 93 | modo | /ˈmɔ.do/ | noun | manner, way; mood |
| 94 | parlare | /parˈla.re/ | verb | to talk, to speak; to cant |
| 95 | quindi | /ˈkwin.di/ | adverb | therefore, hence, thus; then, afterwards, thenceforth |
| 96 | casa | /ˈka.sa/ | noun | house; home |
| 97 | italiano | /i.taˈlja.no/ | adjective | Italian (of, from or relating to Italy) |
| 98 | grazie | /ˈɡrat.t͡sje/ | noun | thanks, thank-you (an expression of gratitude); gratitude |
| 99 | caso | /ˈka.zo/ | noun | chance, fate; chance, coincidence, accident |
| 100 | bello | /ˈbɛl.lo/ | adjective | nice, fair, fine, pleasant; beautiful (of the weather, etc.); good-looking, handsome; beautiful (of a person) |
| 101 | noi | /ˈnoj/ | pronoun | we; us |
| 102 | portare | /porˈta.re/ | verb | to bring, fetch, take, carry; to transmit; to relay |
| 103 | vi | /ˈvi/ | pronoun | second-person personal plural object pronoun: you, to you; second-person reflexive plural: yourselves |
| 104 | mettere | /ˈmet.te.re/ | verb | to put, to place, to lay, to set; to deposit |
| 105 | poco | /ˈpɔ.ko/ | adverb | little, not much; little, not very, poorly |
| 106 | qui | /ˈkwi/ | adverb | here |
| 107 | te | /te/ | pronoun | you, thee; you, thou |
| 108 | tu | /ˈtu/ | pronoun | you (singular); thou |
| 109 | via | /ˈvi.a/ | noun · feminine | street |
| 110 | mondo | /ˈmon.do/ | noun | world; people; society |
| 111 | nessuno | /nesˈsu.no/ | pronoun | none; no one, nobody |
| 112 | buono | /ˈbwɔ.no/ | adjective | good, nice (in general); righteous, moral |
| 113 | lui | /ˈluj/ | pronoun | he; him |
| 114 | vero | /ˈve.ro/ | adjective | true; real, genuine |
| 115 | uomo | /ˈwɔ.mo/ | noun | person, man (human being); man, mankind, humankind |
| 116 | sembrare | /semˈbra.re/ | verb | to seem, to look (like), to appear; to sound, taste or feel (like) |
| 117 | passare | /pasˈsa.re/ | verb | to pass (all senses); to exist; to there be; to take place |
| 118 | donna | /ˈdɔn.na/ | noun | woman; lady |
| 119 | contro | /ˈkon.tro/ | preposition | against |
| 120 | credere | /ˈkre.de.re/ | verb | to believe; to think |
| 121 | fino | /ˈfi.no/ | preposition | until |
| 122 | li | /li/ | article | the |
| 123 | mentre | /ˈmen.tre/ | conjunction | while; as (during the same time that); while; whilst; whereas (in contrast) |
| 124 | chiedere | /ˈkjɛ.de.re/ | verb | to ask (for); to ask, request |
| 125 | diverso | /diˈvɛr.so/ | adjective | different |
| 126 | storia | /ˈstɔ.rja/ | noun | history; story |
| 127 | capire | /kaˈpi.re/ | verb | to understand; to fit, to be contained |
| 128 | fine | /ˈfi.ne/ | adjective | fine |
| 129 | usare | /uˈza.re/ | verb | to use; to do (a courtesy, a favor) |
| 130 | sentire | /senˈti.re/ | verb | to feel; to hear |
| 131 | oggi | /ˈɔd.d͡ʒi/ | adverb | today |
| 132 | seguire | /seˈɡwi.re/ | verb | to follow, to pursue; to follow (a path), to go in a certain direction |
| 133 | problema | /proˈblɛ.ma/ | noun | problem; glitch, bug |
| 134 | porre | /ˈpor.re/ | verb | to put |
| 135 | scrivere | /ˈskri.ve.re/ | verb | to write; to spell (to write the letters that form (a word)) |
| 136 | arrivare | /ar.riˈva.re/ | verb | to arrive, to come, to reach; to come, to be placed |
| 137 | città | /t͡ʃitˈta/ | noun | town, city |
| 138 | certo | /ˈt͡ʃɛr.to/ | adjective | certain |
| 139 | punto | /ˈpun.to/ | noun | point (all senses), jot, iota; full stop, period |
| 140 | cercare | /t͡ʃerˈka.re/ | verb | to look for; to try |
| 141 | qualche | /ˈkwal.ke/ | article | few; some, any |
| 142 | momento | /moˈmen.to/ | noun | moment; momentum |
| 143 | ragazzo | /raˈɡat.t͡so/ | noun | boy, young man; boyfriend |
| 144 | ultimo | /ˈul.ti.mo/ | adjective | last; recent, current |
| 145 | pubblico | /ˈpub.bli.ko/ | noun · masculine | public |
| 146 | paese | /paˈe.ze/ | noun | country (nation); village |
| 147 | politico | /poˈli.ti.ko/ | adjective | political |
| 148 | piacere | /pjaˈt͡ʃe.re/ | noun · masculine | pleasure |
| 149 | figlio | /ˈfiʎ.ʎo/ | noun | son; child (of unspecified gender, in relation to their parents) |
| 150 | tre | /ˈtre/ | numeral | three |
| 151 | foto | /ˈfɔ.to/ | noun | photo, snap |
| 152 | troppo | /ˈtrɔp.po/ | adjective | too much |
| 153 | amico | /aˈmi.ko/ | noun | friend, companion, partner; boyfriend |
| 154 | meglio | /ˈmɛʎ.ʎo/ | adverb | better; best |
| 155 | nome | /ˈno.me/ | noun | name; first name |
| 156 | meno | /ˈme.no/ | adverb | less; not; non- |
| 157 | ciò | /ˈt͡ʃɔ/ | pronoun | this; that |
| 158 | però | /peˈrɔ/ | conjunction | however |
| 159 | sotto | /ˈsot.to/ | adverb | down; underneath |
| 160 | lasciare | /laʃˈʃa.re/ | verb | to leave (to leave something behind); to let |
| 161 | diventare | /di.venˈta.re/ | verb | to become (rich, dry, a doctor, etc.), to go (crazy, etc.), to turn (red, blue, etc.) |
| 162 | unico | /ˈu.ni.ko/ | adjective | only, sole, one, single; unique, unparalleled, unequalled |
| 163 | mese | /ˈme.ze/ | noun | month |
| 164 | chiamare | /kjaˈma.re/ | verb | to call; to telephone |
| 165 | migliore | /miʎˈʎo.re/ | adjective | better; the best |
| 166 | provare | /proˈva.re/ | verb | to try, to try out, to test; to try, to attempt |
| 167 | tipo | /ˈti.po/ | adverb | like, kinda |
| 168 | piccolo | /ˈpik.ko.lo/ | adjective | small; little |
| 169 | gruppo | /ˈɡrup.po/ | noun | group, cluster, party, team, covey; pack |
| 170 | forse | /ˈfor.se/ | adverb | maybe, perhaps, possibly, may, might |
| 171 | invece | /inˈve.t͡ʃe/ | adverb | instead |
| 172 | continuare | /kon.ti.nuˈa.re/ | verb | to continue, to keep on doing (an action); to continue, to resume (an action) |
| 173 | parola | /paˈrɔ.la/ | noun | word (distinct unit of language); word (something promised) |
| 174 | conoscere | /koˈnoʃ.ʃe.re/ | verb | to know (a person or place), to meet (a person), to experience; to recognise/recognize |
| 175 | qualcosa | /kwalˈkɔ.za/ | pronoun | something; anything |
| 176 | maggiore | /madˈd͡ʒo.re/ | adjective | bigger, greater; biggest, greatest |
| 177 | male | /ˈma.le/ | noun · masculine | harm |
| 178 | oltre | /ˈol.tre/ | preposition | beyond |
| 179 | numero | /ˈnu.me.ro/ | noun | number; numeral, figure, digit |
| 180 | qualcuno | /kwalˈku.no/ | pronoun | someone, somebody; anyone, anybody |
| 181 | gente | /ˈd͡ʒɛn.te/ | noun | gens (legally defined unit of Roman society); lineage |
| 182 | famiglia | /faˈmiʎ.ʎa/ | noun | family; household |
| 183 | allora | /alˈlo.ra/ | adverb | then (at that time); at the time, back then |
| 184 | durante | /duˈran.te/ | preposition | during |
| 185 | niente | /ˈnjɛn.te/ | pronoun | nothing; anything |
| 186 | mano | /ˈma.no/ | noun | hand; front foot |
| 187 | guardare | /ɡwarˈda.re/ | verb | to look at, to watch, to glance or gaze at; to examine |
| 188 | verso | /ˈvɛr.so/ | preposition | toward; in the direction of |
| 189 | fuori | /ˈfwɔ.ri/ | adverb | outside |
| 190 | voi | /ˈvo.i/ | pronoun | you (in the singular); you (in the plural, courtesy form), commonly understood as plural of Ella and Lei, grammatically plural of Tu. |
| 191 | lungo | /ˈlun.ɡo/ | adjective | long |
| 192 | ricordare | /ri.korˈda.re/ | verb | to remember, to recall, to recollect; to remind |
| 193 | tornare | /torˈna.re/ | verb | to return, to come back; to return, to reappear |
| 194 | cambiare | /kamˈbja.re/ | verb | to exchange; to change |
| 195 | pure | /ˈpu.re/ | adverb | too, also, as well; well, surely |
| 196 | riuscire | /ri.uʃˈʃi.re/ | verb | to manage; to be able; to be able to be accomplished [with a ‘by someone’, along with a or di (+ infinitive) ‘to do something’] (idiomatically translated as English be able with subject and object reversed) |
| 197 | insieme | /inˈsjɛ.me/ | adverb | together; at the same time |
| 198 | morto | /ˈmɔr.to/ | noun · masculine | dead man |
| 199 | comune | /koˈmu.ne/ | adjective | mutual, common; usual, ordinary, common |
| 200 | vivere | /ˈvi.ve.re/ | verb | to live; to be alive; to subsist, to be |
| 201 | diritto | /diˈrit.to/ | noun | right side; plain stitch, knit stitch |
| 202 | sito | /ˈsi.to/ | noun | site, specifically:; location, position, situation, site |
| 203 | davvero | /davˈve.ro/ | adverb | really, in fact; certainly, seriously |
| 204 | bambino | /bamˈbi.no/ | noun | child, baby, toddler, tot (male or of unspecified gender); boy, young boy |
| 205 | scegliere | /ˈʃeʎ.ʎe.re/ | verb | to choose |
| 206 | importante | /im.porˈtan.te/ | adjective | important |
| 207 | rimanere | /ri.maˈne.re/ | verb | to stay; to remain |
| 208 | comunque | /koˈmun.kwe/ | adverb | anyhow, in any case, regardless; anyway, but, though |
| 209 | lei | /ˈlɛj/ | pronoun | she; her |
| 210 | video | /ˈvi.de.o/ | noun | video (all senses); display (screen) |
| 211 | perdere | /ˈpɛr.de.re/ | verb | to lose; to waste |
| 212 | tale | /ˈta.le/ | article | such |
| 213 | cazzo | /ˈkat.t͡so/ | interjection | damn it |
| 214 | forza | /ˈfɔr.t͡sa/ | interjection | come on |
| 215 | idea | /iˈdɛ.a/ | noun · feminine | idea |
| 216 | tenere | /teˈne.re/ | verb | to hold; to set aside; to conserve |
| 217 | sistema | /sisˈtɛ.ma/ | noun · masculine | system |
| 218 | iniziare | /i.nitˈt͡sja.re/ | verb | to begin, to set about; to join, to incorporate |
| 219 | alto | /ˈal.to/ | adjective | high, tall; deep |
| 220 | esempio | /eˈzɛm.pjo/ | noun | example; specimen |
| 221 | entrare | /enˈtra.re/ | verb | to enter, to go in; to fit, to be contained |
| 222 | nazionale | /nat.t͡sjoˈna.le/ | adjective | home; national, domestic |
| 223 | scuola | /ˈskwɔ.la/ | noun | school; class, lesson |
| 224 | possibile | /posˈsi.bi.le/ | adjective | possible |
| 225 | partire | /parˈti.re/ | verb | to depart; to leave; to set forth; to get moving; to seize on (a task); to go for |
| 226 | quasi | /ˈkwa.zi/ | adverb | almost, nearly |
| 227 | sì | /ˈsi/ | adverb | alternative form of così; so, thus, thuswise |
| 228 | aspettare | /as.petˈta.re/ | verb | to wait for, await, wait |
| 229 | governo | /ɡoˈvɛr.no/ | noun | government, administration, rule; running, management, direction |
| 230 | mezzo | /ˈmɛd.d͡zo/ | noun | half, middle; means, method |
| 231 | libro | /ˈli.bro/ | noun | book; phloem; foliage |
| 232 | settimana | /set.tiˈma.na/ | noun | week |
| 233 | rendere | /ˈrɛn.de.re/ | verb | to give back, to return; to yield (a return etc.) |
| 234 | uscire | /uʃˈʃi.re/ | verb | to go out, leave, exit; to get off, get out |
| 235 | servizio | /serˈvit.t͡sjo/ | noun | service, serve; facility, feature, utility, setting |
| 236 | pubblicare | /pub.bliˈka.re/ | verb | to publish |
| 237 | trattare | /tratˈta.re/ | verb | to treat, to handle, to deal with; to handle, to transact, to negotiate, to discuss |
| 238 | società | /so.t͡ʃeˈta/ | noun | society, community; society, association, club, circle |
| 239 | generale | /d͡ʒe.neˈra.le/ | adjective | general |
| 240 | studiare | /stuˈdja.re/ | verb | to study |
| 241 | nulla | /ˈnul.la/ | pronoun | nothing |
| 242 | formare | /forˈma.re/ | verb | to form |
| 243 | correre | /ˈkor.re.re/ | verb | to run [auxiliary essere or avere] (see above); to hurry, to rush [auxiliary essere or avere] (see above) |
| 244 | morire | /moˈri.re/ | verb | to die; to kill [auxiliary avere]; (normally only participially) |
| 245 | centro | /ˈt͡ʃɛn.tro/ | noun | centre, center; middle, midpoint |
| 246 | circa | /ˈt͡ʃir.ka/ | preposition | about |
| 247 | finire | /fiˈni.re/ | verb | to finish; to end up (doing something) [with per (+ infinitive); or with con, along with il or lo or l' (+ infinitive)] |
| 248 | bisogno | /biˈzoɲ.ɲo/ | noun | need; excrement, faeces |
| 249 | giusto | /ˈd͡ʒus.to/ | adjective | just, right |
| 250 | guerra | /ˈɡwɛr.ra/ | noun | war, warfare |
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