Learn Italian at your own speed with tons of hands-on practice
In the newly revised third edition of Italian: A Self-Teaching Guide, professor and language educator Dr. Ilaria Serra walks you through how to learn Italian the quick and easy way. This book is ideal for anyone looking to master Italian at their own pace, whether you're approaching the language for the first time or just brushing up on the basics.
Italian: A Self-Teaching Guide contains fifteen simple lessons that show you how to engage in everyday conversations, from ordering food at a restaurant to making travel arrangements with a hotel concierge or an Airbnb host. The author helps you develop the skills you need to have actual Italian conversations with actual people in the real world.
You'll also find:
- Straightforward instructions and sample mini-dialogues on how to arrange a ride share and conduct other travel business
- Help with speaking to a mechanic or a doctor in Italian so you can visit Italian-speaking countries with added confidence
- Extensive vocabulary and culture notes, along with a fun assortment of exercises, self-tests, and practice activities
- Easy and complete grammar explanations
- Self-check solutions
An exciting and essential resource for everyone who wants to tackle Italian at their own speed, Italian: A Self-Teaching Guide remains the gold standard in books that teach you how to speak, read, write, and understand the language. It's perfect for students, jobseekers, world travelers, and the simply curious everywhere.
Preface xiii
Pronunciation Guide xv
Acknowledgments xix
Lesson 1 Basic Expressions 1
Parole da Ricordare (Words to Remember) 2
Grammar I Gender and Number of Italian Nouns 3
Grammar II the Indefinite Article 4
Grammar III the Definite Article 5
Grammar IV Subject Pronouns 6
Grammar V Present Indicative of ssere and Avere 8
Grammar VI Numbers From 0 to 1,000 9
Lesson 2 IN UN RISTORANTE DEL CENTRO (In a Downtown Restaurant) 12
Parole da Ricordare (Words to Remember) 12
Dilogo Sergio e Maria mngiano in un ristorante del centro 13
Dialogue Sergio and Maria Are Eating in a Downtown Restaurant 13
Grammar I Present Indicative of - are, - ere, and - ire Verbs 15
Verbi da Ricordare (Verbs to Remember) 17
Grammar II Present Indicative of - Iare, - Care, and - Gare Verbs 18
Grammar III the Adjective Gender and Number 19
Grammar IV Interrogative Sentences 21
Grammar V Negative Constructions 21
Grammar VI the Days of the Week 22
Lesson 3 ALLA STAZIONE FERROVIARIA (At the Railway Station) 24
Parole da Ricordare (Words to Remember) 24
Dilogo Alla stazione ferroviaria 25
Dialogue At the Railway Station 25
Grammar I Position of the Adjective 26
Grammar II Present Indicative of Capire, Finire, and Preferire 31
Grammar III the Verbs Sapere and Conscere 32
Grammar IV Meaning of è and Ci Sono 33
Grammar V How to Tell Time in Italian 33
Grammar VI Numbers From 1,001 to 1 Billion 35
Lesson 4 COMPLEANNO IN FAMIGLIA (A Family Birthday) 37
Parole da Ricordare (Words to Remember) 37
Dilogo Compleanno in famiglia 38
Dialogue A Family Birthday 38
Grammar I Plural of Certain Nouns and Adjectives 39
Grammar II Possessive Adjectives and Possessive Pronouns 41
Grammar III Present Indicative of the Stem-changing Verbs Dare, Andare,
Fare, Stare, Uscire, and Venire 43
Grammar IV the Adjective Tutto, a 44
Grammar V a Persons Age 45
Grammar VI Seasons and Months of the Year 45
Lesson 5 IN UN ALBERGO DI MILANO (In a Hotel in Milan) 48
Parole da Ricordare (Words to Remember) 48
Dilogo In un albergo di Milano 49
Dialogue In a Hotel in Milan 50
Grammar I Prepositions Not Combined with the Definite Article 51
Grammar II Prepositions Combined with the Definite Article 54
Grammar III the Partitive 55
Grammar IV Present Indicative of the Stem-Changing Verbs Dovere, Potere, and
Volere 57
Grammar V the Interrogative Pronoun Chi and the Adjectives Che, Quale, and
Quanto 58
Grammar VI Future Indicative of Avere and ssere and of - Are, - Ere, and -
Ire Verbs 59
Review A (Lessons 15) 63
Lesson 6 FARE LA SPESA (Grocery Shopping) 67
Parole da Ricordare (Words to Remember) 67
Dilogo A fare la spesa 68
Dialogue Grocery Shopping 69
Grammar I Plural of Some Nouns 70
Grammar II Personal Pronouns After a Preposition Or a Verb 72
Grammar III Direct Object Pronouns 72
Grammar IV Position of the Direct Object Pronoun in a Sentence 73
Grammar V Future Indicative of Verbs Ending in - Care, - Gare, - Ciare, and
- Giare 76
Grammar VI Niente, Nulla, Nessuno, and other Negative Expressions 77
Grammar VII Future Indicative of the Stem-Changing Verbs dare, andare, fare,
stare, and dovere, potere, volere 79
Lesson 7 IN UNA BANCA DI FIRENZE (In a Bank in Florence) 81
Parole Da Ricordare (Words to Remember) 81
Dilogo In una banca di Firenze 82
Dialogue In a Bank in Florence 82
Grammar I Nouns Ending in -ista 84
Grammar II Present Indicative of the Stem-changing Verbs Bere, Dire,
Rimanere, and Tenere; Future Indicative of Sapere, Vedere, and Venire 85
Grammar III the Past Participle 86
Grammar IV Passato Prssimo of Transitive and Intransitive Verbs 88
Grammar V Agreement of the Past Particle with Direct Object Pronouns 92
Grammar VI Idiomatic Use of the Present Indicative with the Preposition Da
92
Lesson 8 UNA VISITA MEDICA (A Medical Examination) 94
Parole da Ricordare (Words to Remember) 94
Dilogo Una vsita mdica 95
Dialogue A Medical Examination 96
Grammar I Future Indicative of the Stem-Changing Verbs bere, dire, rimanere,
and tenere 97
Grammar II the Relative Pronouns Che, Cui, Il Quale, and La Quale 98
Grammar III Reflexive Verbs and Reflexive Pronouns 100
Grammar IV the Direct Object Pronoun Ne 103
Grammar V the Adjective Ogni 105
Grammar VI Idiomatic Expressions with Fare 106
Lesson 9 In Un Negozio Di Abbigliamento (In a Clothing Store) 108
Parole da Ricordare (Words to Remember) 108
Dilogo In un negozio di abbigliamento 109
Dialogue In a Clothing Store 110
Grammar I The Relative Pronoun cui and the Possessive Interrogative di chi
111
Grammar II Reciprocal Constructions 112
Grammar III Indirect Object Pronouns 113
Grammar IV the Verb Piacere 115
Grammar V Imperative of First- , Second- , and Third- Conjugation Verbs 116
Grammar VI Imperative of Avere and ssere and of the Stem-Changing Verbs
Dare, Dire, Fare, Stare 118
Lesson 10 UNA TELEFONATA (A Telephone Call) 121
Parole da Ricordare (Words to Remember) 121
Dilogo Una telefonata 122
Dialogue A Telephone Call 122
Grammar I The Adverbial Pronoun ci 124
Grammar II Position of Direct and Indirect Object Pronouns with the
Imperative 125
Grammar III Imperative of Reflexive Verbs 127
Grammar IV Imperative of the Stem-Changing Verbs Andare, Bere, Rimanere,
Tenere, Uscire, and Venire 128
Grammar V Double Object Pronouns 129
Grammar VI the Imperfetto 131
Review B (Lessons 610) 136
Lesson 11 UNA GITA DOMENICALE (A Sunday Outing) 141
Parole da Ricordare 141
Dilogo Una gita domenicale 142
Dialogue A Sunday Outing 143
Grammar I The Impersonal Construction 144
Grammar II the Comparative 145
Grammar III the Superlative 149
Grammar IV Verbs Used in the Third-Person Singular 152
Grammar V Idiomatic Use of the Imperfetto with the Preposition Da 153
Grammar VI Present Conditional of - Are, - Ere, and - Ire
Verbs; Present Conditional of avere and ssere 153
Lesson 12 Sul Sito Di Viaggi Online (On the Online Travel Website) 157
Parole da Ricordare (Words to Remember) 157
Dilogo Sul sito di viaggi online 158
Dialogue On the Online Travel Website 158
Grammar I Present Conditional of Stem-Changing Verbs 160
Grammar II Future Perfect and Perfect Conditional 163
Grammar III the Trapassato Prssimo 166
Grammar IV the Gerundio 168
Grammar V Special Construction of Stare with the Gerundio 171
Grammar VI the Infinitive 171
Lesson 13 ALLUFFICIO POSTALE (At the Post Office) 175
Parole da Ricordare 175
Dilogo Allufficio postale 176
Dialogue At the Post Office 176
Grammar I Adverbs 178
Grammar II the Comparative and Superlative of Adverbs 179
Grammar III Present Subjunctive 180
Grammar IV Perfect Subjunctive 182
Grammar V the Subjunctive: Use (part I) 184
Grammar VI Tense Sequence: Indicative/subjunctive (part I) 187
Lesson 14 DAL MECCANICO (At the Mechanics) 190
Parole da Ricordare 190
Dilogo Dal meccanico 191
Dialogue At the Mechanics 191
Grammar I The Passato Remoto 193
Grammar II the Passato Remoto of Stem-Changing Verbs 195
Grammar III the Trapassato Remoto 197
Grammar IV Imperfect Subjunctive 198
Grammar V Pluperfect Subjunctive 200
Grammar VI Tense Sequence: Indicative/subjunctive (part II) 201
Lesson 15 IN CERCA DI LAVORO (Looking for a Job) 205
Parole da Ricordare 205
Narrativa In cerca di lavoro 206
Narrative Looking for a Job 207
Grammar I The Subjunctive: Use (Part II) 208
Grammar II if Clauses with the Subjunctive 210
Grammar III Additional Uses of the Subjunctive 212
Grammar IV the Passive Construction 213
Grammar V Nouns and Adjectives Combined with a Suffix 216
Grammar VI Special Constructions with Fare, Lasciare, Mtterci, and Volerci
218
Review C (Lessons 1115) 222
Appendix A Answers for Exercises and Reviews 226
Appendix B Regular Verbs 290
Appendix C Irregular Verbs 294
ItalianEnglish Vocabulary 302
ILARIA SERRA, PhD, is professor of Italian and Comparative Studies at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) and director of the universitys Venice Study Abroad Program. A native of Venice, Italy, Ilaria researches Italian cinema, Italian literature, and the history of Italian immigration to the United States. She received FAUs Scholar of the Year Award in 2012 and 2020.
The late EDOARDO A. LÈBANO was professor of Italian and director of the Center for Italian Studies at Indiana University in Bloomington.
