Italian · Beginner (A1) · Chapter 5 of 12
Family and friends
La famiglia e gli amici
Talk about your family in Italian, say my, your, his and her, use the verb avere (to have) and say how old people are.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Name the people in your family
- Say my, your, his and her
- Say how old you are and ask someone's age
- Pronounce gli and gn
Listen
In a café in Genoa, Anna shows her friend Matteo a family photo on her phone. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Matteo
Chi è questa signora?
Who's this lady?
Anna
È mia madre. Si chiama Rosa.
That's my mother. Her name is Rosa.
Matteo
E lui?
And him?
Anna
È mio fratello, Paolo. Ha ventisei anni.
That's my brother, Paolo. He's twenty-six.
Matteo
Hai anche una sorella?
Do you have a sister too?
Anna
Sì, si chiama Giulia. E questo bambino è suo figlio, Leo.
Yes, her name is Giulia. And this little boy is her son, Leo.
Matteo
Quanti anni ha?
How old is he?
Anna
Ha quattro anni. E tu, hai fratelli?
He's four. And you, do you have any brothers or sisters?
Matteo
No, non ho fratelli. Sono figlio unico.
No, I don't have any brothers or sisters. I'm an only child.
Understand
My, your, his, her
Italian possessives change with the gender and number of the person or thing you have, not with the owner: (my brother), (my sister), (my brothers). and mean both “his” and “her”: can be his son or her son. (their) never changes.
Possessives usually come with the word for “the”: (my family), (my friend). But with one family member, drop it: , , . Keep it in the plural () and with ().
| English | Masc. singular | Fem. singular | Masc. plural | Fem. plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| my | ||||
| your (tu) | ||||
| his, her, your (Lei) | ||||
| our | ||||
| your (voi) | ||||
| their |
- Mia madre si chiama Rosa.My mother's name is Rosa.
- La mia famiglia è piccola.My family is small.
- La mia amica si chiama Giulia.My friend's name is Giulia.
Avere (to have) and saying your age
means “to have”. It is irregular, so learn it by heart. The h is never pronounced: sounds like “o”.
To say how old someone is, Italian uses , not “to be”: is literally “I have thirty-five years”. To ask, say (tu) or (Lei).
As with (chapter 1), you usually leave out , and the other pronouns: (I have two brothers).
| Person | English | |
|---|---|---|
| I have | ||
| you have (informal) | ||
| / / | he / she has, you have (polite) | |
| we have | ||
| you have (plural) | ||
| they have |
- Quanti anni hai?How old are you?
- Ho ventinove anni.I'm twenty-nine.
- Non ho fratelli.I don't have any brothers or sisters.
Say it right: gli and gn
Gli sounds a little like the “lli” in “million”, said with the middle of your tongue pressed against the roof of your mouth: , , .
Gn sounds like the “ny” in “canyon”: , .
More in the grammar: Essere and avere: to be and to have · Possessives: mio, tuo, suo… · The Italian alphabet and pronunciation
New words
- Chi è…?Who is…?
- la madremother · feminine
- il padrefather · masculine
- il fratellobrother · masculine
- la sorellasister · feminine
- il bambinochild, little boy · masculine; a little girl:
- il figlioson · masculine; daughter:
- Quanti anni ha?How old is he / she? How old are you? (polite) · to a friend:
- Ho… anni.I'm… (years old).
- Hai fratelli?Do you have any brothers or sisters? · = brothers, or brothers and sisters
- figlio unicoonly child · for a woman:
- la famigliafamily · feminine
- l'amico / l'amicafriend · masculine / feminine
- piccolosmall · feminine:
Practise
1.How do you say “my mother”?
2.Complete with the right form of .
My brother is twenty-six.
3.Ask a friend how old they are.
How old are you?
4.Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.My family is small.
5.You're a man with no brothers or sisters. What do you say?
6.Match the family words.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
Ho trentaquattro anni.
I'm thirty-four.
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.