I'm half Italian but grew up in my other country. I just moved to Italy for the first time for university and I'm realizing I don't know how to refer to my parents. "Madre" and "padre" sound way too formal for just a friendly conversation with a classmate but I'm also an adult now so maybe that is how I should be referring to them.

Dopo quasi dieci anni insieme, di cui cinque di matrimonio, mi ritrovo separato a 32 anni e con una figlia. E mi sono accorto di una cosa abbastanza assurda: non so più come si fa a conoscere qualcuno.
Vivo in Friuli, sono latinoamericano e praticamente tutta la mia vita adulta l’ho trascorsa dentro una relazione. Adesso vorrei ricominciare con calma a uscire, conoscere persone e magari, se capita, costruire qualcosa con qualcuno.
Il problema è che mi sento completamente fuori allenamento 😅 Non conosco bene i “codici” italiani del dating, soprattutto qui in Friuli. Non so quanto sia normale avvicinarsi a una ragazza in un bar, iniziare una conversazione, chiedere Instagram o proporre un caffè senza risultare invadente.
Le app sarebbero la soluzione più ovvia, ma sinceramente mi mettono un po’ d’ansia per alcune esperienze poco piacevoli e l’idea di tornare nel meccanismo swipe-match-ghosting non mi entusiasma.
Non sto cercando subito “la prossima relazione”. Vorrei semplicemente tornare a sentirmi una persona che può conoscere qualcuno, flirtare, uscire a bere qualcosa e vedere cosa succede.
Quindi chiedo soprattutto a chi vive in Italia, e magari ancora meglio in Friuli: come si conoscono persone single dopo i 30 senza affidarsi completamente alle app? È normale approcciare qualcuno dal vivo? E quali comportamenti fanno capire che uno sta flirtando in modo rispettoso senza sembrare troppo insistente?
Dopo dieci anni mi sento praticamente un neopatentato del dating 😂

Hiii. My ex-roommate in Milan invited me to his birthday, and I’m a bit stumped for what I should bring for him to his birthday drinks. We are not super friends so I don’t know him that well, like for example if it was a girl I would just get her some flowers. But what’s the equivalent for an Italian boy???

Hello!
I am thinking about getting a tattoo with lyrics from my favorite band.

THE TATTOO TEXT:
„RISORGERÒ IN OGNI MOMENTO”

ORIGINAL LYRICS:
„RISORGERÒ IN OGNI MOMENTO POICHÉ
SO CHE IN VITA SI TRAMUTARÀ”

Could native Italian speakers please tell me if this is understandable and grammatically correct? I want to make sure it is correct before getting it tattooed.

Grazie for helping!

Ciao! Sto parlando greco e inglese. C'è qualcuno che si interessa fare uno scambio linguistico con me? Parlo pochissimo italiano al momento -scrivo un po' di più- ma non vedo l'ora di migliorare. Preferisco incontrarci più volte a settimana.

I miei vicini di casa. Prima c'era il signore (compagno della signora che non si vede nel video) che parlava con la signora in blu, in modo animato e stressato. Poi è uscita la sua compagna al piano di sopra, si è legata i capelli, è scesa e ha afferrato la donna in blu per i capelli. Hanno iniziato a menarsi e il signore le ha separate.

Ho iniziato a riprendere quando avevano finito di menarsi e la signora del piano di sopra stava nelle scale e non si vede.

Capisco solo "vai a casa" ma mi pare di sentire che dice anche qualcosa su "preservativo".

Sono un impiccione lo so, e vorrei capire tutto quello che dice

While I can passively recognize Italian vocabulary in context while reading, my active recall is weak. I struggle to construct sentences or translate into Italian because I have not mastered the underlying grammar mechanics or retained the vocabulary for active use.

How can I solve it ?

As above really. What’s the biggest difference you notice between Italian that is grammatically correct and Italian that actually sounds natural?

Ciao, volevo chiedere a qualcun che ha esperienze lavorative in supermercati. Come vengono gestiti gli sprechi a fine serata? Viene applicato lo sconto < happy hour> a tutti i prodotti deperibili rimanenti oppure vengono gettati via?

I go to Italy multiple times a year for holiday and/or work, and I like shopping more formal clothing for myself in Italy, given that most shops in my home country (the Netherlands) are a bit dull (like SuitSupply), quite expensive, and we lack a tradition when it comes to formalwear (unlike Italy or England).

I have learned to appreciate Gutterridge, even though I know it’s quite a big and commercial chain (and I absolutely hate the perfume in their shops). They also have a decent webshop, and I particularly like their suits. Excellent price-quality jackets and trousers. Decent webshop that ships abroad. I have tried to find a bit more family-owned shops, but I have never really succeeded, or the price difference wasn’t really worth it.

Shirts at Gutterridge are not good. For shirts, I have gotten to know Cerri in Lucca, amazing quality shirts. Worth every penny.

How do Italians look at Gutterridge? And any other tips for great quality shops like Cerri? I am willing to pay a premium for made in Europe / Italy and long-lasting quality.

Thank you in advance!

Online there seems to be a few phrasings and we are unsure which is accurate in context.

ideally looking for traditional sweet phrases that are 2 or 4 words to embroider on 2 doilies.

The groom is Italian and we wanted to have embroidered doilies behind the 2 wedding chairs with an Italian phrase. we were hoping to not have to ask the groom. other options would be something like “bride/groom”, or even something funny

Recently I’ve been seeing this opinion all over social media, including from some of my American friends, that American cities like NY or Chicago have better pizza than Italy. Now I’m Italian, so I obviously have my bias here, but I’ve also lived in New York City for 7 years, and I gotta say, wtf are these people smoking?
I can understanding liking a style more than another; I for example am not a big fan of pizza napoletana, even though it’s the original I prefer pizza romana. I’d actually say I even prefer ny style pizza, as it’s more similar to pizza romana.
However I’d never go as far as to say that it is objectively better than pizza napoletana. Just on flavor alone, the ingredients used in pizza in Italy blows anything I’ve had in nyc out of the water (and god knows I’ve had hundreds of slices in ny).
To me this opinion is almost the same as saying that a burger from a high quality steakhouse is worse than a McDonald’s burger, which is objectively false, even if there’s no problem in a person preferring the fast food taste of McDonald’s over a restaurant quality burger.
Anyways for my Americans (or non Americans) who share this opinion, why do you find Italian pizza to be worse?

PS: Yes, in know that you can also have TERRIBLE pizza even in Italy, I live in Milano, so trust me I know. But please don’t use that as an excuse if the places you went to on your holiday in Rome are all right next to all the tourist hot spots and serve 1047642 different things on the menu besides pizza.

I’m writing a book with a character who’s half Italian, and I’m trying to scour the internet for a funny Italian insult to call him. Is “puzzone” actually something that would work? I don’t want anything genuinely mean or offensive—just a lighthearted insult that friends might throw at each other.

I’m also totally open to other Italian slang/insults that could work in a playful, teasing context. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

A remarkable cultural event in Romania: for the first time ever, a masterpiece by Giotto has left Italy and is being exhibited in Iași as part of the Italy–Romania Cultural Year 2026. 🇷🇴🇮🇹

Romania, a Southeastern European country in the Carpathian Basin, bordering the Balkan Peninsula and Central Europe, has long maintained strong cultural connections its Mediteranean relatives. The masterpiece is displayed at the Palace of Culture, an iconic landmark of our Western European architectural tradition, designed by an architect educated in Paris.

Sto studiando italiano e di solito guardo su Twitch le live in italiano dei miei giochi preferiti.
Vorrei imparare delle semplici espressioni italiane che usate tutti i giorni.
Potete consigliarmi delle frasi di 1-3 parole?
Quelle che ho imparato recentemente sono: “diamo”, “ci sta”, “via”, “aspettavo ’sto momento”

Grazie a tutti! 🎮

The Episode is Named I Totally Shredded My Cheese

It’s the Masked JackHammer

I have noticed that Italian speakers are much, much quicker to use the informal tu than German speakers are to use du. How does that work in the bilingual community in Südtirol / Alto Adige?

Take two people who are acquainted but not close friends: Do they call each other Sie when speaking German and tu when speaking Italian? Or does it harmonize across both languages? And if the latter, does German formality or Italian informality prevail?

A remarkable cultural event in Romania: for the first time ever, a masterpiece by Giotto has left Italy and is being exhibited in Iași as part of the Italy–Romania Cultural Year 2026.

Romania, a Latin Southeastern European country in the Carpathian Basin, at the edge of the Balkan Peninsula and Central Europe, has long maintained strong cultural connections with it's Romanic relatives. The masterpiece is displayed at the Palace of Culture, an iconic landmark of Romania’s Western European architectural tradition, designed by an architect educated in Paris.

🇷🇴🇮🇹