Unit 75 Guidebook: express dates and times

KEY PHRASES

Express dates and times

Marzo finisce oggi.
March ends today.
Lo zoo apre a maggio.
The zoo opens in May.
Non so che ora è.
I do not know what time it is.
È mezzanotte.
It is midnight.
TIP

Months & seasons

The names of months and seasons aren’t capitalized in Italian.

Il ristorante apre a gennaio.
The restaurant opens in January.
Il ristorante apre a febbraio.
The restaurant opens in February.
Il ristorante apre a marzo.
The restaurant opens in March.
Il ristorante apre ad aprile.
The restaurant opens in April.

Use a or in before a month.

Beviamo la birra a giugno.
We drink the beer in June.
Non siamo in gennaio, ma in luglio.
We are not in January, but in July.

Before a season, you'll use in just like in English.

Non siamo in autunno, ma in primavera.
We are not in autumn, but in spring.
Siamo in estate, non in inverno.
We are in summer, not in winter.
Siamo in inverno.
We are in winter.
TIP

Days of the week

In Italian, the days of the week aren't capitalized. Typically, the week starts on Monday in Italy.

English Italian
Monday lunedì
Tuesday martedì
Wednesday mercoledì
Thursday giovedì
Friday venerdì
Saturday sabato
Sunday domenica

Don't forget the accent mark on the ‑ì for the first five days of the week.

Oggi è lunedì.
Today is Monday.
Domani è martedì.
Tomorrow is Tuesday.
Domani è venerdì.
Tomorrow is Friday.
TIP

Stamattina, stasera, and stanotte

In English, we say this morning, this afternoon, this evening, but tonight rather than this night. Similarly, you'll say stanotte for tonight in Italian.

Io lavoro stanotte.
I work tonight.

In the same way, you'll say stamattina for this morning, and stasera for this evening.

Cosa bevi stamattina?
What are you drinking this morning?
Cosa fai stasera?
What are you doing this evening?

For this afternoon, you can just say questo pomeriggio or oggi pomeriggio.