What’s in this article
Asking questions is so important for learning and connecting with others.
Knowing how to ask questions in Italian, or any other language, will really help you get information and have interesting conversations.
Italian is such a beautiful language, with musical sounds and an interesting way of speaking.
Let me tell you a bit about how to ask questions in Italian so you can start using this skill right away.
There are different words for asking questions in Italian, depending on the type of information you need.
For example, “come” is used to ask “how“, while “che” or “che cosa” can ask “what”.
Don’t worry too much about remembering them all at first though.
The most important thing is giving asking questions a try!
I’d love to give you some examples that you can use in everyday situations.
You may want to know “Dov’è il bagno?” which means “Where is the bathroom?”. Or maybe you’ll ask a friend “Che cosa fai questo fine settimana?” to find out what their weekend plans are.
You’ll be well on your way to chatting with Italians before you know it!
Asking Simple Questions in Italian (Yes and No Questions)
Asking questions in Italian is much easier than it sounds.
Forming questions is really simple most of the time.
All you have to do is add a question mark at the end when writing.
And when speaking, just raise your voice at the end of the sentence.
That’s all it takes to turn a statement into a question.
We call these “simple questions”.
For example, take this sentence: “Silvia lives in Italy.”
In Italian that would be “Silvia vive in Italia.”
To make it a question, all we do is add a question mark: “Silvia vive in Italia?”
Now we know it’s asking “Does Silvia live in Italy?”
When saying it out loud, the only difference is that for the question you’ll raise the pitch of your voice at the end.
This clearly signals that you’re asking a question rather than making a statement.
Unlike in English, we don’t switch the subject and verb around in Italian.
And we usually don’t even use personal pronouns like “I”, “you”, “he” etc. – we just imply them.
Sometimes people do put the subject before the verb for emphasis.
But you definitely don’t need to do that to ask a question.
Just that question mark or rising intonation is enough in most cases.
How to Ask Alternate Questions in Italian
There’s another type of question you’ll come across – ones that require choosing between two or more options.
We call these “alternate questions”.
In Italian, these are formed using the connectors “o” or “oppure” which both mean “or”.
Once again, Italian keeps things simple – we don’t change the word order or add extra words like English does.
So no need to worry about things like “do/does” or “are/is” at the beginning of the question.
Let me give you some examples:
Vuoi un caffè o un tè?
(Do you want a coffee or a tea?)
Or, if I wanted to know your preference for traveling, I could ask “Preferisci viaggiare in treno o in aereo?” – “Do you prefer to travel by train or plane?”
I could also ask what you like more, like “Ti piace il mare o la montagna di più?” – “Do you like the sea or mountains more?”
And when making plans, I might ask “Quest’estate vai al mare o in montagna?” – “Are you going to the beach or mountains this summer?”
As you can see, it’s the “o/oppure” that indicates there is a choice to be made between the options listed.
The intonation also goes up at the end to show it’s a question.
Other than that, the word order and structure stays the same as a normal statement.
How to Ask Questions in Italian using Interrogative pronouns
When you want more details than just a yes or no, Italian has helpful question words you can use.
Some common ones are:
Chi – Who or whom
Cosa / Che – what
Quando – When
Dove – Where
Come – How
Perché – Why
Quale/Quali – Which or which one(s)
Quanto/Quanti/Quante – How much or how many
These words usually come at the beginning of the question, followed by the subject and the verb, let’s explore some exmples:
“Chi” – for asking who.
Chi sei? – Who are you?
Chi è quel ragazzo? – Who is that boy? (The subject is quel ragazzo – that boy)
Con chi vai al cinema stasera? – With whom do you go to the cinema tonight?
Chi è il tuo cantante preferito? – Who is your favorite singer?
“Cosa” or “Che” – for asking what.
Che cosa fai? – What do you do?
Cosa vuoi? – What do you want?
Cosa vuoi mangiare? – What do you want to eat?
Cosa fai nel tempo libero? – What do you do in your free time?
“Quando” – for asking when.
Quand’è in tuo compleanno? – When is your birthday?
Quando parti per le vacanze? – When do you leave for vacation?
Quando parte il treno? – When does the train leave?
“Dove” – to ask where.
Dove stai andando? – Where are you going?
Dove sono i miei bagagli? – Where are my bags?
Da dove vieni? – Where do you come from?
Dove vai in vacanza? – Where are you going on vacation?
“Perchè” – for asking why.
Perché piangi? – Why are you crying?
Perchè sei sempre in ritardo? – Why are you always late?
Perché studi l’italiano? – Why do you study Italian?
Perché non mi rispondi? – Why don’t you answer me?
“Come” – for asking how.
Come ti chiami? – (What’s your name?)
Come va? – (How is it going?)
Come stai oggi? – How are you today?
“Quale” – for asking which/which one.
Some question words in Italian will change a little depending on the noun they refer to.
Specifically, “quale” (which/which one) and “quanto” (how much/how many).
For example, if I ask:
”Quale canzone ti piace?” – (Which song do you like the most?) about a song, I’d use “quale” since song is feminine singular.
And if I ask:
“Quale libro stai leggendo?” – (Which book are you reading?) about a book, it’s still “quale” since book is masculine singular.
If I’m asking about multiple things though, I’d use “quali” instead.
Like:
”Quali film hai visto di recente?” – (Which movies have you seen recently?)
In these examples, we’ve seen that “quale” changes based on whether the noun is singular or plural, and whether it’s masculine or feminine.
If the noun is singular and feminine, we use “quale.”
If the noun is singular and masculine, we also use “quale.”
However, if the noun is plural, we use “quali.“
“Quanto” – for asking how much/how many.
”Quanto” works the same – it changes based on whether the noun is singular or plural, and whether it’s masculine or feminine.
So if I ask:
“Quanto tempo ci vuole per arrivare?” – (How much time does it take to get there?) about time, we use “Quanto” since it’s masculine singular.
But when I ask:
“Quanta panna vuoi sul gelato?” – (How much cream do you want on your ice-cream?) about the cream, we use “Quanta” since it’s feminine singular.
With:
“Quante mele vuoi comprare?” – (How many apples do you want to buy?) we use “Quante”, since it’s feminine plural.
And with:
“Quanti libri hai?” – (How many books do you have?) about books, we use “Quanti” since it’s masculine plural.
To sum it up, if the noun is singular and masculine, we use “quanto.”
If the noun is singular and feminine, we use “quanta.”
If the noun is plural, we use “quanti” for masculine and “quante” for feminine.
Just remember to make the question word match the noun.
We (Italians) will appreciate you taking the time to get the grammar right.
Answering questions that use a question word in Italian?
When answering questions in Italian, the word order remains the same as in English.
When someone asks you a question using an interrogative word, it’s straightforward to reply in Italian.
When someone asks:
“Chi è il tuo cantante preferito?” about your favorite singer, in English we’d say “My favorite singer is [name]”.
In Italian it’s the same “Il mio cantante preferito è [nome del cantante]“.
If they asked:
“Cosa fai nel tempo libero?” about your free time, in English we’d respond “In my free time, I like to read and hang out with friends”.
In Italian it’s the same “Nel tempo libero mi piace leggere e uscire con gli amici“.
For “Quando parti per le vacanze?” in English we’d say “I leave for vacation in July”, in Italian it’s “Parto per le vacanze a luglio“.
In some cases you just answer by using the same verb from the question and providing the relevant information.
For example:
If someone asks “Dov’è la stazione?” (Where is the station?), you’d say “[È] in centro” – using the verb “è” (is) and telling them where it is.
For “Quali lingue parli?” (What languages do you speak?), you’d reply “[Parlo] inglese e spagnolo” – speaking the languages.
If asked “Dove abiti?” in English we live in [city], in Italian it’s “Abito a [città]”.
Or if they ask “Quanto costa questo libro?” (How much does this book cost?), your response would be “[Costa] diciotto euro” – reusing “costa” (costs) followed by the price.
Remember euro is always singular in Italian – we do not say euros or euri!
If you don’t know the answer, it’s fine to say “Non lo so” (I don’t know).
Or you can repeat the full question like “Non so quanto costa questo libro.” (I don’t know how much this book costs).
As you can see, answering works the same way as asking – keeping things simple in Italian.
I’d recommend that you listen to this podcast episode in order to find out how the word is pronounced correctly.
It’s really helpful for practicing pronunciation. And if you want to practice more Italian, don’t forget to have a look at the other articles I’ve published in my learning Italian section.
You’ll find lots of information you can use to ease your way with learning the language.
I also want to let you know that if you enjoy the free content on my site and want extra perks like more lessons and the chance to chat with me weekly in Italian, you should consider becoming a Patreon supporter.
As a patron you’ll get access to exclusive language learning materials as well as the opportunity to practice conversing with me directly
Wrapping Up Your Italian Question Skills
Asking questions in Italian really is an art form – but one that’s super useful for getting to know people better. You’ve gotta have the right intonation and use question words and verb forms properly.
But once you’ve got the hang of it, what a great way to connect and learn about others!
Being able to ask “Chi”, “Che”, “Quando”, “Dove”, and more opens up so many conversation possibilities.
We (Italians) will appreciate you taking an interest in us and our culture too.
Don’t be shy – start putting your question skills to use.
Practice with friends or check out conversation exchange meetups in your area.
You can also join our facebook group if you want to practice with me and others language learners.
I’m also starting a weekly conversation club, find all the details here – it’s less than a caffè a day!
You’ll be chatting confidently before you know it.
Buona fortuna and have fun with it!
