How to say please in Italian

Heading to beautiful Italy soon?

Let me share a little language tip that can make your trip even more enjoyable – how to say “please” in Italian.

You don’t need to be fluent in Italian to have an amazing time exploring all the incredible sights, foods, and culture.

But trust me, if you make just a small effort to use a courtesy word or two, the locals will really appreciate it.

A little Italian goes a long way when communicating.

We absolutely love it when people try their hand at our wonderful language.

It shows respect and that you care about embracing local customs.

Those little attempts create an instant connection with the people you meet.

How do you say please in Italian

So, how do you say “please” in Italian?

It’s “per favore.”

You can use it just like you would in English, by tacking it onto the end of a request:

“Mi fa un caffè, per favore?” – “Could you please make me a coffee?”

“Il conto, per favore.” – “The check, please.”

“Potresti dirmi che ore sono, per favore?” – “Could you please tell me what time it is?”

You can also kick things off with “per favore” at the start:

“Per favore, possiamo avere un bicchiere d’acqua?” – “Please, can we have a glass of water?”

Other ways to say please in Italian

While “per favore” is definitely the most common and recognizable way to say “please” in Italian, we actually have several other polite phrases that we use regularly.

Per Piacere

For example, an easy one is “per piacere.”

Now, the literal translation of “per piacere” is “for pleasure,” but in the context of making a request, it simply means “please.”

So you could say something like

“Mi fa un caffè per piacere?”

Which means “Could I have a coffee, please?”

Using “per piacere” has kind of a softer, more casual polite tone to it compared to “per favore.”

It’s what you’d say to a friendly waiter or when asking a small favour from someone you know.

It is also used to politely ask for something or to invite someone to do something. For example:

“Potresti passarmi il sale, per piacere?” – “Could you pass me the salt, please?”

“Puoi ripetere, per piacere?” – Can you repeat, please?

Per cortesia

“Per cortesia” is another expression that means please in Italian.

It is more formal and polite than “per favore” and “per piacere.”

It means “for courtesy” or “as a courtesy.”

It is used when talking to strangers or on formal occasions.

For example:

“Per cortesia, potrebbe portarmi il conto?” – “Could you bring the bill, please?”

“Potrebbe dirmi su quale binario parte il treno per Roma, per cortesia?” – Could you please tell me which platform the train to Rome leaves on?

“Per cortesia, potreste spegnere i cellulari durante la riunione?” (Could you please turn off your phones during the meeting?)

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Please in Italian: Accepting an offer or a suggestion

One little quirk of Italian that often trips up learners is how we accept offers differently than in English. 

In English, if someone offers you something like “Would you like a coffee?”, you’d naturally respond “Yes, please.”

That “please” is how you politely accept.

But that doesn’t quite work the same way in Italian!

When an offer is extended to you, rather than saying “please”, you actually say “thank you” to accept graciously.

Let me give you an example conversation to illustrate:

Your Italian friend asks, “Ti va un caffè?” Meaning “Would you like a coffee?”

To accept, you’d respond, “Sì, grazie!” – “Yes, thank you!“

It’s just one of those charming Italian quirks.

We don’t use “per favore” when someone offers us something.

Saying “grazie” is the polite way to receive it.

Some other examples:

“Gradisce del tè?” “Sì, grazie.” – “Would you like some tea?” “Yes, please.”

Or if a waiter asks, “Le porto il dessert?” – “Shall I bring you the dessert?”

You’d say, “Sì, grazie!“

See, it’s a small but meaningful difference from English.

Offering is seen as someone doing you a favour, so the grazie expresses thanks rather than asking with a please.

It may feel a bit counterintuitive at first.

But once you get used to swapping out “please” for “grazie” when accepting offers, it’ll become second nature.

Please in Italian using the verb “Pregare”

In addition to the classic “per favore,” we have some other delightfully expressive ways to say “please” using the verb pregare – which means “to ask, pray or beg.”

Ti prego

With friends, family and kids, we might use the informal “ti prego” which literally translates to “I beg you.”

But in context, it can mean a pleading “please.”

Like if I was asking my daughter to help me tiding up, I’d say

“Mi aiuti a mettere a posto la stanza, dai ti prego!” – Please, help me tidy up the room.

Or asking someone to speak softly

“Ti prego, non urlare. I bambini stanno dormendo.” – Please, don’t shout. The children are sleeping.

Or to suggest something

“Ti prego, sii più gentile con tua sorella.” – Please, be kinder to your sister.

Using “ti prego” adds that sense of me kindly pleading or imploring them.

It’s warm but also insistent in getting the point across!

La prego & Vi prego

Now, when speaking to strangers, elders or someone of higher status like your boss, you’d want to use the more formal version – “La prego.”

Same meaning as “please” or “I beg you,” but just elevating the level of respect.

“La prego, potrebbe aiutarmi con questa valigia?” – “Could you help me with this suitcase, please?” 

And if you’re making a request to multiple people, you’d say “vi prego” – utilizing that plural “you” form.

“Vi prego, non litigate tra di voi.” – “Don’t argue among yourselves, please.”

These pregare phrases give you different levels of politeness to play with.

“Ti prego” with close friends and loved ones, “La prego” for formal situations, “vi prego” for groups.

Si prega di…

Then there’s a very formal phrase you might see on signs or hear announcements – “Si prega di…” or “Siete pregati di…” which is the plural form.

This literally translates to “We beg you to…”

It’s used to give polite commands, similar to the English “You are kindly requested to…”

For example,

“Si prega di spegnere i cellulari durante lo spettacolo.”

Or

“Siete pregati di spegnere i cellulari durante lo spettacolo.” – “Please turn off your cell phones during the show.”

Or at the museum:

“Si prega di non toccare le opere d’arte.” – Please do not touch the artwork.”

Or at the library:

“Si prega di rispettare il silenzio in biblioteca.” – Please observe silence in the library.”

Of course, even though it’s phrased as a polite request, when you see or hear “si prega di”, you’re actually expected to follow that instruction!

It’s not really a choice.

Making an invitation – Prego

We also use “prego” when we’re the ones extending an invitation or giving someone permission to do something.

For example, if you’re welcoming someone into your home, you’d say 

“Prego, entri!” Which means “Please, come in!”

Or when someone invites you to have a seat:

 “Prego, si sieda!” Translating to “Please, have a seat!”

Anytime you’d say “please” in English when allowing or inviting someone to go ahead and do something, “prego” is the perfect Italian equivalent.

Now, I know what you might be thinking – “But wait, doesn’t prego also mean ‘you’re welcome’ when someone says ‘grazie’?”

You’re absolutely right!

That’s another common use of this versatile word.

Same word, different contexts and translations into English.

I know it can seem confusing at first, but that’s just how it works in Italian.

Context is everything!

If you’re serious about learning Italian, I can definitely help you out with that. The key is going to be practicing regularly – whether it’s flashcards, conversations with me, or a combination of both.

You can check out my Patreon page, I’ve got all sorts of free content over there to get you started. But I also offer different tier options if you want to really boost your progress towards fluency.

At the highest tier, you get an hour of conversation practice with me and a few other students each week. It’s basically like having your own little Italian conversation club! We keep it small though, no more than 6 people per room, so everyone gets a chance to participate.

Cortesemente or gentilmente

When it comes to extra formal situations or written communication in Italian, we have a couple of elegant phrases that are the equivalents of an extremely polite “please.”

One is “cortesemente” which literally translates to “courteously” or “kindly.”

So in the right context, it can definitely mean a very refined “please.”

You might see it used in official letters, announcements, that kind of thing.

Like “Cortesemente, si prega di prendere posto.” – which would essentially mean “Please, you are kindly requested to take a seat.”

Potrebbe cortesemente chiarire questo punto? – could you please clarify this point?

Layering on that “si prega” with the “cortesemente” really kicks the politeness up a notch!

Then there’s “gentilmente” which is quite similar – it also means something like “kindly” or “graciously.”

Again, you’d encounter this more in super formal written communications or extremely courteous speech.

“Gentilmente, la preghiamo di attendere in sala d’attesa” could translate to “Please, we kindly ask you to wait in the waiting room.”

“Si prega gentilmente di completare il questionario prima di uscire.” – Please kindly complete the questionnaire before leaving.

Using “la preghiamo” with the “gentilmente” gives it that utmost respectful tone.

Now, realistically, you probably won’t need to whip out cortesemente or gentilmente much when grabbing gelato or chatting with locals.

Those are reserved for very formal contexts where regular old “per favore” might not quite cut it!

Do Italian say please?

Even though we’ve covered all these different ways to say “please” in Italian, you might actually notice that the word “per favore” doesn’t get used as often as you’d expect when Italians are conversing.

If you overhear casual chats at a local bar or cafe, especially in a lively city like Rome, you may be surprised by how infrequently that explicit “please” comes up. This can cause some confusion for students learning Italian!

Now, let me assure you – it’s not that we are rude or impolite.

Quite the opposite!

We place a huge importance on respect and courtesy.

It’s just that our language has evolved its own nuanced ways of expressing politeness without always using the literal word for “please.”

Let’s take ordering a coffee for example.

Sure, I could say “Un caffè, per favore.”

But more likely, I’ll phrase it something like “Mi farebbe un caffè? Grazie.” Or simply “Un caffè, grazie!”

Which means “Would you make me a coffee? Thanks.”

See, the polite request is implied by the way I’m using the conditional verb tense “farebbe” and combining it with “grazie” at the end.

The warmth and courtesy is in the tone and phrasing.

Same goes for asking for the bill.

Instead of “Il conto, per favore,” I might say “Mi porterebbe il conto?” – “Would you bring me the bill?”

These kinds of polite speech patterns are second nature to fluent Italians.

But they require a good grasp of verbs, tenses and situations to pull off correctly without sounding rude or demanding.

So for visitors, the safest bet is still adding that good old “per favore” to requests. Don’t assume that just because you don’t hear it as often means we’re barking orders at each other!

Respect and polite manners are deeply ingrained in our culture.

We’re just lucky to have such a rich language with so many nuanced ways to express something as simple as “please.” 

It’s all part of that famous Italian charm!

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Ciao and happy travel!