Family in Italian

In this lesson you’ll learn how to talk about your family in Italian. Practice your Italian pronunciation as you listen to the audio, and while you’re at it, take a closer look at the different ways to say 'my' in Italian.

Talking about your family in Italian will also help you understand how the Italian masculine and feminine principles work.

By the end of this lesson you’ll also know how to talk about more than one person.

Resources for further reading:

Talking about Family in Italian

Let’s look at how you would pronounce your immediate family members in Italian:

Practice Your Pronunciation With Rocket Record

Rocket Record lets you perfect your Italian pronunciation. Just listen to the native speaker audio and then use the microphone icon to record yourself. Once you’re done, you’ll get a score out of 100 on your pronunciation and can listen to your own audio playback. (Use a headset mic for best results.) Problems? Click here!

I miei genitori

My parents

I miei parenti

My relatives

Mia sorella abita in Francia

My sister lives in France

Mio fratello è alto

My brother is tall

Mia moglie

My wife

Mio marito

My husband

Il mio ragazzo / Il mio fidanzato

My boyfriend

La mia ragazza / La mia fidanzata

My girlfriend

I miei cugini

My cousins (male)

Le mie cugine

My cousins (female)

Using My in Italian

Notice that in English we always use “my”, whatever person or group of people we are talking about. In Italian, “my” takes on three different forms depending on the person or thing in question!

“Mia” refers to a woman or a feminine item, “Mio” is used for a man or masculine item, and “Miei" or "Mie” is used when we talk about more than one person or item!

Take a good look at the above list and begin to make the connections about gender rules and you will be half-way to understanding how Italian people think and speak!

Mia

My (referring to a female or feminine item)

Mio

My (referring to a male or masculine item)

Miei / Mie

My (referring to more than one person or item)

I hope you enjoyed today's lesson! Here are a few recommended Italian lessons to try next!

A presto!

Maria DiLorenzi and the Rocket Italian Team

Make It Stick With Rocket Reinforcement

Reinforce your learning from this lesson with the Rocket Reinforcement activities!