We’ll show you the formal and informal ways to ask people how they are to ensure you make a good first impression. And just in case you need to apologize… you’ll learn how to say sorry in Italian as well!

Feeling confident with these basic Italian words and phrases will make such a positive difference to your experiences with Italian-speaking people. Remember, a stranger is just a friend you haven’t met yet!

Resources for further reading:
Want to know how long it takes to learn Italian?
New to Italian?

How to ask How are you? in Italian

For friends or family:

Practice Your Pronunciation With Rocket Record

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Come stai?

How are you?

Come va?

How is it going?

For strangers or more senior persons:

Come sta?

How are you?

Answers to How are you? in Italian

And here are some answers you might hear and can use yourself...

Bene, grazie.

Well, thanks.

Molto bene.

Very well.

Al solito.

As always.

Un po' stanco.

A little tired.

Sono malato.

I'm sick.

Così così.

So-so.

Non male.

Not bad.

Male.

Bad.

Tutto bene.

All good.

Abbastanza bene.

Quite good.

A common follow-up question is, "And you?", "E Lei?" or more informal " E tu?"

E tu?

And you? (Casual)

E Lei?

And you? (Formal)

If someone tells you that he or she is not feeling well you could say the following…

Mi dispiace.

I'm sorry.

If someone is feeling great you might want to say the following…

Che piacere.

What a pleasure.

The above words are extremely important. From experience, I know that the most important phrase in any language is how to say you're sorry!

Others disagree. They say that there are THREE important phrases that you absolutely must know in any language. They are:

Mi dispiace.

I'm sorry.

Ti voglio bene or Ti amo.

I love you.

Ho bisogno di aiuto.

I need help.

Hmm, I can't think of a situation in which I'd need to use all three, but I'll leave it to your imagination!

For more on the use of Italian questions check out these lessons...

Asking questions in Italian. Get the correct sentence structure and more!
Learn the correct use of When? and Where? in Italian

A presto!

Maria DiLorenzi and the Rocket Italian Team

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How are you in Italian

How to ask How are you? in Italian

Practice Your Pronunciation With Rocket Record

Answers to How are you? in Italian

Make It Stick With The Rocket Activities