Hi everybody, my name's Mike and this is the Let's Speak Italian podcast. So you've been listening to the first few lessons, and hopefully you're learning how to speak Italian.

Well with the first 100 lessons completed, I wanted to release the first few lessons for free as a little teaser so that you can see just how easy it is to learn to speak Italian. Now, by going to the website, you can buy the first 100 lessons for only $15.00. That includes 100 lessons, plus 20 review lessons as well, for a total of 120 lessons in all. That's 24 weeks of lessons, for only $15.00.  It's over 13 hours of Italian lessons, for the price of what you might pay for one music CD.

I've found that the key to learning to speak Italian is to learn a little bit every day, and to practice it with your friends. So get lessons 1-100, and listen to one lesson, every day for 24 weeks. By the end, you'll be amazed at how easy it was, and just how much you can learn by practicing a few minutes every day.

To buy the first 100 lessons, just go to the web site at www.letsspeakitalian.net and click on one of the banner ads. If you want to Download Lessons 1-100, click on the 'Download' banner ad. Once I get your payment, I'll e-mail you a link to the files. Be patient though, it might take a few hours before I check my email.  If you would rather Get Lessons 1-100 on CD-Rom, click on the 'CD' banner ad and once I receive your payment, I'll mail the CD-Rom to you.  For only $15.00 you'll be speaking Italian before you know it.

Grazie tanto, arrivederci.

The seven ways to say 'the' are il, lo, l', la, i, gli, and le. Now here are the rules for deciding which of these forms to use.

il = will precede masculine singular nouns that begin with a consonant, except words beginning with ps, pn, gn, z and s followed by a consonant.

il libro = the book

il ragazzo = the boy

lo = will precede masculine singular nouns that begin with ps, pn, gn, z and s followed by a consonant.

lo specchio = the mirror

lo studente = the student

l' = will precede all masculine and feminine singular nouns beginning with a vowel.

l'amico = the friend

l'acqua = the water

la = will precede all feminine singular nouns beginning with a consonant.

la donna = the woman

la ragazza = the girl

i = is the plural form of il.

i libri = the books

i ragazzi = the boys

gli = is the plural form of lo and l' for masculine plural nouns.

gli specchi = the mirrors

gli amici = the friends

le = is the plural form of both la and l' for feminine plural nouns.

le donne = the women

le acque = the waters

parlare = to speak

cantare = to sing

mangiare = to eat

studiare = to study

giocare = to play

pensare = to think

comprare = to buy

imparare = to learn

amare = to love

Then to conjugate the infinitive, you will drop the 'are' and add the following endings:

io = add 'o'

tu = add 'i'

Lei/lui/lei = add 'a'

noi = add 'iamo'

voi = add 'ate'

loro = add 'ano'

So, for example, here is how to conjugate the verb 'cantare.'

cantare = to sing

io canto = I sing

tu canti = you sing

Lei/lui/lei canta = you/he/she sings

noi cantiamo = we sing

voi cantate = you sing

loro cantano = they sing

Lui mangia la pizza. = He eats the pizza.

Noi mangiamo la pasta. = We eat the pasta.

Loro mangiano gli spaghetti. = They eat the spaghetti.

Io studio il libro. = I study the book.

Lei studia l'italiano. = She studies Italian.

Antonio ama Claudia. = Antonio loves Claudia.

Gli amici giocano il calcio. = The friends play soccer.

To ask a question in Italian, you just say the sentence with a questioning inflection at the end of the sentence.

Tu parli l'italiano. = You speak Italian

Tu parli l'italiano? = Do you speak Italian?

Another short cut you can do in Italian, is you can drop the pronoun entirely because the verb changes for every pronoun. For example, you can say

Io compro il pane. = I buy the bread

Or you can drop the 'io' and just say

Compro il pane. = I buy the bread. Because the word 'compro' is only used with 'io,' you can drop the 'io' and it is apparent that you mean 'I buy.'

lettera = letter

discorso = speech

stanza = room

lezione = lesson

giornale = newspaper

lingua = language, tongue

ogni = every

sempre = always

oggi = today

ieri = yesterday

domani = tomorrow

dopodomani = day after tomorrow

per = for

se = if

scrivere = to write

leggere = to read

credere = to believe

vedere = to see

Then to conjugate these infinitives, you will drop the 'ere' and add the following endings:

io = add 'o'

tu = add 'i'

Lei/lui/lei = add 'e'

noi = add 'iamo'

voi = add 'ete'

loro = add 'ono'

So to conjugate the verb 'scrivere':

io scrivo

tu scrivi

Lei/lui/lei scrive

noi scriviamo

voi scrivete

loro scrivono

Noi leggiamo il discorso. = We read the speech.

Io leggo il giornale. = I read the newspaper.

Susana vede la casa. = Susana saw the house.

Loro credono la lezione = They believed the lesson.

camera = bedroom

mensa = cafeteria

libreria = bookstore

bagno = bathroom

a = to, at

si' = yes

no = no

dove = where

dov'e' = where is

quando = when

adesso = now

cibo = food

ma = but

grazie = thank you

prego = you're welcome

forse = maybe, perhaps

pronto = ready, but it's also what you say when you answer the telephone instead of saying 'hello.'

Sono stanco = I am tired (male)

Sono stanca = I am tired (female)

Ho fame = I am hungry

Non lo so = I don't know

Sei pronto? = Are you ready? (male)

Sei pronta? = Are you ready? (female)

Sono pronto = I am ready (male)

Sono pronta = I am ready (female)

colazione = breakfast

pranzo = lunch

cena = dinner, supper

mattina = morning

pomeriggio = afternoon

sera = evening

notte = night

giorno = day

settimana = week

mese = month

anno = year

minuto = minute

ora = hour

fa = ago

orologio = clock, watch

mezzogiorno = noon

mezzanotte = midnight

Che ore sono? = What time is it?

E' l'una = It's one o'clock

Sono le due = It's two o'clock

E' mezzogiorno = It's noon

E' mezzonotte = It's midnight

When the time is after the hour, add the word 'e' and the appropriate number of minutes. To indicate the half hour, use the phrase 'e mezza.' To indicate the quarter of the hour, use the phrase 'e un quarto.'

e = and

e mezza = and half

e un quarto = and a quarter

E' l'una e venticinque = It's 1:25

Sono le tre e dieci = It's 3:10

E' l'una e mezza = It's 1:30

Sono le quattro e mezza = It's 4:30

E' l'una e un quarto = It's 1:15

Sono le dieci e un quarto = It's 10:15

When the time is before the hour, use the word 'meno' and the appropriate number of minutes.

meno = minus

E' l'una meno cinque = It's five 'til one or 12:55

Sono le otto meno venti = It's twenty 'til eight or 7:40

E' l'una meno un quarto = It's fifteen 'til one or 12:45

Sono le sette meno un quarto = It's fifteen 'til seven or 6:45

ragazzo = boy

ragazza = girl

bambino = baby

uomo = man

donna = woman

cane = dog

gatto = cat

acqua = water

specchio = mirror

pasta = pasta

pane = bread

verdure = vegetables

gnocchi = Italian dumplings

zucchero = sugar

insalata = salad

spaghetti = spaghetti

Che fila lunga! = What a long line!

Ho fame. = I'm hungry. (I have hunger)

Buon appetito! = Enjoy your meal! (Good appetite)

Grazie, altrettanto. = Thanks, same to you.

Basta, grazie. = That's enough, thank you.

Sono sazio(a) = I'm full.

Ho ancora fame. = I'm still hungry. (I have more hunger)

Mi passa il sale, per favore? = Will you pass me the salt please? (formal)

Mi passi il pepe, per favore? = Will you pass me the pepper please? (informal)

Com'e' il cibo? = How is the food?

Il cibo e' delizioso. = The food is delicious.

Mi piace la zuppa. = I like the soup. (The soup pleases me)

Non mi piace il latte. = I do not like the milk. (The milk does not please me)

Mi piacciono i fagioli. = I like the beans. (The beans please me)

Non mi piacciono i piselli. = I do not like the peas. (The peas do not please me)

tavola = table

bicchiere = drinking glass

piatto = plate

coltello = knife

forchetta = fork

cucchiaio = spoon

tovagliolo = napkin

vassoio = tray

carne = meat

latte = milk

frutta = fruit

sale = salt

pepe = pepper

burro = butter

aranciata = orange soda pop

ghiaccio = ice

piselli = peas

carote = carrots

fagioli = beans

zuppa = soup

Avere = to have

io ho = I have

tu hai = you have (informal)

Lei ha = you have (formal)

lui/lei ha = he/she has

noi abbiamo = we have

voi avete = you have (plural)

loro hanno = they have

Avere bisogno di = To have need of, or to need.

Then you just conjugate the verb 'avere' depending on the subject of the sentence.

Noi abbiamo bisogno di aiuto. = We need help.

Io ho bisogno di un dizionario. = I need a dictionary.

Gli italiani hanno bisogno di imparare inglese. = The Italians need to learn English.

Avete bisogno di una penna? = Do you need a pen?

Si, abbiamo bisogno di una penna. = Yes, we need a pen.

Tu hai bisogno di un dottore? = Do you need a doctor?

No, non ho bisogno di un dottore. = No, I do not need a doctor.

You make a sentence negative by placing 'non' directly before the verb, and when responding negatively to a question, you must say 'no' as well as placing 'non' before the verb.

Cantiamo bene in italiano. = We sing well in Italian.

Non cantiamo bene in italiano = We do not sing well in Italian.

Signor Gianni scrive una lettera. = Mr. Gianni writes a letter.

Signor Gianni non scrive una lettera. = Mr. Gianni does not write a letter.

Tommaso e' italiano? = Is Thomas Italian?

No, Tommaso non e' italiano. = No, Thomas is not Italian.

Parlate inglese alla mensa? = Do you speak English at the cafeteria?

No, non parliamo inglese alla mensa. = No, we do not speak English at the cafeteria.

For c'e' and ci sono put the 'non' in front of the c'e' or the ci.

Ci sono molte ragazze in questa classe? = Are there many girls in this class?

No, non ci sono molte ragazze in questa classe. = No, there are not many girls in this class.

fratello = brother

sorella = sister

padre = father

madre = mother

cappotto = coat

giacca = jacket

cintura = belt

calze = nylons, panty hose

gonna = skirt

camicetta = blouse

problema = problem

dizionario = dictionary

macchina = car

aiuto = help

cavallo = horse

comprare = to buy, compro, compri, compra, compriamo, comprate, comprano

imparare = to learn, imparo, impari, impara, impariamo, imparate, imparano

bere (bevere) = to drink, bevo, bevi, beve, beviamo, bevete, bevono

vivere = to live, vivo, vivi, vive, viviamo, vivete, vivono