The Top 100 Most Common Words in Italian

As in all languages, some words appear more frequently than others in Italian. This happens because in everyday life we tend to repeat the same words over and over again, simplifying our speech and making it more accessible to the listener.

This also facilitates the study of a new language, as even a small vocabulary can be sufficient to express and understand basic concepts and therefore to engage immediately in conversation.

Today we will talk about 100 words widely used in Italian divided between nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs of various kinds. The noun category is obviously the most numerous, so this is the one we will start with.

100 super common words in italian language

Note: We’ve opted not to provide audio or example sentences for each word within this article, as doing so would make the article too long. Instead we have added links to the relevant articles that describe each word in detail. As of now, not all words link to a dedicated article, but this will change as we gradually expand our word database.

Most Common Italian Nouns

Amore – love

Plural: amori
Gender: masculine

Animale – animal

Plural: animali
Gender: masculine

Auto (automobile) – car

Plural: automobili
Gender: feminine

Affare – affair, matter, bargain

Plural: affari
Gender: masculine

Bambino / Bambina – boy / girl

Plural: bambini / bambine
Gender: masculine / feminine

Cosa / Coso – thing / thingy

Plural: cose / cosi
Gender: feminine / masculine

Casa – house or home

Plural: case
Gender: feminine

Città – city

Plural: città
Gender: feminine

Clima – climate

Plural: climi
Gender: masculine

Famiglia – family

Plural: famiglie
Gender: feminine

*The masculine famiglio is an antiquated term that means servant but it isn’t commonly used.

Festa – party

Plural: feste
Gender: feminine

Figlio / Figlia – son / daughter

Plural: figli / figlie
Gender: masculine / feminine

Forza – strength

Plural: forze
Gender: feminine

Gente – people

Plural: genti
Gender: feminine

*Gente is a collective noun. It only appears in its plural form genti in poetry, or when referring to populations.

Giorno – day

Plural: giorni
Gender: masculine

Luce – light

Plural: luci
Gender: feminine

Mamma – mom

Plural: mamme
Gender: feminine

Mano – hand

Plural: mani
Gender: masculine in the singular, feminine in the plural

Mare – sea

Plural: mari
Gender: masculine

Modo – way, manner

Plural: modi
Gender: masculine

Moda – fashion

Plural: mode
Gender: feminine

Mondo – world

Plural: mondi
Gender: masculine

Montagna – mountain

Plural: montagne
Gender: feminine

Nome – name

Plural: nomi
Gender: masculine

Ora – hour / time

Plural: ore
Gender: feminine

Paese – country / town

Plural: paesi
Gender: masculine

Pizza – pizza

Plural: pizze
Gender: feminine

Posto – place

Plural: posti
Gender: masculine

Ricetta – recipe

Plural: ricette
Gender: feminine

Signore / signora – (gentle)man / lady

Plural: signori / signore
Gender: masculine / feminine

Sole – sun

Plural: soli
Gender: masculine

Tempo – time / weather

Plural: tempi
Gender: masculine

Vestito – clothes / suit / dress

Plural: vestiti
Gender: masculine

Vino – wine

Plural: vini
Gender: masculine

Vita – life

Plural: vite
Gender: feminine

Uomo – man / human being

Plural: uomini
Gender: masculine


Most Common Italian Adjectives

Bello / Bella – beautiful

Plural: belli / belle

Caldo / Calda – hot

Plural: caldi / calde

Caro / Cara – expensive / dear

Plural: cari / care

Comodo / Comoda – comfortable

Plural: comodi / comode

Corto / Corta – short

Plural: corti / corte

Difficile – difficult

Plural: difficili

Economico / Economica – cheap / inexpensive

Plural: economici / economiche

Facile – easy

Plural: facili

Fresco / Fresca – fresh

Plural: freschi / fresche

Grande – big / great

Plural: grandi

Lontano / Lontana – far

Plural: lontani / lontane

Lungo / Lunga – long

Plural: lunghi / lunghe

Normale – normal

Plural: normali

Nuovo / Nuova – new

Plural: nuovi / nuove

Perfetto / Perfetta – perfect

Plural: perfetti / perfette

Piccolo / Piccola – small / little

Plural: piccoli / piccole

Questo / Questa – this

Plural: questi / queste

Quello / Quella – that

Plural: quelli / quelle

Semplice – simple

Plural: semplici

Stupido / Stupida – stupid

Plural: stupidi / stupide

Tanto / Tanta – a lot / many

Plural: tanti / tante

Utile – useful

Plural: utili

Vecchio / Vecchia – old

Plural: vecchi / vecchie

Vicino / Vicina – close / near

Plural: vicini / vicine

Vuoto / Vuota – empty

Plural: vuoti / vuote


Most Common Italian Verbs

Abitare – to live

Andare – to go

Avere – to have

Bere – to drink

Capire – to understand

Comprare – to buy

Dare – to give

Dire – to say / to tell

Dovere – must / to have to

Essere – to be

Fare – to do / to make

Mangiare – to eat

Parlare – to talk / to speak

Potere – can / to be able to

Prendere – to get / to take

Sentire – to feel

Vedere – to see

Venire – to come

Volere – to want

Vestire – to dress


Most Common Italian Adverbs

Adesso – now

Allora – so / then

Anche – also / too

Bene – good / well

Davanti – in front of

Dietro – behind

Dopo – after / later

Dove – where

Dunque – so / therefore

Frequente – frequent

Eccetera – eccetera

Male – badly / poorly

Mentre – while

Ora – now

Prima – before

Sopra – on top of / above / over

Soprattutto – especially

Sotto – under / underneath

Spesso – often

the top 100 most common words in italian

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