When I moved to Italy, I embraced most of the local eating and drinking customs—pizzas, late dinners, and apertivos—but the one thing I couldn’t quite get used to was il caffè – sacrilege, I know! That’s because, being British-Canadian, I’m a dedicated tea drinker! In Italian, the word for tea is simply tè.
tè
tea
As you can see, tè is written with a grave accent, which serves two purposes. First, it indicates that the stress falls on the vowel, which is logical since tè only has one syllable. Second, it tells you that the vowel is pronounced more openly. Compare how the words te (you) and tè (tea) are pronounced below.
te (you)
tè (tea)
(By the way, if you’re having trouble accessing accents on your phone or computer, check out this helpful article and scroll to the end!)
Tè is a masculine noun, and it’s also invariable, meaning it doesn’t change in the plural. It takes the following definite and indefinite articles:
- il tè = the tea
- i tè = the teas
- un tè = a tea
- dei tè = some teas
Tea is typically described by the container it comes in, whether it’s una tazza di tè (a cup of tea), un tazzone di tè (a mug of tea), or un thermos di tè (a flask of tea).
Ho proprio voglia di una tazza di tè caldo!
I really want a hot cup of tea!
When I make a cup of tea, I usually put la bustina di tè (teabag) directly into la tazza da tè (teacup) rather than going through the fuss of using una teiera (teapot). I always pour il latte (milk) into the cup after I’ve fully steeped – or messo in infusione – the teabag. Sometimes it’s nice to enjoy a cuppa in una sala da tè (teashop), but I usually prefer to have them a casa (at home).
There are many different kinds of tea including:
- tè nero = black tea
- tè alle perle = bubble tea
- tè verde = green tea
- tè freddo = iced tea
- tè al gelsomino = jasmine tea
- tè in foglie / tè sfuso = loose-leaf tea
- tè alla menta = mint tea
Sometimes, what we call tea, or herbal tea, in English is known as a tisana or infuso in Italian. This usually applies to drinks made from the infusion or decoction of herbs, spices, or other plant material. A good example is la tisana allo zenzero (ginger tea).
As in English, tè can also refer to a gathering of people at someone’s house, where tea and other treats are offered to guests. However, this isn’t an Italian tradition. In Italy, tea is usually enjoyed with sugar and lemon, and it’s often the drink of choice at breakfast or when someone is feeling under the weather. When you visit a bar, you may be offered a selection of teas like English Breakfast, mint, and berry flavours, but finding a strong British tea can be a challenge. While Italians don’t drink a lot of hot tea compared to the British, they do love iced tea, especially during the hot summer months.
Heather Broster is a graduate with honours in linguistics from the University of Western Ontario. She is an aspiring polyglot, proficient in English and Italian, as well as Japanese, Welsh, and French to varying degrees of fluency. Originally from Toronto, Heather has resided in various countries, notably Italy for a period of six years. Her primary focus lies in the fields of language acquisition, education, and bilingual instruction.
