Seasons in Italian – basic notions 

If you want to learn Seasons in Italian, you should start from the beginning.

Firstly, the Italian word for “season” is stagione,  plural  stagioni.    Many language experts believe that “season” and “stagione” have the same etymological origin in the Latin verb serere, “to sow”.  Especially in ancient times, farming and agricultural activities were central in the calendar, or – to say it in Italian – in the  calendario.

Seasons in Italian correspond to American and English ones, and that’s quite obvious!

Autunno	Autumn/ Fall
Inverno	Winter
Primavera	Spring
Estate	Summer

Italian Season Adjectives

There are also four adjectives related to Seasons in Italian:

Autunnale	something related to Fall – autumnal
Invernale	something related to Winter – wintry
Primaverile	something related to Spring – springy
Estivo	something related to Summer – summery

Keep in mind that in Italian articles, pronouns, adjectives, and determiners in general, all change with the gender.  Autunno  and inverno  are masculine.  Primavera  and  estate  are feminine. The term stagione  itself is feminine.

If you are in need, you can find here more information about Italian indefinite articles, Italian definite articles and Italian demonstrative adjectives.

Months in Italian – I Mesi 

Gennaio	January
Febbraio	February
Marzo	March
Aprile	April
Maggio	May
Giugno	June
Luglio	July
Agosto	August
Settembre	September
Ottobre	October
Novembre	November
Dicembre	December

How to chat about seasons in Italian

Now you are ready for some time expressions related to Seasons in Italian:

In che stagione siamo?	Which season are we in? / In which season are we?
Siamo in estate	We are in summer
Quando inizia l’estate?	When does summer start?
L’estate inizia il 20/21 Giugno	Summer starts on the 20/21 of June
Quando finisce l’autunno?	When does fall end?
L’autunno finisce il 21 dicembre	Fall ends on the 21 of December
Siamo in autunno	It’s autumn
L’inverno sta arrivando (Italian gerund)	Winter is coming
La primavera è arrivata	Spring is here / Spring has arrived
Quale è la tua stagione preferita?	What’s your favorite season?
La mia stagione preferita è l’inverno	Winter is my favorite season
Amo la primavera	I love spring
Non mi piace l’autunno	I don’t like autumn
Odio l’estate	I hate summer
Sto aspettando l’estate	I’m waiting for the summer
Quest’anno l’estate è in ritardo	Summer is late this year / It’s a late summer
Quest’anno l’inverno è in anticipo	Winter is early this year / It’s an early winter
La primavera è lontana	Spring is far away
L’autunno è vicino	Autumns is near / Autumn is getting closer

As you can see,      Seasons in Italian are strictly related to weather.  Thus, we recommend reading this article about the Italian climate and Italian climate vocabulary/expressions before going forward!

What do you need to know about Seasons in Italy

Every Seasons in Italian Country has its own temper. For this reason, you can enjoy this diversity to the fullest visiting Italy in distinct times of the year: in fact, one of the best and most appreciated things about Italy is the weather.

Nonetheless, there is still a cliché about Italian seasons and weather: when tourists and visitors think about the Italian climate, they usually imagine neverending sunbathing, melted ice cream, barefoot people in the fountains, etc. But it’s not simply like this! In fact, we have cold winters, mainly in the mountains, cool autumns, sweet rainy springs, and hot fantastic summers.

When it comes to speaking about Season in Italian, be prepared to use terms and expressions that concern weather, holidays, temperatures, and clothes.

And remember: Italian people love chatting and joking about the weather!

Here for you a funny filastrocca (nursery rhyme) about Seasons in Italian, try to understand the meaning!

Seasons in Italy – Everything to know

So the same Seasons in Italian   Country can have different characteristics from place to place! However, on average Italy has a very good climate in comparison to other countries: the well-known nickname “paese del sole” (country of the sun) it’s not chosen by chance. 

Winter in Italy – Inverno 

The Italian winter is cold almost everywhere in the peninsula. In the mountains, you can easily find ice and snow, especially in the Alps and Apennines. The temperature is low in the northern regions and the interior; it decreases when the sky is cloudy or when the air is very clear due to icy winds. Of course, except for some places high on the cliffs, you don’t have to expect the frigid winters of Alaska or Canada. 

The climate near the coast and the seaside is slightly more temperate, but you still need warm clothes and probably a hat, a scarf, and sometimes a pair of gloves. 

Visiting Italy in winter discloses to you exceptional opportunities. For example, Italy has some of the best mountains in the world, and you can practice many winter sports like skiing, ice skating, snowboarding, mountaineering… or staying in a cozy lodge drinking hot chocolate!

Winter festivities in Italy

Christmas and New Year’s Eve

Furthermore, in December, almost every city sets up scenic lights across the roads. Christmas in Italy also brings picturesque street markets and public staging of nativity scenes. Italian nativity scenes are really famous all over the world; you can find them in a lot of places, especially in the southern regions. 

Like everyone else, Italian people love celebrating New Year’s Eve. You can choose between a private event with family and close friends or a great party outside, in public squares or clubs.

Epiphany

The last day of the holidays in Italy is Epiphany, on January 6. Epiphany’s particularly popular among children because of the “socks ritual”. Kids hang one or more colorful socks to the wall or let them in plain view; then they go to sleep. According to the tradition, during the night an old lady called Befana flies in the house riding her broom, and fills the children’s socks rummaging in her sack. The good kids receive candy, chocolate, snacks, coins and small toys; but the reward for the bad kids is black bitter coal! Although the Three Kings’ day official Italian name is Epifania, it’s widely known as Befana from the beloved old lady institution.

Winter words in Italian

Here some useful words to talk about Italian winter: 

la montagna				the mountain
la collina				the hill
la neve	nevoso		nevicare	the snow	snowy		to snow
il ghiaccio	ghiacciato		ghiacciare	the ice	icy		to freeze
la nebbia		nebbioso		the fog		foggy
il freddo				the cold
le nuvole		nuvoloso		the clouds		cloudy
il Natale				the Christmas
il regalo				the present
il Presepe				the nativity scene
l’albero di Natale				the Christmas tree
l’abete				the fir
Babbo Natale				Santa Claus
le decorazioni / gli addobbi				the decorations
le luminarie				the Christmas lights across the streets
la canzone				the song
la Befana (colloquial for Epifania)				the Epiphany / the Three Kings’ Day
i dolci				the sweets
Capodanno				New Year’s Eve
il brindisi				the toast
Buon anno!				Happy New Year!
i fuochi artificiali				the fireworks
la cioccolata calda				the hot chocolate
lo sci		sciare		the skiing		to ski
il pattinaggio sul ghiaccio		pattinare sul ghiaccio		the ice skating		to ice skate
l’alpinismo				the mountaineering
la slitta				the sled
la seggiovia				the chair lift
la sciarpa				the scarf
il cappello				the hat
il cappotto				the coat
i guanti				the gloves
il mercatino				the street market

Spring in Italy –  Primavera

Spring is one of the  great Seasons in Italian. During Springs you can go to visit gardens, go hiking, and enjoy nature in the countryside. In March, the weather could be still chilly, with rainy skies or sporadic snow on the peaks; to the contrary, in April and May, some people in the South already go to the seaside! That is to say, spring is quite a crazy season. We infact say ‘’marzo mese pazzo’’ which means ‘’March crazy month’’.

To say it in the Italian way, one useful springtime advice is “dressing like an onion”: wear several layers of light clothes and bring with you a raincoat, or an umbrella. 

Where to go in Italy in the Spring

Val D’Orcia in Tuscany, Amalfi Coast in Campania, the heart of Umbria, the Lake District around Como, the Dolomites: they are all stunning places to have magnificent strolls in the pleasant climate of Italian spring. You’ll find colorful flowers, plenty of vegetation, breathtaking sceneries. 

And if you love motorcycle’s holidays or mountain biking, late spring is probably the best season to experience the roads, admire vivid landscapes, and go for an adventure. 

Spring festivities in Italy

Pasqua

The most important Spring holiday is Pasqua, Easter. The old-style Easter dessert is the “chocolate egg”: during festivity times you can give those delicious eggs to friends and relatives. As expected, they are particularly loved by kids, mainly for the surprise inside: in fact, every chocolate egg contains a gift! For Italian people, Easter is truly meaningful, not only for spiritual reasons. Usually, during Easter Italian families meet for a long lunch spending quality time together in front of a great banquet.

Pasquetta

But the celebrations don’t end in this way: the day after Easter brings another important party occasion. We’re talking about Pasquetta, literally “Little Easter”; this is an original Italian festivity and for the majority of citizens a day off from work. If Easter is often a family event, Pasquetta is devoted to friends: everyone organizes a barbecue, a picnic or a merenda; merenda is a very informal middle afternoon meal, with typical Italian products like ham, salami, cold cuts, cheese, sausages, focaccia bread, marinated vegetables etc. Remember: the best Pasquetta is open air!

Spring Vocabulary

Now, some useful spring vocabulary: 

il giardino		the garden
la campagna		the countryside
il cielo		the sky
la pioggia		the rain
la passeggiata	passeggiare	the stroll	to stroll
l’escursione	fare un’escursione	the hike	go hiking
il sentiero		the trail
il fiore	fiorire	the flower	to bloom
l’ape		the bee
il miele		the honey
l’uccellino		the bird
verde (adj.)		green
il bocciolo / la gemma		the bud
il profumo		the scent
la vegetazione		the vegetation
l’impermeabile		the raincoat
l’ombrello		the umbrella
la bicicletta		the bike
la motocicletta		the motorcycle
il panorama		the landscape
all’aperto (adv.)		open air / outdoors
bucolico (adj.)		bucolic
la Pasqua		the Easter
la famiglia		the family
l’uovo di cioccolato		the chocolate egg
il banchetto		the banquet
la Pasquetta		“Little Easter”, the Monday after Easter
gli amici / l’amico / l’amica (fmn)		the friends / the friend
la scampagnata		a trip to the countryside
la grigliata		the barbecue
la merenda		the afternoon snack
il prosciutto		the ham
il salame		the salami
gli affettati		the cold cuts
il formaggio		the cheese
le verdure sott’olio		the marinated vegetables

Summer in Italy – Estate

Italian summers are the best! Everybody dreams about Italian summers and everyone has in mind clear images of sunny vacations in the Bel Paese, like delicious ice creams sitting on the iconic Vespa, a giant pizza in a folkloristic restaurant, or a plate of spaghetti  with some glimpse of Rome in the background. Surely, nothing to complain about those postcards, but Italian summer has a lot more to offer!

Above all, Italy has 7914 km of coasts and nearly all of them are open to bathing: you can find golden rough beaches, white refined sands, high rugged cliffs, shores of polished rocks. In addition to that, you can taste the sea in every possible manner: relaxing in a resort, dancing on the sand in an open-air club, exploring a wild bay after a rough hiking route, renting a boat to enjoy deep water diving, spending the day playing volleyball and drinking beer in a packed place.

Where to go for your Summer Holidays – Sea or Mountain?

Puglia and Sardegna are two of the best destinations in the world if you are a true sea lover, believe us! 

A great indicator of the aquatic cleanliness is the Bandiera Blu (Blue Flag): a beach that gains a Blue Flag stand out for lack of pollution and infrastructures’ sustainability. Not surprisingly, Italy has more than 400 Blue Flag beaches!

For mountain enthusiasts, summer is equally special: Alps and Apennines are perfect locations for hikers and fresh air lovers. Nothing more fulfilling than a rich typical meal and a glass of wine after a draining trail among incredible sceneries!

In conclusion, it could sound like an oddity, but Italian people preferably don’t visit their most famous cities (Rome, Florence, Milan, Venice) during summer; if they can choose, they select another period of the year. As a result, those places seem totally conquered by tourists in July and August. 

Summer words in Italian

Let’s see some useful summer words: 

la spiaggia		the beach
il mare		the sea
la sabbia		the sand
la duna		the dune
la costa		the coast
lo scoglio		the rock / the cliff
l’onda		the wave
il tramonto		the sunset
il pesce		the fish
la medusa		the jellyfish
la conchiglia		the shell
lo stabilimento balneare		the beach resort
la barca		the boat
il traghetto		the ferry
il costume da bagno		the swimsuit
l’asciugamano		the towel
la maschera		the diving mask
le ciabatte		the slippers
l’abbronzatura		the tan
la discoteca		the club
gli occhiali da sole		the sunglasses
i cruciverba		the crosswords
i sandali		the sandals
la birra		the beer
il vino		the wine
il tuffo	tuffarsi (reflexive form)	the diving	to dive
noleggiare		to rent
nuotare		to swim
fare immersioni		to practice scuba diving
il beach volley		the beach volley
il calcio		the football
il bagnino		the lifeguard
il salvagente		the life vest
la corrente		the stream
il pedalò		the paddle boat

Fall in Italy – Autunno

Italian fall is gentle at the beginning and cold as winter in the end. Moreover, rainy and cloudy days are quite frequent, especially in the north, but not enough to ruin a beautiful holiday. In other words, Autumn is perfect to visit Italian cities, museums, and historical sites: the places aren’t stuffed of tourists like during summer and the weather is not so hot. Fall colors create a perfect match with ancient architectures and ruins, giving them a nostalgic and fascinating allure.

What to do in Italy in the Fall

In autumn you can use sunny days to walk around the streets, take photos and explore; when the rain is approaching, you have plenty of possibilities everywhere: museums, exhibitions, restaurants, café.

You can devote a day to culture, try some street food for lunch, and have a characteristic aperitivo before dinner. 

Aperitivo  is an Italian tradition: you can sit to a table with your friends, enjoy the view, and drink a tasty cocktail with plenty of appetizers and delicious snacks.

Florence, Rome, Milan, Venice, Naples, Palermo are widely known to be the maximum, but they’re not the only option: Italian medium-size cities and villages are equally wonderful.

Fall festivities in Italy 

Ognissanti

The principal Autumn festivity is Ognissanti (1 of November): it’s effectively celebrated only in southern Italy, but in the rest of the Peninsula is only an appreciated day off at work. On the contrary, Halloween isn’t a traditional Italian festivity, although in recent years it has become popular among young people.

Food Festivals

In addition to that, the early fall calendar is full of little local events, often related to food and wine. On those occasions, the towns transform themselves in an open-air party, with long tables set across the streets, outside kitchens, home restaurants, musicians, juggling performances, etc. Those events usually revolve around typical gastronomic products: the mushroom festival, the chestnut festival, the boar meat festival, the tortello festival, etc.

Fall Vocabulary in Italian

And now, some fall vocabulary: 

la foglia	il fogliame	the leaf	the foliage
il fungo		the mushroom
la castagna		the chestnut
la carne		the meat
il cinghiale		the boar
il tortello		untranslatable: a particular type of stuffed pasta, slightly similar to dumplings
le tagliatelle		untranslatable: a particular type pasta
marrone (adj.)		brown
giallo (adj.)		yellow
rosso (adj.)		red
l’uva		the grapes
la vendemmia		the grape harvest
la ghianda		the acorn
il pranzo		the lunch
l’amaro (a digestive alcoholic drink)		the bitter
Ognissanti		All Saints’ Day
la cena		the dinner
l’aperitivo		the aperitif
l’evento		the event
la fiera		the fair
il museo		the museum
il quadro		the painting
la mostra		the exhibition
la piazza		the square
il bar		the café
il caffè		the coffee
il ristorante		the restaurant
il cibo da strada		the street food
la sagra		the village festival
il giocoliere		the juggler
il musicista		the musician
il tavolo		the table
gli stuzzichini		the snacks
la cultura		the culture
l’architettura		the architecture