Italian: Everyday Phrases
Italian · Getting by
How to say I need to study in Italian
Devo studiare.
DEH-voh stoo-DYAH-reh
Devo is "I must" from dovere; studiare is the infinitive "to study". As in Spanish, the subject pronoun is left out because the ending carries it.
What people actually say: Ho bisogno di studiare. The word-for-word "I have need of studying". It is correct, but it is heavier than the English and Italians reach for devo studiare instead.
The phrases around it
| English | Italian | Note |
|---|---|---|
| I need to study. | Devo studiare. | What an Italian would actually say. |
| I need to study. (literal) | Ho bisogno di studiare. | Correct, but heavier than the English. |
| I need to study more. | Devo studiare di più. | Di più, not solo più, after a verb. |
| I have to study for the exam. | Devo studiare per l'esame. | Per, and esame is masculine. |
| I need to study Italian. | Devo studiare l'italiano. | The article is usual here. |
| I am studying. | Sto studiando. | Stare plus the gerund — never essere. |
| I studied all night. | Ho studiato tutta la notte. | Passato prossimo with avere. |
| I cannot, I have to study. | Non posso, devo studiare. | The whole sentence you were after. |
| I have an exam tomorrow. | Domani ho un esame. | Italian likes the time word first. |
| Good luck with the exam. | In bocca al lupo per l'esame. | The reply is crepi, never grazie. |
Dovere plus the infinitive
Devo, devi, deve, dobbiamo, dovete, devono — and whatever follows stays in its dictionary form. Devo studiare, devi mangiare, dobbiamo partire. Potere (can) and volere (want) work identically, which is why these three verbs are worth learning together and early.
Ripassare for revision
Studiare is learning something. Ripassare is going back over it: devo ripassare per l'esame is what you say the night before. Italian makes the same distinction French does with réviser, and it is the more precise word for what most people mean.
Where the stress falls
DE-vo stu-DIA-re. Italian stress is usually on the second-to-last syllable, and the vowels stay pure — the final -e of studiare is a clear "eh", not the swallowed vowel English puts at the end of a word. Say every letter and you will be understood.
Free Italian sets to study
Italian: 20 Essential Verbs
Italian · Beginner vocabulary