How to Learn Italian Fast: 4 Useful Tips And Tricks

Do you want to know how to learn Italian fast?

To answer this question, first, you have to define the term ‘fast.’

If ‘fast’ for you means in a day or two, then you should turn to the magical world of Harry Potter.

Perhaps they can help you.

Even if you succeed in learning that quickly, those can only be some basic Italian phrases.

If you, however, don’t live in an imaginary world and you know that any language can’t be learned overnight, and that is quite a process, then we can help you.

In this post, you will have the privilege to find out how you can learn to speak Italian quickly, but effectively, as well.

Now, let’s jump in and see how you can learn Italian fast and effectively.

How Long Does it Take to Learn Italian?

As a part of the Romance language family, Italian can be sorted into a group of the easiest languages to learn.

Moreover, according to the Foreign Service Insitute, Italian belongs to category I of all the languages.

It, precisely, means that for learning Italian an average person takes up to 600 hours or 23 to 24 weeks to learn Italian at a decent conversational level.

If we look at other languages like Chinese, for example, for which you’ll need at least 2.200 hours or 88 weeks, learning Italian seems like a piece of cake!

This is a good start, don’t you think?

So, let’s use the advantage of the simplicity of the language, and give it a try to learn even faster.

How to Learn Italian Quickly With the Right Tools?

Probably you are familiar with this, but it couldn’t hurt to refresh your memory.

There is no one and the only way to help you learn Italian fast and effectively and, above all, to become fluent.

Language learning doesn’t happen overnight. It takes a lot of time, commitment, and goodwill to get to the point when you will be satisfied with your Italian.

Here are some tips and tricks that can help you learn Italian fast. But not magically fast, but reality-fast.

Find a Tutor

If you really want to start speaking Italian, the best thing you can do about your education is to find a suitable tutor. That shouldn’t be so hard because, on the Justlearn tutoring platform, all the teachers are native speakers and professional tutors with years of experience. That concerns Italian tutors as well.

1-on-1 classes with an Italian tutor are everything but boring. Their approach is a little bit different than the one you are used to. A friendly and pleasant atmosphere where you can chit-chat with a tutor is one of the most efficient ways to start learning the language without being afraid of whether you’ll make mistakes or you’ll pronounce sentences perfectly.

Don’t take this the wrong way. Learning Italian with tutors isn’t the only possible way. There are many other methods and ways to learn any language, such as learning Italian on your own, with podcasts, on YouTube, and many others.

However, it isn’t going to be as fast and efficient as with real people, ideally native speakers.

Another great thing about Italian tutors is that they can always show you if you’re doing something wrong or don’t quite understand how to use some of the challenging grammar rules and can help you overcome any obstacle.

Immerse Yourself In Italian

An immersive approach to learning a language can be defined as a commitment to the language all the time. You are dedicating the whole time to the language, both physically and mentally.

One apparent way of immersive approach is living in a country where the language is spoken. 

Spending some time in Italy would give you the possibility to practice Italian every day, from early in the morning until you go to bed. 

Perhaps this way of learning Italian isn’t so fast as with tutors, but it is efficient. Luckily, you don’t have only to spend time living in Italy, but you can immerse yourself the other ways. Finding a language partner who is, ideally, a native Italian speaker can help you. Speaking via Skype, Zoom, Hangouts, WhatsApp, or any other software is acceptable. This way of practicing is almost the same as in person, and therefore, equally effective.

Let Italian Be All Around You

When learning a language, one thing is essential: do your best to surround yourself with the language. 

What does that mean?

It means that you have to use every option and possibility to let Italian become part of your life. Here are some tips that might be helpful:

• Instead of watching movies in your native language or English, choose to watch Italian movies. For a start, we suggest using English subtitles. When you reach a higher level of proficiency, you can turn on Italian subtitles or turn off them completely.

• Listen to the radio and Italian podcasts. This way is fun and useful because you can do something else while listening to it.

• Use YouTube to learn Italian. There are many useful courses and channels created especially for language learners. Besides learning something useful, listening to the proper pronunciation and improving your vocabulary, you’ll, undoubtedly, have fun. 

• Read, read, and read again. Don’t worry if you are not a book lover. You don’t have to read books only. There are plenty of resources you can read and practice your skills. Read newspapers, internet forums, and blogs. Find something you’re interested in and start reading.

• Gather your friends and play games together. You can play vocabulary games, for example. Or organize karaoke night. Find some of the most famous Italian songs and start singing. There are many karaoke apps available for free, so go ahead! Don’t be surprised when your friends call you and inform you that they too started learning Italian.

Speak to Native Speakers

It seems like we keep going back to the ‘native speakers’ term, but it is one of the best and most efficient ways to learn Italian fast.

Once you feel you are into the language when you’ve learned all the basic idioms and phrases, turn to real people to practice with them.

The calculation is simple: the more you speak and practice Italian, the better you will be and fewer mistakes you’ll make.

That’s why native Italian speakers are ideal. They won’t judge you if you make a mistake, and they’ll also teach you to speak and pronounce words correctly. 

Besides, who can better teach you some colorful curse words than natives?

Final Thoughts

If you follow our suggestions, you’ll take less than an average Italian student to learn the language at a basic, conversational level.

Don’t fool yourself and think that you can become fluent in less than two months. Be realistic. And if you want to get to the fluent level, you have to keep working hard. 

After all, these are tips to help you learn basic Italian quickly. But, after you pass that first obstacle and start speaking with native speakers, you’ll be encouraged to continue studying, and the time for you won’t be important anymore, but only the end of the road called ‘fluency.’