Food Vocabulary: Meals

Meals in Italian

In this lesson, you will learn the names of the three main meals of the day in Italian. Knowing these words is essential for talking about your daily routine and food habits!

Key Vocabulary

  • la colazione - breakfast
  • il pranzo - lunch
  • la cena - dinner

We usually use the definite articles la or il before these meal words.

Useful Patterns

To say what you are having for a specific meal, you can use phrases like A colazione mangio ___ (For breakfast I eat ___).

Common Mistakes

Remember that pranzo is masculine (il pranzo), while colazione and cena are feminine (la colazione, la cena).

Words

la colazione
breakfast
Faccio colazione alle otto.I have breakfast at eight.
il pranzo
lunch
Il pranzo è pronto.Lunch is ready.
la cena
dinner
Cosa c'è per cena?What is for dinner?
mangiare
to eat
Mi piace mangiare la pasta.I like to eat pasta.
il cibo
food
Questo cibo è buono.This food is good.
buono
good
Il pranzo è buono.The lunch is good.
la mattina
the morning
Faccio colazione la mattina.I eat breakfast in the morning.
la sera
the evening
La sera guardo la TV.In the evening I watch TV.

Lessons are prepared with the help of AI.

Patterns

A colazione mangio ___

For breakfast I eat ___

A colazione mangio il pane.For breakfast I eat bread.

Per pranzo prendo ___

For lunch I'm having ___

Per pranzo prendo la pasta.For lunch I'm having pasta.