Do people speak English in Italy...fluently? Read before answering.?

Question

I have been to places in Mexico and have found it very easy to speak to Americans who actually live there. This has made it no problem communicating in English. Examples of places I have visited are the area of Chapala in Jalisco and Cabo San Lucas.

I'd like to visit Italy some day, but I'm wondering if I should work on the language or not. Of course, learning a third language for me would be nice, but I'm also curious about how much English is spoken in Italy.

IF YOU KNOW, PLEASE TELL ME ABOUT IT. TAKE YOUR TIME.

IF YOU DON'T KNOW AND HAVEN'T BEEN THERE, DON'T WASTE OUR TIME.

Answer 1

I lived in Sicily for 5 years. Flavia is right, if you speak just a little Spanish you can get by pretty well. Also, make an effort to learn Italian as the Italians tend to warm up to people that know even a little much faster than people who don't. You will find the people friendlier and you will pay less in the markets. Enjoy your trip. Italy is one of the most wonderful countries on earth to visit or live.

Answer 2

Hi! I'm Italian and I must admit Italy has a problem with foreign languages :-( We start studying english early in our lives (my niece is 4 and is already learning it), but unfortunately italians don t practice english that much, so they end up forgetting it. There is a very small percentage of italians speaking fluent english. The problem is our school system sucks: we should be allowed to practice more by travelling, watching english movies in ENGLISH, talking to english ppl, etc. In our colleges the english teachers speak italian: can u believe that???

Anyway, if u'll ever come to italy, be patient and speak slowly. One more thing, italians are very proud of their language and a lot of them think that learning english is useless...they expect foreigners to speak italian, or at least to try, cuz, after all, it's their country u are visiting.

P.S. Personally I don t know anyone who speaks fluent french, lol!

Answer 3

Okay I've read over some of these answers and I'm not really sure that some of these people have actually spent any time in Italy.  

I've been to 62 different cities all throughout Italy and don't speak a word of Italian.  I have never had any problems!  Of course you will want to work on the language anyway because your trip will be so much better and more enlightening if you can interact with the country.  

If anything, it's almost annoying when you try to speak Italian and they respond in English!

Answer 4

Some do and some don't.  Many tourist locations will, but it's still best to learn the gettng by stuff.  Be able to ask where things are, count, know your basic foods, order water, etc.

Answer 5

I travelled to several cities in Italy - and always make an effort to at least say hello and thank you in local language (wherever I happen to be).

You can get by with English only, a friendly approach, and a lot of patience. :)

In case you get lost: always have the address of your hotel/destination written on a piece of paper, and have another paper (mini-notebook) so people can draw diagrams of what they mean.  I've had some wonderful "conversations" this way, even without having a language in common.

My suggestion is: go when you can.  If you know some words/phrases, they'll be appreciated. If you don't, don't let that stop you, and remember to smile. :)

Have fun!

Answer 6

I lived in Rome for half a year as a student abroad, and I think it is beneficial for you to learn some Italian before you go. It is true that a lot of people do speak English, and there usually are a certain amount of Americans out traveling, like Mexico, but there are many, many places I found, even in Rome, that don't use any english and don't really see the point in it. A lot of times, store owners or people on the street or on the buses seem rude or see you as rude until you say one, simple thing in Italian- it could be as simple as, "Permesso," or "Scusa," or "Come sta?" they appreciate it more than you think, and find accents cute, so don't worry about butchering italian- as long as you try.

Just note that it's harder than you think to transition from spanish to italian. I'm fluent in spanish and I often combined the two languages when speaking- Don't rely on the idea that "Oh, Italian and Spanish are so close  that they'll understand me if I speak either!" Not true. Italians recognize Spanish but they can't always understand. Anyway, have fun, learn a little language- It's fun, and beautiful. Bocca al luppo (good luck).

Answer 7

I've been living in Italy for the past 6 years and have traveled around the entire country, and yes, lots of Italians are very fluent in English in the bigger cities.  However, if you go to the smaller towns, it is rare to find a person that speaks English.  There is so much to see here.  Have a wonderful trip!

Answer 8

I have been to Italy two times. Even though English is not my 1st language(Russian), I did not have any problems. Unless you want to venture off the beaten path(places other than Rome, Florence, Venice,etc.) you will have no problem. All I can say is that you will definatly enjoy Italy.

Answer 9

I've been to Italy many times. Lots of the younger Italians speak some English and many of the waiters etc are very good. There are still many Italians who don't speak English though so I would recommend a few important phrases at least. The Italians love you to speak their language and you'll be a lot more welcome and get a lot further if you do.

Answer 10

I've been to Italy...we got lost in Rome and we tried to find our way back to the hotel. Difficult situation! No-one was speaking english...we found a guy who spoke french! Italians don't bother to learn english...you should know italian so you can communicate!

Answer 11

u know my friend

very little people in italy speak english properly

they are not bothered with a foriegn language

thay are all set to speak their mothertongue that is italy

But most of them know french

Answer 12

More Italians know French more than Italian. But i'd say you'd get by with just knowing English.

Answer 13

I'm Italian...

people doesn't speak fluently English but in biggest cities is quite easy find someone that can do it...

it's always a foreign language... how many Americans can speak fluently Spanish or french?... by the way... if you speak good Spanish or french will be more easy to understand Italian (in fact as Italian i can understand quite fine Spanish and i never studied it..)...

buy a phrasebook...it will help!

Answer 14

I just got back from Italy.  I was able to get around with English alone, mostly because of the tourists help. It  isn't a bad idea to learn Italian.  Most of the locals speak Italian only, or broken  English.

Answer 15

I haven't been there but I have a friend who lives in there. And I talk to him once or twice a week. So far I know from him is the Italians hardly speaks English. It's very hard to communicate with them if u don't speak Italian. Obviously there are some famous tourist spots where U'll find some people who speaks english. other than that it would be very hard for u if u don't know Italian. Hope the info helps.

Answer 16

Most italians dont speak english at all... well.. they can all say school sentences like "the cat is on the table" but that's about it.... but you dont need to learn italian to comunicate with us... italian people are generally very friendly and its pretty easy to know what they are talking about just by following body language.. I had lots of english speaking friends that came to see me and nobody ever had a problem.... if you need a list of "usefull sentences" just write them to me in english.. I'll translate them for you....

Answer 17

If you go to the big cities like Rome, Milan, Venice, Florence people do speak English but in the smaller towns they speak only Italian or their own dialect because the people in the smaller towns have lived their all their lives and don't bother with English. At least this is what I find when I go to Italy and I go very often.

Answer 18

I spent 3 weeks in Italy last year. For the most part, I got by speaking english. It is much easier in the cities than in rural areas. I did, however, speak a little Italian and used this trip as an opportunity to learn more. My opinion is if you are going to spend more than a couple of days in a country you should at least learn some basic phrases. Knowing how to say "good morning/afternoon/evening", "please" and "thank you" go a long way towards establishing a good rapport with locals. If they know you are at least trying they will usually go out of their way to communicate with you.