Il Tempo Che Fa — Talking About Italian Weather
Talking about the weather · a free Italian immersion capsule
Useful sentences · 10
Phrases you'll actually use today. Tap Explain for the why behind each one.
Domani farà un freddo cane — meglio portare il cappotto.
Tomorrow it'll be bitterly cold — you'd better bring your coat.
Literal Tomorrow it will make a dog's cold — better to bring the coat.
The idiom 'fa un freddo cane' (literally 'dog cold') is a very common Italian expression for bitter cold. The future 'farà' comes from the impersonal use of 'fare' to describe weather conditions.
- 'Fare' is used impersonally for weather: 'fa caldo/freddo/bello'. Future tense: 'farà'.
- 'Meglio + infinitive' gives a recommendation without a subject, equivalent to 'you'd better…'.
Sai che tempo farà questo fine settimana?
Do you know what the weather will be like this weekend?
Literal Do you know what weather will make this end of week?
'Che tempo fa/farà?' is the go-to Italian phrase for asking about weather — present for now, future for predictions. 'Fine settimana' literally means 'end of week'.
- 'Che tempo fa?' = What's the weather like now? / 'Che tempo farà?' = What will the weather be like?
- 'Fine settimana' is the Italian word for weekend; it does not change in the plural.
Sta piovendo a catinelle — non possiamo uscire così!
It's raining cats and dogs — we can't go out like this!
Literal It's raining in basins — we can't go out like this!
'Piove a catinelle' is the Italian equivalent of 'raining cats and dogs', literally meaning 'raining in basins'. The construction 'sta + gerundio' expresses an ongoing action happening right now.
- 'Sta piovendo' = present progressive (stare + gerundio), used for weather happening at this very moment.
- 'A catinelle' is an idiomatic quantity expression; 'catinelle' are large washbasins.
Farebbe bello se non ci fossero tutte queste nuvole.
The weather would be lovely if it weren't for all these clouds.
Literal It would make beautiful if there weren't all these clouds.
This uses the conditional 'farebbe' paired with an imperfect subjunctive 'fossero'. It's a sophisticated but natural structure for expressing wishes about the weather.
- 'Farebbe bello' = conditional of 'fare bello', expressing hypothetically nice weather.
- 'Se non ci fossero' requires the imperfect subjunctive — Italian uses it after a conditional in a hypothetical clause.
Il cielo si sta coprendo — credo che arriverà un temporale.
The sky is clouding over — I think a storm is coming.
Literal The sky is covering itself — I believe that a storm will arrive.
'Si sta coprendo' is a reflexive present progressive — the sky 'covering itself' is natural Italian for an overcast sky building up. 'Credo che + future' is a very common opinion construction.
- 'Si sta coprendo' = reflexive present progressive; many Italian weather verbs use reflexive forms.
- 'Arriverà' is future tense of 'arrivare', used here for an imminent, anticipated weather event.
Con questo caldo afoso, ho voglia solo di stare in casa.
In this muggy heat, I just feel like staying home.
Literal With this muggy heat, I have desire only to stay at home.
'Ho voglia di + infinitive' is the natural Italian way to say 'I feel like doing something'. 'Afoso' specifically describes hot, humid, oppressive weather — far more vivid than 'caldo' alone.
- 'Ho voglia di + infinitive' expresses desire or inclination: 'I feel like…'.
- 'Afoso' agrees with 'caldo' (masculine singular) — Italian adjectives must match their noun in gender and number.
Le previsioni dicono che schiarirà nel pomeriggio.
The forecast says it will clear up in the afternoon.
Literal The forecasts say that it will clear up in the afternoon.
'Schiarire' means to clear up or brighten — a very useful weather verb. The future 'schiarirà' is essential for discussing improving weather from a forecast.
- 'Le previsioni' (plural feminine) is the standard Italian word for weather forecast — always used in the plural.
- 'Schiarirà' = future tense of 'schiarire'; the -e drops before adding future endings (-irà).
Hai visto che tramonto ieri sera? I colori erano bellissimi!
Did you see that sunset yesterday evening? The colors were gorgeous!
Literal Did you see what sunset yesterday evening? The colors were very beautiful!
'Hai visto' is the passato prossimo of 'vedere', used for recent past events in conversation. 'Bellissimi' is the absolute superlative of 'bello', agreeing with the plural masculine noun 'colori'.
- 'Hai visto' = passato prossimo (have you seen / did you see), the main conversational past tense.
- 'Bellissimi' = absolute superlative (-issimo ending); it intensifies without comparison. Agrees with 'colori' (masc. plural).
Questa primavera è stata capricciosa — un giorno sole, il giorno dopo neve.
This spring has been so unpredictable — one day sunshine, the next snow.
Literal This spring has been capricious — one day sun, the day after snow.
'Capricciosa' is a vivid adjective for erratic weather. The parallel structure 'un giorno… il giorno dopo…' creates a natural contrast rhythm commonly used in everyday Italian speech.
- 'È stata capricciosa' = passato prossimo with 'essere', describing a state that held true over a period.
- 'Capricciosa' agrees with 'primavera' (feminine singular) — adjectives always match their noun.
Secondo te, vale la pena organizzare il picnic per sabato?
In your opinion, is it worth organizing the picnic for Saturday?
Literal According to you, is it worth the trouble to organize the picnic for Saturday?
'Vale la pena + infinitive' means 'it's worth doing something' — an extremely versatile phrase. 'Secondo te' is a conversational way to ask someone's opinion, softer and more natural than 'cosa pensi?'.
- 'Vale la pena di/+ infinitive' = it's worth (doing something); 'pena' literally means effort or trouble.
- 'Secondo te/lui/lei/voi' = in your/his/her/your opinion — a very common conversational formula.
New words · 10
Themed vocabulary, each with an example you can borrow.
il temporale
thunderstorm
Stanotte c'è stato un temporale fortissimo.
There was an incredibly strong thunderstorm last night.
Refers to a violent storm with thunder and lightning, not just heavy rain.
le previsioni
weather forecast / predictions
Le previsioni del tempo non sono sempre affidabili.
Weather forecasts aren't always reliable.
Always used in the plural in Italian. Full phrase: 'le previsioni del tempo'.
afoso
muggy, sultry, oppressively hot
L'estate romana è sempre afosa e umida.
The Roman summer is always muggy and humid.
More specific than 'caldo'; implies uncomfortable humidity combined with heat. f: afosa, m.pl: afosi.
schiarire
to clear up, to brighten
Dopo la pioggia, il cielo ha schiarito in fretta.
After the rain, the sky cleared up quickly.
Used for weather improving. Also means 'to lighten' a color or 'to clarify' in other contexts.
la nuvola
cloud
Ci sono poche nuvole, ma il sole splende.
There are a few clouds, but the sun is shining.
Plural: 'le nuvole'. Adjective form: 'nuvoloso/a' = cloudy.
il tramonto
sunset
Guardiamo il tramonto dalla terrazza.
Let's watch the sunset from the terrace.
Opposite: 'l'alba' = sunrise/dawn. Both are vivid weather and atmosphere vocabulary.
capriccioso
unpredictable, capricious
Il tempo in montagna è molto capriccioso.
Mountain weather is very unpredictable.
Used for people and weather alike. f.sg: capricciosa, m.pl: capricciosi, f.pl: capricciose.
piovere
to rain
Piove sempre a novembre in questa città.
It always rains in November in this city.
Impersonal — always third person singular: 'piove'. Key idiom: 'piove a catinelle' = it's pouring.
la nebbia
fog
In inverno, c'è molta nebbia nella pianura padana.
In winter, there's a lot of fog in the Po Valley.
A classic Italian weather phenomenon, especially in northern Italy. Adjective: 'nebbioso/a' = foggy.
il vento
wind
C'è un vento forte oggi — porta una giacca.
There's a strong wind today — bring a jacket.
'Ventoso/a' = windy. 'Tira vento' = the wind is blowing. Italy has famous named regional winds like tramontana and scirocco.
Short reading
A tiny story stitched from today's words. Translation is hidden, tap to peek.
Ieri mattina mi sono svegliato e ho guardato fuori dalla finestra: il cielo era grigio e pesante, pieno di nuvole minacciose. Le previsioni dicevano che avrebbe piovuto tutto il giorno, così ho deciso di rimandare la passeggiata al parco. Nel pomeriggio, però, il tempo ha cambiato improvvisamente — il cielo ha schiarito, è uscito il sole, e verso le cinque c'era persino un tramonto bellissimo. Il tempo italiano, capriccioso come sempre, aveva giocato uno dei suoi soliti scherzi.
Sentence by sentence
il cielo era grigio e pesante
the sky was grey and heavy
Imperfect tense ('era') describes a condition that existed as a backdrop in the past — perfect for setting a weather scene.
Le previsioni dicevano che avrebbe piovuto
The forecast said it would rain
'Avrebbe piovuto' is the conditional perfect, used in reported speech to express what was expected to happen in the future (futuro nel passato).
ho deciso di rimandare
I decided to put off
'Rimandare' = to postpone or delay. 'Decidere di + infinitive' is the standard structure for 'decide to do something'.
il tempo ha cambiato improvvisamente
the weather suddenly changed
'Improvvisamente' (suddenly) follows the verb in Italian. The passato prossimo marks this as a distinct, completed event that stands out from the background.
capriccioso come sempre
as unpredictable as ever
A parenthetical remark giving the weather a personality. 'Come sempre' = as always/ever — a very natural conversational addition.
aveva giocato uno dei suoi soliti scherzi
had played one of its usual tricks
The past perfect ('aveva giocato') shows this action preceded others in the story. 'Giocare uno scherzo' = to play a trick — applied here poetically to the weather.
Pattern of the day
One grammar move, explained once, that unlocks dozens of sentences.
Future Tense for Weather Predictions
Italian uses the futuro semplice extensively for weather forecasts and predictions. The key weather verbs 'fare', 'piovere', 'nevicare', and 'schiarire' are all used impersonally in the third person singular. The future is formed by adding endings (-ò, -ai, -à, -emo, -ete, -anno) to the verb stem, with some irregular stems like 'far-' for 'fare'. This tense is essential for any conversation about tomorrow's weather or a weekly forecast.
Domani + [weather verb, futuro semplice] / Le previsioni dicono che + [futuro semplice]
Domani farà molto caldo.
Tomorrow it will be very hot.
Pioverà per tutta la settimana.
It will rain all week.
Le previsioni dicono che nevicherà in montagna.
The forecast says it will snow in the mountains.
Domani sera il cielo schiarirà.
Tomorrow evening the sky will clear up.
Mini practice · 5
Low-pressure, never graded. Just enough to make it stick.
Translate to Italian: 'Tomorrow it will be freezing cold — better bring a coat.'
Hint Use the future tense of 'fare' for weather expressions.
Translate to English: 'Le previsioni dicono che schiarirà nel pomeriggio.'
Hint 'Schiarire' means to brighten or clear up.
Complete the sentence: 'Il cielo si sta coprendo — credo che arriverà un ___.' A) tramonto B) temporale C) vento D) cappotto
Hint Think about what comes after dark clouds gather.
Which sentence best expresses that the weather this spring has been unpredictable?
Rewrite this sentence in the future tense to make a weather prediction: 'Oggi fa bello.'
Hint Replace 'oggi' with 'domani' and change 'fa' to its future form.
That’s today’s phraseberry.
Nice work, you understood something real today. Come back tomorrow for a fresh one.
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