To introduce yourself or if someone introduce you to other people, in informal context you can simply say ‘ciao’ or your name, while shaking hands.
Ciao!
Federica.
Ciao … Federica.
Ciao … mi chiamo Federica.
In formal context, you have to add your surname.
Buongiorno!
Federica Bianchi … buongiorno.
Federica Bianchi … buonasera.
The expression ‘Piacere’ has been introduced in movies and tv series as a translation of English ‘nice to meet you’, but it’s not necessary. However, if someone says ‘piacere’ you can answer in the same way.
Talk about yourself
If you want to say your age, remember that in Italian we use verb ‘avere’ (to have).
Ho 30 anni. I am 30 years old.
To say where you were born or where you live, you can use these phrases:
Vengo dal Canada. Sono canadese. I come from … I’m … .
Sono nato a Londra, ma vivo e lavoro a New York. I was born in London but I reside and work in New York.
To tell about your profession, you can choose among many phrases:
Sono (un) giardiniere. I’m a gardener.
Faccio il giardiniere. I’m a gardener.
Lavoro come giardiniere in un vivaio. I work as a gardener in a nursery.
Ho un’impresa edile. I run a construction company.
Mi piace
Do you want to say something about your hobbies?
We have an Italian word for hobby that is ‘passatempo’ but we use more frequently the English word in the singular and with a mute h.
Quali sono i tuoi hobby? What are your hobbies?
Cosa fai nel tempo libero? What do you do in your free time?
To answer, you can say:
Sono un appassionato di fotografia e mi piace scattare foto ai miei amici. I am passionate about photography and I like to take pictures of my friends.
Sono un tifoso di calcio e vado sempre alle partite. I’m a fan of football and I always go to matches.
Mi piace leggere e imparare le lingue straniere. I like reading and learning new languages.
For extra emphasis, in the right context, you can replace ‘mi piace’ with ‘amo’ or ‘adoro’.
Anch’io adoro la fotografia! I love photography too!
With less emphasis, you can simply describe a typical weekend (we say ‘weekend’ even in Italian, but always in the singular).
Di solito, il sabato sera vado in discoteca, mentre la domenica faccio sport. On Saturday nights I usually go to the club, while on Sundays I play sports.
Quasi tutti i weekend vado in campeggio con la mia famiglia. Almost every weekend I go camping with my family.
Vorrei
Finally, it is worth telling something about your goals and wishes. To do this, the key words are ‘vorrei’ or ‘mi piacerebbe’.
For example:
Vorrei avere un figlio. I would really like to have a baby.
Mi piacerebbe visitare i Musei Vaticani. I would like to visit Vatican Museums.
Vorrei continuare a lavorare come graphic designer. I would like keep working as a graphic designer.
Vorrei viaggiare. I would like to travel abroad.