Italian Weather Vocabulary: From Sunshine to Thunderstorms — Everything You Need
Whether you're making small talk at a bar, planning a hike in the Dolomites, or just trying to understand the morning news forecast, talking about the weather is essential. Italian weather expressions are built around one key verb — fare — and once you understand it, everything falls into place. As a bonus: Italy's extraordinary geographic range means the vocabulary covers everything from alpine blizzards to Saharan heat waves, from Venetian fog to Sicilian sirocco winds. Weather in Italy is never boring.
The most important verb for weather in Italian is 'fare' (to make/do). Many weather expressions use 'fa + adjective' or 'fa + noun': fa caldo (it's hot), fa freddo (it's cold), fa bello (the weather is nice). The subject is always the impersonal 'it' — there is no explicit subject in Italian weather sentences. You never say 'il tempo fa caldo'; just 'fa caldo'. Clean, direct, and easy to remember.
Core Weather Expressions With Fare
| Italian | English |
|---|---|
| Fa caldo. | It's hot. |
| Fa freddo. | It's cold. |
| Fa fresco. | It's cool / fresh. |
| Fa bello / Fa bel tempo. | The weather is nice. |
| Fa brutto / Fa brutto tempo. | The weather is bad. |
| Fa umido. | It's humid. |
| Fa un caldo terribile. | It's terribly hot. |
| Fa un freddo polare. | It's freezing cold. |
Weather Verbs — Piove, Nevica, Tira Vento…
| Italian | English | Verb |
|---|---|---|
| Piove. | It's raining. | piovere |
| Nevica. | It's snowing. | nevicare |
| Grandina. | It's hailing. | grandinare |
| C'è il sole. | It's sunny. | esserci |
| C'è la nebbia. | It's foggy. | esserci |
| C'è vento / Tira vento. | It's windy. | esserci / tirare |
| C'è temporale. | There's a storm. | esserci |
| È nuvoloso. | It's cloudy. | essere |
| È sereno. | It's clear (sky). | essere |
| È coperto. | It's overcast. | essere |
Weather Vocabulary — Key Nouns
| Italian | English |
|---|---|
| il sole | sun |
| la pioggia | rain |
| la neve | snow |
| il vento | wind |
| la nebbia | fog |
| la nuvola | cloud |
| il temporale | storm / thunderstorm |
| il fulmine | lightning |
| il tuono | thunder |
| la grandine | hail |
| l'arcobaleno | rainbow |
| la temperatura | temperature |
| l'umidità | humidity |
| il ghiaccio | ice |
Weather in Real Conversation
Che tempo fa oggi?
What's the weather like today?
Oggi fa bello ma domani pioverà.
Today the weather is nice but tomorrow it will rain.
Ho sentito che nel weekend nevica.
I heard it's going to snow at the weekend.
In estate fa sempre un caldo esagerato al Sud.
In summer it's always unbearably hot in the South.
Porta un ombrello — sembra che stia per piovere.
Take an umbrella — it looks like it's about to rain.
Finalmente è tornato il sole!
The sun is finally back!
Italy's geography spans alpine peaks, continental plains, Mediterranean coasts, and near-African heat. <strong>In northern Italy (Milano, Torino), winters are cold and famously foggy</strong> — '<em>fa freddo e c'è la nebbia</em>'. In the south (Napoli, Palermo), summers are extreme — '<em>fa un caldo tremendo</em>'. <strong>Venice and the Po Valley</strong> are famous for <em>la nebbia</em> in autumn and winter. Essential expressions: '<em>si gela</em>' (it's freezing), '<em>si suda</em>' (you sweat), '<em>che afa!</em>' (what oppressive humidity!) — that last one will make any southern Italian nod vigorously.
Temperature Expressions
Oggi ci sono trenta gradi all'ombra! — Today it's thirty degrees in the shade!
Stanotte andrà a meno dieci. — Tonight it will go to minus ten.
Hai visto le previsioni del tempo per domani? — Have you seen tomorrow's weather forecast?
Secondo il bollettino, arriva una perturbazione. — According to the forecast, a weather system is coming.
C'è allerta arancione per temporali. — There is an orange alert for thunderstorms.
Regional Weather Phrases You Will Actually Hear
Che afa! Non si respira.
What humidity! You can't breathe.
Si gela! Sei uscito senza cappotto?
It's freezing! Did you go out without a coat?
C'è un temporale in arrivo, meglio rientrare.
There's a storm coming, better head inside.
In montagna stai attento — lì può nevicare anche a maggio.
In the mountains be careful — it can snow there even in May.
Non senti che profumo? Ha appena piovuto.
Can't you smell that? It just rained.
Small talk in Italian starts with the weather. Build your vocabulary with 2,500+ free exercises.
Start practising free →Tu veux pratiquer ce que tu viens d'apprendre ?
Plus de 2 500 exercices gratuits t'attendent.
Commencer gratuitement →