style="font-size:15px;"> If all goes to plan…
| Salvo imprevisti arrivo entro venerdì. | If all goes to plan, I’ll be there by Friday. |
| Se tutto va bene, ci fermiamo prima a Taormina. | If all goes to plan, we’re going to stop in Taormina first. |
If you want to say that you have to do something in Italian, such as buy a ticket, catch a train and so on, you use devo (I have to) or dovrei (I ought to) followed by the infinitive. These are from the verb dovere (to have to). For more information on dovere, see here.
I have to…
| Domani devo comprare il biglietto per il traghetto. | I have to buy my ticket for the ferry tomorrow. |
| Devo prima prendere il treno per Parma. | I have to get the train to Parma first. |
| Devo andare a prendere la macchina entro le tre. | I have to pick up the car before three. |
| Deve presentare la patente. | You have to show your driving licence. |
I ought to…
| Dovrei fare ancora benzina. | I ought to get some more petrol. |
| Dovrei confermare il volo. | I ought to confirm my flight. |
| Dovremmo essere in stazione alle sette. | We ought to be at the station at seven. |
Another way of saying what you must do is to use bisogna che (it is necessary that) followed by the subjunctive. For more information about the subjunctive, see here.
I must…
| Adesso bisogna proprio che vada in stazione. | I really must go to the station now. |
| Bisogna che lo chiamiamo domani mattina. | We must call him tomorrow morning. |
| Bisogna che ritiri i biglietti in agenzia. | I must pick up the tickets from the travel agent’s. |
When you are travelling, you may want to say what you would like to do in Italian. You can use vorrei (I’d like) or voglio (I want) with the infinitive. They both come from the verb volere (to want). For more information on volere, see here.
I want to…
| Voglio andare a Torino. | I want to go to Turin. |
| Voglio scendere a Verona. | I want to get off at Verona. |
| Voglio cambiare il biglietto. | I want to change my ticket. |
| Vogliamo partire domani mattina. | We want to leave tomorrow morning. |
I don’t want to…
| Non voglio viaggiare in prima classe. | I don’t want to travel first class. |
| Non voglio andare fin là a piedi. | I don’t want to walk all the way there. |
| Non voglio perdere la coincidenza. | I don’t want to miss my connection. |
I’d like to…
| Vorrei noleggiare una bici. | I’d like to hire a bike. |
| Vorrei andarci in barca. | I’d like to go by boat. |
| Il mio amico vorrebbe denunciare lo smarrimento del bagaglio. | My friend would like to report his luggage missing. |
You can also use desidero (I would like), which is slightly more formal. This comes from desiderare (to want). For more information on -are verbs like desiderare, see here.
I would like…
| Desidero un biglietto di sola andata in prima classe. | I would like a single ticket, first class, please. |
| Desideriamo prenotare un tavolo al vagone ristorante. | We would like to reserve a table in the dining car, please. |
If you want to say that you feel like doing something, say ho voglia di or mi va di (I feel like). ho comes from the verb avere and va comes from andare. For more information on avere and andare, see here and here.
I feel like…
| Ho voglia di passare per Fiesole. | I feel like going via Fiesole. |
| Ho proprio voglia di andare a Portofino. | I quite fancy going to Portofino. |
| Non ho nessuna voglia di passare sei ore in treno. | I really don’t feel like spending six hours on the train. |
| Mi va di spezzare il viaggio. | I feel like breaking the journey. |
| Non mi va di passare un’altra notte qua. | I don’t feel like spending another night here. |
You may wish to make a suggestion to your colleagues or friends in Italian. One way of doing this is to use potremmo (we could), or si potrebbe (one could). Both come from the verb potere (to be able). For more information on potere, see here.
We could…
| Potremmo andare domani. | We could go there tomorrow. |
| Potremmo fare tappa a Siena. | We could break our journey in Siena. |
| Si potrebbe andare a piedi, se preferisci. | We could walk, if you prefer. |
If you want to ask someone if they would like to do something, you can generally use the verb volere (to want). An alternative is ti piacerebbe or, to somebody you know less well, le piacerebbe, from the verb piacere. For more information on volere, see
