Sono uno studente
/ˈso.no ˈu.no stuˈdɛn.te/word by word
The English phrase "I am a student" is translated into Italian as Sono uno studente.
This phrase is used to state that a person is currently studying at an educational institution. While studente can refer to any student, if you are specifically referring to a university student, you might say Sono uno studente universitario.
Which one should you use?
In a school context involving younger children, the term alunno might be used, although studente remains widely understood for any student.
How does it change in a sentence?
The subject pronoun Io (I) is typically omitted because the verb conjugation sono already indicates the first-person singular. If the speaker is female, the phrase changes to use the feminine article and noun: Sono una studentessa. Additionally, it is very common and grammatically correct in Italian to omit the indefinite article uno/una when stating one's status or profession, allowing you to simply say Sono studente.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈso.no ˈu.no stuˈdɛn.te/. The word has 6 syllables and the stress is on the 1st syllable.
Did you know?
- If a student is particularly lazy, an Italian might jokingly call them a studente di professione, implying that being a student is their full-time career rather than a path to a degree.
- The word sono is a linguistic 'double agent' because it is used for both 'I am' and 'they are', depending entirely on the context and the subject.
- While studente is common, the term alunno specifically refers to a pupil and comes from the Latin word for 'nourishing', as the teacher 'nourishes' the mind of the student.
Examples in context
- Sono uno studente di questa scuola.I am a student of this school.This sentence is useful for specifying which school you attend with Sono uno studente.Tatoeba #1199500 by Guybrush88, translation #253572 by CK
- Sono uno studente all'Università di Hyogo.I am a student at Hyogo University.This sentence is useful for specifying which university you attend with Sono uno studente.Tatoeba #3553479 by Guybrush88, translation #261625 by Swift
- Sono uno studente.I am a student.This sentence is a simple way to state your status with Sono uno studente.Tatoeba #373526 by Pharamp, translation #252287 by CK
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Francesco and Giulia meet for the first time at a cafe.
- FrancescoCiao, mi chiamo Francesco. E tu?Hi, my name is Francesco. And you?
- GiuliaPiacere, sono Giulia. Lavori qui?Nice to meet you, I'm Giulia. Do you work here?
- FrancescoNo, sono uno studente di medicina.No, I am a medical student.
- GiuliaChe bello! Io studio arte.How nice! I study art.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (sono, uno, studente) and can differ in connected speech.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
