Italienisch
/ˌi.taˈli̯eː.nɪʃ/neuter
Italian in German is Italienisch.
The word Italienisch refers specifically to the Italian language and is a neuter noun.
Meaning: language (name)
Which one should you use?
To refer to a person from Italy, use the noun Italiener rather than the adjective italienisch.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
When used as an adjective, the word is not capitalized unless it is at the beginning of a sentence.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˌi.taˈli̯eː.nɪʃ/. The word has 4 syllables and the stress is on the 3rd syllable.
Did you know?
- The suffix -isch used in Italienisch is the German equivalent of the English suffix '-ish', but it is the standard way to form almost all language names in German.
- German uses the neuter gender for Italienisch because all names of languages in German are neuter.
- When talking about 'Italian' in a culinary context, Germans often use the phrase italienische Küche rather than just the adjective italienisch.
Examples in context
- Wie lernte er Italienisch?How did he learn Italian?This sentence is useful for discussing how someone learned Italienisch.Tatoeba #12194402 by Augustus, translation #12194486 by Miktsoanit
- Er mag italienisches Essen.He likes Italian food.This sentence shows how italienisch is used as an adjective to describe food.Tatoeba #2980437 by pne, translation #287970 by CK
- Mögt ihr italienisches Essen?Do you like Italian food?This sentence shows the adjective form of italienisch used in a question.Tatoeba #8101122 by Luiaard, translation #2207428 by Hybrid
- Der neue Gast in unserem Hotel ist ein Italiener.The new guest in our hotel is an Italian.
- Frau Müller ist eine Italienerin und spricht perfekt Deutsch.Mrs. Müller is an Italian woman and speaks perfect German.
- Er ist ein Italiener und kocht fantastische Pasta.He is Italian and cooks fantastic pasta.
- Meine Freundin ist eine Italienerin und liebt italienisches Essen.My friend is an Italian girl and loves Italian food.
- 187 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Sarah and Lukas are talking about their language classes at a university.
- SarahLernst du jetzt Italienisch?Are you learning Italian now?
- LukasNein, ich lerne Spanisch.No, I am learning Spanish.
- SarahIst Italienisch nicht einfacher?Isn't Italian easier?
- LukasDas finde ich nicht.I don't think so.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “italian” translations and entries Italienisch, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Pronunciation from the Wiktionary entry italienisch.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
