Ways to say it
| Italian | Note |
|---|---|
| social | masculine, plural |
| reti sociali | feminine, plural |
This refers to applications or websites that allow users to communicate.
Which one should you use?
While social is the common way to refer to the digital platforms themselves, reti sociali is a more formal and technical translation often used in academic or professional contexts to mean "social networks".
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
In everyday spoken Italian, people often shorten the phrase to i social, which is an informal abbreviation. The full term social media is used in formal settings such as business meetings or official documents.
How does it change in a sentence?
When using the shortened form i social, it is treated as a masculine plural noun.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid using the Italian adjective sociale to refer to digital platforms. sociale refers to social issues or society, such as in the phrase impegno sociale.
Did you know?
- The distinction between social and sociale is so strict that sociale can mean 'public' or 'community-based', such as in a centro sociale (community center).
- Because i social is plural, an Italian speaker would use a plural verb and adjective to describe a single app like Instagram if they refer to it as part of i social.
- The term reti sociali literally translates to 'social nets', reflecting the Italian preference for the word rete (net) when discussing the infrastructure of the internet.
Examples in context
- Perché odi i social media?Why do you hate social media?This sentence is useful for asking why someone dislikes social.Tatoeba #8380283 by Guybrush88, translation #8373954 by Amastan
- Tom è un consulente di social media.Tom is a social media consultant.This sentence shows how to use social when describing a job title.Tatoeba #7325885 by Guybrush88, translation #6945965 by Hybrid
- I social media tengono gli amcici aggiornati sulle rispettive vite.Social media keeps friends updated on each other's lives.This sentence illustrates how social helps keep friends updated.Tatoeba #13215759 by Nuel, translation #13215757 by Nuel
- Domani parlerò dei social media nella mia presentazioneTomorrow, I will talk about social media in my presentation
- Hai visto le foto che ho pubblicato sul social?Have you seen the photos I posted on social media?
- Scusa se non ti ho accettato come amico sul social, ma non ti conoscevo beneSorry I didn't accept you as a friend on social media, but I didn't know you well
- 9 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lorenzo and Martina are sitting in a café talking about their phone usage.
- LorenzoPassi troppo tempo sui social.You spend too much time on social media.
- MartinaÈ vero, ma mi piacciono molto i social.It's true, but I really like social media.
- LorenzoTi distraggono troppo durante il lavoro.They distract you too much during work.
- MartinaLo so, Lorenzo, ma è difficile smettere.I know, Lorenzo, but it's hard to stop.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “social media” translations and entries social, reti sociali, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
