The learning path
All 133 grammar topics in the order in which they support one another — numbered from 1 to 133.
Your progress at a glance
Your progress at a glanceEach petal is a category: easy topics on the inside, hard ones on the outside. Tap a petal to see only its topics.
Where are you right now?
- A1Introducing yourself, asking questions, saying everyday things.
- The alphabetTwenty-one letters, five guests and a silent h.
- VowelsFive letters, each one said clearly — even at the end of a word.
- c and g: hard or softThe next letter decides how c and g sound.
- Double consonants, gli and gnA double letter really is longer — and makes a different word.
- Stress and accentsUsually the second-to-last syllable — and an accent when it is the last.
- Present tense: -are verbsSix endings where English has one.
- essere — to beSix forms, none of them regular — and two of them identical.
- Asking questionsThere is no do to put in front.
- Definite article: il, lo, laThree masculine forms, two feminine — and a rule you already obey.
- Possessives: il mio, la miaThe gender is the thing's, not the owner's — and an article comes first.
- Contractions: del, nel, alFive do it, the others never.
- Formal you: LeiYou address a stranger as though speaking about somebody else.
- Present tense: -ere, -ire verbsThe last three letters of the infinitive are information English does not carry.
- The passato prossimo with avereOne tense covering « I ate » and « I have eaten » alike.
- avere — to haveAge, hunger and cold are had here, not been.
- Modals: potere, volere, dovereConjugated, and then the bare infinitive.
- Gender and number: -o, -aNothing is added — the vowel changes.
- Adjective agreementEnglish has one form for everything; here there are four or two.
- Negation with nonOne word — and again no auxiliary.
- Quantity words: molto, troppo« Very » and « many » are one word here, and it changes shape for only one of the two jobs.
- Dropping the subject pronounPutting io in is what English does by saying it louder.
- Indefinite article: un, unoYour a and an, with one more form and an apostrophe that carries the gender.
- Demonstratives: questo, quelloTwo distances, as in English — but quello reshapes itself.
- a and in with placesOne word for being there and for going there.
- Everyday polite phrasesFour words, and three of them do more than one job.
- There is: c'è, ci sonoEnglish already agrees here — as long as you write what you would write.
- The question wordsOne word for why and because.
- -ire verbs with -isc-It follows the stress — and English stress moves the same way.
- A2Talking about what happened and saying what comes next.
- Direct object pronouns: lo, laIn front of the verb, and it follows the thing's gender.
- Where the adjective standsEnglish has one position; Italian uses two, and they mean different things.
- The passato prossimo with essereHere the verb says whether a man or a woman is speaking.
- Simple future (futuro semplice)One set of endings, with an r for a badge.
- Imperative: tu, noi, voiThe -are verbs swap their final vowel, and only they.
- Articles where English has noneCountries, languages, days, and your own hands.
- Irregular present: fare, andarefare is do and make at once — and the weather is made.
- To know: sapere or conoscereTwo verbs for « know » — and two for « can ».
- The reflexive verbsA pronoun that changes with the person and means nothing on its own.
- Plural spelling: -chi, -ghiEnglish respells to fit the -s; Italian respells to protect the sound.
- The preposition daFrom, since, at somebody's, and for — in one word.
- Relative pronouns: che, cuiOne word for almost everything, and no way to drop it.
- When to use tuThere is no English instinct for this, so it has to be learnt as a fact.
- The accent and the apostropheYour apostrophe owns things; this one only marks a missing vowel.
- Indirect object pronouns: gliWhich set applies is decided by the Italian verb, not the English one.
- Comparing and gradingOne way of comparing instead of two — and than splits in half.
- Irregular past participlesNearly all of them are sitting in one of the three families.
- About to: stare perThe narrow end of « going to », and nothing wider.
- First conditional: se + indicativeAnd here the future after « if » is allowed.
- stare — to be placed, to feelYou have the progressive; here it is optional, and that is the hard part.
- Formal imperative: LeiThe form that says the two of you have not met.
- Infinitive without prepositionWant, can, must — and a dozen more.
- The partitive articleIt is your some — except that qualche is singular.
- Stressed pronouns: con me, per te, a luiAfter a preposition and for emphasis, the full form.
- Double negatives: non … maiThe sentence English teachers strike out is the correct one here.
- Absolute superlative: -issimoIt is your very, packed into a suffix.
- Indefinites: ogni, qualcuno, tuttoogni never changes, tutto wants the article.
- Spelling changes: -care, -gareEnglish adds a k in panicking for exactly this reason.
- Asking politely« I'd like », « could you », « may I » — three for three.
- piacere and similar verbsThe coffee is the subject and you are the object.
- Possession with diThere is no apostrophe s — the owner goes last.
- Time expressions: fa, tra, per, entrofa comes last, tra counts forward, in measures how long.
- Conjunctions: perché, quandoAnd the verb stays where it is.
- Polite conditional: vorreiIt moves nothing in time; it takes the edge off.
- Punctuation, numbers, capitals3,5 and 12.000 are not what an English reader reads.
- Imperfect (imperfetto)Three English pasts arriving as one ending.
- Present for the futureThe everyday future, and it is not carelessness.
- The negative imperative« Don't » leaves the verb alone; here it rebuilds it.
- Articles with countries and namesYour the United States rule is exactly the Italian one.
- Adverbs in -mente-mente is your -ly, irregulars included.
- The pronouns ne and ciEnglish leaves the slot empty; Italian may not.
- B1Explaining how things connect, giving reasons, reporting.
- Irregular nouns and pluralsA closed list, exactly like man and men.
- Impersonal need: bisogna, ci vuoleThree sentences with no subject where English insists on one.
- Conditional (condizionale)The same stems, other endings — and most of the politeness.
- Subjunctive: the formsThe final vowels change sides.
- Verb + a + infinitiveThe verbs of starting, learning and managing.
- The impersonal siEnglish has four ways to avoid naming anybody; here there is one.
- The passive with essereThe participle agrees, like an adjective.
- Diminutives: -ino, -ettoEnglish says a little house; Italian changes the word.
- Verbs with prepositionsThe preposition is part of the verb, and it is not the English one.
- Connectives: quindi, però, infattiThey link whole sentences and leave the verb where it is.
- Reported statementsWithout quotation marks — and without dropping « that ».
- Modal verbs in the past« Must » has no past in English; here the past picks its own auxiliary.
- The future for guessesIt says how sure you are, not when.
- When to use the subjunctiveA list, not a feeling — and « that » cannot be dropped in front of it.
- Verb + di + infinitiveThe biggest group — and where most English -ing verbs land.
- Gender that changes meaningThe same word, two articles, two things.
- Pluperfect (trapassato prossimo)English says « had » once; here it is two decisions.
- Second conditional: se fossi« If I were » extended to every verb in the language.
- Pronouns with the imperativeIt welds itself on the back — and then a letter doubles.
- Mustn't and needn't« Mustn't » and « needn't » — you make this distinction already.
- Combined pronouns: me lo, glieloGive it to me becomes give to-me it.
- Indirect questionsYou already undo the inversion; the congiuntivo is the new part.
- Compound nounsA wine glass and a glass of wine — that is the whole distinction.
- Choosing a future formThree boxes here, and four English things to put in them.
- Avoiding the subjunctiveSame subject, no clause and no form to build.
- Verbs that take both a and diThe same verb twice, and the preposition is half the meaning.
- Guessing with dovere« Must be » — the same double duty English gives to must.
- Each other: ci, vi, si« Each other » and « themselves » are one form here.
- The passive with siThe verb follows the thing, not the sign-writer.
- Collective nounsBoth English instincts push the wrong way here.
- Adjectives + prepositionAnd it can never be left at the end of the sentence.
- Conjunctions + subjunctivebenché, affinché, purché take the congiuntivo; perché (because), poiché and finché do not.
- Reported orders and requests« He told me to wait » — the same shape, with di instead of « to ».
- The future after quando and seThe one rule English does not merely avoid but forbids.
- Past subjunctive: fossi, avessi« If I were » in every tense, and not only in that one phrase.
- Adjective + infinitive« Easy to read » and « it is easy to read » are two constructions here.
- Advising and recommending« Should » and « you'd better », with the same threat inside.
- Job titles in the feminineEnglish is dropping these; Italian is building them.
- B2Getting exact: stance, degree, subordinate clause.
- Third conditional: se avessi saputo« If I had known, I would have come » — the same shape, twice over.
- The gerund: parlandoYour dangling participle, and here it really is a mistake.
- Tense shift in reported speechOnly when the reporting verb is in the past — as in English.
- Future perfect (futuro anteriore)« Will have finished » — and, unlike English, after « when » as well.
- The passive with venireIt separates what « is closed » leaves together.
- Fronting for emphasisEnglish can front an object and stop there; here it has to leave a pronoun behind.
- Conditions without se« Unless » already carries its negative — and so does a meno che non.
- Past historic (passato remoto)A past chosen by the page and by the map, never by the clock.
- Mixed conditionsA past condition with a consequence that is still going on.
- Sequence of tenses with the congiuntivoWhen the main clause is in the past, the subordinate moves back with it.
- fare and lasciare + infinitive« Make » and « let », with the doer in an unexpected place.
- Relative pronouns: il qualeThe preposition goes to the front and takes cui with it.
- Reported questionsNo question mark — and nothing to undo, because nothing was inverted.
- Wishes and regretsThere is no verb for « I wish » — a word does the work instead.
- Future in the pastOne English word, « would », and two unrelated Italian forms.
- andare + participle: must beandare plus a participle carries an instruction inside it.
- The set phrases with ci and neSix of the commonest sentences in the language, and none of them can be taken apart.
- The past infinitive« After eating » is not enough here.
- The reporting verbsAnd « pretendere » is not « to pretend ».
- Connectors instead of seFive of them, and only one takes the indicative.
- C1The fine grain: tone, register, rare forms.
- Word order inversionNothing here is ungrammatical — and that is what makes it hard to correct.
- Rules and signsA sign here addresses nobody at all.
- The nominal style« On arrival » is al mio arrivo — and the article is not optional.
- Softening and hedgingEnglish has no -ino, and « a small problem » is not the same move.
- C2The rest — the part native speakers look up too.
- The congiuntivo in a main clauseWith no verb to trigger it, the congiuntivo carries commands, wishes and reservations on its own.
- Register: officialese and conversationBoth registers are correct — just not in the same text.
The finish: the whole grammar
133 topics, from the first sentences to the finishing touches.
How to read the path. Every dot is a grammar topic; a click opens it. The colour of a dot is its category, the colour of the path is the difficulty — green and easy at the top, berry red and hard at the bottom. Within a level the categories follow one another, but you need not take them in order: you can work on a tense and on a topic from another category side by side.
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