How to say “Well” and “Good” in Italian
One of the main challenges my students face is the many ways Italian has to express what is often simplified as “good” in English.
In fact, in Italian there are specific and distinct words that we use to express different shades of meanings of the word “good”. The four main words you’ll encounter are buono, bravo, bello, and bene.
While all of these words can be translated as “good” in English, their usage varies greatly depending on the context:
- Buono is the word you’ll hear most often when describing food or someone’s moral character. If something is good in a general sense or tasty, buono is your go-to word.
- Bravo is used when referring to someone’s ability or skill. When someone excels at something, be it a talent or a specific task, you use bravo.
- Bello deals with aesthetics and beauty. Whether you’re complimenting a person’s physical appearance, a scenic landscape, or a beautiful experience, bello is the word you want to use.
- Bene is an adverb, used to modify verbs rather than nouns. It describes how well something is done, or how someone feels. When you want to talk about doing something well or feeling good, bene is the appropriate choice.
These four words will allow you to distinguish between different types of “good”. So, before simply using the word “good”, consider the context: are you praising someone’s skill? Commenting on food? Talking about beauty or how well something was done?
Let me guide you through the different translations and uses of these Italian words.
How to Use “Buono”, “Bravo”, “Bello”, “Bene”
“Buono” in Italian
Buono is an adjective that you can use to talk about food or moral goodness. It’s your go-to word when something is tasty or when you’re describing someone as good-hearted or kind:
Questa torta è buona.
This cake is good.
Lui è un uomo buono.
He is a good man.
As all adjectives, it agrees in gender and number with the noun it describes, resulting in the following forms:
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | buono / buon | buoni |
| Feminine | buona / buon’ | buone |
As you can see, there are different alternatives for the singular forms. This is because it depends on the noun it precedes. To make it easier, I always tell my students to treat the adjective buono as the definite article il, as their behavior is the same!
“Bravo” in Italian
Bravo also is an adjective and it is used to praise someone’s skill or competence. It’s the word you use when someone is good at something, such as playing an instrument or giving a performance:
Sei bravo a suonare il piano.
You’re good at playing the piano.
As you can see, if you want to express that someone is good at something, in Italian we use the preposition a followed by a verb in the present infinitive.
Also, as an adjective, also bravo must agree in gender and number with the noun:
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | bravo | bravi |
| Feminine | brava | brave |
Just remember, bravo has nothing to do with physical beauty or attractiveness; those qualities are expressed with bello.
“Bello” in Italian
Bello is another adjective that you can use for anything visually appealing or aesthetically pleasing. Whether you’re talking about a person, a place, or an object, bello captures the idea of beauty:
Questa città è bella.
This city is beautiful.
Sei davvero bello.
You are really beautiful.
Also bello changes to match the gender and number of the noun it describes:
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | bello / bel | belli |
| Feminine | bella / bell’ | belle |
In this context, it is more similar to buon than to bravo, as it has different forms depending on the type of nouns it precedes.
“Bene” in Italian
Unlike all other words I described so far, bene is an adverb, not an adjective. It modifies verbs rather than nouns, describing how something is done, rather than what something is:
Sto bene.
I’m well.
Hai parlato molto bene alla conferenza.
You spoke very well at the conference.
Unlike adjectives, adverbs like bene do not change their form: they are invariable. So, if you want to say something is good, you use buono, but if you want to say something was done well, you use bene.
Buono vs Bravo
Understanding the distinction between buono and bravo is essential because they both translate to “good” but apply to different contexts.
Buono refers to the goodness of food or someone’s character, while bravo is about skill and competence:
Questa pasta è buona, sei bravo a cucinare.
This pasta is good, you are good at cooking.
You wouldn’t use bravo to describe food or moral goodness, and similarly, you wouldn’t use buono to compliment someone’s ability to perform well.
Bene vs Bravo
The difference between bene and bravo revolves around the distinction between these words being respectively an adverb and an adjective.
Bravo is an adjective that describes skills, while bene is an adverb that describes how an action is performedç
Sai dipingere bene! Sei bravo come pittore.
You can paint well! You’re good as a painter.
Remember, bene never describes a person or thing, only how something is done. Use bravo for talent or behavior and bene for actions.
Buono vs Bene
The distinction between buono and bene is another key difference to master. Buono is an adjective used to describe nouns, whether it’s food, people, or things, while bene is an adverb that is used exclusively with verbs to describe how something is done:
Il cibo è buono, hai cucinato molto bene.
The food is good, you cooked very well.
While buono gives information about what something is, bene explains how something is done.
