What does Quando Mean in Italian?

If you’ve ever heard the famous line “Dimmi quando tornerai, dimmi quando… quando… quando…” from an Italian song, you may have wondered what the word “quando” means.

In Italian, “quando” is one of the Five Ws, and as one of the most basic Italian words, “quando” means “when” and is used in a variety of contexts, including as a question-word and conjunction.

Understanding “quando” is essential for anyone who wants to learn Italian and start forming time-related sentences.

In this article, we’ll take a closer look at the different ways “quando” is used in Italian and why it’s a must-know word.

Start here

You’ll receive my free resources together with my best offers! Opt out at any time.

Summary

The text discusses the meaning of the Italian word "quando," which is one of the Five Ws in the Italian language (chi, cosa, dove, quando, perché).

Quando means "when" in English and is used as a question word or conjunction. It can also be used to compare two opposite situations, implying incompatibility between the two. The word "mai" (never) can be paired with "quando" in a rhetorical question to imply that something has never happened for sure.

The article also mentions Stefano's course as the best learning resource for language learners. In addition, the text offers a free guide on how to learn languages fast and suggests taking an Italian language quiz for total beginners (A1) to practice using time-related words in Italian.

What does quando mean in Italian? We’ve all heard this word at least once. It’s featured in the most famous line of the most famous 20th-century Italian song.

Dimmi quando tornerai, dimmi quando… quando… quando…

Sounds familiar? Turns out, quando is one of the first words you should learn when you start learning Italian. Let’s see why.

quando is one of the Italian five ws

The Meaning of Quando

Quando is one of the Italian Five Ws (chi, cosa, dove, quando, perché) – questions that are the basis of information-gathering and problem-solving processes.

Italian study time calculator

Are you in a hurry? Find out how long it will take you to reach your target level of Italian with my free calculator.

It only takes 3 minutes!

Just fill out this simple form to find your ideal study schedule and get on the right track.

I’ll create your free lifetime account to store your study plan so that you may review it at any time. I’ll take you to your dashboard where you’ll find all my free resources.

On your dashboard, you’ll get to take some of my courses for free. I’ll also send you my best offers and free resources by email. You may opt out at any time.

Yes, all this is free for you!

   
Your language skills
How would you rate your skills in your native language? is required.
Were you raised bilingual (or more)? is required.
Have you ever reached an intermediate proficiency in a foreign language? is required.
Have you ever reached an intermediate proficiency in a foreign language? is required.

Namely French, Spanish, Portuguese, or Romanian.

How old are you? is required.
Create a study schedule
Your current Italian level is required.
Set the target level higher than your current one.
Elementary: Can communicate in simple and routine tasks.
Intermediate: Can deal with most situations likely to arise while traveling.
Upper-intermediate: Can interact regularly without strain with native speakers.
Your target Italian level is required.
Set the target level higher than your current one.
Deadline is required.
Based on your weekly time commitment, you need extra days to meet the deadline.
Example: your next trip to Italy.
Deadline is required.
In order to meet your deadline, you need to commit extra hours/week.

Yes! If you follow the plan, you'll be speaking Italian at Advanced level by .

Intensive
Intensive

In the intensive plan, you commit 2 hours per day.

Diversify your study activities to cover all the language skills that you need: speaking, listening, writing, and reading.

Even though you could argue that more your study, the faster you learn, I wouldn't recommend studying more than a couple of hours a day because the gain from extra time gradually gets smaller.

At the end of this form, you'll get a detailed weekly plan with all the study activites you need to reach your goal. 100% free!

Regular
Intensive

With a regular plan, you practice 1 hour a day, every day.

Taking 2 live 1-on-1 lessons per week with a qualified teacher or an experienced native tutor is a good pace to practice speaking and get feedback.

This plan is the closest to the one I follow myself and I can assure that you'll make steady progress.

At the end of this form, you'll get a detailed weekly plan with all the study activites you need to reach your goal. 100% free!

Free
Intensive

There's plenty of free resources online to make the free plan viable.

You need to substitute paid 1-on-1 tutoring with language exchange with native speakers or find other venues to practice speaking. This can be time-consuming and you need to make up for lack of guidance with self-study.

At the end of this form, you'll get a detailed weekly plan with all the study activites you need to reach your goal. 100% free!

Get your results

You're almost there!

After you submit this form, you'll receive the results in your mailbox and will see the study schedule based on your level and the plan that you selected.

These questions below are not used to create your study plan, but I'd love to know more to make my service more relevant to you!

What's your reason for learning Italian? is required.
How long have you been studying Italian? is required.
What are you struggling with? is required.
Gender is required.
Your first name is required.
You'll receive the results together with my best free resources to learn faster. You may opt out at any time.

1000s of happy learners on their way to fluency

As you can guess, this makes it a must-know for everyone who wants to start speaking and writing in Italian.

Free Guide
How to Learn Languages Fast

If you think about the hierarchy of the Five Ws, the meaning of quando is quite clear: it is the Italian word for “when”. Just like in English, you can use it:

  • as a question-word, like in: “When will we meet again?”
  • as a conjunction, like in: “I love it when you smile.

Quando sei libero per un caffè?

When are you free for a coffee?

Da quando si è iscritto a quel corso di Filologia Germanica non parla d’altro. Se sento un’altra parola sulla rotazione consonantica divento matto!

Since when he signed up for that German Philology class, he doesn’t talk about anything else. If I hear one more word about the consonant shift, I’m gonna lose my mind!

Quando can also be used to make a comparison between two opposite situations. In these cases, it implies some incompatibility between the two.

E’ assurdo che lui faccia l’offeso, quando dovrei essere io ad arrabbiarmi.

It’s absurd that he acts like he’s offended when I should be the one getting angry.

Finally, you can also pair it with mai (“never”) in a rhetorical question to imply that something has never happened for sure.

Quando mai ho fatto una cosa del genere?

When did I ever do such a thing?

Quando Italian question words

Dimmi quando… tornerai a leggere questo blog

Knowing the meaning of quando is important to start forming sentences with time-related words in Italian.

If you want to take practice, you can take our Italian language quiz for total beginners (A1) and test your skill.

I’ll be back soon to teach you new Italian words. And you.. quando tornaria?

Learn more about making questions in Italian.

Still translating in your head? Wanna speak Italian for real? Check out Stefano's courses to think directly in Italian and become fluent fast!

FAQs on What does Quando Mean in Italian?

What does quando mean in Italian?

Quando is the Italian word for "when". It can be used as a question word or a conjunction, just like in English.

How is quando used in Italian sentences?

Quando can be used in a variety of ways, including as a question word, a conjunction, or to make a comparison between two opposite situations. It can also be paired with mai ("never") in a rhetorical question to imply that something has never happened for sure.

Stefano

Italian language tutor, course author, and polyglot. After learning 12 languages, I can tell you that we all master languages by listening and mimicking. With my method, you'll be speaking Italian from Lesson 1.

Follow me to fluency​

Receive my free resources once a week together with my best offers! No need to look around, just tell me where to send everything.

Follow me to fluency

Receive my free resources once a week together with my best offers! No need to look around, just tell me where to send everything.

Opt out at any time.

Leave a Reply

Share:

Still translating in your head?

Wanna speak Italian for real? Check out Stefano’s courses to think directly in Italian and become fluent fast!
Try my courses for free​
ripeti con me mockup sm

Let me show you around

How long to fluency?

Find out how long it will take you to master Italian!
Get on the right track in 3 minutes.

dolce vita logo

We're already friends!

Coming from Luca and Marina?
Here's a special deal for you!
Just tell me where I should send the coupon.

50% OFF
all language resources

We're already friends!

Coming from All Language Resources?
Here's a special deal for you!
Just tell me where I should send the coupon.

50% OFF
GRAB A COUPON NOW, REDEEM IT LATER
50% OFF

To receive free resources once a week together with my best offers, just tell me where to send everything. Opt out at any time.