Talking about the weather is one of the most universal small-talk topics, and Italians have a rich set of structures to do it. The main question is Che tempo fa? (What's the weather like?), and the answer often uses the verb fare with a noun: Fa caldo (It's hot), Fa freddo (It's cold), Fa bel tempo (The weather's nice), Fa brutto tempo (The weather's bad), Fa fresco (It's cool). Other expressions use specific impersonal verbs that exist only in the third person singular: piove (it's raining), nevica (it's snowing), grandina (it's hailing), tuona (it's thundering), lampeggia (there's lightning). And many use c'è / ci sono with a noun: c'è il sole (it's sunny), c'è vento (it's windy), c'è nebbia (it's foggy), ci sono nuvole (it's cloudy).
In the exercises below you'll practice choosing between these three structures for each weather situation, conjugate the impersonal weather verbs in the past (ha piovuto — it rained, è nevicato — it snowed, with both auxiliaries possible for some), and learn how to talk about weather in different seasons (in primavera fa fresco, d'estate fa caldissimo, in autunno piove spesso, d'inverno nevica). You'll also pick up natural follow-up expressions like fa caldo afoso (it's muggy), c'è un sole bellissimo (the sun is gorgeous), and piove a dirotto (it's pouring). Weather is the perfect topic to break the ice with anyone, anywhere in Italy.
Weather is one of the most common topics in everyday Italian conversation. The key question is 'Che tempo fa?' (What is the weather like?). Italian uses several different grammatical structures to describe weather, unlike English which almost always uses 'it is'. You will use fare (to do/make), essere (to be), specific impersonal verbs such as piove and nevica, and the construction c'è/ci sono. Mastering these patterns will let you describe weather in the present, past, and by season.
| Italian | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Fa caldo | It's hot | Most common — used for warm or hot weather |
| Fa freddo | It's cold | Used for cold weather of any kind |
| Fa bello (tempo) | It's nice weather / It's lovely | Also said as 'fa bel tempo' |
| Fa brutto (tempo) | It's bad weather / It's nasty out | Also said as 'fa brutto tempo' |
| Fa fresco | It's cool / It's fresh | Mild coolness — typical of spring and autumn |
| Fa caldo afoso | It's muggy / It's stifling hot | Humid heat, very common in Italian summers |
| Che tempo fa? | What's the weather like? | The essential question to ask about weather |
| Italian | English | Structure |
|---|---|---|
| Piove | It's raining / It rains | piovere — 3rd person singular only |
| Nevica | It's snowing / It snows | nevicare — 3rd person singular only |
| Grandina | It's hailing / It hails | grandinare — 3rd person singular only |
| Tuona | It's thundering / It thunders | tuonare — 3rd person singular only |
| Lampeggia | There's lightning / It's lightning | lampeggiare — 3rd person singular only |
| Tira vento | It's windy | tirare vento — literally 'wind is blowing' |
| C'è il sole | It's sunny | c'è + definite article + noun |
| C'è vento | It's windy | c'è + noun without article |
| C'è nebbia | It's foggy | c'è + noun without article |
| C'è (un) temporale | There's a storm | c'è + noun |
| Ci sono le nuvole | It's cloudy | ci sono + plural noun with article |
| È nuvoloso | It's cloudy | essere + adjective |
| È sereno | It's clear / It's fair | essere + adjective |
| È umido | It's humid / It's damp | essere + adjective |
| È nebbioso | It's foggy | essere + adjective |
Italian uses two main past tenses for weather. The imperfetto (imperfect) describes weather as a background condition or ongoing state in the past: 'Ieri faceva freddo' (Yesterday it was cold), 'Quando ero bambino, nevicava spesso d'inverno' (When I was a child, it often snowed in winter). The passato prossimo describes a completed weather event: 'Ieri è piovuto tutto il giorno' (Yesterday it rained all day), 'Ha fatto molto caldo questa settimana' (It has been very hot this week), 'È nevicato stanotte' (It snowed last night). Note that piovere, nevicare, and grandinare use essere as their auxiliary in the passato prossimo: è piovuto, è nevicato, è grandinato.
| Season | In Italian | Typical Weather Expressions |
|---|---|---|
| Spring — la primavera | in primavera | fa fresco, piove spesso, c'è il sole a tratti, è nuvoloso |
| Summer — l'estate | in estate | fa molto caldo, c'è il sole, fa caldo afoso, ci sono i temporali |
| Autumn — l'autunno | in autunno | fa fresco, piove, c'è nebbia, tira vento, fa brutto tempo |
| Winter — l'inverno | in inverno | fa freddo, nevica, grandina, c'è ghiaccio, fa molto freddo |
This is one of the most important distinctions for learners. 'Fa caldo' means the weather or environment is hot — it is an impersonal expression about the outside temperature or a room. 'Ho caldo' (literally 'I have heat') means I personally feel hot — it describes your body's sensation. Similarly: 'Ho freddo' = I am cold (I feel cold), 'Fa freddo' = It is cold (the weather). You NEVER say 'Sono caldo' or 'Sono freddo' to mean you feel hot or cold — in Italian those phrases carry a completely different meaning. Always use avere for personal body temperature sensations: ho caldo, ho freddo, hai caldo?, ha freddo?
To express temperature in Italian: 'La temperatura è di venti gradi' (The temperature is twenty degrees) or more casually 'Fa venti gradi' (It's twenty degrees). Italy uses Celsius. Common phrases: 'Sono zero gradi' (It's zero degrees), 'Fa meno dieci' (It's minus ten), 'Ci sono trenta gradi all'ombra' (It's thirty degrees in the shade). To ask: 'Quanti gradi fa?' (How many degrees is it?) — answer: 'Fa ventitré gradi' (It's twenty-three degrees). The word 'grado/gradi' is always used for temperature degrees.
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Fare + Weather: Basic Expressions
10 questions
Fare + Weather: Choosing the Right Expression
10 questions
Fare + Weather: Translation Practice
10 questions
Fare + Weather: Identifying Errors
10 questions
Fare + Weather: Fill in the Blank
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Fare + Weather: Seasons and Context
10 questions
Fare + Weather: Multiple Expressions in Context
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Fare + Weather: Negation and Questions
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Fare + Weather: Sentence Completion
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Fare + Weather: Review and Consolidation
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Specific Weather Verbs: Piove, Nevica, Grandina
10 questions
Specific Weather Verbs: Choosing Correctly
10 questions
Specific Weather Verbs: Past Tense Forms
10 questions
Specific Weather Verbs: Matching Verbs to Scenes
10 questions
Specific Weather Verbs: Fill in the Blank
10 questions
Specific Weather Verbs: Intensifiers and Adverbs
10 questions
Specific Weather Verbs: Future and Forecasts
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Specific Weather Verbs: Translation
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Specific Weather Verbs: Mixed Practice
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Specific Weather Verbs: Consolidation Fill-in
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C'è / Ci Sono: Weather Expressions
10 questions
Essere + Adjective: Weather Descriptions
10 questions
C'è / Ci Sono vs. Essere + Adjective
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C'è / Ci Sono: Weather in Context
10 questions
C'è, Ci Sono and Essere: Fill in the Blank
10 questions
Weather Adjectives and Nouns: Vocabulary Building
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C'è / Ci Sono in the Past
10 questions
All Weather Structures: Comparing and Choosing
10 questions
Weather Descriptions: Full Sentences
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C'è / Ci Sono / Essere: Review Fill in the Blank
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Weather in the Past: Imperfetto
10 questions
Weather in the Past: Passato Prossimo
10 questions
Imperfetto vs Passato Prossimo: Weather
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Past Weather: Narrative Contexts
10 questions
Past Weather: Fill in the Blank
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Past Weather: Habitual vs Specific Events
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Past Weather: Complete the Conversation
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Past Weather: Auxiliary Verbs (essere vs avere)
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Past Weather: Mixed Review
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Past Weather: Group 4 Review Fill in the Blank
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Ho Caldo vs Fa Caldo: Personal vs Weather
10 questions
Seasons and Weather: Mixed Expressions
10 questions
Temperature Expressions
10 questions
Mixed Weather: All Structures
10 questions
Ho Caldo vs Fa Caldo: Fill in the Blank
10 questions
Weather Forecasts and Future Tense
10 questions
Weather Vocabulary: Choosing the Right Word
10 questions
Weather in Context: Real-Life Situations
10 questions
Weather Expressions: Final Mixed Review
10 questions
Weather Expressions: Complete Final Review
10 questions
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Use the verb "fare": "Che tempo fa?" (What’s the weather like?), "Fa caldo" (It’s hot), "Fa freddo" (It’s cold), "Fa bel tempo" (The weather is nice), "Fa brutto tempo" (The weather is bad). With rain or snow use specific verbs: "piove" (it’s raining), "nevica" (it’s snowing).
Both essere and avere are accepted: "Ieri ha piovuto" or "Ieri è piovuto" (Yesterday it rained). Essere is more common in spoken Italian, while avere is sometimes preferred in writing. Both are correct.
Common phrases: "ci sono 25 gradi" (it’s 25 degrees), "è una giornata di sole" (it’s a sunny day), "c’è vento" (it’s windy), "c’è nebbia" (it’s foggy), "il cielo è coperto" (the sky is overcast). Notice the mix of fare, essere, esserci verbs.
A2 Topics