Can I charge my phone?
'Caricare' — 'ca-ri-CA-re'. Four syllables; stress on the third. In modern Italian it means both 'to load' and 'to charge (a device)'.
Ask when your phone battery is low during a long airport or intercity transfer, as many newer Italian taxis have USB charging points.
'Caricare' means to charge (a device). 'Il telefono' is the phone. Many newer Italian taxis are equipped with USB-A or USB-C ports in the rear passenger area. Asking first is polite.
Ha un cavo USB?
Do you have a USB cable?
Checks if the driver has a charging cable you can borrow.
C'è una presa USB dietro?
Is there a USB port in the back?
Asks specifically about rear-passenger charging points.
La batteria è scarica. Posso attaccare il telefono?
My battery is dead. Can I plug in my phone?
Explains urgency; 'attaccare' colloquially means to plug in.
Newer Italian taxi fleets increasingly feature rear USB ports and sometimes Wi-Fi. For long transfers (e.g., Rome Fiumicino to the city), having phone power is important for navigation and boarding passes.