Learn Hardcore Italian: Vorrei prenotare un tavolo per due persone, per stasera alle otto. - I would like to book a table for two, for this evening at eight.

Vorrei is the first person singular conditional form of volere, which means “I would like”. The conditional is used to make the request more polite and less direct compared to using the present tense (e.g., voglio, meaning “I want”).

What does prenotare mean, and why is it in the infinitive?

Prenotare means “to book” or “to reserve”. In Italian, after a modal verb like vorrei, the main verb is kept in its infinitive form. This construction is similar to English, as in “I would like to book”.

How do the prepositions per and alle function in this sentence?

The preposition per is used to indicate purpose or allocation. It appears twice: once in “per due persone” (meaning “for two people”) and once in “per stasera” (meaning “for tonight”). The preposition alle is a contraction of “a le” and is used in time expressions, here meaning “at eight”.

Why is tavolo used with the article un instead of using a feminine form like una tavola?

In Italian, nouns are gendered. Tavolo is a masculine noun, so it takes the masculine indefinite article un. Although tavola also means “table”, it is generally used in different contexts (for example, referring to a dining table in a home setting), whereas tavolo is the common term for a table at a restaurant.

What does stasera mean in this context?

Stasera translates to “tonight” in English. It specifies the time frame for the reservation, indicating that it is intended for the evening of the current day.

Why is the time expression written as alle otto instead of a otto?

In Italian, when stating time, especially with plural hours, the preposition a combines with the definite article le to form alle. Thus, alle otto correctly means “at eight” in a formal time expression.