Learn Hardcore Italian: Quando parli con gli amici, il tono diventa più colloquiale. - When you talk with friends, the tone becomes more colloquial.

In Italian the masculine plural article gli is required before nouns that begin with a vowel (and also before z or s + consonant). Since amici starts with the vowel a, you say gli amici rather than i amici.

Why don’t we say tu parli instead of just parli in Quando parli?

Italian often drops the subject pronoun because the verb ending already tells you who is doing the action. parli ends in -i, so it clearly means “you speak.” Adding tu would be grammatically correct but redundant, unless you want to emphasize “you.”

What tense are parli and diventa, and why is the present tense used?

Both parli (“you speak”) and diventa (“it becomes”) are in the present indicative. Italian uses the present indicative to describe habitual actions or general truths—here, the recurring situation: “when you speak with friends, the tone becomes more colloquial.”

Why is there a comma after amici?

The comma separates the subordinate temporal clause (Quando parli con gli amici) from the main clause (il tono diventa più colloquiale). In Italian, when a subordinate clause precedes the main clause, it’s common (though not mandatory) to mark that boundary with a comma.

Why do we use the definite article il in il tono, and not un tono?

We use il because we’re referring to the particular tone of your speech (a specific concept). un tono would mean “a tone” in a more abstract or unspecified sense, which doesn’t fit here since we’re talking about the known tone you use with friends.

How does più colloquiale form a comparison?

più means “more,” so together più colloquiale literally means “more colloquial.” Italians often form comparatives with più + adjective (and sometimes add di or che when comparing two things explicitly). Here it’s clear we’re comparing your tone with friends to your tone in other settings, so più colloquiale suffices.

What kind of word is colloquiale, and how does it agree?

colloquiale is a third-declension adjective ending in -e. Singular adjectives ending in -e are identical for masculine and feminine. If you needed the plural, you’d say colloquiali (for both genders). Since tono is masculine singular, you use colloquiale.

Could you swap the clauses and say Il tono diventa più colloquiale quando parli con gli amici?

Yes. Italian allows both orders. Putting the main clause first makes the sentence feel more neutral, while leading with Quando parli… emphasizes the condition or timing.

Can I say Quando stai parlando con gli amici instead of Quando parli?

Yes, you can. Quando stai parlando uses the present continuous (stare + gerund) and focuses on the action in progress (“when you’re speaking with friends”). The simple present (parli) here conveys a more general or habitual scenario.

Could I use si fa instead of diventa—as in il tono si fa più colloquiale?

Absolutely. diventare and (si) fare can both mean “to become.” il tono si fa più colloquiale is perfectly natural and carries almost the same nuance; si fa sometimes feels a bit more colloquial itself.