Non voglio rifiutare il suo invito, ma stasera sono davvero stanco.

In Italian, non usually goes directly before the conjugated verb to make the sentence negative.

• voglio = I want
• non voglio = I do not want / I don't want

So:

• Non voglio rifiutare... = I don’t want to refuse...

This is the normal and expected position for non in a simple sentence.

After volere (to want), Italian uses an infinitive verb, just like English uses to + verb.

• voglio mangiare = I want to eat
• voglio andare = I want to go
• voglio rifiutare = I want to refuse

So rifiutare stays in the infinitive because it is the second verb depending on voglio.

Rifiutare means to refuse, to reject, or sometimes to decline, depending on context.

In this sentence, rifiutare il suo invito means:

• to refuse his/her invitation
• or more naturally in English, to decline his/her invitation

So yes, in English decline an invitation may sound slightly more polite, while rifiutare can sound a bit more direct if translated literally as refuse. But in Italian, it is a normal and common verb here.

Suo can mean:

• his
• her
• its
• your (formal you)

The exact meaning depends on context.

So il suo invito could mean:

• his invitation
• her invitation
• your invitation (when speaking formally)

Italian possessives are often less specific than English, so context usually tells you which one is meant.

In Italian, possessive adjectives usually go with a definite article:

• il mio libro = my book
• la tua macchina = your car
• il suo invito = his/her/your invitation

So using the article here is normal.

A common exception is with singular close family members:

• mia madre = my mother
• tuo fratello = your brother

But invito is not a family noun, so il suo invito is the standard form.

Usually, the normal order is:

• il suo invito

Putting the possessive after the noun is possible in some cases, but it is less neutral and often sounds emphatic, contrastive, or stylistically marked:

• l'invito suo, not someone else’s invitation

For a standard sentence, il suo invito is the best choice.

Stasera is one word, and it means this evening or tonight.

It comes historically from questa sera, but in modern Italian stasera is a very common standalone word.

You may also see:

• questa sera = this evening
• stasera = tonight / this evening

Both are correct. Stasera is especially common in everyday speech.

Italian often drops subject pronouns when they are not needed, because the verb ending already shows the subject.

• sono = I am

So io is unnecessary unless you want emphasis or contrast.

• Sono davvero stanco = I’m really tired
• Io sono davvero stanco = I’m really tired (perhaps contrasting with someone else)

This is one of the biggest differences from English.

Stanco agrees with the speaker’s gender.

• stanco = masculine singular
• stanca = feminine singular

So:

• A man would normally say sono davvero stanco
• A woman would normally say sono davvero stanca

If you are learning Italian for your own use, you should match the adjective to your gender identity and the context.

Davvero means really or truly.

• sono stanco = I am tired
• sono davvero stanco = I am really tired

Yes, it can be left out. Without it, the sentence is still correct, just less emphatic.

Similar words include:

• molto = very
• proprio = really / truly / actually, depending on context

But davvero here gives the sense of genuine emphasis: I’m really tired.

Ma means but, and it is the most straightforward choice here:

• ..., ma stasera sono davvero stanco.

You can often use però in similar situations:

• Non voglio rifiutare il suo invito, però stasera sono davvero stanco.

Both are possible, but ma is the most neutral and common simple connector.

Very roughly:

• ma = but
• però = but / however

In this sentence, ma is perfectly natural.

In English, we often say tonight without to, but with time expressions English and Italian often organize things differently.

In Italian, stasera is simply an adverbial time expression meaning tonight / this evening. It does not need a preposition here.

• Stasera sono stanco = Tonight I am tired / I’m tired tonight

Italian often places time expressions directly in the sentence without extra words.

Yes. Italian word order is flexible, although some versions are more neutral than others.

The original:

• Non voglio rifiutare il suo invito, ma stasera sono davvero stanco.

Some possible variations:

• Stasera sono davvero stanco, ma non voglio rifiutare il suo invito.
• Ma stasera sono davvero stanco, non voglio rifiutare il suo invito.
  This is less neutral and depends on tone/context.

The original sentence is natural because it first states the speaker’s intention, then gives the reason or difficulty.

It sounds fairly natural and reasonable, but by itself it can still feel a bit direct depending on the situation.

• Non voglio rifiutare il suo invito is polite in intention
• ma stasera sono davvero stanco gives an honest explanation

If you wanted to sound softer or more polite, Italian often adds expressions like:

• Mi dispiace, ma... = I’m sorry, but...
• Purtroppo... = Unfortunately...
• La ringrazio per l'invito, ma... = Thank you for the invitation, but...

So the sentence is fine, but in a real social situation, speakers often add a little more politeness around it.

Only the final adjective would normally change:

• Non voglio rifiutare il suo invito, ma stasera sono davvero stanca.

Everything else stays the same.

That is because stanco/stanca must agree with the gender of the person speaking.

Voglio is the first person singular present tense of volere (to want).

The present tense of volere is irregular:

• io voglio = I want
• tu vuoi = you want
• lui/lei vuole = he/she wants
• noi vogliamo = we want
• voi volete = you all want
• loro vogliono = they want

So voglio is not built in a regular pattern like many verbs; it is one you need to memorize.

A rough pronunciation guide:

• rifiutare ≈ ree-fyoo-tah-reh
• stasera ≈ stah-SEH-rah

A couple of helpful points:

• In rifiutare, the ri- is light, and fiu sounds like fyoo
• In stasera, the stress falls on se: sta-SE-ra

If you want to sound natural, keep the vowels clear and avoid reducing them too much the way English often does.