Il bigliettaio mi dice che il prossimo treno parte alle diciannove.

Bigliettaio means ticket clerk, ticket seller, or the person who works at the ticket office.

It comes from biglietto = ticket.

Related words:

• biglietto = ticket
• biglietteria = ticket office
• bigliettaio = male ticket clerk
• bigliettaia = female ticket clerk

In everyday use, il bigliettaio here means the person at the station who is giving the information.

Italian often uses the definite article where English might not.

So il bigliettaio literally means the ticket clerk.

In this sentence, it refers to a specific person in the situation: the clerk the speaker is talking to. Even if English might sometimes say the ticket clerk or just the clerk, Italian normally keeps the article.

Mi means to me.

So:

• dice = says / tells
• mi dice = tells me / says to me

The full idea is: The ticket clerk tells me that...

Italian usually uses an indirect object pronoun like mi, ti, gli, le, ci, vi before the verb:

• mi dice = tells me
• ti dice = tells you
• ci dice = tells us

You could also say dice a me, but that is less neutral and usually more emphatic. Mi dice is the normal choice.

Dice is the third-person singular present of dire = to say / to tell.

So:

• io dico = I say
• tu dici = you say
• lui/lei dice = he/she says

It is in the present because the speaker is reporting what is happening now: the ticket clerk tells me...

In context, English might translate it as either:

• The ticket clerk tells me...
• The ticket clerk says to me...

This is very common in both Italian and English with schedules, timetables, and fixed events.

Il prossimo treno parte alle diciannove literally uses the present tense, but it refers to a scheduled future event:

• The next train leaves at 19:00

Italian often uses the present for this kind of future meaning:

• Il film inizia alle otto = The film starts at eight
• L’aereo arriva domani = The plane arrives tomorrow

You could sometimes use a future form, but the present is very natural for timetabled events.

Che here means that.

It connects the two parts of the sentence:

• Il bigliettaio mi dice = The ticket clerk tells me
• che il prossimo treno parte alle diciannove = that the next train leaves at nineteen

So che introduces a subordinate clause.

Unlike English, where that is often optional, in Italian che is usually kept:

• Mi dice che parte alle diciannove = He tells me that it leaves at 19:00

Leaving out che would normally sound wrong here.

In Italian, adjectives can come before or after the noun, but the position can affect what sounds natural or even the meaning.

Prossimo often comes before the noun when it means next in a sequence:

• il prossimo treno = the next train
• la prossima fermata = the next stop

So il prossimo treno is the normal way to say the next train.

Also notice agreement:

• il prossimo treno = masculine singular
• la prossima stazione = feminine singular
• i prossimi treni = masculine plural
• le prossime fermate = feminine plural

When telling time, Italian uses a:

• a mezzogiorno = at noon
• all’una = at one
• alle due = at two

Here, alle is a contraction of a + le:

• a + le = alle

Since diciannove means nineteen, you get:

• alle diciannove = at 19:00 / at seven p.m.

So:

• parte alle diciannove = leaves at 19:00

Italian commonly uses the 24-hour clock, especially in formal situations like:

• train times
• bus schedules
• announcements
• tickets
• timetables

So diciannove means 19:00, which is 7 p.m.

In casual speech, people may also use the 12-hour system, but in travel contexts the 24-hour format is extremely common and often preferred because it avoids confusion.

Examples:

• alle tredici = at 1 p.m.
• alle diciotto = at 6 p.m.
• alle ventuno = at 9 p.m.

It can correspond to either, depending on how you translate it into natural English.

• dire often means to say
• but with an indirect object like mi, it can be very natural to translate it as to tell

So:

• Il bigliettaio mi dice che...
  can be understood as
• The ticket clerk tells me that...
  or
• The ticket clerk says to me that...

In normal English, tells me is usually the smoother translation here.

The sentence as given is the most neutral and natural order:

Il bigliettaio mi dice che il prossimo treno parte alle diciannove.

Italian word order is somewhat flexible, but changes usually add emphasis or sound less neutral.

For example:

• Il bigliettaio dice che il prossimo treno parte alle diciannove.
  This is also fine, but it removes mi = to me.
• A me il bigliettaio dice che...
  This adds emphasis to to me.
• Il prossimo treno parte alle diciannove, mi dice il bigliettaio.
  This is possible, but it sounds more like written narration or reported speech.

So yes, Italian allows some movement, but the original version is the standard everyday one.

Yes, but it means something slightly different.

• mi dice = tells me / says to me
• mi sta dicendo = is telling me / is in the process of telling me

The original sentence uses the simple present, which is the most normal choice here.

Mi sta dicendo would emphasize the action as ongoing right now. It is grammatical, but it is less neutral unless you specifically want to stress the ongoing moment of speaking.

So in this context, mi dice is the better default choice.