In English, we say that someone "is" a certain age. In Italian, you don't "be" an age—you "have" years. You express this using the verb avere (to have) followed by the number and the word anni (years).
| My son is three years old. | Mio figlio ha tre anni. |
Physical States with Avere
Italian also uses avere to describe many physical and emotional states where English uses the verb "to be." Instead of saying you are hungry or sleepy, you say that you have hunger or sleepiness.
Here are some common expressions with avere:
- avere fame (to be hungry / to have hunger)
- avere sonno (to be sleepy / to have sleepiness)
- avere fretta (to be in a hurry / to have haste)
- avere freddo (to be cold / to have cold)
- avere fortuna (to be lucky / to have luck)
You will often use words like sempre (always), ora (now), perché (why / because), and quando (when) to add context to these states.
| My brother is fifteen years old and he is always hungry. | Mio fratello ha quindici anni e ha sempre fame. |
| Are you sleepy now? | Hai sonno ora? |
| The baby is sleepy because it is night. | Il bambino ha sonno perché è notte. |
| Why are you in a hurry? | Perché hai fretta? |
You can also use avere with a definite article to talk about ailments, such as avere la febbre (to have a fever).
| When I have a fever, I am cold. | Quando ho la febbre, ho freddo. |
| My cousin is always lucky. | Mio cugino ha sempre fortuna. |
Needs and Desires
To express that you need or are in the mood for something, Italian combines avere, a noun, and the preposition di (of):
- avere bisogno di (to need / to have need of)
- avere voglia di (to want, to be in the mood for / to have desire of)
Simply add the thing you need or want directly after di.
| Now we need a doctor. | Ora abbiamo bisogno di un medico. |
| I am not hungry, but I am in the mood for a snack. | Non ho fame, ma ho voglia di uno spuntino. |
