Learn Italian: Mio padre sta male, ma ora sta meglio. - My father is unwell, but now he is better.

In Italian, the verb stare (which often means to stay) is used to talk about health and how someone is feeling. English uses 'to be', but translating that literally to essere would be incorrect here. This is why we say sta male for 'he is unwell' instead of using è.

Why is it Mio padre and not Il mio padre? Don't possessives usually need an article?

Normally, possessives in Italian do take a definite article, as in il mio cane (my dog). However, there is a special exception for family members. When talking about a singular, closely related family member like padre or madre, you drop the article and just use the possessive: Mio padre.

Why do we use male here instead of an adjective like cattivo (bad)?

Because the verb stare describes a state of being or condition, it pairs with adverbs (words that describe verbs) rather than adjectives. Male is the adverb meaning 'badly' or 'unwell'. You would use the adjective cattivo to describe a noun, like a bad dog or a bad movie.

Is meglio related to the word male in this sentence?