[Italian Vocabulary] Words and Phrases To Talk About Magazines and Newspapers

Newspapers and paper magazines may slowly disappear from our lives, but their specific vocabulary is not.

While I was preparing a YouTube livestream where I focused on the contents of an Italian magazine, I realized that the Italian vocabulary you need to know to talk about this topic is quite wide and applicable not only to paper magazines and newspapers but to their digital versions as well.

During the livestream, I went through a long list of Italian words and phrases related to journalism and print media and I thought it could be useful to also write a blog post about the topic. In addition, as I always do with vocabulary and grammar blog posts, I created a downloadable PDF file that you can save and keep for future reference. You can find the file on Your Italian Toolbox, the password-protected page on my site where I upload all my materials for language learning, under the section Vocabulary (you can access it by subscribing to my newsletter).

But now let’s dive into the Italian vocabulary for magazines and newspapers.

Giornale: (noun, masculine) generic for newspaper, paper, magazine

Example: “Come lo hai saputo?” “L’ho letto su un giornale” – “How did you know that?” “I read it in a newspaper”

Rivista: (noun, feminine) magazine

Example: Mi piacciono moltissimo le riviste di arredamento e di moda – I love interior design and fashion magazines

Quotidiano: (noun, masculine) newspaper

Example: Mio papà compra ancora il quotidiano ogni giorno. Io invece lo leggo online  – My father still buys a newspaper every day. I read it online instead

Giornalista: (noun, masculine and feminine) journalist

Example: Ho sempre sognato di fare il giornalista e di lavorare per un grande quotidiano – I have always dreamt of being a journalist and working for a big newspaper

Direttore o direttrice: (noun, masculine and feminine) executive editor

Example: Ho parlato con il direttore del giornale e mi ha detto che licenzieranno molti giornalisti – I spoke with the magazines’s editor-in-chief and he told me they would fire many journalists

Redazione: (noun, feminine) editorial staff

Example: La redazione non approva la decisione del direttore, ma è costretta ad accettarla – The editorial staff doesn’t approve of the editor-in-chief’s decision but they are forced to accept it

Numero: (noun, masculine) issue

Example: “Ha il numero di aprile di Donna Moderna?” “Non è ancora arrivato” – “Do you have the April issue of Donna Moderna?” “It hasn’t arrived yet.”

Copertina: (noun, feminine) cover

Example: Quella rivista ha sempre delle copertine bellissime, sono delle opere d’arte – That magazine always has beautiful covers, they are works of art

Sommario: (noun, masculine) index

Example: “Non trovo l’articolo di cui mi hai parlato” “Prova a cercare il titolo nel sommario” – “I can’t find the article you told me about” “Try looking its title up in the index”

Articolo: (noun, masculine) article, piece

Example: Mi piacciono tutti gli articoli che scrive quel giornalista; li leggo sempre  – I love all the articles written by that journalist; I always read them!

Intervista: (noun, feminine) interview

Example: “Hai letto l’intervista a Sofia Loren?” “Non ancora, ma non voglio perdermela” – “Have you read the interview with Sofia Loren?” “Not yet, but I don’t want to miss it.”

Titolo: (noun, masculine) title

Example: Quel titolo non c’entra niente con il contenuto dell’articolo – That title doesn’t have anything to do with the content of the article

Trafiletto: (noun, masculine) short article

Example: “Non ho visto la notizia sul giornale” “C’era solo un piccolo trafiletto” – “I haven’t seen the news in the paper” “There was only a short article”

Servizio: (noun, masculine) service, story, piece, report

Example: Finalmente oggi esce il servizio che ho scritto sulle sfilate parigine – The story I wrote about Paris fashion shows is finally out today

Rubrica: (noun, feminine) section, column

Example: Mi hanno chiesto di scrivere una rubrica mensile che parli di amore – They asked me to write a monthly column about love

Recensione: (noun, feminine) review

Example: La mia rubrica preferita della rivista è quella sui libri. Leggo ogni recensione con molta attenzione!  – My favourite section in the magazine is the one about books. I read every review really carefully!

Pubblicità: (noun, feminine) advertisement

Example: Questa rivista costa tantissimo ed è piena di pubblicità! – This magazine is very expensive and is full of ads!

Pubblicare: (verb, transitive) to publish

Example: Si pubblicano ancora moltissimi giornali. Mi chiedo se si vendano – A lot of newspapers are still published nowadays. I wonder if they sell as well.

Uscire: (verb, intransitive) to be out

Example: Domani esce il nuovo numero di Elle. Non vedo l’ora di leggerlo! – The new issue of Elle is out tomorrow. I can’t wait to read it!

Do you read Italian newspapers or magazines? How do you find them?

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I created a downloadable PDF file for you to keep for future reference. You will find it in Your Italian Toolbox, the private page on my site where I upload all language learning materials, under the section Vocabulary. If can access the page by simply subscribing to my newsletter.

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Are you looking for an Italian practice book that can help you work on your language skills in a fun and relaxed way? Well, I can recommend two! Un’estate al lago and Andiamo al mare are two practice books I wrote to help B1 students practice Italian grammar, listening, reading comprehension, and writing while reading a fun story and learning more about Italian pop culture.