How to Introduce Yourself in Italian (Mi Chiamo…)
How to introduce yourself in Italian: ciao, mi chiamo, piacere — with audio, when to use tu or Lei, and handshakes vs. cheek kisses.
Linguino · Sep 23, 2026 · 8 min read
To introduce yourself in Italian, say “Ciao, mi chiamo Alex. Piacere!” — “Hi, my name is Alex. Nice to meet you!” These three short parts work with a friend of a friend, a classmate, or someone you meet at an aperitivo. The other person will usually answer with piacere and their own name.
With someone older, a new client, or a person behind a desk, change the greeting and add your last name: “Buonasera, sono Alex Smith. Piacere.” (Mi chiamo Alex Smith is fine here too.) You do not need a different speech for every situation. Choose between friendly and polite, shake hands or follow the other person’s lead, and ask one question to keep the conversation going.
How to introduce yourself in Italian in three lines
| Italian | Sounds like | Practical meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Ciao! | CHOW | Hi! (friendly: friends, people your age in social settings, anyone you call tu) |
| Mi chiamo Alex. | mee KYAH-moh | My name is Alex. |
| Piacere! | pyah-CHEH-reh | Nice to meet you! |
| E tu di dove sei? | eh too dee DOH-veh SAY | And where are you from? |
Together:
Ciao, mi chiamo Alex. Piacere!
Say it at a normal, relaxed pace. Italians often say piacere while shaking hands, so the word and the handshake can happen at the same moment.
What does “mi chiamo” mean?
Mi chiamo means “my name is,” but word by word it says “I call myself.” Chiamare is “to call,” and mi is “myself.” You do not need to analyze it to use it. Learn mi chiamo plus your name as one unit.
You will also hear sono Alex (“I’m Alex”). Both are correct and common. Sono is shorter and sounds natural in a quick exchange, especially right after someone has told you their own name: “Piacere, io sono Giulia.”
To ask for someone’s name, say Come ti chiami? (“What’s your name?”) with a friend of a friend, or Come si chiama? with someone you address politely. The next section explains that difference.
What does “piacere” mean?
Piacere means “pleasure.” At a first meeting it does the whole job of “nice to meet you” in one word. You can say it before or after your name, and you can say it alone as you shake hands.
The usual answer is piacere again, or Piacere mio (“the pleasure is mine”). A longer friendly version is Piacere di conoscerti! (“Pleasure to meet you!”). The single word is enough, and it has one practical advantage for learners: it does not change for men or women. A formal phrase such as molto lieto (said by a man) or molto lieta (said by a woman) does change, so you can leave it for later.
When you hear piacere from the other person, the names are done, and one of you will usually ask a question next.
How formal should you be? Tu or Lei?
Italian has two ways to say “you.” Tu is the friendly form. Lei is the polite form; it uses the same verb forms as “she,” which is why the polite questions look different. You choose one at the start, and the greeting usually follows from that choice.
A friend of a friend, a classmate, a meetup
Use tu and ciao. At an aperitivo in Milan or a language exchange in Rome, people your age will often use tu from the first sentence. Starting with Lei there is not wrong, but it can sound distant, and the other person may simply answer with tu.
Ciao, mi chiamo Alex. Piacere!
Someone older, a host, a professional contact
Use Lei and a time-of-day greeting: buongiorno (“good morning/good day,” until roughly lunch or early afternoon) or buonasera (“good evening,” from early afternoon onward; the exact hour varies by region and by speaker). Give your first and last name.
Buonasera, sono Alex Smith. Piacere.
Do not say ciao here. It is the greeting Italians use most, but it belongs to tu relationships. With Lei, the polite questions are Come si chiama? and Di dov’è? (“Where are you from?”).
When you are not sure
Start with Lei. If the other person wants to be less formal, they will tell you. A common way is Diamoci del tu (“Let’s use tu with each other”). Then switch, and from that moment use tu with them every time.
Do Italians kiss on the cheek when they meet?
At a first meeting, the safe default is a handshake. Keep it firm and short, look at the person’s face, and say piacere as you shake hands. This works in every setting, from an office to a dinner at someone’s home.
Cheek kisses, usually two, one on each side, are common between friends and family, and sometimes between new acquaintances in a relaxed social group, especially when a friend has just introduced you. They are more a light touch of cheeks than a real kiss. Men who are not close friends or relatives more often shake hands. Do not start the kisses yourself at a first meeting. If the other person leans in, lean in too and follow their direction.
There is no bow in an Italian introduction. A smile and eye contact matter more. Standing up when someone is introduced to you at a table is a polite choice, especially with an older person.
How do you keep the conversation going in Italian?
After names, the most natural question is where the person is from:
E tu di dove sei?
“And where are you from?”
Italians often answer with a city, not a country, because a person’s city or region is a large part of how they describe themselves. The answer follows a simple pattern: sono di plus a city.
Sono di Londra.
“I’m from London.”
Use sono di with cities. With a country, Italians usually use the nationality instead: sono inglese, sono americano (or americana for a woman), sono australiano/australiana. If you only know the country name, vengo dall’Inghilterra (“I come from England”) also works.
When they tell you their city, react first: Ah, che bello! (“Oh, how nice!”) works for almost any place. Then give your own answer, or return the question with E tu? (“And you?”) or, with Lei, E Lei?
A second good question, once the first one has worked, is Cosa fai nella vita? (“What do you do?”). With Lei, it becomes Cosa fa nella vita?
What not to worry about yet
- You do not need a rolled r to be understood. A clear, single tap of the tongue is enough to start.
- You do not need perfect double consonants yet (the tt in tutto, the nn in nonno). Hold them a little longer when you notice them; the rest comes with listening.
- You do not need to explain your whole life. Your name, one city, and one question are a complete first conversation.
- You do need to hear the other person’s name and piacere when they come back to you.
If the replies sound fast, the guide to understanding spoken Italian shows how to listen for the few words that carry the answer. And if you want to know why chiamo starts with a “k” sound and ciao with a “ch” sound, how to read Italian explains the spelling rules in one short read.
Rehearse one realistic first meeting
Use your own name and city, not “Alex” and London, and run this sequence aloud:
- Say ciao, mi chiamo and your name.
- Close with piacere.
- Hear the other person say piacere and their name.
- Ask e tu di dove sei?
- Answer their question with sono di plus your city.
- React with che bello!
Hear the whole first meeting, with Giulia playing the friend of a friend at an aperitivo in Milan:
A first meeting at an aperitivo in Milan
Ciao, mi chiamo Alex. Piacere!
Hi, my name is Alex. Nice to meet you!
Piacere, io sono Giulia.
Nice to meet you, I'm Giulia.
E tu di dove sei?
And where are you from?
Sono di Napoli, e tu?
I'm from Naples, and you?
Sono di Londra.
I'm from London.
Ah, Londra! Sei qui a Milano per lavoro?
Oh, London! Are you here in Milan for work?
No, sono in vacanza.
No, I'm on holiday.
Che bello!
How nice!
Then practice the polite version once: buonasera, sono with your first and last name, piacere, and Lei di dov’è? Being able to move between the two versions is the real skill.
If you forget the words even when you know the lines, read why you freeze when speaking a language. To see where a first introduction sits among the skills a beginner builds, see CEFR levels explained in plain English. To compare with another language, see how to introduce yourself in Japanese.
Linguino’s “Meet someone new” scene puts you at an aperitivo in Milan, where a friend of a friend sits down next to you and starts chatting. Your AI teacher plays that person and answers what you actually say, so “Ciao, mi chiamo Alex. Piacere!” may get “Piacere, io sono Giulia” and then “Sono di Napoli, e tu?” If you get stuck, a phrase card shows you a line to say, and you can replay a line or see its English translation. Afterwards, a short quiz, scored speaking cards and coach feedback show what to practice next, and the phrases you used go into your Phrasebook.
You are ready when you can give your name, say piacere, hear the reply, and ask one real question. That is enough to start the conversation.