Talking about time in italian

Oggi, dopodomani, l'altro ieri and more

Picture this… an Italian friend texts you and asks:

"Ci vediamo dopodomani?"
(Shall we meet the day after tomorrow?)

And you're thinking… After what, exactly?

Don’t worry. Italian has a bunch of simple and expressive words to talk about time, and once you learn them, you’ll be able to navigate daily conversations with ease.

Let’s explore the most common expressions Italians use to talk about days, along with real examples to help you sound natural and confident.

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📅 Essential time expressions

Here are the words you’ll hear and use all the time:

• Oggi → Today
  The current day — right now.

• Ieri → Yesterday
  The day before today.

• L'altro ieri → The day before yesterday
  Two days ago — a very common way to refer to the recent past.

• Domani → Tomorrow
  The day after today.

• Dopodomani → The day after tomorrow
  Two days from now.

• Stamattina → This morning
  The morning of today.

• Stasera → This evening / tonight
  The evening of today.

• Stanotte → Tonight or Last night
  Can refer to the night coming up or the night that just passed, depending on context.

• Ieri sera → Last night (yesterday evening)
  The evening of the previous day.

• Domani mattina → Tomorrow morning
  The morning of the next day.

• Domani sera → Tomorrow evening
  The evening of the next day.

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🗣️ Real-life conversations

Here are some natural dialogues to show you how these expressions come up in everyday Italian.

👥 Making plans

Chiara: Che programmi hai dopodomani?
What are your plans the day after tomorrow?

Luca: Niente di speciale. Perché?
Nothing special. Why?

Chiara: Stavo pensando di andare al lago. Vuoi venire?
I was thinking of going to the lake. Want to come?

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🕰️ Talking about the past

Marco: Ti sei divertita ieri?
Did you have fun yesterday?

Giulia: Sì! Ma l’altroieri ero esausta per il lavoro.
Yes! But the day before yesterday I was exhausted from work.

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🌙 Evening proposals

Sara: Vuoi prendere la pizza stanotte?
Want to grab pizza tonight?

Alessio: Perfetto! A che ora?
Perfect! What time?

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🧠 How to remember these easily

Here are a few tips to help you make these expressions part of your everyday vocabulary:

• Talk about your day:
  "Oggi ho lavorato molto. Ma ieri sono stata al parco."

• Mentally build a timeline:
  If today is Monday, then domani is Tuesday and dopodomani is Wednesday.

• Reflect on your weekend:

  “Sabato sono uscito, ma Domenica ho dormito fino a tardi.”

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💬 Final thoughts

These words are short, common, and perfect for everyday conversations. Use them to make plans, tell stories, or just talk about your schedule.

So the next time someone asks,

"Ci vediamo stasera?"
You’ll know exactly what they mean — and how to respond.

What about you? What are you doing dopodomani?

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