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🇮🇹 Italian Level A1

Phone shop (SIM) in Italian

You're in a phone shop in Italy to get a SIM card. Listen to the salesperson (Matteo), then choose how to reply — tap an answer to hear its pronunciation and see its translation, then confirm. What you pick changes what he says. Open “Vocabulary” for the words (or “Explore the scene”) and tap “🗣️ On the street” for the real language.

Play the scene — free
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Phone shop (SIM) — Italian

What you'll learn here

Key words

la SIM la SIM
the SIM card
“Prepagata” = prepaid (no contract). Operators: TIM, Vodafone, WindTre, Iliad. Iliad and the “digital” ones often give the most data for the price.
il documento il do-cu-MÉN-to
the ID document
In Italy, buying a SIM REQUIRES an ID (passport or ID card) — it's required by law; the SIM is registered in your name.
i giga i GÌ-ga
the gigabytes (data)
“I giga” = data; “i minuti” = call minutes; “gli SMS” = texts. “Tutto incluso” = all included.
la ricarica la ri-CÀ-ri-ca
the top-up
You top up at the shop, the tobacconist, an ATM or the app. “Il credito” = credit; “il rinnovo” = the automatic monthly renewal.
il telefono il te-LÈ-fo-no
the phone
For the SIM to work, the phone must be “sbloccato” (network-unlocked). They give you “il numero” on the spot; porting an old number takes a few days.

How locals really say it

Not the textbook version — the real language you hear in Italian.

“Buongiorno! Come posso aiutarla?” — Hello! How can I help?
“Cosa le serve?” — What do you need?
“Un documento, per la SIM. Ce l'ha?” — An ID, for the SIM. Got one?
“Guardi: cento giga, minuti illimitati, dieci euro.” — Look: a hundred gigs, unlimited minutes, ten euros.

Dialogue (excerpt)

A taste of the conversation — play the rest in the app.

Matteo
Buongiorno! Benvenuto, mi dica.
Hello! Welcome, tell me.
Matteo
Di cosa ha bisogno?
What do you need?
You
Vorrei una SIM italiana.
I'd like an Italian SIM.
Matteo
Per legge mi serve un documento. Ce l'ha?
By law I need an ID. Do you have one?
You
Sì, ecco il passaporto.
Yes, here's my passport.
Matteo
Questa offerta ha cento giga, minuti illimitati, a dieci euro al mese.
This plan has a hundred gigs, unlimited minutes, for ten euros a month.

…continues in the app →

🎵 This scene also has a song: Cento Giga

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