Common Italian collocation
Pronunciation | |
Literal translation | To be in delay |
English translation | To be late |
You do NOT say |
Late as an adjective is an adverb in Italian and it is translated as tardi. You can translate “to be late” as fare tardi as well, especially when it’s used with a past tense (“you were late and you arrived late”).
Examples
Ho perso l’autobus e ora sono in ritardo. | I missed the bus, and now I’m late. | |
A volte i treni possono essere in ritardo. | Trains can be late sometimes. | |
Siamo in ritardo per la lezione. | We are late for the lesson. | |
Non voglio fare tardi all’appuntamento. | I don’t want to be late for the appointment. | |
Oggi ho fatto tardi al lavoro. | I was late for work today. |

Related lessons
- essere (to be)
- ritardo (delay)
- prepositions
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