Essere vs Avere in Italian: Sono or Ho? (Ho Fame, Ho Freddo, Fa Caldo)
A0 · Lesson 14 · Essere or avere?
Two verbs, one simple test, and you will never be “35 years” or “hunger” again.
Quick answer
Essere vs avere: use essere (sono) for who and how you are: name, nationality, city, where you are, stanco, felice. Use avere (ho) for age, things you have, and fame, sete, caldo, freddo, sonno: Ho fame (I’m hungry), never Sono fame. The weather uses fa: Fa caldo (it’s hot).
Why essere vs avere is tricky for Americans
In English you say “I am” for almost everything: I am Kate, I am 30, I am hungry, I am cold. Italian splits these between two verbs.
💡 In simple words
essere (to be) = who and how you are.
avere (to have) = what you have. And Italians “have” their years, their hunger and their cold.
Need a refresh on the forms? The verb essere · The verb avere.
Essere vs avere: the two verbs side by side
Same people, two verbs. Read across each row: first essere, then avere.
💡 In simple words
The h in ho, hai, ha, hanno is silent. Don’t say it. Ho sounds just like “oh”.
Sono appears twice: io sono (I am) and loro sono (they are). The person around it tells you which one.
👀 Look-alike traps
Because the h is silent, these pairs sound the same (or almost). Only the spelling tells you the meaning.
è
is (essere)
e
and
Anna è di Roma e Marco è di Milano.
Anna is from Rome and Marco is from Milan.
ha
has (avere)
a
at / to / in
Marco ha fame. È a casa.
Marco is hungry. He’s at home.
hanno
they have
anno
year
Loro hanno 20 anni. · un anno
They are 20. · one year
ho
I have
o
or
Ho fame! Pizza o pasta?
I’m hungry! Pizza or pasta?
Writing tip: if you can say “have” in English, write the h. If you mean “and”, “or”, “at”, “year”: no h, no accent.
Noi siamo gatti e abbiamo fame. Sempre. (We are cats and we are hungry. Always.)
Sono or ho? The two lists
Keep these two lists in your head. Everything at the beginning fits in one or the other.
essere · sono
who and how you are
- 🙋 Sono Kate. · name
- 🇺🇸 Sono americana. · nationality
- 🏙️ Sono di Boston. · city
- 🏠 Sono a casa. · where you are
- 😩 Sono stanco. · tired (woman: stanca)
- 😊 Sono felice. · happy
avere · ho
what you have
- 🎂 Ho 30 anni. · age
- 🐶 Ho un cane. · things you have
- 😋 Ho fame. · I’m hungry
- 🥤 Ho sete. · I’m thirsty
- 🥵🥶 Ho caldo. / Ho freddo. · I’m hot / cold
- 💤 Ho sonno. · I’m sleepy
Age in Italian: ho 35 anni, never sono 35
This is the number one essere vs avere mistake. In Italian you are not 35: you have 35 years.
Ho 35 anni.
OH trehn-tah-CHEEN-kweh AHN-nee
I’m 35. (literally: “I have 35 years”)
❌ Sono 35. ❌ Sono 35 anni.
🧑 Quanti anni hai?
KWAHN-tee AHN-nee EYE
How old are you? (to a friend, with tu)
avere · hai🤵 Quanti anni ha?
KWAHN-tee AHN-nee AH
How old are you? (polite, with Lei)
avere · ha🙋 Ho 35 anni.
OH … AHN-nee
The answer. Change the number, keep ho and anni.
avere · ho
Marco
Tanti auguri! Quanti anni hai?
Happy birthday! How old are you?
you
Ho 35 anni. E tu?
I’m 35. And you?
Marco
Io ho 40 anni. Ma sono felice!
I’m 40. But I’m happy!
Age → avere + number + anni.
Marco ha 40 anni. MAHR-koh AH KWAH-rahn-tah AHN-nee
Marco is 40.
Loro hanno 20 anni. LOH-roh AHN-noh VEHN-tee AHN-nee
They are 20. (hanno with h!)
Ho fame, ho sete, ho caldo, ho freddo, ho sonno
These five feel like “I am” in English, but in Italian you have them. Think: “I have hunger”, “I have cold”.
Ho fame.
OH FAH-meh
I’m hungry. (“I have hunger”)
avere
Ho sete.
OH SEH-teh
I’m thirsty. (“I have thirst”)
avereHo caldo.
OH KAHL-doh
I’m hot. (“I have heat”)
avere
Ho freddo.
OH FREHD-doh
I’m cold. (“I have cold”)
avere
Ho sonno.
OH SOHN-noh
I’m sleepy. (“I have sleep”)
avereSono fame. → Ho fame.
Sono fame means “I am hunger”. Italians will understand you, and they will smile.
🐺 Gli italiani dicono…
Ho una fame da lupo! (OH OO-nah FAH-meh dah LOO-poh) = I’m as hungry as a wolf! The Italian way to say you’re starving.
Tired or sleepy? Sono stanco vs ho sonno
They look like twins, but they use different verbs. Feelings that describe you take essere.
Sono stanco.
SOH-noh STAHN-koh
I’m tired. A woman says stanca (STAHN-kah). Your body is done.
essereSono felice.
SOH-noh feh-LEE-cheh
I’m happy. Same word for men and women.
essereHo sonno.
OH SOHN-noh
I’m sleepy. Your eyes are closing.
avereTrick: stanco and felice describe you, like an adjective: sono. sonno, fame, sete are things (nouns) you “have”: ho.
Sono stanco? No. Ho sonno. Sempre. (Tired? No. Sleepy. Always.)
Ho caldo or fa caldo? You vs the weather
For the weather, Italian uses a third little verb: fa (it makes).
The weather · fa
outside, the sky, the day
Fa caldo.
fah KAHL-doh
It’s hot.
Fa freddo.
fah FREHD-doh
It’s cold.
My body · ho
what I feel
Ho caldo.
OH KAHL-doh
I feel hot.
Ho freddo.
OH FREHD-doh
I feel cold.
The weather → fa. Your body → ho.
Fa freddo e ho freddo! fah FREHD-doh eh OH FREHD-doh
It’s cold out and I feel cold!
Fa freddo, ma ho caldo. fah FREHD-doh mah OH KAHL-doh
It’s cold out, but I feel hot. (after the gym!)
In everyday talk you will also hear È caldo! or Che caldo! for hot weather. Both are fine. Just never say Sono caldo for “I feel hot”.
💡 Why not Sono caldo?
Sono caldo describes you as a hot thing, like a hot pizza or a hot soup. Italians will understand you, and they will smile.
For the feeling, say Ho caldo. Same with Sono freddo (a cold soup!) → Ho freddo.
In real life: a very hot day in Rome
Two friends sightseeing in July. Spot every sono, every ho and every fa.
Marco
your friend
Che caldo! Fa caldo oggi!
So hot! It’s hot today!
you
Sì, e ho sete. E sono stanca!
Yes, and I’m thirsty. And I’m tired!
Marco
your friend
Hai fame?
Are you hungry?
you
Sì, ho una fame da lupo!
Yes, I’m as hungry as a wolf!
Marco
your friend
Allora, gelato! Sono felice.
Then, gelato! I’m happy.
Common essere vs avere mistakes
Common mistakes English speakers make
Sono fame. → Ho fame.
Hunger is something you have.
Sono 35 anni. → Ho 35 anni.
Age is something you have.
Ho stanco. → Sono stanco.
Tired describes you: essere.
Sono freddo. → Ho freddo.
Sono freddo = you are a cold thing, like a cold soup. The feeling is avere: ho freddo.
Ho caldo. (about the weather) → Fa caldo.
The weather uses fa.
Quanti anni sei? → Quanti anni hai?
You ask about age with avere too.
O fame. · Anno 20 anni. → Ho fame. · Hanno 20 anni.
The verb avere keeps its silent h: ho, ha, hanno.
Fa freddo? Noi non abbiamo freddo. Siamo pinguini. (Cold? We don’t feel cold. We’re penguins.)
Step 10 · Practice
🍕 Your turn
Start with a quick warm-up, then press Check. Want more? Open the extra exercises below. Mistakes are part of it. No pressure.
Warm-up · 5 questions
Sono or ho?
1. ___ fame.
2. ___ di Boston.
3. ___ 30 anni.
4. ___ stanca.
5. ___ freddo.
See more exercises · 63 questions ▾Hide the extra exercises ▴
1 · The sorting game
Does it go with sono or ho?
1. … sete
2. … felice
3. … americano
4. … sonno
5. … un gatto
6. … a casa
7. … caldo (my body)
8. … Marco
9. … 40 anni
10. … in vacanza
2 · The weather or me?
Fa or ho?
1. July in Rome: ___ caldo!
2. I need a sweater: ___ freddo.
3. It’s snowing: ___ freddo.
4. After the gym, I’m sweating: ___ caldo.
5. Weather report: oggi ___ caldo.
6. Close the window, please! ___ freddo.
3 · Right or wrong?
Is the sentence correct?
1. Ho fame.
2. Sono sete.
3. Sono stanco.
4. Ho felice.
5. Fa freddo.
6. Sono 25 anni.
7. Ho sonno.
8. Sono caldo. (I feel hot)
4 · Mixed forms
Choose the right form. Careful: other people too!
1. Marco ___ fame.
2. Noi ___ stanchi.
3. Tu ___ sete?
4. Loro ___ di Chicago.
5. Voi ___ freddo?
6. Giulia ___ felice.
7. Signora, Lei ___ caldo? (polite)
8. Noi ___ sonno.
5 · Write it in Italian
Type the sentence. Capital letters and punctuation don’t matter.
1. I’m hungry.
2. I’m thirsty.
3. I’m tired. (woman)
4. I’m sleepy.
5. It’s hot. (the weather)
6. It’s cold. (the weather)
7. I feel cold.
8. Are you hungry? (to a friend)
9. I’m not hungry.
10. I am happy.
6 · What do you say?
Choose the best sentence for the situation.
1. You haven’t eaten since breakfast.
2. It’s 2 am and your eyes are closing.
3. You’re in Rome in August, talking about the weather.
4. You walked 20,000 steps today.
5. You forgot your jacket.
7 · Essere and avere side by side
Choose the right word. Watch out for the look-alikes!
1. io ___ (avere)
2. tu ___ (essere)
3. lui ___ (essere)
4. lei ___ (avere)
5. noi ___ (avere)
6. voi ___ (essere)
7. loro ___ (avere)
8. Anna è di Roma ___ Marco è di Milano.
9. Pizza ___ pasta?
10. Marco è ___ casa.
11. un ___ = one year
8 · 🎂 How old?
Age always takes avere. Choose, then type.
1. You are 35. You say…
2. Ask a friend how old they are.
3. Ask an older lady politely (Lei).
4. I’m 35 years old.
5. How old are you? (to a friend)
New here? Try a 25-minute lesson for $25: book a trial. Not sure about your level? Take the free level test.
Ci vediamo la prossima settimana! – Sì, alla prossima lezione! Ciao!
See you next week! – Yes, see you at the next lesson! Bye!
← Previous lesson: A0 · 13 The verb avere
Next lesson: A0 · Unit 3 review →
Written by Luciana
Native Italian teacher, CEDILS certified, 10,000+ lessons since 2020.
