There are three common ways of saying excuse me in Italian and they are:
(Scusi!/ mi scusi! – excuse me) Formal singular
(Susa!/scusami!– excuse me) Informal singular
(Scusate!/ scusatemi!– excuse me) Formal and informal plural
What is the difference between scusa!, scusi!,and scusate!.
As we’ve learned before, in Italian, we use the verb conjugated with the second person singular (tu) in indirect/informal speech and the third person singular (Lei) in direct/ formal speech, however, when we talk to a group of people we use the second person plural (voi) in both direct and indirect speech.
When we take a look at these three forms (scusa, scusi, scusate) we will find that they come from the conjugation of the verb (scusare “to excuse“) in the imperative mode.
But why do we use the imperative mode with verb scusare and not the indicative? Because the expression excuse me! is an order, not a request, and in Italian, we use the imperative mood when we want to give an order.
Here is the conjugation of the verb scusare in the imperative mode.
| Informal singular (tu) | Scusa! |
| Formal singular (Lei) | Scusi! |
| Formal/Informal plural (voi) | Scusate! |
For example.
Scusa, amico! (Excuse me, buddy!)
Scusami, amico! (Excuse me, buddy!)
Scusi, signore! (Excuse me, sir!)
Mi scusi, signore! (Excuse me, sir!)
Scusate, ragazzi/signori! (Excuse me, gentlemen!)
Scusatemi ragazzi/signori! (Excuse me, guys!)
As you can see in the examples above when we want to say excuse me in Italian we can either use only the verb conjugation in the imperative tense or the imperative accompanied by the reflexive pronoun mi to strengthen it’s meaning.
Other ways of saying excuse me in Italian
1. Perdonare (to pardon)
Another alternative to scusare is the verb perdonare which means “to pardon/to forgive/to excuse“, and is used in the imperative mode with the reflexive pronoun mi.
keep in mind that the verb perdonare is more polite than scusare.
| Informal singular (tu) | Perdona! |
| Formal singular (Lei) | Perdoni! |
| Formal/Informal plural (voi) | Perdonate! |
For example.
Perdonami, amico! (Forgive me, buddy!)
Mi Perdoni, signore! (Forgive me, sir!)
Perdonatemi ragazzi/signori! (Forgive me, guys!/gentlemen!)
2. Permesso (Permit)
The word permesso which is the first conjugation of the verb permettere in the present tense and it is a very common word that you can use instead of scusi or scusate when you want to pass through a group of people.
3. Le/Ti/Vi discpiace/dispiacerebbe (se).. (Do/would you mind if..)
The expression (le/vi/ti discpiace/dispiacerebbe (se)..) can also be an alternative to scusi which means (would you mind if..) and is used in situations when you want to ask for permission to do something that might bother others.
- Le discpiace/dispiacerebbe (se): Singular formal.
- Ti discpiace/dispiacerebbe (se): Singular informal.
- Vi discpiace/dispiacerebbe (se): Plural.
Le/Ti/Vi dispiace/dispiacerebbe se fumo?(Do/would you mind if I smoke?)
Le/Ti/Vi dispiace/dispiacerebbe se apro la finestra?(Do/would you mind if I open the window?)
Le/Ti/Vi dispiace/dispiacerebbe se mi siedo con te?(Do/would you mind if I sit with you?)
Le/Ti/Vi dispiace/dispiacerebbe accompagnarmi alla porta?8(Do/would you mind walking me to the door?)
Le/Ti/Vi dispiace/dispiacerebbe mostrarmi la strada?(Do/would you mind showing me the way?)
Note:
The two words dispiace and dispiacerebbe hold the same meaning the only difference is that the word dispiacerebbe is the conjugation of the verb dispiacere in the conditional mode which we use when we want to be more polite while dispiace is the conjugation of the same verb but in the present tense which is less polite.
4. Le/Ti/Vi dà fastidio se. (Does it bother you if..)
The expression (Le/Ti/Vi dà fastidio se) is the same as (Le/Ti/Vi discpiace/dispiacerebbe (se)..) but this time with the verb dare conjugated in the present tense + the adjective fastidio which means “Bother“.
- Le dà fastidio (se): Singular formal.
- Ti dà fastidio (se): Singular informal.
- Vi dà fastidio(se): Plural.
Le/Ti/Vi dà fastidio se alzo il volume?(Does it bother you if I turn up the volume?)
Le/Ti/Vi dà fastidio se chiudo la porta?(Does it bother you if I close the door?)
Le/Ti/Vi dà fastidio se mi siedo accanto a te?(Does it bother you if I sit next to you?)
Le/Ti/Vi dà fastidio se metto la borsa sul tavolo?(Does it bother you if I put the bag on the table?)
When to say excuse me in Italian.
1. When I want to get someone’s attention.
Scusi/ scusa, Le è caduto il portafoglio. (Excuse me, your wallet fell)
Scusi, sarebbe possibile avere un bicchiere d’acqua?(Excuse me, would it be possible to have a glass of water?)
Scusi, prof., potrebbe aprire per cortesia la porta?(Excuse me, professor, could you please open the door?)
Mi scusi, posso parlarle un moment?(Excuse me, can I talk to you for a moment?)
Scusi, non ho capito.(Sorry, I didn’t understand.)
Mi scusi un moment. (Excuse me for moment.)
Scusi, cerco qualcuno.(Excuse me, I’m looking for someone.)
Permesso.(Permit)
2. When I want to anticipate a request.
Scusi/ scusa, che ore sono? (Excuse me, what time is it?)
Mi scusi, è libero questo posto?(Excuse me, is this seat free?)
Scusi/scusa, cosa hai detto?(Excuse me, what did you say?)
Scusi, dov’è la stazione ferroviaria?(Excuse me, where is the train station?)
Scusi/scusa quando arriva il treno?(Excuse me/sorry when is the train coming?)
Scusi, sa dov’è la stazione di servizio più vicina?(Excuse me, do you know where the nearest petrol station is?)
Scusi, ma chi Lei? (Excuse me, but who are you?)
Mi scusi, signore, sa dirmi dove si trova piazza della libertà?(Excuse me, sir, can you tell me where liberità square is?)
Come, scusa/scusi?(Like, excuse me?/ I beg your pardon?)
Scusi, che c’entra?(Excuse me, what does it have to do with it?)
3. When asking for forgiveness for a wrong behavior or a mistake in this case scusi holds the meaning of sorry not excuse me.
Scusi/ scusa, mi sono comportato male.(Sorry, I behaved badly.)
Scusi/ scusa, non l’ho fatto apposta.(Sorry, I didn’t do it on purpose.)
Scusi/ scusa, non volevo.(Sorry/sorry, I didn’t mean to.)
Scusi/ scusa, ho sbagliato numero .(Sorry, I got the wrong number.)
Mi scusi, ma non accettiamo carte di credit.(Sorry, but we do not accept credit cards.)
Scusatemi, non posso andare, ho da fare.(Sorry, I can’t go, I’m busy.)
Scusatemi, ma oggi sono stanco.(Sorry, but I’m tired today)
Scusi/ scusa, il disturbo.(Sorry/sorry, for the inconvenience.)
Ti chiedo scusa.(I apologize.)
Hai ragione, scusa.(Sorry, you are right.)
Scusa, faccio tardi.(Sorry, I’m late.)
Non era mia intenzione, scusa.(That wasn’t my intention, sorry.)
Scusi/scusa/scusate + se
Scusatemi, se insisto.(Excuse me if I insist.)
Scusa, se ti interrompo.(Sorry, if I interrupt you.)
Scusa, se ti offendo.(Sorry if I offend you.)
Scusa, se ti ho fatto aspettare.(Sorry to keep you waiting.)
Scusi/scusa/scusate + per
Scusa per il ritardo.(Please excuse the delay)
Scusa per il rumore.(Sorry about the noise.)
Scusa, per il disturbo.(Sorry for disturbing.)
Scusa per il disagio/l’inconveniente.(Sorry for the inconvenience.)
Scusa per lo sbaglio/l’errore.(Sorry for the mistake.)
Scusa per l’attesa.(Sorry for the wait.)
Scusa per l’equivoco.(Sorry for the misunderstanding.)
Scusa per la risposta tardiva.(Sorry for the late answer.)
Scusa per la confusione.(Sorry for the confusion.)
Scusa per le tante domande.(Sorry for the many questions.)
Scusa per quello che ho detto / fatto.(Sorry for what I said/did.)
Scusa per quello che è successo.(Sorry for what happened.)
Scusi/scusa/scusate + è
Scusi/ scusa è stata colpa mia.(Sorry/ sorry it was my fault.)
Scusi/ scusa è stata una pessima idea.(Sorry/sorry it was a bad idea.)
Scusi/ scusa è stata una reazione eccessiva.(Sorry/sorry was an overreaction.)
Scusa ero sbagliato.(Sorry I was wrong.)