What does advanced Italian really mean? An honest answer from a tutor

When we learn a foreign language, it’s common to orient ourselves with levels. There’s the European framework — A1, A2, B1, B2 and so on — or the simpler system of beginner, intermediate and advanced. As an online Italian tutor with many years of experience, the question of levels interests me a great deal. It’s easy to define a beginner level, and fairly easy to recognise an intermediate one. But then what? What does advanced Italian actually mean?

In my experience with people who study Italian in their free time, almost nobody calls themselves advanced — often out of genuine modesty. I’ll never forget Tadek, who introduced himself at our first meeting as a beginner. It took only a few minutes to understand that his level was actually very good: he knew and used all the basic grammar tools well, had a wide vocabulary and spoke with relative ease. I asked him: “Tadek, why do you think you’re a beginner?” His answer: “Because I sometimes make mistakes with the congiuntivo.”

That answer taught me three important things. The first: people often underestimate themselves. The second: the concept of advanced Italian isn’t always clear. The third is that making mistakes with the congiuntivo doesn’t mean you’re not at an advanced level. Often it’s quite the opposite: you worry about the congiuntivo precisely because you’re already very good at everything else.

What skills define an advanced level of Italian?

According to the Common European Framework of Reference, advanced level corresponds to C1 and C2 — when someone can understand complex texts including implicit meaning, express themselves fluently on a wide range of topics without constantly searching for the right words, and use the language effectively in professional contexts.

I have an Italian friend who studied Polish alongside me and now teaches Italian literature at a university in Kraków to Polish students. The level of Polish needed to do that clearly and comprehensibly is advanced, C1 at minimum if not C2. I also have a Polish friend who has lived in Rome for many years, completed her PhD there and now works as a manager at a major tourism company. When I speak Italian with her, I sometimes forget she’s not a native speaker.

How do you get to that level? The two main factors are time and practice — there’s no way around that. But the quality of practice matters as much as the quantity. The best approach is to train your brain with varied input: reading, listening, writing, conversation and grammar practice. As I always say: grammar is a tool, not the goal. Being able to work through exercises on the periodo ipotetico (the conditional) is useful, but real advanced Italian comes when you try to use it in an actual conversation.

Textbooks for advanced learners exist, but they’re not always useful for people who study in their free time — they tend to focus on academic aspects that interest Italian literature students, not people who want to speak Italian with pleasure. My advice is to practise living language: read authentic articles, listen to podcasts, write, discuss. In my conversation course, for example, I prepare an article in advance and we use it as the basis for talking, discovering new words and expanding our comfort zone. Because advanced Italian also means this: speaking comfortably about things beyond everyday topics.

But what does advanced Italian mean to you?

The school mindset and social media pressure often leave us feeling perpetually unsatisfied — always wanting more, never feeling good enough. This isn’t helpful for language learning because it generates frustration and performance anxiety. Studying Italian should be a pleasure.

Advanced Italian is like a galaxy with no precise borders and can’t be measured with a score. My student Karel is a passionate motorbike enthusiast who knows many technical Italian words related to motorcycling and can talk at length about his bike and his travels. He might not feel equally comfortable talking about food or literature. Does that mean his Italian isn’t advanced? I don’t think so.

I know my own Polish isn’t at the level of my friend who lectures on Dante in front of thirty students, and my English isn’t at the level of my Polish friend who wrote a doctoral thesis in Rome. Does that encourage me to improve? Yes. Does it cause me frustration? No.

When you study for pleasure — and almost all my students study Italian in their free time — what truly matters is feeling joy and satisfaction when you speak, sensing that you learn something new every time. Whether you call that “advanced” or “intermediate” doesn’t change much. Especially if thinking about labels creates pressure or anxiety — the only things truly worth avoiding.

Does this approach resonate with you? Find out about my courses or book a free introductory call — let’s talk about it, no commitment.