29 Funny Italian Jokes

Italians have an excellent sense of humor. I’ve spent a lot of time in the Boot and have a big Italian family. We enjoy food, wine and jokes on a daily basis!

Most Italian jokes aren’t complicated. They have very clear meanings and use simple vocabulary. That makes them short, easy to translate, great for seeing grammar rules in action and excellent for pronunciation practice!

So if you want to laugh like a native Italian speaker, try learning these 29 jokes in Italian.

Contents

Funniest Jokes in Italian You Should Know

Here are some of the best jokes you can crack the next time you’re at a gathering with fellow Italian speakers/learners.

1. Insomniac Mother-in-law

middle-aged-woman-sleeping-on-sofa

Un uomo dice a un dottore, “Dottore, mi può prescrivere un sonnifero per mia suocera?”
(A man says to a doctor, “Doctor, can you prescribe a sleeping pill for my mother-in-law?”)

Il dottore risponde, “Perché? Sua suocera soffre d’insonnia?”
(The doctor responds, “Why? Is your mother-in-law suffering from insomnia?”)

L’uomo risponde, “No, mia suocera la notte dorme benissimo. Il sonnifero era per il giorno.”
(The man responds, “No, my mother-in-law sleeps well at night, the sleeping pill was for the day.”)

2. Hungry Blonde

Una bionda ordina una pizza.
(A blonde orders a pizza.)

Il pizzaiolo chiede, “Devo tagliarla in quattro o otto fette?”
(The pizza maker asks, “Should I cut it into four or eight pieces?”)

La bionda risponde, “In quattro! Come potrei mangiare otto fette?”
(The blonde replies, “Into four! How could I possibly eat eight pieces?”)

3. Unexpected Reaction

pregnant-woman-in-pink-dress-holding-her-belly

Una moglie dice a suo marito, “Caro, sono incinta! Cosa vorresti che fosse?”
(A wife says to her husband, “Darling, I’m pregnant! What do you want it to be?”)

Il marito risponde, “Uno scherzo!”
(The husband responds, “A joke!”)

4. Cooking Skills

Come fai a sapere quando una moglie non sa cucinare?
(How can you tell when a wife cannot cook?)

Come?
(How?)

Il marito va così spesso al ristorante che al suo tavolo ha le sue iniziali sui tovaglioli!
(In the restaurant, her husband is there so much that his table has his initials on the napkins!)

5. Boomerang’s Alias

closeup-shot-of-boomerang-with-map-of-australia

Come si chiama un boomerang che non torna?
(What do you call a boomerang that doesn’t come back?)

Un bastone!
(A stick!)

6. Cows and Horses

Una mucca dice ad un’altra mucca, “Hai sentito della malattia della mucca pazza?”
(One cow says to another cow, “Have you heard of the Mad Cow disease?”)

L’altra risponde, “Ma a me che me ne frega, sono un cavallo!”
(The other responds, “I don’t care, I’m a horse!”)

7. Turtles and Centipedes

shot-of-movie-theater-from-behind-black-chairs-facing-blue-screen

Un giorno un millepiedi e una tartaruga vanno al cinema. La tartaruga si siede a guardare un film.
(One day a centipede and a turtle went to the cinema. The turtle sat down to watch a movie.)

Alla fine del film vede il millepiedi entrare nella sala. Gli chiede, “Il film è già finito. Perché ci hai messo così tanto?”
(At the end of the film the centipede enters the room. The turtle asks, “The film is already done. Why did you take so long?”)

Il millepiedi risponde, “Mi sono ricordato di avere le scarpe bagnate, così le ho asciugate!”
(The centipede replies, “I remembered that my shoes were wet, so I dried them!”)

8. One-night Stands

Un uomo dice a suo fratello, “L’anno scorso ho avuto un’avventura di una notte. È finita molto male.”
(A man says to his brother, “Last year, I had a one-night stand. It went very badly.”)

Il fratello risponde, “Cos’è successo?”
(The brother responds, “What happened?”)

L’uomo risponde,”Domani è il nostro anniversario di matrimonio.”
(The man responds, “Tomorrow is our wedding anniversary.”)

9. Brain in Bar

assorted-wine-bottles-behind-bar-counter

Un cervello entra in un bar e dice al barista, “Una birra, per favore.”
(A brain enters a bar and says to the bartender, “I’ll have a beer, please.”)

Il barista dice, “Mi dispiace, non posso servirti. Sei fuori di testa.”
(The bartender says, “I’m sorry, I can’t serve you. You’re out of your mind.”)

10. Lawyer Laughter

“Parlare non costa nulla!” disse un uomo all’altro.
(“Talking is cheap!” said one man to another.)

L’altro risponde, “Parlare non costa nulla? Dovresti parlare con il mio avvocato! Allora vedrai che parlare costa!”
(The other man responds, “Talk is cheap? You should talk to my lawyer! Then you’ll see that talk isn’t cheap!”)

11. Spider Trivia

black-widow-spider-crawling-on-wood

Perché le vedove nere uccidono i loro maschi dopo l’accoppiamento?
(Why do black widow spiders kill their mates after mating?)

Per fermare il russare prima che inizi.
(To stop the snoring before it starts.)

12. Pun in Space

Hai sentito dell’astronauta claustrofobico?
(Did you hear about the claustrophobic astronaut?)

No. Che gli è successo?
(No. What about him?)

Aveva solo bisogno di spazio!
(He just needed some space!)

13. Red Mystery

fresh-shiny-red-tomato-on-gray-concrete

Cos’è rosso e si muove su e giù?
(What’s red and moves up and down?)

Un pomodoro in un ascensore!
(A tomato in an elevator!)

Italian Jokes About Family

The family unit plays an important part in Italian culture—so much so that many jokes in Italian center around it.

14. Angry Egg

white-eggs-with-one-hardboiled-egg-cut-in-half

Cosa fa un uovo quando si arrabbia con la sua famiglia?
(What does an egg do when it’s angry with its family?)

Si rompe!
(It cracks!)

15. Radio Boy

Perché il figlio ascolta sempre la radio con la mamma?  
(Why does the son always listen to the radio with his mom? )

Perché è programmato per farlo!  
(Because he’s programmed to do so!)

16. Nonna’s Cooking

senior-woman-rolling-dough-on-red-checkered-table

Perché la nonna è la miglior cuoca del quartiere?  
(Why is grandma the best cook in the neighborhood? )

Perché ha la ricetta segreta: “Amore in ogni piatto”!
(Because she has the secret recipe: “Love in every dish”!)

17. Parents and Riddles

Perché i genitori sono così bravi a risolvere indovinelli?
(Why are parents so good at solving riddles? )

Perché hanno già affrontato tutti i “misteri” della vita!
(Because they’ve already dealt with all the “mysteries” of life!)

18. Washing Machine Vs. Iron

row-of-neatly-pressed-mens-suits-on-hangers

Cosa fa una lavatrice quando litiga con il ferro da stiro?  
(What does a washing machine do when it argues with the iron? )

Lava i panni sporchi in famiglia!
(It airs the dirty laundry in the family!)

19. Storytelling Light Bulb

Perché la mamma lampadina è così brava a raccontare storie?  
(Why is the light bulb mom so good at telling stories? )

Perché ha sempre una brillante idea!  
(Because she always has a bright idea!)

20. Sponge Mom

hand-in-yellow-glove-holding-wet-soapy-sponge-over-sink

Cosa dice una mamma spugna ai suoi figli?  
(What does a sponge mom say to her kids? )

“Assorbite la conoscenza, ragazzi!”  
(“Absorb the knowledge, kids!”)

21. Washing Machine Family

Perché la famiglia della lavatrice va sempre d’accordo?  
(Why does the washing machine family always get along? )

Perché lavano i panni sporchi in famiglia!
(Because they wash their dirty laundry together!)

22. Chocolate Mom

four-chocolate-bars-stacked-together

Cosa dice una mamma cioccolato ai suoi figli?  
(What does a chocolate mom say to her kids? )

“Siate dolci, ma non troppo appiccicosi!”
(“Be sweet, but not too sticky!”)

23. Razor Dad

Perché il papà rasoio è così bravo a fare discorsi?  
(Why is razor dad so good at making speeches? )

Perché è sempre tagliente!
(Because he’s always sharp!)

24. Calendar Dad

white-calendar-on-white-cloth

Perché il papà calendario è così sicuro di sé?
(Why is calendar dad so confident? )

Perché sa sempre quale giorno è!
(Because he always knows what day it is!)

25. Toilet Paper Mom

Cosa dice una mamma carta igienica ai suoi figli?
(What does a toilet paper mom say to her kids? )

“Siate sempre avvolti dall’amore, anche nei momenti difficili!”  
(“Always be wrapped in love, even in tough times!”)

Italian Jokes About History

As you may already know, Italy has historical significance as the birthplace of the Roman Empire.

Don’t worry, we’re not going to pepper you with boring details like dates here—just good, old-fashioned (and by that, I mean “centuries-old”) humor!

26. Julius Caesar’s Insomnia

sculpture-of-roman-emperors-head-wearing-laurel-leaves

Cosa faceva Giulio Cesare quando non riusciva a dormire?
(What did Julius Caesar do when he couldn’t sleep? )

Contava i suoi imperi.  
(He counted his empires.)

27. Roman Emperor Joke

Cosa dice un imperatore romano quando è stanco?  
(What does a Roman emperor say when tired? )

“Ho bisogno di un sonno eterno!”  
(“I need an eternal sleep!”)

28. Columbus’ Favorite Dish

black-colored-statue-of-man-pointing-northeast

Qual è il cibo preferito di Colombo?  
(What’s Columbus’s favorite food? )

Le uova di Pasqua.
(Easter eggs.)

29. Garibaldi’s Favorite Animal

Qual è l’animale preferito di Giuseppe Garibaldi?
(What’s Giuseppe Garibaldi’s favorite animal? )

Il gattopardo.
(The leopard.)

How to Use Italian Jokes to Improve Your Speaking Skills

  • Choose a simple jokeat least to start. Look for jokes with very basic vocabulary, sentence structure and punch lines. As you become more comfortable telling simple jokes, you can move onto the more intricate ones.
  • Memorize the joke. Practice delivering your joke in front of a mirror. You can also record yourself to help get your timing and deliver down pat.
  • Use your joke. Try out a joke on an Italian-speaking friend or someone you just met. Allowing yourself to be silly will help you become more comfortable speaking Italian because—joke or not—you’re going to mess up from time to time and say things in a funny way.

 

Laughter is good for the soul—and improving your Italian speaking skills!

Not only will Italian jokes help boost your conversational skills, increase your vocabulary and teach you some cultural nuances, but they can also be great icebreakers.

It’s no surprise that a culture that celebrates life as much as Italy does has so many fun jokes!

And One More Thing...

If you're as busy as most of us, you don't always have time for lengthy language lessons. The solution? FluentU!

Learn Italian with funny commericals, documentary excerpts and web series, as you can see here:

learn-italian-with-videos

FluentU helps you get comfortable with everyday Italian by combining all the benefits of complete immersion and native-level conversations with interactive subtitles. Tap on any word to instantly see an image, in-context definition, example sentences and other videos in which the word is used.

learn-italian-with-captioned-videos

Access a complete interactive transcript of every video under the Dialogue tab, and review words and phrases with convenient audio clips under Vocab.

learn-conversational-italian-with-subtitled-dialogue

Once you've watched a video, you can use FluentU's quizzes to actively practice all the vocabulary in that video. Swipe left or right to see more examples of the word you’re on.

practice-italian-with-adaptive-quizzes

FluentU will even keep track of all the Italian words you’re learning, and give you extra practice with difficult words. Plus, it'll tell you exactly when it's time for review. Now that's a 100% personalized experience!

The best part? You can try FluentU for free with a trial.

Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

Enter your e-mail address to get your free PDF!

We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe

Close