How to Say GRANDSON in Italian

Nipotino mio, che gioia mi dai! Little grandson of mine, what joy you bring me!

Here is your one stop shop to learn all about how to say grandson, or nipote, in Italian, how to pronounce it and examples of how to use it. Find out about the term of endearment nipotino, which means little grandson, and other related grandson words, like grandsons (nipoti), youngest grandson (nipote più piccolo), and great grandson (bisnipote). I’ll also explain how to use possessives correctly with family member names. Since the words nipote and nipoti have many other meanings too, I’ll teach you some handy tricks for telling them all apart.

GRANDSON IN ITALIAN – NIPOTE

Nipote means grandson in Italian. Un nipote is a grandson, while il nipote means the grandson.

The pronunciation of un nipote and il nipote is: oohn nee-POH-teh, eel nee-POH-teh

Listen to how to pronounce nipote here:

Il nipote di Stefano adora i gatti.
Stefano’s grandson loves cats.

The word nipote has many meanings in Italian in addition to grandson. It also means granddaughter, grandchild, niece and nephew as well. Mamma mia, how to know what’s what? Stay tuned for tips on how to tell all these nipotes apart.

NIPOTINO

Nipotino, or little grandson, is a term of endearment, and an especially affectionate way to say grandson in Italian.

The pronunciation of nipotino is: nee-poh-TEE-noh

Listen to how to pronounce nipotino here: 

Nipotino quanto sei cresciuto!
(Little) grandson how much you’ve grown!

GRANDSONS IN ITALIAN

Nipoti means grandsons in Italian. Nipoti is the plural of nipote.

Nipotini means little grandsons in Italian, and it is the plural of nipotino.

The pronunciation of nipoti and nipotini is: nee-POH-tee and nee-poh-TEE-nee

Listen to how to pronounce nipoti and nipotini here:

I nipoti di Sara vengono a trovarla tutte le settimane.
Sara’s grandsons come to see her every week.

Nipoti doesn’t just mean grandsons, it also means grandchildren, granddaughters, nieces and nephews. At the end of this post you’ll find tips on keeping them all straight!

GREAT GRANDSON IN ITALIAN

Pronipote and bisnipote both mean great grandson in Italian, and can be used interchangeably.

The pronunciation of pronipote and bisnipote is: proh-nee-POH-teh and beez-nee-POH-teh

Listen to how to pronounce pronipote and bisnipote here:

Il bisnipote di Tancredi ha dieci giorni di vita!
Tancredi’s great grandson is ten days old!

MY GRANDSON: ITALIAN POSSESSIVES

To say my grandson, use mio nipote. Usually possessives in Italian also require the direct article (the). For example: il mio amico means my (male) friend. However, family members are a big exception.

Do not use the direct article with the SINGULAR, unaltered nouns of most family members. If there is an adjective before or after the family member, use the article. Also, use the article with the possessive loro. 

So:

mio nipote is my grandson tuo nipote is your grandson (informal you)  suo nipote is his/her/your grandson (formal you)

nostro nipote is our grandson vostro nipote your grandson (plural you)

But:

Il loro nipote is their grandson
Il mio nipote più piccolo is my youngest grandson
Il mio nipotino is my little grandson

ITALIAN PET NAMES FOR GRANDSONS

Here are some terms of endearment that grandparents use when talking to their grandsons:

Piccolo means little one
Piccolo mio means my little one
Piccino means little one
Principe means prince
Tesoro means treasure
Amore means love
Amore della nonna, amore del nonno means grandma’s sweetheart, grandpa’s sweetheart
Cucciolo means pup, or cub
Caro means dear
Bambino means little boy
Bimbo means baby boy

Ciao piccolo, come stai?
Hello little one, how are you?

When grandparents say I love you to their grandsons, they use the phrase Ti voglio bene.

Tesoro mio ti voglio bene.
I love you my treasure. 

In Italian there are two ways to say I love you, so make sure you use the right one to avoid a super awkward exchange! Ti voglio bene (literally, I want you well), is reserved for friends and family. Ti amo is for telling a special someone that you love them in a romantic way.

WHAT DO ITALIAN BOYS CALL THEIR GRANDPA? GRANDMA? GRANDPARENTS?

Italians call their grandfathers nonno or nonnino. Read all about How to Say Grandpa in Italian.

Italians call their grandmothers nonna or nonnina. Here’s more about How to say Grandma in Italian.

Nonni is the word for grandparents in Italian. 

You may want to read more about Relatives in Italian.

GRANDDAUGHTER IN ITALIAN

As mentioned earlier, nipote also means granddaughter in Italian.

Una nipote means a granddaughter, and la nipote means the granddaughter. 

WHICH NIPOTE IS IT?

If nipote is the same exact word for grandson, grandchild and granddaughter, how is it possible to tell who is being talked about? 

The key is in the article that precedes nipote. If the article is masculine (un or il), nipote means grandson. If the article is feminine (una or la), nipote means granddaughter.

Or, you can use possessive pronouns to help you figure out the gender: mio nipote is my grandson, and mia nipote is my grandson.

Ho un nipote e una nipote.
I have a grandson and a granddaughter.

Mio nipote abita a Bari, e mia nipote abita a Milano.
My grandson lives in Bari and my granddaughter lives in Milan.

In a general context, the masculine form of nipote means grandchild. For example:

Figlio mio, quando ci darai un nipote?
My son, when will you give us a grandchild?

Nipote also means niece and nephew. Use the article or possessive pronoun that precedes nipote to narrow down the person’s gender . . . .but then you must rely on context to figure out if it’s a grandson v. nephew, or a grandson v niece! And don’t worry, sometimes it’s impossible to know for sure.

Teresa ha sessant’anni. È appena nata sua prima nipote.
Teresa is sixty years old. Her first grandson was just born.

Silvio ha venticinque anni. Ha un nipote.
Silvio is twenty-five years old. He has a nephew.

GRANDSONS, GRANDDAUGHTERS and GRANDCHILDREN

As we saw before, nipoti means grandsons in Italian. But it also means grandchildren, granddaughters, nephews and nieces! How to tell them apart?

The trick is to make sure you pay attention to the article and/or possessive pronoun in front of nipoti. When it’s preceded by a masculine article or pronoun, nipoti can mean grandsons or grandchildren. I nipoti are the grandsons or the grandchildren in general, and i miei nipoti are my grandsons or my grandchildren.

So Entrambi i nipoti di Marco sono alti can mean Both of Marco’s grandsons are tall OR Both of Marco’s grandchildren are tall.

If you want to avoid any mixup, and specify that you’re talking about a group of all grandsons, say i nipoti maschi.

Le nipoti (with the feminine article) means the granddaughters, and le mie nipoti are my granddaughters. 

Le nipoti di Lorenzo sono bionde, mentre i miei nipoti maschi sono tutti mori.
Lorenzo’s granddaughters are blond, while my grandsons all have brown hair.

Nipoti also means nieces and/or nephews. Use the article or possessive pronoun that precedes nipoti to narrow down the person’s gender . . . .but then you must rely on context to figure out if it’s grandsons/grandchildren v. nephews, or grandsons v nieces! Fear not, if you just can’t figure it out, it may be impossible to tell.

Sono troppo giovane per avere nipoti, ho solo vent’anni!
I’m too young to have grandchildren, I’m only twenty!