Dare del tu in Italian. What does it mean?

The sentence “Dare del tu” in Italian refers to the act of transitioning from formal to informal speech.

Literally translated, it means “to give the tu“. “Tu” is the singular and informal personal pronoun for “you” in Italian.

If someone says “Possiamo darci del tu,” they mean that you’re given permission to shift towards a more casual and friendly level of communication (informal speech). You could equally ask “Posso darti del tu?” if you are asking someone to give you permission to address them informally.

The opposite of “dare del tu” is “dare del lei”” which means addressing someone politely.

If you’re not familiar with the distinction we make in Italian between formal and informal speech, keep reading:

Formal vs. Informal Speech in Italian

In Italian, similar to other Romance languages like French or Spanish, it is important to differentiate between formal and informal settings when choosing pronouns (Tu or Lei) and conjugating verbs.

For instance, we would say “Come stai?” if the setting is informal or “Come sta?” if the setting is formal.

• Come stai? (2nd person conjugation of the verb stare – informal speech)

• Come sta? (3rd person conjugation of the verb stare – formal speech)

This applies to all questions using all verbs, of course.

• Parli italiano? (2nd person conjugation of the verb parlare – informal speech)

• Parla italiano? (3rd person conjugation of the verb parlare – formal speech)

In Italian, we would address someone using the informal second-person pronoun “tu” if the setting is informal, or we would use the formal second-person pronoun “Lei” if the setting is formal.

But… What is considered a formal setting in Italy?

Formal Setting vs. Informal Setting in Italy 

A typical formal setting involves you conversating with people you are not familiar with and with whom you have a professional relationship: a student/teacher, patient/doctor, lawyer/client, real estate agent/client. The general rule is that if you don’t know someone, you should always address them using the formal “lei”.

A typical informal setting is when you’re talking with people you know very well or people in your same age range. For examples, family, friends, schoolmates, colleagues, etc.

When is it possible to transition from formal speech to informal speech?

Sometimes, especially among people of the same age or profession, it is possible that someone would suggest “dare del tu”, which literally means “using the informal ‘you’ and indicates a switch from formal to informal speech. This transition implies that the relationship has reached a certain level of familiarity or trust, or simply that there is a desire to establish a more personal connection.