Un Estate Italiana – Bilingual Lyrics Italian/English

• By: Gianna Nannini, Edoardo Bennato

Lyrics & Translation

Embark on a journey through the passion of Italian football and summer with "Un'estate italiana." This iconic song, performed by Gianna Nannini and Edoardo Bennato, captures the heart of the 1990 World Cup, offering a blend of pop-rock energy and heartfelt lyrics that embody the spirit of "magical nights" and the universal dream of victory. Learn the language of sport and shared excitement through this timeless anthem.

[English]

Maybe it's not a song

Changing the rules of the game

But I want to live it this way, this adventure

Without borders and with my heart in my throat

And the world spinning in a carnival of colors

And the wind gently caresses the flags

A shiver arrives and pulls you away

And I melt into a hug, madness takes over

Magical nights

Chasing a goal

Under the sky

Of an Italian summer

And in your eyes

The desire to win

A summer

An adventure more

That childhood dream begins

And it keeps taking you further and further

It's not a fairy tale

And from the locker rooms

The boys come out, and it’s us

Oh oh oh oh...

Magical nights

Chasing a goal

Under the sky

Of an Italian summer

And in your eyes

The desire to win

A summer

An adventure more

...

[Italian]

Forse non sara' una canzone

A cambiare le regole del gioco

Ma voglio viverla cosi' quest'avventura

Senza frontiere e con il cuore in gola

E il mondo in una giostra di colori

E il vento accarezza le bandiere

Arriva un brivido e ti trascina via

E sciogli in un abbraccio la follia

Notti magiche

Inseguendo un goal

Sotto il cielo

Di un'estate italiana

E negli occhi tuoi

Voglia di vincere

Un'estate

Un'avventura in piu'

Quel sogno che comincia da bambino

E che ti porta sempre piu' lontano

Non è una favola

-E dagli spogliatoi

Escono i ragazzi e siamo noi

Oh oh oh oh...

Notti magiche

Inseguendo un goal

Sotto il cielo

Di un'estate italiana

E negli occhi tuoi

Voglia di vincere

Un'estate

Un'avventura in piu'

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
canzone /kanˈzone/ A2	noun - song
gioco /ˈdʒoko/ A2	noun - game
cuore /ˈkwɔːre/ A2	noun - heart
mondo /ˈmondo/ A2	noun - world
colore /kɔˈlore/ A2	noun - color
vento /ˈvɛnto/ A2	noun - wind
brivido /ˈbriːvido/ B1	noun - shiver, thrill, shudder
follia /ˈfɔl.lja/ B2	noun - madness, folly
magiche /ˈmadʒike/ B1	adjective - magical, enchanting
goal /goʊl/ A2	noun - aim or objective, scoring in sports
cielo /ˈtʃɛlo/ A2	noun - sky
occhi /ˈɔk.ki/ A2	noun - eyes
vincere /vinˈtʃeːre/ B2	verb - to win, to succeed

Key Grammar Structures

• Senza frontiere e con il cuore in gola

  ➔ Use of prepositions 'senza' (without) and 'con' (with) to express manner or accompaniment.

  ➔ 'Senza' and 'con' are prepositions used to specify manner or accompaniment in Italian.

• Inseguendo un goal

  ➔ Use of the present participle 'inseguendo' (chasing) to form the gerund of the verb 'inseguire'.

  ➔ 'Inseguendo' is the gerund form of 'inseguire', used to describe the ongoing action of chasing.

• E il vento accarezza le bandiere

  ➔ Use of the present tense 'accarezza' (caresses) to describe an ongoing action, and object 'le bandiere' (the flags).

  ➔ 'Accarezza' is the third person singular present tense of 'accarezzare', meaning 'caresses' or 'strokes'.

• E negli occhi tuoi voglia di vincere

  ➔ Use of 'voglia di' (desire to) + infinitive to express desire or longing.

  ➔ 'Voglia di' is a phrase used to express desire or longing to do something, followed by an infinitive verb.

• Quel sogno che comincia da bambino

  ➔ Use of the definite article 'quel' (that) before a noun to specify a particular dream, with 'che' (that) as a relative pronoun.

  ➔ 'Quel' is a demonstrative article meaning 'that' used to specify a particular noun, and 'che' is a relative pronoun meaning 'that/which'.